| The Detroit News
Lions get first down from penalty, inevitably punt three plays later
The Lions get it at the 25. They trail by 40 with 14:49 to go in the third quarter.
D’Andre Swift gains 2 yards on first down, Danny Amendola promptly loses 2 yards on a second-down completion. A defensive holding penalty on third down gives the Lions a new set of downs at the 30.
Adrian Peterson carries for 1. Marvin Jones hauls in a 6-yard pass on second down. Daniel is sacked on third down.
Buccaneers 40, Lions 0 (11:02 3rd)
Lions fumble on first play of half, Bucs add touchdown one play later
Detroit opens the half on offense, trailing by 34.
D’Andre Swift carries for a short gain on first down. The Bucs appeared to have stripped it, but it’s ruled that he was down by contact before fumbling. The Bucs will challenge.
**Review in progress**
The ruling is reversed. Tampa will get it at the 25 of Detroit. Oh boy.
25-yard touchdown pass to Rob Gronkowski on the next play, as was expected.
Buccaneers 40, Lions 0 (14:50 3rd)
Lions limp into halftime trailing by 34-0
The Lions take over at the 20 with 1:14 to go in the half. They trail by 34.
Chase Daniel hits T.J. Hockenson for gains of 7 and 4 to move the chains.
Timeout #2 Detroit (0:47 2nd)
Daniel is sacked for a loss of 11.
Timeout #3 Detroit (0:32 2nd)
Daniel hits Danny Amendola for 19, then gets bended and twisted while letting go of a lame duck that’s caught by Marvin Jones for a pickup of 11 yards. That’s the end of the half.
HALFTIME: Buccaneers 34, Lions 0
Bucs take 34-0 lead before halftime
Tampa Bay takes over at its own 34 with 3:20 to go in the half. The Bucs lead 27-0.
Tom Brady airs it out on first down, but his pass is beyond the receiver. Ke’Shawn Vaughn makes a 7-yard reception on second down and Mike Evans moves the chains with a 15-yard gain to the 44.
A penalty on Antonio Brown makes it first-and-15 at the 49.
**Two-minute warning**
Brady misses to Chris Godwin but hits Cameron Brate for 11 yards to the 38. Brady’s third-down pass falls short of the target, incomplete. The Bucs will go for it on fourth-and-4: Brown loses his man and is wide-open for a 15-yard completion to keep the drive alive.
After another 5-yard penalty on the Bucs, they complete a 16-yard pass to Brate. It’s first-and-10 at the 12.
Brady hits Brown in the end zone for a Buccaneers touchdown.
Buccaneers 34, Lions 0 (1:14 2nd)
Lions go three-and-out yet again as time winds down in second
Detroit takes over at its own 25, trailing by 27 with 4:52 left in the half.
D’Andre Swift gets 3 on first down and no gain on second down. The third-down pass misses the mark. Detroit will punt.
Buccaneers 27, Lions 0 (3:21 2nd)
Bucs take 27-0 lead with no end in sight
Tampa takes over at its own 9, leading by 20 with 9:02 left in the half.
Tom Brady hits Mike Evans for a gain of 7, then finds Tanner Hudson for a gain of 20, then hits Evans again for a pickup of 23.
It’s first-and-10 at the Lions 42.
Ke’Shawn Vaughn rushes for 14, 12, and 9, as the Buccaneers have it second-and-1 at the 6. Chris Godwin makes an unbelievable one-handed diving catch to put Tampa Bay up four scores.
Buccaneers 27, Lions 0 (4:52 2nd)
Lions falter again after picking up a first down
The Lions take over at the 25, trailing by 20 in the second quarter.
Adrian Peterson rushes for 9 on first down and 4 on second down.
Peterson gets dropped for a 4-yard loss on the next play, and D’Andre Swift makes it third-and-12 with a 2-yard gain on second down. Chase Daniel is flushed from the pocket and forced to throw it away.
Buccaneers 20, Lions 0 (9:02 2nd)
Bucs move down field quickly, take commanding lead in second
Tampa Bay takes over at its own 49 after an uncharacteristically non-booming punt by Jack Fox. The Bucs lead, 13-0, with 14:15 to go in the second quarter.
Leonard Fournette rushes for 4, crossing into Lions territory. Tom Brady then hits Chris Godwin and Fournette for 12 yards, each. It’s first-and-10 at the Detroit 23.
Fournette rushes for 6, then hauls in a 13-yard pass that gets Tampa Bay to the Detroit 4.
Fournette punches it in for a score.
Buccaneers 20, Lions 0 (11:51 2nd)
Lions offense moving in slow-mo
Detroit takes over at its own 9 with 0:06 left in the half, trailing by 13.
Chase Daniel completes a 3-yard pass to Mohamed Sanu to bring the first quarter to a close.
END 1ST: Buccaneers 13, Lions 0
Marvin Jones catches a pass that’s good for 2 more on second down. Chip, chip, chippin’ away. The third-down pass misses the mark. Detroit will punt.
Buccaneers 13, Lions 0 (14:25 2nd)
Lions defense gets stop for first time today
The Bucs take over at their own 16, leading 13-0 with 4:48 to go in the first quarter.
The first-down pass is complete to Leonard Fournette for a gain of 7, and the running back gets 4 more on the next play to move the chains.
Tom Brady gets Tampa to the 43 with a 16-yard completion to Mike Evans for another first down.
Fournette is stopped after a gain of 2. Chris Godwin’s 10-yard reception makes it first-and-10 at the Lions 45.
Reggie Ragland and Everson Griffen come up with a first-down sack on Brady that forces the Bucs into second-and-17.
Timeout #1 Tampa Bay (0:58 1st)
Fournette is stopped for a gain of 3, and Brady can’t get off a decent throw on third down. The Lions get a stop.
Buccaneers 13, Lions 0 (0:06 1st)
Stafford questionable to return, Lions trail Bucs 13-0
Detroit takes over at its own 25 after a touchback. The Lions trail 13-0 with 7:39 to go in the first quarter.
Chase Daniel is now in at quarterback for the Lions, and completes the first-down pass to T.J. Hockenson for a pickup of 7.
D’Andre Swift gets a burst of speed on second down and runs for 14, then carries it again on the next play for 4 yards. That brings up second-and-6 at the 50. Daniel’s second-down throw can’t be completed, and he’s sacked on third down.
This might be a long, long game, folks.
Buccaneers 13, Lions 0 (4:48 1st)
Bucs take 13-0 as Brady punishes Lions secondary
Tampa Bay will take over at its own 20 after a touchback on the punt. The Lions trail, 6-0, with 9:45 to go in the first quarter.
Leonard Fournette goes up the middle for 8 on first down, and the Bucs are off to a red-hot start this drive as Tom Brady loads up for a 47-yard completion to Chris Godwin on second down.
It’s first-and-10 at the Detroit 25.
Brady’s next pass is complete to Antonio Brown, but for a loss of 2. Mike Evans beats his man easily on second down and catches a 27-yard touchdown pass.
Buccaneers 13, Lions 0 (7:39 1st)
False start ruins fourth-down attempt, ends Lions opening drive
The Lions take over at their own 25 after a touchback. They trail the Bucs 6-0 with 11:43 to go in the first.
Matthew Stafford hits Danny Amendola on first down for a pickup of 15 to the 40.
D’Andre Swift goes up the middle for a gain of 6 on second down, and it’s third-and-4 after a misfire from Stafford on second down that falls incomplete. Amendola hauls in the throw on third down, but is dragged down about a half-yard short of the line.
The Lions line up to go for it on fourth-and-1, and they get flagged for a false start. They have now decided to punt.
Buccaneers 6, Lions 0 (9:45 1st)
Bucs take 6-0 lead after penalty extends opening drive
Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers start from their own 18.
Brady’s first-down pass is high and incomplete, and it’s third-and-9 after a 1-yard carry by Leonard Fournette. Brady is sacked by Jahlani Tavai on third down, but Everson Griffen is flagged for offsides. On the replayed down, Brady finds Chris Godwin for a pickup of 8 that’ll keep the opening drive alive.
On the next play, Mike Evans gets wide-open down the sideline for a pickup of 33 to the Detroit 35. Brady floats a gorgeous throw to Rob Gronkowski, who catches it inside the 5 and then dives into the end zone for a Tampa Bay touchdown.
The extra-point attempt rings off the upright. No good.
Buccaneers 6, Lions 0 (11:43 1st)
Pregame
The Lions will try to play spoiler Saturday, behind an interim-interim head coach.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers invade Ford Field, needing a victory or tie to clinch a playoff berth. The Lions (5-9), as usual, are playing for pride this late in the season and will do so with wide receivers coach Robert Prince running the show on the sidelines with interim head coach Darrell Bevell away because of COVID-19 protocols.
The Bucs bring a top-10 scoring offense into the game, led by former Michigan quarterback and surefire NFL Hall of Famer Tom Brady, as well as the NFL’s top rush defense (3.4 yards per carry allowed), which also boasts familiar faces in ex-Lion Ndamukong Suh (five sacks) and Detroit native and former Michigan State standout William Gholston.
Follow along here for live updates.
Buccaneers at Lions
► Kickoff: 1 p.m. today, Ford Field, Detroit
► TV/radio: Ch. 4, NFL/760
► Records: Tampa Bay 9-5, Detroit 5-9
► Line: Tampa Bay by 10
► Series: Lions lead 31-28
► Last meeting: Buccaneers 38-17, Dec. 15, 2019
► Outlook: Buccaneers can clinch a playoff spot with a win or a tie.