Lions’ heinous errors cost them in a 20-16 loss to the Buccaneers, so Jared Goff needs to improve.
In retaliation, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers shut down the Detroit Lions’ explosive offense. The Lions made six trips inside the Tampa red zone before losing to the Buccaneers, 20-16, at Ford Field on Sunday. The Lions won two games against the Bucs last season, including one in the divisional round of the playoffs. On Sunday, Tampa Bay quarterback Baker Mayfield fared better than Lions quarterback Jared Goff. Mayfield executed a brilliant 11-yard quarterback draw to score the game-winning touchdown with 34 seconds left in the third quarter. He threw for 185 yards and one touchdown on 12 of his 19 attempts.
34 of Goff’s 55 passes were completed for 307 yards and two touchdowns. The Bucs forced a turnover on downs with just over a minute left, and on a fourth-and-eight play, he threw short of the sticks. After that, he committed four straight incompletions to end the game (the first being a spike to kill the clock). Despite the fact that Lions kicker Jake Bates went three for three on field goals, the team’s last-minute mistake cost them a field goal attempt and ultimately played a big part in the loss. In an interview conducted before the game, Lions coach Dan Campbell acknowledged his team’s bewilderment.
Jared Goff must improve. Goff needs to perform better than he did on Sunday if the Lions are to make the Super Bowl run that most people think they can. The first pick followed a missed pass interference penalty, so it wasn’t Goff’s fault. He made a bad pass over the middle under pressure, setting up his second goal. Moreover, Goff was given ample opportunity on Sunday to complete two more interceptions and receive an intentional grounding penalty. The QB received a large contract from the Lions this summer, which he deserved for his outstanding performance in leading the team to the NFC championship game the season before. However, increased pay entails greater expectations, and the Lions must their quarterback to pass more frequently and handle the ball more skillfully. Goff can’t play like Patrick Mahomes in a league where quarterbacks are so prevalent or the Lions will keep seeing the same results. The clock killer error for the Detroit Lions After throwing a short pass to Amon-Ra St. Brown with 11 seconds left in the first half of Sunday’s game, Goff was trying to spike the ball as the Lions field-goal team started running onto the field. The Lions paid a heavy price for their poor game management. The Lions had to use a 10-second runoff as part of the punishment since they were out of timeouts. As a result, the club lost 13–6 and scored zero points at the end of the first half.
Late in the game, the Lions had to go for it twice on fourth down inside the field goal range; that sequence cost them. It was an odd mistake for a typically well-coached Lions club, but a major factor in the team’s 1-1 record right now.