Detroit Lions Week 2 – By the Numbers
A 24-10 win over the New York Giants on Monday Night Football, the Lions have started 2-0 for the first time since 2011. It’s the first time the Lions have started 2-0 under Head Coach Jim Caldwell.
LIONS ON MONDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL
The Lions claimed their third win in the past five MNF games and the team’s second win in their last three road MNF games by defeating the Giants
Lions Previous Five MNF Games
9/8/14; W, 35-14 New York Giants
10/5/15; L, 10-13 at Seattle
12/21/15; W, 35-27 at New Orleans
12/26/16; L, 21-42 at Dallas
9/18/17; W, 24-10 at New York Giants
Detroit allowed only 10 points against the Giants, which represents the lowest points allowed in a Monday Night game by the Lions since a 27-6 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers September 29, 1998. It was the sixth time ever that the Lions have allowed 10 points or less on MNF.
The Lions’ 10 points yielded at the New York Giants mark the lowest total Detroit has ever allowed on the road during a Monday Night Football game.
Since 1970, the only other prime time game, including Thursday, Saturday and Sunday Night, that the Lions have allowed no more than 10 points occurred in a 15-7 win at Tampa Bay September 9, 1978 (Saturday Night).
DETROIT WINS AT NEW YORK GIANTS
The Lions won their first game on the road against the New York Giants since the team’s 28-13 win over the Giants at Giants Stadium October 24, 2004. The Lions’ win was the first win over the Giants at MetLife Stadium.
HEAD COACH JIM CALDWELL
The Lions’ 24-10 win over the Giants on Monday Night Football was the 50th game of Head Coach Jim Caldwell’s tenure with the Lions. In his first season (2014), he led the Lions to a 11-5 record. In the previous three seasons, the Lions have reached the playoffs twice. Overall as the Lions head coach, Caldwell has now accumulated a 29-21 record. Caldwell has accumulated the second-most wins by a Lions head coach in their first 50 games with the team and most since Head Coach Buddy Parker who served as the Lions coach from 1951-56.
TEAM OFFENSE
The Lions registered 138 rushing yards in the team’s 24-10 win over the Giants. In the air, Detroit recorded 119 net passing yards. It marked the first win for the Lions where they rushed for more yards than they gained in the passing game since Detroit’s 7-3 win against Green Bay December 12, 2010 (190 rush, 96 pass).
This also marked the first game the Lions won with QB Matthew Stafford as the starting quarterback that the team rushed for more yards than they passed.
DETROIT RUSH DEFENSE
The Lions allowed 62 yards rushing as they defeated the Giants 24-10 on MNF. Since 2014, the Lions have now held opponents under 70 yards in 18 games, which is tied for the third-most over the past four seasons
It marks the sixth time since 1940 that the Lions have started the season by allowing fewer than 70 yards rushing in each of the season’s first two games. Detroit has now accomplished this twice (2014) under Defensive Coordinator Teryl Austin.
Combined with the 45 rushing yards allowed in the opener vs. Arizona, the Lions have yielded 107 total rushing yards through the first two games of the seasons. The 107 yards allowed (53.5 yds/g) is the sixth-best total by the Lions through the first two games of the season since 1940.
DETROIT PASS RUSH
The Lions charted five sacks against the New York Giants in the team’s 24-10 win on MNF, including four in the first half. The five sacks by the Lions were the most in a game since Detroit recorded five sacks in the final game of the 2015 season at Chicago January 3, 2016.
Detroit registered the most sacks in the first half of a game since netting four sacks at Minnesota October 12, 2014.
TEAM TAKEAWAYS
With the interception by LB Tahir Whitehead against the Giants, the Lions now have five takeaways through the first two games of the season, the most by the team through two games since 2013 (5).
Detroit has four interceptions through the first four games, which are the most through the first two games since the 2013 season (4).
DE EZEKIEL ANSAH
DE Ezekiel Ansah led the Lions pass rush with 3.0 sacks (18 yards lost) against the New York Giants. Ansah tallied the second-most sacks in a single game during his career and was just a half-sack off his career high of 3.5 vs. Philadelphia November 26, 2015. He also added six tackles and one forced fumble.
He is the sixth Lions defensive player since sacks became an official stat in 1982 to register 3+ sacks in at least two different games, and the first to do so since DE James Hall recorded his second career game with 3+ sacks in 2006.
Ansah collected his seventh career game with 2+ sacks. He now is tied with DE Cliff Avril for the fourth-most games with 2+ sacks by a Lions defender since sacks became official in 1982.
Ansah’s 3.0 sacks on MNF set a new team best for the most sacks on MNF since 1982. Ansah held the previous best of 2.0 (at Sea 10/5/15) that was tied with DT Doug English (vs. Min 12/5/83).
With 3.0 sacks against the Giants, Ansah moved into seventh place on the Lions career sacks list (official since 1982) by passing DE James Hall (33, 2000-06). Now in his fifth NFL season, Ansah has accumulated 35.0 career sacks.
CB JAMAL AGNEW
Rookie CB Jamal Agnew stretched the Lions lead against the New York Giants when he returned a punt 88 yards for a score with 12:56 left in the fourth quarter. The punt return give the Lions a 24-10 advantage that would end up as the final score. In the game, he returned 3 punts for 101 yards (33.7 avg).
Agnew’s 88-yard punt return touchdown was the fifth-longest punt return in Lions history and the longest since WR Reggie Swinton returned a punt 89 yards for a touchdown at Carolina December 21, 2003.
The 88-yard return is the second-longest ever by a Lions rookie behind Hall of Fame DB Jack Christiansen’s 89-yard punt return touchdown November 22, 1951
Agnew became the first Lions rookie to score on a punt return since WR Eddie Drummond at Arizona (73 yards) December 8, 2001. His punt return touchdown also represents the Lions first-ever on MondayNight Football.
LB TAHIR WHITEHEAD
In the second quarter, LB Tahir Whitehead turned the ball back over to the Lions offense with an interception (returned 18 yards) on the first play after the Lions lost a fumble. Whitehead’s interception was the fourth of his career and the first since he grabbed a pick in the final game of the 2015 season at Chicago January 3, 2016.
CB DARIUS SLAY
In the team’s 24-10 win over the Giants, CB Darius Slay registered team-tying high 8 tackles and 2 pass defenses. With two pass defenses, he now has surpassed 50 for his five-year career.
With 51 career pass defenses, Slay became the third Lions defensive player since 1991 to record 50+ pass defenses and first since CB Dre Bly (2003-06).
Slay’s eight tackles in the game pushed him over 200 total tackles for his career. In 60 games, Slay has recorded 202 career tackles.
LB JARRAD DAVIS
Rookie LB Jarrad Davis registered his first-career sack when he dropped Giants QB Eli Manning for a 10-yard loss in the second quarter. The 10-yard loss on the sack was the most yards lost on a sack by a Lions linebacker since LB Stephen Tulloch registered a 15-yard loss at Carolina September 14, 2014.
TE ERIC EBRON
TE Eric Ebron recorded a team-high 5 receptions for 42 yards and scored 1 touchdown in the Lions’ 24-10 win at the New York Giants. Ebron’s 5 receptions all occurred in the first half.
Ebron tied his career high with 5 first-half receptions, and it was his first-career game with 5 receptions and a receiving touchdown in the 1st half of game. The only other time he caught 5 passes in the first half of a game occurred at Houston October 30, 2016.
He became the first Lions tight end with 5+ receptions and a receiving TD in the first half since TE Brandon Pettigrew had 8 catches and a touchdowns against the San Diego Chargers December 24,2011.
DT HALOTI NGATA
DT Haloti Ngata registered one sack at the New York Giants as he has now reached 30+ sacks in his career. As a defensive tackle, he has recorded 30.5 sacks since he entered the League in 2006.
WR MARVIN JONES JR.
For the second consecutive game, WR Marvin Jones Jr. scored the Lions’ first touchdown of the game with a 27-yard reception that gave the Lions a 7-0 lead over the Giants in the first quarter. He now has scored touchdowns in each of the first two games of the season for the first time in his career.
K MATT PRATER
With 30 seconds left to play in the second quarter, K Matt Prater kicked a 56-yard field goal to give the Lions a 17-7 lead heading into the half.
With a 56-yarder in Week 2, his 38th of his career, Prater tied K Phil Dawson for the SIXTH-most career 50-yard field goals in NFL history.
Including his 58-yarder in Week 1 vs. Arizona, Prater is now the first player in team history to make 55+-yard field goals in back-to-back games. He now has made four 55+-yard field goals since joining the Lions in 2014, which breaks the previous team record of three previously held by K Jason Hanson (1991-12)
LS DON MUHBACH
By snapping on K Matt Prater’s 56-yard field goal at the New York Giants, LS Don Muhlbach has now served as the long snapper for six of the team’s eight longest field goals in team history. He has snapped for three different kickers who have made at least one 55+-yard field goal with the Lions (Prater, 4 2014-2017; Hanson, 3 1992-2012; Dave Rayner, 1 2010)
QB MATTHEW STAFFORD
In the first half of the Lions’ wins at the New York Giants, QB Matthew Stafford threw two touchdown passes. Combined with the 4 he tossed in Week 1 against Arizona, Stafford now has 6 touchdown passes through the first two games of the season, the third highest total in Lions history since 1950 through 2 games.
DETROIT LIONS SCHEDULE