The Detroit Lions hosted the Los Angeles Rams in the season opener for both teams on Sunday Night Football. It was a rematch of Detroit’s win over Los Angeles in the NFC Wild Card Playoffs last season.
Much like what we saw in January inside Ford Field, the two teams were evenly matched. Detroit opened a 17-3 lead in the third quarter before Los Angeles scored 17 consecutive. A late field goal from Lions kicker Jake Bates sent it to overtime. That’s when David Montgomery took over, scoring the winning touchdown in the process. In the end, Detroit came out on top by the score of 26-20 over the Rams. Here, we look at the five biggest winners and losers from the game.
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Kupp was not his typical self during last season’s loss to Detroit in the NFC Wild Card Playoffs. He was hampered by injury, catching just five passes for 27 yards on nine targets. It obviously impacted Matthew Stafford and Co. big time.
This was not the case Sunday night, as Kupp absolutely dominated the Lions’ secondary. He tallied 14 catches for 110 yards on 21 targets. That included what ended up being a go-ahead nine-yard touchdown catch in the fourth quarter. Yeah, Kupp is fully back. That’s for sure.
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The Rams had to rely on this rookie third-round pick from Miami (F) at times Sunday night. It was not an ideal scenario for the defensive back. Unfortunately, he made a major mistake at the end of regulation. It led to Detroit tying up the game and forcing overtime.
Kinchens led with the crown of his helmet when attempting a tackle on Lions tight end Sam LaPorta. The end result was a 15-yard penalty, helping Detroit get into field goal range. The rest is history. It’s one of the setbacks that comes with having to play youngsters. It also cost Los Angeles dearly on Sunday.
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The Rams have certainly seen enough of David Montgomery. He scored a touchdown against them back in January, and was up to his old tricks in Detroit Sunday night. A game that saw Los Angeles hold Jahmyr Gibbs to 40 rushing yards also included Montgomery going off late.
Detroit’s 80-yard touchdown drive in overtime saw Montgomery carry it five times for 45 yards, including the game-winning touchdown. This is what makes Detroit so hard to defend. The ability of multiple running backs to do their thing. The Rams werre certainly missing Aaron Donald in this one.
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Matthew Stafford had to drop back 51 times Sunday night. Sure, the Rams had success through the air. But they didn’t have anywhere near the balance that Sean McVay hoped for heading in. It started with this dynamic young back.
Williams went for just 50 yards on 18 attempts, averaging a mere 2.8 yards per tote. The dual-threat back also caught three passes for four yards in the loss. He just did not have it against the Lions’ defensive front.
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Winner: Jameson Williams, Detroit Lions
If Williams continues to play like what we saw Sunday night, the Lions’ offense is going to be a juggernaut this season. He more than took advantage of the Rams’ injury-plagued cornerback group on Sunday, with big play after big play.
That included an awesome 52-yard touchdown pass from former Rams quarterback Jared Goff to give Detroit a two-touchdown lead. All said, the former first-round pick caught five passes for 121 yards and a touchdown in the best performance of his career.