Thanksgiving Heartburn: Lions Slip to 7–5 After Loss to Packers
Thanksgiving dinner was happening all around me. Plates were clattering, conversations were rolling, and somehow I drew the unlucky seat facing away from the TV. Years ago, that would’ve been a full-blown crisis. Thankfully, iPhones exist — so I did what any self-respecting Lions fan would do: propped my phone up between the gravy boat and the basket of rolls like it belonged there.
There was just one flaw in the master plan.
The guy across from me was watching the big TV — and his broadcast was a few seconds ahead of mine. Every big moment got spoiled before my phone could even finish buffering. A sigh here, an “oh boy…” there, and suddenly my DIY setup didn’t stand a chance. By the time I accepted it, the afternoon already had that all-too-familiar Lions vibe.
Honestly, I wish he’d been 15 minutes ahead of me — he could’ve saved me the trouble of watching the ending. In a game that never really felt like Detroit’s to win, the Lions ultimately fell to the Green Bay Packers, 31–24. The loss drops them to 7–5 and muddies the playoff picture, especially with Green Bay completing the season sweep and grabbing a crucial NFC North tiebreaker.
Detroit never led. They hung around, they battled, they clawed, but they never took control. A shorthanded offense got even thinner early, the defense couldn’t generate pressure, and the Packers dictated the flow from kickoff to kneel-down.
📊 Thanksgiving Stat Capsule — Packers 31, Lions 24
Total Yards: GB 359 | DET 352
3rd Down: GB 6/12 | DET 8/13
4th Down: GB 3/3 | DET 0/2
Red Zone: GB 2/2 | DET 2/3
Possession: GB 28:54 | DET 31:06
Packers Top Performers
• Jordan Love: 234 yds, 4 TD
• Josh Jacobs: 17–83 rushing
• Dontayvion Wicks: 6–94, 2 TD
• Micah Parsons: 2.5 sacks, 3 TFL, 4 QB hits
Lions Top Performers
• Jared Goff: 256 yds, 1 TD
• Jahmyr Gibbs: 88 total yds
• Jameson Williams: 7–144, 1 TD
• Brian Branch: 10 tackles
The Sun God Scare and a Milestone Moment
And then the moment arrived, where everyone watching at Ford Field or on TV collectively gasped when Amon-Ra St. Brown went down in the first quarter with what looked like a significant ankle injury. Luckily, Friday’s update brought relief: it’s a low ankle sprain — not severe enough for IR. He may miss a week or two, but the outlook is much better than initially feared.
Amid the Thanksgiving misery, David Montgomery hit a remarkable milestone by punching in his sixth rushing touchdown of the season. That score put him in elite company: only 14 running backs in NFL history have rushed for 6+ touchdowns in each of their first seven seasons. The man is consistent, durable, and quietly one of the Lions’ most dependable players.
Fourth-Down Gambles & Defensive Struggles
Dan Campbell’s aggressiveness is part of who he is — and a big reason this franchise clawed its way out of the dark ages. But when it backfires, it backfires loudly. The Lions went 0-for-2 on fourth down again, including a brutal fourth-and-3 miss from the Packers’ 21-yard line in the fourth quarter.
Look, I get it — this is his DNA. He’s not wired to settle. But sometimes you have to take the points. That’s now 0-for-6 on fourth down over the last two games, and a couple of those moments screamed for a field goal. I have to believe that somewhere in the quiet moments, away from the cameras and the bravado, even Campbell knows those decisions might’ve cost them.
Meanwhile, the defense simply couldn’t get home. No sacks. Just two quarterback hits. And when a defense fails to disrupt, quarterbacks get comfortable… and Jordan Love did exactly that, tossing four touchdowns and controlling the game from the pocket.
In today’s NFL, you can’t win without pressure. The Lions learned that the hard way.
Looking Ahead: Cowboys, Then Rams — No Room for Error
The bad news? There’s no time to breathe. The Lions now turn around and face the Dallas Cowboys on Thursday night — and they won thier Thanksgiving Day game, 31-28 over the Chiefs. After that? A trip to Los Angeles to take on the Rams.
A loss to the Packers didn’t kill Detroit’s season, but it absolutely raised the stakes. Every game from here out matters. Every snap matters. The Lions need health, execution, and composure — quickly — if they want to be playing meaningful January football.
Detroit has responded to adversity before. Now they need to do it again.
So, with the loss, do you think the Lions still have a shot to make the playoffs? Drop a comment below or join the conversation in the Lion’s Den — where fans break down every game, every angle.
Info gathered from team reports, pressers & trusted media outlets — the way we always do it at Mitten Sports Talk.
