Foxborough, Mass. — After suffering three close losses by a combined 10 points the first month of the season, the Detroit Lions were thoroughly outclassed in every way by the New England Patriots, who sent the Lions both bumbling and limping into the team’s bye after delivering a 29-0 thrashing at Gillette Stadium on Sunday.
It left coach Dan Campbell once again pointing the finger at himself, an act of accountability that feels more worn each time a coach utters it.
“Certainly we didn’t play good football there,” Campbell said. “It was not good. It was the worst of the season overall as a team, and, you know, that falls on me.”
For the modest improvements made by Detroit’s defense, the league’s highest-scoring offense fell flat, getting shut out for the first time since Week 11 of the 2020 season, while failing to convert on six fourth-down tries and committing a pair of traditional turnovers the Patriots turned into 10 points.
BOX SCORE: Patriots 29, Lions 0
It’s the first time in NFL history a team failed to convert a fourth down with six or more tries in a game. The 1995 New England Patriots held the previous mark, going 0-for-5 in a loss to the Denver Broncos.
Quarterback Jared Goff said the Patriots (2-3) didn’t do anything special on defense to slow the Lions’ previously high-octane attack, the opposition executed better on the day.
“They played what they usually play,” Goff said. “I don’t know, I’ll have to watch it, but from what I saw, they played what they usually play and I think what they do so well is they’re just so sound. They’re so sound and they have a really good idea of how you’re trying to attack them, offensively. And their players are very smart, and then they’re good players, too. In order to beat teams like that, defenses like that, you can’t make dumb mistakes like I did. We just got to do better.”
The Lions (1-4) took the ball to open the game, but coughed it up after seven plays when running back Jamaal Williams was stuffed at the line of scrimmage on fourth-and-one at Detroit’s 45-yard line, handing the Patriots a short field.
With the gift, the Patriots were able to work it into the red zone, but stalled, settling for a 37-yard field goal to take the early lead. The game was stopped for more than nine minutes early in the possession when Lions safety Saivion Smith suffered a neck injury and had to be taken off the field via ambulance.
Detroit looked primed to respond, working deep into Patriots territory on the ensuing possession, but Goff’s pass for tight end T.J. Hockenson down the left sideline was intercepted by rookie defensive back Jack Jones at the 3-yard line.
“Yeah, the corner made a good play,” Goff said. “It was probably a bad decision, but with (Tom Kennedy) at the seam and I thought I had T.J. down the sideline and I don’t know. (Jones) fell off the seam and made the play. If I had to do it again, I’d check it down and move onto the next play, but, got a little greedy there and he made a good play.”
Thanks to a 49-yard run up the gut Rhamondre Stevenson, the Patriots were able to add another another short field goal by Nick Folk, extending their lead to six early in the second quarter.
Unable to take advantage of a 47-yard kickoff return by Maurice Alexander, the Lions punted the ball to the Patriots, but quickly got it back when receiver Nelson Agholor had a pass deflect off his hands across the middle, providing safety DeShon Elliott the opportunity to intercept the pass.
“I was just doing my job and believing in the system and what they want me to do, instead of just out there playing recklessly,” Elliott said. “I was playing team ball and I think that kind of helped me today to play even better.”
Things truly started going off the rails for the Lions during the series when running back Craig Reynolds lost seven yards on a third down, due to what Campbell called a missed blocking assignment. That pushed the team to the fringes of field goal range, where the coach acknowledged he wasn’t comfortable using replacement kicker Michael Badgley.
Instead of attempting the 50-yarder, the Lions went for it on fourth-and-nine. Under pressure, Goff tried to roll from the pocket but had the ball knocked loose from behind by Pontiac native Matthew Judon (Grand Valley State). That fumble was scooped up by Patriots safety Kyle Dugger, who returned it 59 yards for a touchdown.
“I can’t do it,” Goff said. “Obviously, quarterback position, turnovers are part of your business. You want to limit them. It’s an occupational hazard. But, yeah, for a few of them to go back for touchdowns is not good. And I don’t know, there’s no rhyme or reason why they do or they don’t. I just got to be better at taking care of the ball.”
After the Lions countered by going three-and-out, the Patriots added another field goal as time expired in the first half, entering the locker room up 16-0.
Detroit’s defense continued to bend without breaking to start the third quarter, stopping the Patriots in the red zone for the third time in three tries, but another Folk field goal extended the home team’s edge to three scores.
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Meanwhile, Detroit’s offense continued to flounder, turning it over on downs for the third time when Amon-Ra St. Brown was stopped for no gain on a fourth-and-two throw from Goff.
“They had a pretty good plan for us,” St. Brown said. “Hats off to them, they played good defense, but as an offense, we hold ourselves to higher standards and we have to come out two weeks from now and be better.”
Eight plays later, the Patriots offense finally found the end zone, taking advantage of a badly depleted secondary that not only lost Smith, but cornerbacks Will Harris, Jeff Okudah and safeties DeShon Elliott and Ifeatu Melifonwu to injury for stretches through the course of the game.
On first down from Detroit’s 24, rookie quarterback Bailey Zappe delivered a scoring strike to receiver Jakobi Myers, between the coverage of Bobby Price and Chase Lucas.
Detroit threatened to end the shutout, quickly driving into New England territory behind a pair of explosive gains, but after having a touchdown pass to Kennedy nullified by an offensive pass-interference infraction, the team once again turned it over on downs when St. Brown couldn’t hold on to a Goff pass at the goal line.
Zappe, a fourth-round draft pick, making his first career start had the home fans chanting his name as he took a knee to run out most of the clock. He finished 17-of-21 for 188 yards, one touchdown and the interception that deflected off his receiver’s hands.
The Lions managed to force a punt for the first time in eight quarters in the fourth quarter, but again turned it over on downs in New England territory. After the Patriots translated that into three more points, it made it Detroit’s worst shutout loss since 2001, when the eventual NFC champion St. Louis Rams blasted the Lions, 35-0, in front of a nationally televised audience on Monday Night Football.
Campbell and multiple players referred to the performance as the season’s rock bottom, but attempted to project optimism through the darkening skies.
“So now the only place to go is back up. Look, we’re going to get some guys back,” Campbell said. “I got to look at everything top to bottom, which I have time to do for the bye. And look, I’ve seen it too many times. I’ve been in this league too long as a player and a coach and I’ve seen teams that have started out rocky and it’s doom and gloom, and all of a sudden they win one and then they win the next one and then they win the next one. And that’s what I told them, you just got to win the first one.”
The Lions, who have lost three straight, will be off next week before returning for a road game with Dallas on Oct. 23.
jdrogers@detroitnews.com
Twitter: @Justin_Rogers