Lions trounce Jaguars, set franchise records in 52-6 win
DETROIT — A week after proving they can overcome a second-half deficit, the Detroit Lions — once again — proved they can play as massive favorites.
Detroit was favored by 13.5 points entering their Week 11 contest against the Jacksonville Jaguars at Ford Field, but a near-perfect performance on both sides of the football rendered that point spread completely obsolete.
The Lions set a new franchise record with 644 yards of offense, scoring a touchdown on their first seven possessions (with 575 yards of offense on those seven possessions) to leave the Jaguars in the dust, 52-6. The Lions extended their winning streak to eight games, their longest winning streak in the Super Bowl era, with their largest margin of victory (38 points) in franchise history.
Detroit became the first team since the 2007 New England Patriots — the last team to finish the regular season undefeated — to score on their first seven possessions. With 52 points scored, the Lions set a new franchise record for most points over a six-game span (232), breaking a record (231) set in 1952. They also set a franchise record for the largest margin of victory (46).
The Lions have scored exactly 52 points in consecutive home games; Detroit beat the Tennessee Titans, 52-14, at Ford Field in Week 8.
The Lions officially clinched a winning record with the victory, marking the earliest they've done so since clinching a winning record on Nov. 11, 1945.
Lions quarterback Jared Goff rebounded from last week's rocky performance in Houston by going 24-for-29 passing for 412 yards (his most ever with the Lions), four touchdowns, zero interceptions and a perfect passer rating of 158.3. He also had a season-high 21 rushing yards for good measure.
Wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown caught all 11 passes thrown his way for 161 yards and two touchdowns, Jameson Williams had four catches for 124 yards and a 64-yard score, David Montgomery had 15 carries for 75 yards and two touchdowns and Jahmyr Gibbs had 11 rushes for 69 yards and a touchdown, plus 54 receiving yards.
Oh, and newly acquired edge rusher Za'Darius Smith sacked Jaguars quarterback Mac Jones in the fourth quarter for his first sack in a Lions uniform — just in case you thought the day couldn't get any better. However, the Lions did suffer a casualty, losing captain and starting linebacker Alex Anzalone to a forearm injury in the second quarter.
When the Lions pulled their offensive starters with 9:53 left in the game, the Lions had a 409-yard advantage over the visitors.
It was the type of trouncing that even the Titans could laugh at. In that game, at least, the Titans could point to a shoddy special-teams unit as being a major reason the final was so lopsided.
This game came down to the Lions' sheer dominance on the offensive and defensive sides of the ball. Jacksonville reached the red zone just once (as of 6:50 in the fourth), resulting in a 35-yard field goal by Jaguars kicker Cam Little.
The Jaguars dinked and dunked their way down the field on their opening drive, traveling 29 yards in nine plays before Little gave Jacksonville a 3-0 lead with a 59-yard field goal. And that was probably the last moment that this legitimately looked like it could be a game.
The Lions also had a nine-play opening drive, but theirs was a little more efficient. Detroit completed a 70-yard drive when Montgomery punched in his ninth touchdown of the season to give the Lions their first lead, 7-3, at 4:59 in the first quarter.
The Lions efficiently traversed the field on their second drive, too. After a quarterback sneak by Goff near midfield kept the possession alive, Jameson Williams caught a 24-yard pass and Gibbs bounced a run outside for 23. Gibbs eventually finished the drive with a 1-yard touchdown run, his ninth of the season.
Amik Robertson table-topped Jaguars running back Travis Etienne for a loss of 3 on the ensuing third-down attempt by Jacksonville. The Lions marched right back the other way — thanks in part to another hook-and-lateral, this one from St. Brown to Williams, before a 5-yard scramble by Goff set up another rushing touchdown for Montgomery, this one from 6 yards out, for a 21-3 Lions lead.
Takeaways from Lions' 52-6 domination of Jaguars, for 8th straight win
The Lions made it a perfect 4-for-4 by turning possessions into points with 2:46 left in the second quarter. After Gibbs took a swing pass for 54 yards on the opening play of the series, Goff found St. Brown three plays later for a 27-yard touchdown to give the Lions a 28-3 advantage. The touchdown extended St. Brown's touchdown record (set a week prior against Houston) to eight games.
Lions linebacker Alex Anzalone and defensive end Za'Darius Smith both had injury scares before halftime. Anzalone was escorted to the locker room and ruled out due to a forearm injury, and Smith returned to action rather quickly. The Jaguars added a field goal before halftime, making it a 28-6 deficit.
Lions captain Alex Anzalone leaves Jaguars game with forearm injury
It didn't take the Lions long to find the end zone again. After getting the ball to start the third quarter, Williams scored a 64-yard touchdown on the fourth play of the drive to put the Lions up, 35-6, with 12:55 left in the third quarter.
Detroit added two more scores with a 5-yard touchdown pass to Brock Wright and a 9-yard touchdown pass to St. Brown, making it a 49-6 game early in the fourth quarter. Lions kicker Jake Bates added a 54-yard field goal to complete the record-setting performance.
Photo gallery from the Lions' 52-6 dismantling of the Jaguars at Ford Field
