Cowboys vs. Lions final score: Lions win close one, 31-30
By Corey Leahy
What. A. Game.
Sunday’s match up between the Dallas Cowboys and Detroit Lions got as close as anyone could have asked for. It was a great game for anyone watching, both live on the field and on TV.
Both teams had amazing performances, but ultimately, the Lions came out on top, thanks to a game-winning drive led by Matthew Stafford. The first half wasn’t too eventful, with Dallas leading 10-7 going into halftime. The second half is where the magic happened.
For the Cowboys, Tony Romo didn’t have an outstanding game, but by no means did he have a poor performance. He completed 14 of 30 passes for 204 yards and three touchdowns, with no interceptions.
The running game didn’t go the way Dallas had hoped, as their rushing leader, Joseph Randle, had 14 carries for just 26 yards. As usual, Dez Bryant showed us why he is one of the best receivers in the game. He was targeted six times, but only caught three passes. However, he had 72 yards and two touchdowns on top of that, so Bryant had a good day.
Detroit’s stats definitely looked a lot better on paper than Dallas’ did. Under center, quarterback Matthew Stafford completed 33 of 48 passes, for 488 yards, one touchdown, and two picks. Almost 3/4 of those yards went to Calvin Johnson, as he had a remarkable day.
He caught 14 passes, for a whopping 329 yards, just seven short of the single game record for most receiving yards. Running back Reggie Bush had 21 carries for 92 yards ad a score as well.
This game wasn’t just a battle of stats however. The Lions were down by as much as 10 points in the fourth quarter, but found a way to win it with a game-winning drive. With just over a minute to play (1:02), Stafford and the Lions were facing a 6 point deficit, as they were losing 30-24.
After the kickoff, the Lions began to get to the end zone. Stafford found receiver Kris Durham for 22 yards. Once placed on the 25 yard line, Stafford found Calvin Johnson down the middle and Johnson got to the 1 yard line.
After the completion, Stafford got his team to the 1 yard line as fast as possible, because the team had no time outs left. Stafford then proceeded to switch up the play, because he was making motions like he was going to spike the ball down.
When it looked like they were ready to stop the clock, Stafford got the ball and leaped over the plane of the end zone for the touchdown; it was a play that confused everyone but Stafford. Here’s what the final play looked like:
[H/T: GIFD Sports]
Once the ruling on the field was confirmed, David Akers kicked the extra point to take the lead with :12 left on the clock. The Cowboys tried a weird play after the kickoff, as they attempted to lateral it to the next player, but the team was eventually caught, and brought down.
Throughout the second half, the game looked like it as going to end with Dallas coming out on top, but the exact opposite happened.
The Cowboys will go back to Dallas next week where they will face the Minnesota Vikings, while the Lions will travel to Chicago to take on the Bears.