Recap: Lions defeat Commanders 36-27 behind Goff’s four TD passes

The Detroit Lions didn’t get their first win until Week 13 last season. This season, fans only had to wait two weeks to see them get into the win column.

Jared Goff threw four touchdown passes, two of them to budding star Amon-Ra St. Brown, and D’Andre Swift looked healthy with a touchdown catch of his own as the Lions beat the Commanders, 36-27.

The defense…well, let’s just say it’s still a work in progress. They were dominant in the first half, shutting Washington out. Aidan Hutchinson had three sacks in the first half alone, but battled some sort of leg injury in the second half.

Carson Wentz torched their secondary in the second half, however. The Lions stopped getting pressure, and as a result, the Commanders marched down the field with relative ease.

But at the end of the day, they made enough plays to win the game, and that’s what matters. They improve to 1-1 on the seas

Final: Lions win 36-27

-Q4: 0:52. Sack on 4th down. That’s game. Lions will get their first win of the season.

-Q4 1:35: Not kicking the field goal there…is in an interesting choice. Lions turn it over on downs.

-Q4 1:56: Touchdown Commanders. Wentz to Dotson for the second time. 36-27 after missing the extra point. That’s huge.

Two-minute warning

-Q4 2:00 Yeesh. This defense is not good. Washington has taken a lot of time off the clock, but they keep marching right down the field. Third and goal from the one-yard line.

Praise the Sun God

-Q4 7:00: Lions offense comes through again. Goff finds St. Brown for the second time today. It’s now 36-21.

Commanders keep hanging around

-Q4 10:39: Commanders score again to come back within a touchdown. It’s now 29-21 after Washington doesn’t get the two-point conversion.

-Q4 12:04: Jeff Okudah is injured. Lions already thin enough at CB as it is with Amani Oruwariye out.

-Q4 12:20: Commanders are marching down the field once again.

-Q4 14:18: Washington picks up the first down.

End of third quarter: Lions up 29-15

-Lions will try to stuff the Commanders on fourth down on the other side of the break.

D’Andre is Swift

-Q3 1:28: Some magician type-stuff by D’Andre Swift. He caught the pass, slipped, got back up, turned upfield, and scored from 22 yards out. Lions lead back up to 14.

-Q3 2:27: Big 58-yard run by Amon-Ra St. Brown. Boy, did they need that.

Commanders inch closer

-Q3 2:58: Touchdown Commanders. Wentz to Logan Thomas. Ford Field is quiet. Washington gets the two-point conversion to make it 22-15.

-Q3 4:18: Lions defense is collapsing. Washington is getting a ton of big plays in the passing game.

-He’s back now.

-And now he just came off the field.

-Aidan Hutchinson appears to be nursing some sort of leg injury. He’s on the field for the next series, but he’s a little gimpy.

-Q3 7:18: Lions keep throwing short of the sticks on third down and it keeps not working. Another punt.

Will Harris interception

-Q3 10:06: Will Harris picks off Carson Wentz on a tipped pass. Lions take over.

-Q3 11:49: Lions offense starts with a three-and-out. Not an ideal start to the second half.

Washington gets on the board

-Q3 12:58: Well that was quick. Carson Wentz leads a quick drive and finds Curtis Samuel for a 15-yard TD. He had a big pass to Jahan Dotson earlier in the drive. It’s now 22-7.

Second half underway

-First half stats:

-Goff: 12/22, 153 yards, 2 TDs

-Swift: 3 rushes, 56 yards

-Williams: 9 rushes, 39 yards

-St. Brown: 6 catches, 86 yards, TD

-Josh Reynolds: 3 catches, 38 yards, TD

-Hutchinson: 3 sacks

Halftime: Lions lead 22-0

-Q2 Lions will get the ball back with about 30 seconds and one timeout.

-Q2 1:22: Hutchinson picks up his third sack of the half.

Two-minute warning

-Q2 2:43: Goff throws to about three white jerseys and somehow avoids an interception. Lions punt.

-Q2 4:20: Lions defense gets off the field on the next set of downs. Aaron Glenn brought the house on third down. Washington punts again.

-Q2 5:46: Washington gets its first first down of the game.

Lions punch it in again

-Q2 6:43: They answer that question very quickly. Goff finds Josh Reynolds for a three-yard score on the very next play. It’s all Lions right now, 22-0.

-Q2 7:15: Lions have first and goal from the 3-yard line. Can they punch it in?

-Q2 12:10: Lions defense forces another three-and-out. Washington still doesn’t have a first down.

-Q2 13:33: Hutchinson gets another sack on second and 10.

Seibert hits another FG

-Q2 13:47: Lions settle for another field goal after an interesting play call on third and 6. Seibert is perfect from 48 yards out. 15-0.

End of first quarter: Lions lead 12-0

Lions finally find pay dirt

-Q1 1:40: Goff makes something out of nothing and finds the Sun God in the end zone for the touchdown. Lions lead 12-0.

-Q1 3:07: Big 63-yard return by Kalif Raymond. Lions in business.

Safety!

-Q1 3:17: Charles Harris strip sacks Carson Wentz and the ball rolls to the back of the end zone. That’s a safety. Lions now up 5-0 and getting the ball back.

Lions turn it over on downs

-Q1 4:02: Red zone offense is struggling so far. A field goal and now a turnover on downs.

-Q1 6:11: Big run by D’Andre Swift. He looks healthy. 50 yards.

-Q1 6:22: Lions defense came to play so far. Aided by an intentional grounding penalty, they force another three-and-out.

Lions settle for field goal

-Q1 8:06: Goff throws short of the sticks on third down and the Lions have to settle for three. Austin Seibert hits the 35-yard field goal as they take a 3-0 lead.

-Q1 10:08: Big play on third down as Goff finds Amon-Ra St. Brown over the middle for 49 yards.

-Q1 11:32: Aidan Hutchinson picks up his first career sack on third down as Washington is forced to punt.

-Q1 13:35: Lions offensive line injuries already proving to be an issue. Jared Goff is sacked on third down and the Lions punt.

Kickoff

-Q1 15:00: Commanders win the toss and defer to the second half. Lions up first on offense.

Pregame

The Detroit Lions were close but not close enough against the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 1. This week, they’ll look to get more than a moral victory against the Washington Commanders.

The Lions are favored in a game for the first time since 2020, but that line has shrunk as the week has gone on. The Lions will be without All-Pro center Frank Ragnow, as well as left guard Jonah Jackson, who was ruled out on Sunday. Running back D’Andre Swift could be limited by an ankle injury.

One thing the Lions will be happy to see this week is a quarterback who isn’t very mobile in Washington’s Carson Wentz. Jalen Hurts ran all over the Lions’ defense a week ago, but they won’t have to worry too much about the QB scramble this week.

Wentz is also pretty prone to mistakes, so the Lions will look to take advantage and force some turnovers.

Follow along here for live updates from Detroit News contributor Matthew Scheidel.