NFL Game Recap - NY Giants at Detroit
Sun Oct 27, 2019 1:00 PM EDT

WAS
9
MIN
19
F
DEN
13
IND
15
F
TB
23
TEN
27
F
ARI
9
NO
31
F
CIN
10
LAR
24
F
NYJ
15
JAX
29
F
NYG
26
DET
31
F
LAC
17
CHI
16
F
PHI
31
BUF
13
F
SEA
27
ATL
20
F
CAR
13
SF
51
F
CLE
13
NE
27
F
OAK
24
HOU
27
F
GB
31
KC
24
F
MIA
14
PIT
27
F
SF
28
ARI
25
F

Oct 27, 2019, 1:00 PM EDT

Final

1

2

3

4

T

NY Giants (2-6)

0

13

6

7

26

Detroit (3-3-1)

14

3

7

7

31

Stafford-led Lions beat Giants 31-26 and end 3-game skid
Sun Oct 27, 2019 9:15 PM

DETROIT (AP) The Detroit Lions were waiting for the right time and team to try a trick play they've worked on in practice recently.

Early in the fourth quarter Sunday, the New York Giants proved to be the perfect opponent.

Matthew Stafford threw a 41-yard flea flicker to Kenny Golladay to restore a double-digit lead Detroit needed to help them hold on for a 31-26 win over the slumping Giants.

"That was a good one," Stafford said. "A great call."

Detroit's first-year offensive coordinator, Darrell Bevell, called for Stafford to pitch the ball to J.D. McKissic to the right and for the running back to throw a lateral back to the quarterback to connect downfield with Golladay.

"I was holding my breath on that one," Lions coach Matt Patricia acknowledged.

Bevell used the same play with McKissic taking the pitch from Seattle quarterback Russell Wilson for a 38-yard touchdown Paul Richardson in a win over the Giants two years ago.

The Lions (3-3-1) enjoyed the feel-good moment as part of a much-needed win after losing three straight games and trading away safety and captain Quandre Diggs to Seattle days before the game.

Stafford finished 25 of 32 for 342 yards with three touchdowns and an interception. He threw a 49-yard TD pass to Marvin Hall late in the first quarter and connected with Golladay for two scores in the second half.

In the last three home games, Stafford has thrown 10 TDs with just two interceptions and is averaging 332 yards passing.

"There's a bunch of great players around me," he said, refusing to take credit.

New York (2-6) had chances to come back, but they turned the ball over on downs at the Lions 39 with 6:25 and at their 14 with 3:27 left.

Giants rookie Daniel Jones threw a 4-yard TD pass to Saquan Barkley and an extra point pulled them within five points with 1:19 left to play. The ensuing onside kick went out of bounds, sealing Detroit's victory.

"They always battle, but we've got to play better and make more plays," said second-year coach Pat Shurmur, who fell to 7-17 with the franchise.

The Giants have lost four games in a row before the end of October for the second straight season and they're planning to have a players-only meeting Monday.

"Sometimes it's better to hear it from the players and individuals in the locker room," Barkley said. "Sometimes you just got to address situations."

Jones had career highs with 28 completions, 41 attempts, four TD passes and fell just short of another mark with 322 yards passing. He fumbled the ball while being hit attempting a pass and former Giants linebacker Devon Kennard recovered the football and returned 13 yards for a TD in the first quarter.

Jones provided a promising performance after throwing only TD pass in each of his last four games and seven interceptions during that span. He threw 22- and 28-yard TD passes to rookie receiver Darius Slayton, who pulled the Giants within a point late in the first half only to have Aldrick Rosas miss his first extra point of the season.

"We've known we can move the ball on people," Jones said. "We've known we can score points. We haven't done enough of it."

BY THE NUMBERS

Giant: Barkley had 64 yards rushing on 19 carries and 79 yards receiving on eight catches. Former Lions WR Golden Tate had eight receptions for 85 yards.

Lions: Golladay had 123 yards receiving and two scores on six catches. Danny Amendola caught eight passes for 95 yards. RB Tra Carson had a career-high 34 yards on 12 carries, starting in place of Kerryon Johnson, who is on injured reserve with a knee injury.

INJURIES

Giants: WR Sterling Shepard (concussion) was out for the third straight game.

Lions: CB Darius Slay (hamstring) was inactive and CB Rashaan Melvin (knee) limped off the field late in the third quarter and didn't return. Former Giants DT Damon "Snacks" Harrison was limited by a groin injury.

UP NEXT

Giants: Host Dallas on Monday, Nov. 4.

Lions: Play at Oakland on Sunday.

---

More AP NFL: https://apnews.com/NFL and https://twitter.com/AP-NFL

Passing

NYG Att Cmp % TD-Pa Yds-Pa LgPa Int Rat Sk
D. Jones 41 28 68.3 4 322 38 0 124.2 3
DET Att Cmp % TD-Pa Yds-Pa LgPa Int Rat Sk
M. Stafford 32 25 78.1 3 342 49 1 129.4 4

Rushing

NYG Att Yds-Ru Avg LgRu TDRu
S. Barkley 19 64 3.4 13 0
D. Jones 4 13 3.3 9 0
DET Att Yds-Ru Avg LgRu TDRu
T. Carson 12 34 2.8 12 0
T. Johnson 7 25 3.6 14 0

Receiving

NYG Rec Yds-Rc Avg LgRc TD-Rc
G. Tate 8 85 10.6 18 0
S. Barkley 8 79 9.9 38 1
DET Rec Yds-Rc Avg LgRc TD-Rc
K. Golladay 6 123 20.5 41 2
D. Amendola 8 95 11.9 25 0

Team Stats Comparison

NYG DET
Points For 26 31
Total Yards 370 375
Rushing Yards 80 59
Passing Yards 290 316
Passing Completions / Attempts 28/41 25/32
Turnovers 1 2
Interceptions Thrown 0 1
Fumbles - Lost 2/1 1/1
First Downs 24 17
Rushing Touchdowns 0 0
Passing Touchdowns 4 3
Penalties - Yards 5/44 7/75
Time Of Possession 30:47 29:13
Third Down Conversions/Attempts 7/12 8/14
Fourth Down Conversions/Attempts 0/2 0/0
Red Zone Conversions/Attempts 2/3 1/1
Sacks Against 3 4
Punts - Average Yards 3/45 2/44
Punt Returns - Average Yards/Punt Return 1/2 1/4
Kickoff Returns - Average Yards/Kickoff Return 6/20 0/0

Scoring Summary

1st Quarter NYG DET
DET 07:48 TD Devon Kennard 13 yd opp fumble return (Matt Prater kick) 0 7
DET 12:29 TD Marvin Hall 49 yd pass from Matthew Stafford (Matt Prater kick) 0 14
2nd Quarter NYG DET
NYG 02:33 TD Darius Slayton 22 yd pass from Daniel Jones (Aldrick Rosas kick) 7 14
NYG 10:21 TD Darius Slayton 28 yd pass from Daniel Jones (missed kick) 13 14
DET 14:40 FG Matt Prater 52 yd FG 13 17
3rd Quarter NYG DET
DET 05:09 TD Kenny Golladay 9 yd pass from Matthew Stafford (Matt Prater kick) 13 24
NYG 10:06 TD Evan Engram 2 yd pass from Daniel Jones (failed 2pt Pass from Daniel Jones) 19 24
4th Quarter NYG DET
DET 02:48 TD Kenny Golladay 41 yd pass from Matthew Stafford (Matt Prater kick) 19 31
NYG 13:41 TD Saquon Barkley 4 yd pass from Daniel Jones (Aldrick Rosas kick) 26 31

Game Information

Stadium: Ford Field, Detroit, Michigan
Attendance: 58,509
Game Time: 3:2
Weather: