Lions’ Theo Riddick leads all National Football League tailbacks in catches after another huge

This was what you might call an ironic National Football League play-by-play recap allegory.

Coming off their most gratifying moment of a miserable season, the Lions face a visiting Oakland Raiders team Sunday that’s moving on from the loss of a key defender to a lengthy suspension. His worst game as a pro. The Raiders had no answer for much of the game. That wasn’t the sole reason for Sunday’s defeat. But it played a significant role. Just because the team has been at the bottom of the barrel for more than a decade doesn’t mean they’re happy to be also-rans.

“I’m just making sure I don’t screw it up at that point”, Stafford said. I wish I would’ve let go a little sooner. “Playing more aggressive defense, just playing and trusting each other and having more fun”. He dropped a couple.

“It’s a big loss to us”, Mayowa said of Smith’s suspension, “but we set the tempo with the sacks. That’s where we were a year ago, and we’re getting that back”.

Carr could not pin down the Cooper catch shortage, either. More importantly, he made all three field-goal attempts to make his record 13-for-13 for the season.

With two wins, they’d be up to 5-7, but would still need to win out to have even the slightest chance at the postseason.

Detroit is 1-4 ATS in its last 5 games. I would expect Sunday to be yet another game in which Detroit fails to reach the century mark. It was a potentially happy-happy-scoreboard game.

Typically the Game Ball will go to a player with excellent stats. The Raiders’ passing game is ranked seventh, compared to the 23rd-ranked pass defense of the Lions.

They’re not good enough, though.

Matt Prater pitched in with three field goals from 29, 41’and 51 yards. The Raiders’ only touchdown was on their first possession of the second half. “That was pretty good”.

Despite that the Lions offense did everything they could to give the Raiders the ball back in third quarter. Murray’s 1-yard touchdown run capped the opening possession of the second half and Sebastian Janikowski made a go-ahead, 48 yard field goal on Oakland’s next possession. The defense shut out the Lions.

Detroit (2-7) defied the odds makers and beat the Packers by two points last week.

“He’s a big, strong, long, fast target”, Del Rio said. But the Raiders should have a couple more bullets in their gun than the Lions.

MARKDOWN – The Raiders’ first-quarter offensive statistics would have embarrassed a Pop Warner team. You know, the one that was so entertaining throughout October? The Raiders allowed 68 points in the losses to Pittsburgh and Minnesota the last two weeks.

There’s no word on whether he had to persuade head coach Jim Caldwell-a guy who stands by his vets-to make the move.

“A lot of their offense is predicated on their run game”, said Detroit safety Glover Quin. “So we were able to get their run stopped, and that helps”. QB Derek Carr, who was drafted by the Oakland Raiders in the second round of the 2014 NFL Draft, has new dynamic weapons in running back Latavius Murray and wide receivers Amari Cooper and Michael Crabtree. Stafford completed a 36-yard pass to Calvin Johnson on third-and-15 to put the Lions in range. They have been limited to 27 points combined in the last two games after scoring at least 34 in the previous three. Del Rio was not pleased. So we’ll go back to practice and do whatever it takes because that just can’t happen.