Lions at Saints: Highlights, score and recap
By John Buhler
The Detroit Lions handle the New Orleans Saints on the road, 28-13. Detroit improves to 8-4 on the year, while New Orleans falls to 5-7 on the season.
It happened. For the first time all season, a Lions game was not decided by seven points or less. Detroit didn’t care that it was playing in a hostile road environment against the Saints in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome. The Lions went out and proved that they are the best time in the NFC North by winning, 28-13 in the Big Easy.
This was a battle of two great quarterbacks between the Lions’ Matthew Stafford and the Saints’ Drew Brees. While both threw for a ton of yards, it would the NFL MVP candidate Stafford that would win the high-profile quarterback battle.
Brees had a miserable day with no touchdown passes and three interceptions. Against a shaky Lions defense at home, this does not bode well for the Saints’ NFC Playoffs chances. They are fortunate that the Atlanta Falcons also lost in the 1:00 p.m. ET. New Orleans remains two back of Atlanta in the NFC South.
Stafford had three passing touchdowns and torched a weak Saints secondary on several drives on Saturday. His favorite target was Golden Tate, who had a game-high 145 receiving yards and one of Stafford’s three touchdowns.
This win for the Lions makes it increasingly difficult for the Minnesota Vikings to win the NFC North. The Vikings are now two back of the Lions in the NFC North standings with four games remaining. Detroit also completed the season sweep of the Vikings this season. This is the best win of the year for the Lions.
Three Stars
- Matthew Stafford: Stafford is a legitimate NFL MVP candidate. He completed 30 of 42 passes for 341 yards, three touchdowns, and no interceptions. Stafford would carry the ball an additional three times for 22 yards.
- Golden Tate: Tate was Stafford’s favorite target on Sunday versus the Saints. He had eight catches for 145 yards and a touchdown.
- Tavon Wilson: Wilson had a big day on the Lions defense. He had four tackles, all solo, and an 18-yard interception return of Brees.
Next Game
The Lions will host their NFC North division rival in the lowly Chicago Bears in Week 14. Kickoff from Ford Field on Sunday, Dec. 11 will be at 1:00 p.m. ET. CBS will have the telecast.
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The Saints have a huge Week 14 matchup on the road against their NFC South rival Tampa Bay. Kickoff from Raymond James Stadium on Sunday, Dec. 11 will be at 4:25 p.m. ET. FOX will have the telecast.