The scoreboard read six points, but the difference between the Rams and Detroit Lions was considerably greater on Sunday night.
One game into the season and the Rams are already handicapped and injured. That they could not only hang in there, but give Detroit such a scare, was a testament to their experience and determination.
As for the Lions, they are finally good enough to start counting style points. Simply winning — as they did in their 26-20 overtime victory — is no longer enough. Their standards have changed.
So there were no ear-to-ear smiles in the Detroit locker room after that game. The Lions were vaguely disgruntled, even if they did once again dismiss the Rams — with all the history of quarterbacks Matthew Stafford and Jared Goff — as they did in the NFC wild-card game here in January.
At least some Lions felt the game should never have gone to overtime, that they should have delivered the knockout blow much sooner. That said, they were pleased with the way the game was decided, with Detroit’s offensive line finally imposing its will on a depleted Rams defense. Eight plays, seven runs, David Montgomery charging into the end zone from a yard out to end it.
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“The whole game was frustrating,” Lions guard Graham Glasgow said. “It felt a little weird, so it was nice to go into overtime there and every play we called worked. It just felt good. The fits were good. It was a satisfying end to a very frustrating game.”
In another era, we’d be peeling the Lions off the ceiling. This is a franchise that has never been to the Super Bowl and, before beating the Rams eight months ago, hadn’t won a playoff game in 32 years.
The Lions reached the NFC title game last season. A reshuffle in the 2024 schedule has them playing all three teams they faced in the 2023 playoffs. And they’re even better in a number of ways.
In Jameson Williams, who had nine catches against the Rams, they have a dangerous complement to Amon-Ra St. Brown. Detroit added defensive end Marcus Davenport, a bookend to Aidan Hutchinson, who can dent a pocket like he’s crushing a beer can. And they upgraded their secondary with three new starters.
The next test comes Sunday, with a home game against Tampa Bay, a team the Lions defeated in the divisional round last season.
The Rams were like Monty Python’s Black Knight — It’s just a scratch! — and somehow kept moving the ball despite losing left tackle Joe Noteboom, left guard Steve Avila and star receiver Puka Nacua. (Their offensive line had already been assembled before those injuries.) They survived on muscle memory, thanks in large part to the play of Stafford, who was composed and accurate, and the often elusive Cooper Kupp, who caught 14 balls.
On defense, the Rams made their share of big plays, including an interception of Goff by safety John Johnson III. It was Johnson, remember, who made the game-winning interception in New Orleans that sent Goff and the Rams to the Super Bowl in the 2018 season.
That the Rams have already been forced to reshuffle their offensive line is a bad sign, as they travel to Arizona on Sunday. The Cardinals are coming off a 34-28 loss at Buffalo, but gave the Bills more trouble than many expected. Demarcus Robinson stepped down Sunday night, and Stafford got some solid production from tight ends Colby Parkinson and Tyler Johnson, but Nacua’s availability is crucial.
While they didn’t have robust passer ratings, Goff (85.0) and Stafford (85.2) reminded everyone how valuable it is to have a steady hand at the position. While quarterbacks around the league have been all over the place in their performance — half the league seems to test newcomers — the two picked up where they left off in the playoffs on Sunday night.
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“Those two guys are just so great,” said Lions center Frank Ragnow, who has snapped at both of them. “Both consistent guys that work their asses off.”
Stafford was beloved in Detroit when he played here, and Goff — once seen as a seatholder outside the franchise until someone better came along — had worked his way into the hearts of Lions fans. He’s a rock star in this city.
Lions fans may have loved him, but Goff wasn’t so enamored with his play against his old team.
“We had some plays there that we could have had,” he said. “I’ve got to be better with the cadence for our guys and be a little more flexible with the operational stuff. That alone would solve a lot of our problems. It wasn’t our smoothest, but a win is a win. We’ve got to be happy with it.”
Not dizzy. Not flashy. Not content.
Only 1-0.
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This story originally appeared in the Los Angeles Times.
