DETROIT – In a game between two desperate teams fighting to stay alive in the NFC playoff race, the Lions simply made more big plays than the Cowboys. That's usually the determining factor in who wins and who loses, and this was no exception. The Lions capitalized on big plays at key moments for a 44-30 win.
But all games have a few plays that can go unnoticed but still prove to be game-changing. Here are a handful that might be forgotten but likely changed the course of Thursday's game.
Prescott's backward pass for 16-yard loss – The Cowboys trailed 10-6 and just got a huge pass play to CeeDee Lamb to move into Detroit territory. But on first down, Dak Prescott was pressured and tried to throw the ball to Jake Ferguson. But the pass was ruled to be thrown behind the line of scrimmage, resulting in a 16-yard loss. What made it worse was the officials called the play dead without letting Ferguson advance the ball. Eventually, it was third-and-21 and on a short dump-off to Ferguson, he was stripped of the ball for a fumble, which was recovered by the Lions. Detroit scored on that possession and instead of the Cowboys driving for the lead, they fell behind by two scores, thanks in large part to the 16-yard loss.
Double hands-to-the-face – Down 17-6, the Cowboys had to get back in the game, and it seemed like a 45-yard pass interference call on the Lions at the Detroit 5-yard line was going to do the trick. The Lions were flagged for holding George Pickens on a deep ball, but way back at the line of scrimmage, Ferguson was called for a hands-to-the-face penalty that negated the P.I. A few plays later, Pickens had his first-down reception called back for an offensive face mask. The Cowboys eventually got a 55-yard field goal, but those two penalties prevented any chance of scoring more than that.
End-of-half clock management – The goal before the half is to try to be the last team to score. The Cowboys had a shot to do that, but had some questionable clock management on their final drive. After a third-down catch to Ferguson that set up fourth-and-4 at the Lions' 37-yard line, the Cowboys quickly put the field goal unit on the field, which then forced Detroit head coach Dan Campbell to call a timeout with 50 seconds left. The Cowboys made the field goal, but the Lions came back and answered before the half with a field goal of their own. Had the Cowboys gone for the first down or at least lined up to go for it and maybe called a timeout after the clock ran down, it probably would have left only about 25 seconds of game clock for the Lions to work with after Dallas kicked the field goal.
OPI on Pickens loses 33 yards – Pickens has been drawing pass interference calls all year, but he was called for a huge offensive pass interference penalty late in the third quarter that wiped out a big gain. Down by 11, Prescott hit Ryan Flournoy for 23 yards to the Lions' 12, but the play was wiped out when the officials said Pickens set a pick, flagging him for OPI. It turned into a 33-yard difference in field position. The Cowboys couldn't convert on third-and-19 but got a field goal from Aubrey of 63 yards to cut the lead to eight. Still, that was a drive where the Cowboys needed a touchdown.
Lions convert biggest third down – The Cowboys had clawed back in the game, cutting the lead to 30-27, and had forced a crucial third-and-6 near midfield. But not only did Jared Goff find the mismatch and hit a crossing Jameson Williams, who was being covered by safety and former linebacker Markquese Bell, for a 29-yard gain, but the Cowboys' James Houston was also flagged for roughing the passer, putting the ball on the Dallas 13. Two plays later, Gibbs scored to give the Lions a 10-point edge.
Bonus: Another costly OPI – This time, at the end of the game, the Cowboys were trailing by 10 but were inside the Lions' red zone. And it appeared the officials were going to call a pass interference on a third-down pass to Ferguson near the goal line. Instead, after a long discussion between the two officials who threw the flag, they decided to call offensive pass interference. The Lions declined it, and the Cowboys kicked a field goal, cutting the lead to only seven. Perhaps it wouldn't have mattered, though, since the defense couldn't stop the Lions, who used another big kick return to set up the game-clinching touchdown.
