Check out the Saints vs. Lions action at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome.
The Detroit Lions were able to keep the New Orleans Saints' high-powered offense under control and left the Mercedes-Benz Superdome on Sunday with a 28-13 victory.
The loss dropped the Saints to 5-7 while the NFC North-leading Lions are 8-4.
Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford had a strong outing hurting the Saints with his passing and scrambling. He finished 30 for 42 for 341 yards with two touchdowns. He ran the ball three times for 22 yards. Stafford broke the game open with a 66-yard touchdown pass to Golden Tate in the fourth quarter. Stafford completed the pass even though he was hit by two Saints defenders.
The Saints defense played well, forcing Detroit to kick five Matt Prater field goals, but the offense never got it in gear. Saints quarterback failed to throw a touchdown pass, ending his NFL record of 60 consecutive home games with a touchdown pass. He was 31 of 44 for 326 yards and three interceptions, the last one on the final play of the game.
The running game wasn't much better as Mark Ingram managed just 37 yards on seven carries.
The Saints finished with just 319 yards of offense. The Lions also were able to dominate time of possession as they converted 5 of 12 third-down attempts.
The Saints' troubles started on their opening possession when on third-and-1 quarterback Brees mishandled the shotgun snap. He recovered the ball but was called for intentional grounding when he threw the ball away. The Saints mounted a scoring drive late that ended with a 40-yard Wil Lutz field goal and ended the half with a 32-yard field goal by Lutz.
The Saints finished the half with just 137 yards of offense and had the ball for just 11:28. They almost came up with two game-changing plays in the first half but cornerback Sterling Moore failed to grab a potential interception after a Stafford pass was tipped and tight end Coby Fleener couldn't snare a potential touchdown pass from Brees toward the end of the half.
The Saints, who honored their all-50th team at halftime Sunday, will play at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers next Sunday at 3:25 in a game critical to keeping their playoff hopes alive.
Saints stat leaders
Drew Brees, 31 of 44 for 326 yards with three interceptions
Mark Ingram, seven carries for 37 yards
Brandin Cooks, seven catches for 73 yards
Lions stat leaders
Matthew Stafford, 30 of 42 for 341 yards with two touchdowns
Zach Zenner, nine carries for 40 yards
Golden Tate, eight catches for 145 yards and a TD
