Lions flatten Browns, making Packers’ stumble look even worse

The Detroit Lions had their struggles with the vaunted Cleveland Browns defense, but ultimately came out on top thanks to complementary defense and an extra tip of the cap on special teams with Khaliff Raymond’s 65-yard punt return score to ice the game.

Of course, the offense did its part, scoring 10 points off of turnovers and putting 27 on the board total. While the one-two punch of Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery wasn’t effective as a unit, Gibbs had 91 yards on the ground, averaging 6.1 yards per carry.

It’s a far cry from the performance the rival Green Bay Packers had against these same Browns just one week ago.

Detroit Lions proved what the Green Bay Packers could not against Cleveland

While the Browns had homefield advantage last week in their upset win over Green Bay, Detroit’s win looks even more impressive on paper, as they pulled off what the Packers could not. In that respect, it goes a long way in proving that the transitive property doesn’t exist in the NFL, considering Green Bay's Week 1 win over Detroit.

That said, far be it from one division rival to take all the bragging rights they can out of a given situation.

After all, last week the Browns sacked Jordan Love five times. Jared Goff wasn’t sacked at all. Cleveland averaged 5.1 yards per carry last week, and this week just 2.6.

With the NFC North and AFC North squaring off throughout the 2025 season, the competitiveness of both divisions is a great measuring stick for the top teams in each conference. So far, the Lions have handled the challenge of facing the AFC side better than the rest. Detroit has now beaten the Browns and Ravens in back-to-back weeks. Meanwhile, Green Bay’s only loss so far is to the now 1-3 Browns, and Minnesota also lost to Pittsburgh this week.

Sure, the Packers got the win in Week 1, and those are ultimate bragging rights that Green Bay carries until they meet again for Thanksgiving. But at least for this week, the Lions have the last laugh, if only for a few hours until the Packers face the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday Night Football with Micah Parsons seeking revenge.

Meanwhile, Detroit looks ahead to its next AFC North challenge with the Cincinnati Bengals up next. Without Joe Burrow in the lineup, there’s certainly a strong chance the Lions could move to 3-0 against the AFC North, further showing that they’ve grown from Week 1 and are ready to meet the challenges of facing these black and blue teams from both northern divisions.