New York Giants vs Detroit Lions Match Player Stats On Sep 08, 2014

SportsDirect Inc. staff
Sep 8, 2014

Lions 35, Giants 14: Matthew Stafford and Calvin Johnson teamed up for a pair of first-quarter touchdowns and host Detroit never looked back as it throttled New York in the season opener for both teams.

Stafford completed 22-of-32 passes for 346 yards and also ran for a score while Johnson made seven catches for 164 yards for the Lions (1-0), who have won four straight season openers. Joique Bell finished with 15 carries for 51 yards and a touchdown while Golden Tate hauled in six passes for 93 yards in his debut for Detroit.

Eli Manning was 18-of-33 for 163 yards with a TD and two interceptions for the Giants (0-1), who suffered their fourth consecutive season-opening loss as they struggled with their new-look West Coast offense. Larry Donnell made five catches for 56 yards and a score while Rashad Jennings ran for 46 yards and a touchdown on 16 carries.

After connecting with Johnson for a 67-yard score on Detroit's first possession, Stafford scrambled on third-and-13 before slinging the ball to the superstar receiver in the end zone for an early 14-0 lead. Stafford was 7-of-8 for 149 yards and the two TDs on the first two drives in Jim Caldwell's first game as Lions coach.

New York halved the deficit with the only score of the second quarter, a pass from Manning to Donnell on fourth-and-goal just over two minutes into the period for the tight end's first career touchdown. Detroit dominated the third as Nate Freese kicked his first two career field goals and Stafford scored on a 5-yard run to make it 27-7 before Jennings found the end zone from a yard out early in the fourth to get the Giants within two scores, but Bell sealed the win with a 3-yard TD run with 4:39 remaining.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Detroit had not opened a game with two touchdown drives since 1990 against Tampa Bay. ... Giants DE Jason Pierre-Paul left the contest early in the first quarter with an apparent neck injury but was back on the field in the second. ... The Lions halted their three-game losing streak in the all-time series as they posted their largest margin of victory in a season opener since 1980.