Tampa Bay Buccaneers – Page 3

Detroit Lions headed to NFC Championship after 31-23 win over Tampa Bay Bucs

DETROIT — It is not a dream.

The Detroit Lions, who have dwelled in the NFL basement for far too long, came through with a 31-23 win over the Tampa Bay Bucs in an NFL divisional round game on Sunday to advance to the NFC Championship game next Sunday at San Francisco.

The Lions, your Lions, are one win away from playing in the Super Bowl.

“Here we are, sitting one of the last four teams. That was – that’s the type of game that I envisioned against Tampa,” coach Dan Campbell said. “I mean, that’s an outstanding team. That’s a hot team. We knew it was going to come down to the end.”

It had not completely sunk in with the players after the last bit of confetti had fallen from the Ford Field rafters.

“Frank (Ragnow) said it to me when we got in the locker room, ‘We’re playing in the NFC Championship.’ Of course we always work for this and towards this, but it’s here and it’s real. It’s kind of surreal in a sense,’’ said left tackle Taylor Decker, who was drafted by the Lions in 2016 and has experienced plenty of heartache.

Coach Dan Campbell has believed in this bunch all along. He repeatedly has said throughout the season that they “were built for this.”

“Dan talks about it all the time. This team was built a certain way for a reason,’’ Decker said. “And everybody in this locker room was hand-selected to be here. It’s a special group.”

They are not done. It’s back to work on Monday to prepare for the 49ers who defeated the Packers in a divisional game on Saturday night.

Five reasons the Lions won:

1.Let’s start with the very end. Linebacker Derrick Barnes intercepted Baker Mayfield on a second-and-5 from Tampa’s 15-yard line with 1:33 remaining and the Bucs down by 8 points. It sealed the win, allowing Jared Goff to go on the field for the victory formation – just like last week against the Rams. Aidan Hutchinson said it wasn’t the call played. Barnes said he wanted to see if Mayfield was going to throw the dagger behind him. “I turned around and I see the ball coming and I was like, ‘There’s no way I’m going to drop this.’’ He was so emotional he doesn’t even remember getting to the sideline. He said when the ball hit his hands and he dropped to the turf, his first thoughts were: “What the hell just happened? First career interception, my son’s first game, a lot of emotions out there.”

2. Lions quarterback Jared Goff stayed patient. The Lions managed just 10 points in the first half, but came away with three second-half touchdowns. “It was huge, especially because we know that defense is very stingy. They have a great group especially against the run. We knew we might have to soften a little with the pass to open up the run game,’’ Decker said. “It’s one of those things, you keep chopping, keep hammering. Those 2-, 3-yard gains in the run game are going to go to 10-yard gains.’’ And that’s exactly what happened. Goff completed 30 of 43 passes for 287 yards and a pair of touchdowns. “Goff made – I mean, fourth quarter, he really showed up there and made some big throws. And we knew we needed to throw the ball to move it today,” Campbell said. “That was – we went out there to Tampa and I’ve said this before, it was like swinging a sledgehammer against a steel door. I mean, we were just over and over and over. And so, we knew we needed to loosen them up before we started to run it and we did that.”

3. When it mattered the most, the defense came up big. Mayfield was sacked four times — Aidan Hutchingon (1), Brian Branch (1), Ifeatu Melifonwu (1.5) and Jalen Reeves-Maybin (.5). While Tampa won the battle in total yards – 408 to 391, the Bucs were just 4-12 on third downs and were held to just 89 rushing yards. They also had eight quarterback hits and two interceptions (Barnes and C.J. Gardner-Johnson).

4. In big games it’s key for the best players to be at their best. It happened for the Lions with wide receivers Amon-Ra St. Brown (8 receptions, 77 yards, 1 touchdown), tight end Sam LaPorta (9 catches, 65 yards) and running back Jahmyr Gibbs (9 carries, 74 yards, 1 touchdown and four catches for 40 yards). They had help which is what makes this Lions team special. WR Josh Reynolds and running back Craig Reynolds each scored a touchdown..

5. The game was not too big for the Lions, a young NFL team. Give Dan Campbell credit for his belief in this team. Look at the rookies – Gibbs, LaPorta and Brian Branch – they play like veterans. They got their first taste of the postseason a week ago in another close game, they digested it all, and came out firing on all cylinders on Sunday with a performance that will be remembered for a long time.

UP NEXT: NFC Championship Game with Lions at 49ers, Sunday, Jan. 28 at 6:30 p.m.

NFL divisional round: Lions, Bucs much different than in their first meeting

Notes: LaPorta continues to improve; no apologies for physicality

ALLEN PARK — While this will be the second meeting this season between the Detroit Lions and the Tampa Bay Bucs. The Lions are six-point favorites, but there is no such thing as a cakewalk in the NFL playoffs.

In Week 6, the Lions defeated the Bucs, 20-6, at Tampa Bay.

“This is a better team than where we faced them, but we’re better too,’’ Lions coach Dan Campbell said on Wednesday.

Since then both teams have evolved.

“It’s so long ago and they’re such a different team and so are we. … It’s different teams, it’s different time of the year, it’s a different location,’’ Lions quarterback Jared Goff said. “There’s a lot of differences there, but I know they’re a good team and a good defense.’’’

The Bucs finished the season hot, winning five of their last regular season games and then beat the Eagles, 32-9, to earn the chance to play in this divisional round.

In that first game — the start of a four-game losing streak Tampa Bay — the Lions defense held the Bucs to two field goals and their run game to just 46 yards. Goff was 30 of 44 for 353 yards with two touchdowns. The Lions were without Jahmyr Gibbs and had trouble running the ball.

“They’re good, really good. They were really good when we played them the first time and made it hard on us,’’ Goff said. “We’ll have our hands full, they’ve been playing well.’’

The Lions won their first playoff game in 32 years when they beat the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday at Ford Field. Because the Packers upset the Cowboys, Detroit earned another home game.

‘It’s not dirty, it’s how we hit’

The Lions defense is physical and tough. They say it’s not dirty football, it’s how the Lions play.

Rams tight end Tyler Higbee tore his ACL as a result of a tackle from Lions safety Kerby Joseph in Detroit’s wildcard win on Sunday.

Kerby has been under some criticism around the NFL for the physical way he plays. Week ago he was also involved in a tackle that resulted in a torn ACL for Vikings tight end T.J. Hockenson.

On ‘X’ Joseph defended himself saying the NFL doesn’t allow hitting up high so he had no choice.

Dan Campbell offered no apologies on Wednesday.

“That’s how we play football here, just keep your head up, see what you hit. That’ll always be what I tell Kerby, just keep your eyes up so you don’t hit on the crown of your helmet and you hit spine, you mess yourself up,’’ Campbell said. “He’s going for the thigh board and staying away from the head. That’s how we play defense here. It’s not dirty, it’s how we hit.’’

LaPorta coming along

Sam LaPorta, who hyperextended his knee in Week 18, healed enough to play against the Rams..

“I was impressed, he helped us. He was not 100 percent, but he helped us win that game,’’ Campbell said. “He did exactly what we needed him to do for that game and he’s coming along. He’s gotten better, he feels better than he did at this time last week. That’s encouragaing.’’

The rookie tight end had three catches on three targets — one for a touchdown.

Campbell said of course they wouldn’t have played him if there was a chance of further damage to his knee.

“For a young player who doesn’t know what this is and is not 100 percent, knew he could get this done and he could help us,’’ Campbell said. “That goes a long way, that’s not an easy thing for a young player.’’

UP NEXT: Buccaneers at Lions in divisional round, 3 p.m. on Sunday at Ford Field.

Lions lose in embarrassing fashion to Tampa Bay Bucs

After the embarrassing 47-7 loss to the Tampa Bay Bucs, the Detroit Lions can look for answers but it’s unlikely that they will find them with just one week left in the season.

Saturday’s loss was the worst mix of bad luck and lack of talent for the Lions. NFL COVID quarantine rules kept interim coach Darrell Bevell, defensive coordinator Cory Undlin and other defensive assistants out of the game.

“We’re not going to make any excuses, we had our team, they had their team and they outperformed us today,’’ said interim interim coach Robert Prince who filled in for Bevell.

Quarterback Matthew Stafford rolled his right ankle in the first quarter and was not able to return.

And, Bucs quarterback Tom Brady ate his Wheaties for breakfast or whatever the equivalent is on his organic, plant-based, nutrient rich TB12 diet. He was on fire with four touchdown passes and a perfect 158.3 rating. He was replaced by Blaine Gabbert early in the third in a smart move by Bucs coach Bruce Arians. The game was over.

The Lions (5-10) have already started the search for a permanent head coach and a general manager. If any candidates watched Saturday’s mess, they might take a hard pass on moving to Detroit or even visiting for an interview.

“On offense we couldn’t’ stay on the field and on defense we couldn’t get off the field,’’ Prince said. “I think our defense played hard and had an opportunity to get off the field early in that first drive, it got extended (due to a LIons’ penalty) and they ended up getting a few more plays.’’

The Lions defense stinks. Has been bad all season — it cost Matt Patricia and Bob Quinn their jobs. Saturday’s abysmal showing didn’t just happen because Undlin was on COVID quarantine. It would have been bad no matter what.

They gave up more points than they had all season. And to top that, the LIons defense gave up 588 yards which is a franchise record. The previous high was 566 yards in a game against Kansas City in 1990.

“I would not just blame the defense by any means, it’s a team game. Obviously it was great to get that score by the special teams to come through,’’ Prince said regarding Jamal Agnew’s punt return for a touchdown. “Offensively we have to stay on the field, if we’re not on the field very long for offense and the defense has to stay on obviously it’s going to be tough for them and they’re going to wear out. It was a team loss and it started with me.’’

The offense can be decent. We’ve seen good signs with Bevell making the calls without Matt Patricia in his ear. But Stafford is the engine that runs it and he was out early. He couldn’t even put weight on his foot at first. He hopped into the locker room on one leg, a move he might have picked up from his 3-year-old twins.

So the offense was nowhere near decent on Saturday, converting just one of 10 third-down attempts. They were held scoreless and to just 186 total yards.

Stafford is still dealing with injured ribs. Too soon to know if he will be healthy enough to play next Sunday against the Vikings. He’s tough and will want to play, don’t bet against him.

It’s a sad situation for the Lions. The Bucs were able to take advantage of the Lions many weaknesses. It’s almost the end of a lousy year and this nightmare of a game was one of the worst this season.

Prince said he didn’t think it was a hopeless situation, but from this seat it certainly looked like it.

(Up next: Minnesota Vikings at Lions, 1 p.m., Sunday, Jan. 3)

(Photo courtesy of Detroit Lions)