The Detroit Lions defeated the Green Bay Packers 34-31 on Thursday night in a thrilling matchup that came down to a gutsy fourth-down call from Lions coach Dan Campbell.
Detroit faced a fourth-and-1 from Green Bay's 21-yard line with about 30 seconds left. Most coaches would have opted to kick the field goal and give the Packers the ball back with a chance to win or tie the game. Clearly not one to be deterred, Campbell decided to go for it, and the Lions picked up the first down and the win.
Campbell's nerve-wracking decision shocked, or at the very least excited, those online, but according to Detroit quarterback Jared Goff, Campbell had let the team know ahead of time exactly what he planned to do in a situation like that.
"We discussed during the week that we were going to be pretty aggressive on that," Goff said to the Amazon Prime Video postgame crew. "Dan let us know early in the week that, 'Hey offense, we’re putting this thing on your shoulders. If there’s a chance to go for it on fourth, we’re going to do it.'"
The Lions have an aggressive mentality. 😤 pic.twitter.com/1CPnKEd0Ox
— NFL on Prime Video (@NFLonPrime) December 6, 2024
In a separate conversation, Lions wide receiver Tim Patrick echoed what Goff said about Campbell's strategy. "He let us know before the game that, 'Hey, if we close, we going for it.' So with the type of game it was, we knew it was a must-have and we just went out there and executed."
Overall, Detroit converted on four out of five fourth-down attempts in Thursday night's game alone. Two of those ended in touchdowns. The team has now won 11 straight games—a franchise record—and successfully clinched a playoff berth.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Jared Goff Says Dan Campbell Made Lions' Strategy vs. Packers Clear Before Game.
