The Detroit Lions survived a late rally from the Chicago Bears, with a little piece of good fortune, to make it ten wins a row with a 23-20 win on Thursday.
The opening game of a trio of Thanksgiving Day clashes went down to the wire but Chicago made a mess of their final possession, allowing Detroit to move to 11-1 on the season for the first time in franchise history.
The Lions had led 16-0 at the half after three field goals and a 3-yard touchdown pass from Jared Goff to Sam LaPorta.
But the Bears fought back strongly with three touchdowns in the second half — two of them on the connection between quarterback Caleb Williams and receiver Keeman Allen.
When Williams found D.J. Moore with a superb 31-yard touchdown pass late in the fourth quarter, the Lions’ advantage was reduced to three points.
Chicago forced Detroit to punt on the next possession, leaving Williams with the ball and the chance to take the game to overtime or win it.
A pair of penalties hampered the Bears’ final drive but despite Williams taking a sack with 36 seconds left in the game, a field goal opportunity remained well within reach.
But instead of taking a timeout, the Bears offense tried to set up to gain some more yards for kicker Cairo Santos losing precious time.
The ball was snapped with just six seconds left and Williams threw an incomplete pass as the clock ran out.
The Bears, who suffered their sixth straight loss, looked confused and frustrated while the sense of relief was evident on the faces of the Lions.
“It was a crazy ending and we fought hard to the end to get it done. (But) it was scary,” admitted Goff.
“Our defense held strong. Our defense, they’ll bend not break and they made those plays at the end there and we win,” he added.
Jared Goff went 21-for-34 for 221 yards and two touchdowns while on the ground, the running back pair Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery put up 175 yards between them.
Later on Thursday, the struggling Dallas Cowboys and New York Giants meet in Texas and the Green Bay Packers host the Miami Dolphins.
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