All the Detroit Lions do lately is win football games.
The Dan Campbell-led Lions knocked off the Green Bay Packers to secure an NFL-best 12th win Thursday night. Campbell’s fourth down gambles helped lift Detroit to a 34-31 victory.
The fourth-year Lions head coach elected to keep the offense on the field on fourth down five times. But the fifth time in the fourth quarter proved to be the most crucial. Although quarterback Jared Goff tripped during the handoff exchange with running back David Montgomery, the Lions still managed to put Lions kicker Jake Bates in position for a 35-yard field goal attempt.
Bates split the uprights as the final seconds ticked off the clock.
A fired up Campbell addressed the team in the home locker room after the game.
“I told you you’d never forget this f——- game,” Campbell said as Lions players cheered. “We don’t have to talk about how tough we are. We don’t have to talk about how resilient we are. We f—— live it man. We’ve been living it!”
PACKERS HEAD COACH, LIONS FAN SEPARATED ON FIELD BEFORE RIVALRY GAME
At one point during Campbell’s fiery victory speech, he noticed Lions offensive lineman Dan Skipper was leaning over one of the locker room’s trash cans. Skipper took over the Lions starting left tackle duties Thursday in place of the injured Taylor Decker.
“There you go, Skip! Keep throwing up, keep doing whatever you’re doing over there,” Campbell said. “That’s a way to freakin’ lay it on the line.”
Skipper delivered a solid performance, allowing just one pressure on 44 pass blocking plays.
While the Lions have won 12 of 13 games this season, the team has faced its fair share of adversity with injuries.
In October, star defensive lineman Aidan Hutchinson fractured his left tibia and fibula. The injury will likely sideline him for the remainder of the regular season, but he could return to action in February should the Lions advance to the Super Bowl for the first time in franchise history.
“I’m so freaking proud of you. That’s the way to show up,” Campbell said. “You talk about pressure? We live in pressure. That’s where we freaking thrive. You did it again. It doesn’t matter who’s playing for us. It doesn’t matter what’s going on.
“You always find a way to win. This has been in the making, man. This has been in the making. We were all supposed to be here together, man. We’re destined for this. Just stay the course.”
The Lions host the Buffalo Bills Dec. 15.
Follow Fox News Digital’s sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.
Read the full article here
