The Green Bay Packers turned the ball over twice, gave up over 200 yards rushing, allowed 27 straight points to end a calamitous first half and eventually lost to the Detroit Lions 34-20 on Thursday night at Lambeau Field.
Matt LaFleur’s team trailed 27-3 at the half, then rallied to 27-17 early in the fourth quarter with a pair of touchdown drives but ran out of gas.
Buy Packers TicketsThe win moved the Lions into sole possession of first place in the NFC North at 3-1 after four weeks.
Here is an instant analysis and recap of the Packers’ 34-20 loss to the Lions in Week 4:
Final score: Lions 34, Packers 20
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | F | |
| DET (3-1) | 14 | 13 | 0 | 7 | 34 |
| GB (2-2) | 3 | 0 | 8 | 9 | 20 |
Scoring plays
First quarter
GB 3, DET 0: Anders Carlson 34-yard field goal (12:41)
DET 7, GB 3: Amon-Ra St. Brown 24-yard catch (8:16)
DET 14, GB 3: David Montgomery 3-yard run (2:54)
Second quarter
DET 17, GB 3: Riley Patterson 33-yard field goal (14:07)
DET 24, GB 3: David Montgomery 2-yard run (13:19)
DET 27, GB 3: Riley Patterson 37-yard field goal (0:41)
Third quarter
DET 27, GB 11: Christian Watson 1-yard catch (8:17)
Fourth quarter
DET 27, GB 17: Jordan Love 9-yard run (14:52)
DET 34, GB 17: David Montgomery 1-yard run (6:00)
DET 34, GB 20: Anders Carlson 50-yard field goal (2:52)
It was over when ...
Quay Walker’s unsportsmanlike conduct penalty canceled out a field goal and gave the Lions four new downs, which David Montgomery turned into a short touchdown run on fourth down. Instead of the Packers facing a 30-17 deficit, the Lions went up 34-17 — a three-score lead with 6:00 left in the fourth quarter.
Game balls
WR Romeo Doubs: The second-year receiver caught a career-high nine passes. He turned 13 targets into 95 receiving yards.
LB Quay Walker: His special teams penalty was a dagger, but the 2022 first-rounder also tallied 19 tackles, including 10 solo tackles and one tackle for loss.
K Anders Carlson: The rookie kicker went 2-for-2 on field goals, including a 50-yarder in the fourth quarter.
Key stat
211 to 27: The Lions rushed for 211 yards. The Packers had 27. Overall, Detroit ran 43 times to Green Bay’s 12. Thursday night was the second time in four games that the Packers have allowed 200 or more rushing yards.
Jordan Love watch
Love threw an interception in each half, including one in the first half that set up a quick Lions touchdown. The Packers accomplished next to nothing in the first half — Love labored through another slow start — but he did create positive plays in the second half. He threw a touchdown pass to Christian Watson, ran in a 9-yard touchdown to cut the lead to 16 points and hit Jayden Reed (44 yards) and Samori Toure (35 yards) for explosive plays, but it wasn’t nearly enough after a dreadful first half. Love completed 23 of 36 passes for 244 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions, good for a passer rating of 69.9. He took five sacks. Pressure affected him from start to finish.
Play of the game: Love to Reed to end third quarter
DEEP to @JaydenReed5! 🏈#DETvsGB | #GoPackGo
📺: Prime Video pic.twitter.com/jqpIxY3A42
— Green Bay Packers (@packers) September 29, 2023
Injury updates
Tight end Luke Musgrave left the game to be evaluated for a concussion. He was later ruled out after the concussion was confirmed. The rookie will go into concussion protocol entering Week 5.
What's next
A long weekend, and a long week prepping for a trip to Las Vegas to play Davante Adams and the Raiders, who are 1-2 entering a game against the Chargers in Los Angeles on Sunday. The Packers can use the mini-bye to flush Thursday night’s performance and get healthy. Kickoff on Monday, Oct. 9 is 7:15 p.m CT.
