It’s Sunday night and the night ends with arguably the best game on the entire NFL Week 6 slate. The Detroit Lions (4-1) and Kansas City Chiefs (2-3) are two of the best teams in the NFL.
Don’t let the Chiefs’ record fool you. They’re starting to figure things out on offense, and even if the defense isn’t up to their standards, it’s only a matter of time before legendary defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo figures things out. And for all their current struggles, they are still currently ranked sixth in the NFL in DVOA efficiency, while also being top-six in EPA/offensive playmaking.
This could be a handful of problems for Detroit’s battered defense. The Lions are missing two starting cornerbacks, a reserve cornerback, a starting nickelback, and both safeties, while active, are battling injuries that have kept them out of most practices this week.
Then again, the Lions have a very good offense of their own. Entering Week 6, the Lions led the league in points scored. Jared Goff is keeping busy and putting up MVP numbers. Jahmyr Gibbs continues to show why he is one of the best running backs in the league. And Amon-Ra St. Brown apparently can’t be stopped.
So who comes out on top in this heavyweight matchup? I’m sick here to find out. We will update this article as soon as the game kicks off at 8:20 p.m. ET on NBC. This article will feature player-by-play recaps, game highlights, and score updates through the end of the game. Just head over to this page and keep refreshing during the action.
The Detroit Lions won the toss and elected to receive, a change of strategy. After a few runs, the Lions faced a third-and-5 on their first series. Jared Goff calmly found a wide-open Sam LaPorta for an 11-yard gain to keep the drive alive. A pair of passes to Jameson Williams gained 22 yards and put the Lions in field goal territory. From there, the Lions turned to their running game. Jahmyr Gibbs converted a third down, then drove the team inside the 10-yard line with a decent pickup. Facing a third-and-goal from the 2-yard line, the Lions missed by a yard. Obviously the Lions elected to go for it and they seemed to convert with a nifty play throw to Goff.
However, Goff committed an illegal move on the play and, after a conversation, the officials threw the flag. Detroit then chose to settle for a field goal and Jake Bates drilled it from 28 yards out. 3-0 Lions.
While the Lions’ offense wore down the Chiefs’ defense with a slow, methodical drive, the Chiefs’ offense made some explosive plays on their first drive. It started with a pass to Travis Kelce who flipped downfield for a 15-yard gain. Then Patrick Mahomes hit JuJu Smith-Schuster for 30 yards. On the next play, Isiah Pacheco turned the corner for an 11-yard pickup into the red zone. The Lions managed to force a third-and-8, and Mahomes raced 5 yards, setting up a fourth-and-3. Kansas City elected to go for it and Xavier Worthy beat Amik Robertson flat for a 6-yard touchdown. Harrison Butker missed the extra point, however. 6-3 heads.
Detroit had an explosive play of its own on the final play of the first quarter. Goff stood tall in the pocket with good protection and found LaPorta for a 26-yard gain into Chiefs territory.
David Montgomery opened the second quarter with a 13-yard run up the gut. On the ensuing third-and-3, Goff threw a dart to Jameson Williams at midfield, and the young receiver took it to the house for a 22-yard touchdown. 10-6 Lions.
Aidan Hutchinson almost got Mahomes on the opening play of the next drive, but the Chiefs quarterback ignored him and hit Hollywood Brown 20 yards.
On the next play, safety Kerby Joseph, who had entered the game questionably due to a knee injury, was injured. He was officially listed as questionable for return. Thomas Harper came on in his place.
Once again, the Chiefs opted to go for it on fourth down, this time a fourth-and-1 at the Detroit 41-yard line, and Kareem Hunt made the diving back for a first down. Aidan Hutchinson picked up a sack that forced the Chiefs into a third-and-long…
…but a screen pass got the Chiefs into another fourth-and-1. Kansas City opted to do it again, but this time the Lions stopped them with a big pass from Harper.
The Lions marched down the field on a third-down run by Goff and a 15-yard gain by Gibbs. The Lions then faced a critical fourth down — a fourth-and-2 from the Chiefs’ 44-yard line — but Amon-Ra St. Brown couldn’t recover a low pass from Goff.
From there, the Chiefs worked their two-minute offense. This included a key third-and-1 pickup on pass interference on Rock Ya-Sin, giving Kansas City 14 free yards. Then Mahomes hit Kelce all the way to the 1-yard line, and the Chiefs quarterback dove from there to get there. 13-10 heads with 37 seconds left in the half.
