Jared Goff leads Lions in revenge win over Rams

DETROIT — Led by quarterback Jared Goff, the Detroit Lions nabbed their first home playoff win since 1991 with a 24-23 win over the Los Angeles Rams at Ford Field.

Sunday’s wild-card round win came at the expense of former Lions (now Rams) QB Matthew Stafford in his return to Detroit. Both teams came out firing in the first half with the Lions carrying a 21-17 lead into halftime.

The Lions entered the playoffs as the No. 3 seed and will play the winner of the “Monday Night Football” matchup between the Philadelphia Eagles and Tampa Bay Buccaneers (8:15 p.m. ET, ABC/ESPN/ESPN+) in the divisional round next weekend.

For the first time in three decades, the Lions hosted a home playoff game in Detroit and the sold-out atmosphere was electric. With a plethora of ex-players and celebrities cheering them on, the Lions held off the Rams to end the NFL’s longest active playoff victory drought. They hadn’t won a playoff game since defeating the Dallas Cowboys in the 1991 divisional round.

Promising trend: Defensive end Aidan Hutchinson continued his stellar play. Hutchinson ended the regular season with five sacks in the final two games and put plenty of pressure on Stafford, recording two sacks and four QB hits.

Biggest hole in the game plan: Defensively, the secondary was picked apart by Stafford in the first half. During the regular season, the Lions allowed seven passing TDs of 25-plus air yards, the second most behind the Washington Commanders (11). On Sunday they gave up two to the Rams. Stafford threw a 50-yard touchdown pass to receiver Puka Nacua and a 38-yard touchdown to receiver Tutu Atwell.

QB breakdown: Chants of “Jared Goff” echoed throughout the building ahead of the kickoff as the fans gave him his respect prior to facing the quarterback (Stafford) he was traded for in 2021. Through the first two drives of the game, Goff was 9-of-9 and had not been pressured nor left the pocket while averaging 5.3 air yards per attempt. Goff would end the night with 277 passing yards, while going 22-for-27 with a touchdown. — Eric Woodyard

Next game: vs. winner of Eagles/Buccaneers (3 p.m. ET, Sunday, Jan. 21)

In the week leading up to the game, Stafford said several times that while he was excited to return to Ford Field, he was most excited that the Rams were playing a playoff game of any kind after most outside of the building didn’t think they had a chance to make the postseason.

Stafford’s return to Detroit — his first game at Ford Field since he was traded to the Rams — did not have a fairytale ending for the Rams quarterback, who did not throw a touchdown in the second half.

Stafford completed 25 of 36 passes for 367 yards and two touchdowns with a passer rating of 120.9 in a game the Rams never led.

Silver lining: The Rams continued to get production out of rookie fifth-round pick Puka Nacua, who had nine catches for 181 yards and a touchdown. Nacua set the record for most receiving yards by a rookie in NFL playoff history, according to ESPN Stats & Information.

Troubling trend: The Rams were 0-of-3 in the red zone against the Lions, going 0-for in the red zone in a game for the first time this season.

Biggest hole in the game plan: Goff was a perfect 22-of-22 for 277 yards and a touchdown when he was not pressured. That is the most such attempts without an incompletion in a playoff start since ESPN began tracking pressures in 2009. On the flip side, Goff was 0-of-5 with three sacks when pressured. Those eight dropbacks under pressure without a completion are tied for Goff’s career high. — Sarah Barshop

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