Detroit Lions – Page 160

Detroit Lions’ Matthew Stafford feels good, not concerned about back issues

ALLEN PARK — Matthew Stafford said he’ll be ready to go for the offseason workouts.

The Detroit Lions quarterback is not worried about his back injury so he’s not sure why it should be an issue going forward.

“I’m not concerned about it, that should make people feel good. I’m the one living with the back. I feel very good about it,’’ Stafford said on Monday during the team locker clean-out period.

The 31-year-old quarterback missed the final eight games of the season with broken bones in his back. Sounds like the same back injury as a year ago, but he said it is not.

He’s confident the back won’t be an issue going forward because of how he feels right now.

Stafford was off to a hot start — on pace for nearly 5,000 passing yards — before he was injured in the loss at the Oakland Raiders.

He said the offense under new coordinator Darrell Bevell felt like a good fit.

“Felt like we were doing some good things, obviously always room for improvement but I was liking the direction we were going in,’’ Stafford said.

He wouldn’t project on when he could play but said he is throwing the ball.

“I feel really good which is good. I’ve had quite a bit of rest and I think I’ll be feeling really, really good pretty darn soon to tell you the truth,’’ Stafford said.

Stafford, who turns 32 in February, just wrapped up his 11th season with the Lions. He doesn’t seem concerned about the window closing on his career.

“I think every offseason is (important). If I was going to be 29 or 28, I wouldn’t come into the offseason thinking ‘Oh, I’ve got years,”’ Stafford said. “When we come back here in April and again for training camp we’re trying to win right now. If that’s not our goal every season then I’m missing something because that’s what I think it is.’’

Detroit Lions: Five key moments from 2019 season

It’s over. The Lions’ 3-12-1 record this season was the worst since 2009 when they went 2-14 in Jim Schwartz’s first season trying to bring the franchise back from the infamous 0-16 season.

This season started with promise. Much was expected of the defense, especially the defensive line.

With a new offensive coordinator in Darrell Bevell, the offense was a bit of an unknown. While the Lions had plenty of issues, the offense wasn’t one of them while Matthew Stafford was healthy.

Five key moments from the season:

1. When Matthew Stafford got crunched in the 31-24 loss at the Oakland Raiders on Nov. 3 it changed everything. Stafford, who had started 136 straight games, broke bones in his back and missed the final eight games of the season. Backup QB Jeff Driskel started three games before he was injured. Then rookie David Blough started the final five games. When Stafford went out the Lions were 3-3-1. Without him, they didn’t win another game. He wasn’t the only injured player — there were plenty — but his absence was the most consequential.

2. The fourth-quarter loss to Packers on Oct. 14. The Lions led 22-13 heading into the fourth and then Green Bay’s Allen Lazard caught a 35-yard touchdown pass from Aaron Rodgers with 7:31 left. The Lions could get nothing going when they got the ball back and were forced to punt. Green Bay’s Mason Crosby kicked a 23-yard field goal to win the game with two seconds left on the clock. It was a gut punch. A win would have given the Lions a 3-1-1 record. Instead they fell to 2-2-1 and could never recover. Oddly enough Crosby’s field goal with time running out on Sunday at Ford Field, gave the Packers a 23-20 win. Green Bay never led in those two games until the field goals.

3. The 34-30 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs at Ford Field was back in Week 4 but could have shifted the momentum of the season to the Lions’ favor. Again, the Lions led 30-27 with two minutes left but the defense allowed a rushing touchdown that proved to be the game winner. Sense a trend? These Lions were horrid in the fourth quarter on offense and defense. In seven games they held fourth-quarter leads and lost.

4. Safety Quandre Diggs, who had struggled a bit early in the season, was traded to Seattle on Oct. 22. Diggs, who was voted a captain by his teammates, was a leader in the locker room and popular with players on offense too. Yes, the NFL is a business. But the timing of a trade like this was suspect. The Lions were 2-3-1. Lions players were careful to watch their words when speaking of the deal, but it’s clear it was a blow to the defense. This is a trade that could be made by the Patriots without anyone blinking an eye. Once the Lions have won six Super Bowls, maybe that would be the case in Detroit. But not now. The Lions went 1-9 after the Diggs’ trade.

5. Owner Martha Firestone Ford announced on Dec. 17 that GM Bob Quinn and coach Matt Patricia would return for a third season. She expects the team to be a playoff contender in 2020. This deadline of sorts could definitely affect how they approach free agency and the draft. Mrs. Ford is running out of patience (and who can blame her). The expectations are now clear.

BONUS: Kerryon Johnson played in the first six games before injuring his ankle in the home loss to the Vikings on Oct. 20 and was placed on injured reserve. He was off to a solid start with 308 yards and a pair of touchdowns after missing the final four games of the 2018 season. He came back for the final two games and scored a touchdown in Sunday’s loss to the Packers. Paired with Bo Scarbrough (who emerged after Johnson went on IR) they could be the one-two punch the Lions so desperately need in the run game for next year. There’s always next year.

Five keys to Detroit Lions’ 23-20 loss to Green Bay Packers

DETROIT — Absolutely fitting that the Detroit Lions wrapped up the disappointing season by leading the Green Bay Packers for the entire game until Mason Crosby kicked the game-winning field goal as time ran out.

The Packers earned a first-round bye with the 23-20 win over the Lions at Ford Field on Sunday. The Lions lost their ninth straight game and finished with 3-12-1, their worst record since 2009 (2-14). Matt Patricia is 9-22-1 in his first two seasons. On a positive note, they are guaranteed at least the No. 3 pick in the draft.

Once again Patricia said he was proud of his team.

“The team fought as hard as we could, we really tried to do everything we could to give ourselves a chance, obviously we needed to make a couple more plays, give Green Bay credit they made some plays at the end especially that they needed to to win,” Patricia said. “I think this team, like I’ve said all year and today was another great example of how hard this team works, how hard they fight.’’

With so many injuries he played guys in different positions just to get through.

“I’m proud of the toughness of this team, I think it’s the foundation of what we’re looking for — I think we want to be tough, we want to be a team that competes, we want to be a team that goes out and works hard every day,’’ the coach added.

Five keys to the loss:

1. The Lions defense kept Aaron Rodgers in check in the first half when Rodgers went just 6 of 18 got 90 yards. The Lions held a 17-3 lead heading into the third quarter, but Rodgers came back in the second half on fire and looked more like the quarterback of a 13-3 team.

2. Once again, the Lions could not hold a fourth-quarter lead. It was the seventh game Detroit has lost when holding the lead in the fourth quarter. Finishing is an issue on both sides of the ball. The Lions knew it but didn’t have any answers.

3. Green Bay placekicker Mason Crosby was just 2 of 3 on field goals on Sunday, but had no problem with the game winner of 33 yards. This is the second game this season that Crosby has beaten the Lions by kicking a field goal as time ran out. On Oct. 14, the Packers beat the Lions 23-22 at Green Bay with the same scenario.

4. Rookie quarterback David Blough, in his fifth start, had a solid effort (12-29, 122 yards) and looked like he might be on his way to his first win. But in the fourth quarter he threw a pass intended for Chris Lacy but it was so short it was easily intercepted by Blake Martinez. The Lions were at midfield with about eight minutes left and a 20-13 lead. But on the ensuing possession, Rodgers marched the Packers down to Detroit’s 28-yard line and then threw a touchdown pass to Allen Lazard. The extra point tied the game. The Lions got possession twice more, but had to punt both times. Rodgers was able to get in field goal range. It was the difference in the game.

5. Matt Prater kicked two key field goals including one of 56 yards to keep the Lions in the game. Prater moved past Jason Hanson into second place all time in the NFL for most 50-yard or longer field goals with 53.

UP NEXT: A long offseason.