Detroit Lions Win Thriller Over Indianapolis Colts In Opener
The Detroit Lions survived a comeback attempt from the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday, winning 39-35 in the season opener.
The Detroit Lions nearly blew it against the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday, but held on after losing a 21-3 lead to win 39-35 in their season opener, driving the length of the field in the final 37 seconds to kick the game-winning field goal.
The Rundown
Detroit could do no wrong in the early part of the game. The Lions opened the scoring on a 21-yard run by Theo Riddick to cap off a nine-play, 80-yard drive in the first quarter and Dwayne Washington scored on a one-yard plunge at the end of a 15-play, 82-yard drive in the second quarter to give the Lions a 14-0 lead.
A 50-yard field goal by Adam Vinatieri put the Colts on the board, but the Lions responded with their third long touchdown drive of the half, scoring on a six-yard throw from Matthew Stafford to Eric Ebron with 1:37 left in the half. The Colts put it right back, however, going the length of the field without a timeout and scoring on a two-yard pass from Andrew Luck to Donte Moncrief to cut the lead to 21-10 at halftime, eliciting fears that the 2015 season opener—which the Lions lost on the road to the San Diego Chargers after dominating the first half and leading 21-10 at halftime—was repeating itself.
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Those fears were not calmed after the Lions went three-and-out on their first possession of the half, which was followed by a Colts touchdown on a 19-yard throw from Luck to Dwayne Allen. Indianapolis converted a two-point attempt to further cut the lead to 21-18. An 11-yard Ameer Abdullah touchdown reception gave the Lions a ten-point lead in the third quarter, but the Colts scored ten unanswered points on a 40-yard Vinatieri field goal and 16-yard Jack Doyle touchdown reception to tie the game at 28 with 8:19 left in the fourth.
The Lions responded by putting together their fifth long touchdown drive of the game to take the lead. However, Matt Prater‘s extra point sailed wide right and the Lions led 34-28 with 4:15 left in the fourth. Luck and the Colts made the most of their opportunity, driving the length of the field and scoring on a six-yard touchdown pass from Luck to Doyle, Doyle’s second touchdown of the game. Vinatieri’s extra point put the Colts ahead, 35-34, with 37 seconds left in the game.
The Lions would lay the last blow, though. Stafford led the offense on a furious five-play, 50-yard drive in 33 seconds to set up Prater’s game-winning 43-yard field goal to put the Lions ahead for good. The Colts would have one more chance on a kickoff return, but their attempt at a miracle lateral play yielding only an illegal forward pass in the endzone, which scored a safety for the Lions and made the final score 39-35.
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