Lions Keep Playoff Dreams Alive, Cruising Past Overrated Cowboys

What a difference a week made for the Detroit Lions.

The Lions encountered very little issues with the red-hot Dallas Cowboys Thursday night, disposing of the Cowboys, 44-30, in the virtual must-win contest and keeping their playoff hopes alive in the process. 

With the victory, Detroit's playoff chances increased to 53 percent, per Next Gen Stats. Meanwhile, a loss would have dropped those odds to a measly 18 percent.

Detroit's previously stagnant offense and nonexistent pass-rush both came to life Thursday, and man, was it a much-needed change of pace for Dan Campbell's squad.

The Lions wisely used Jahmyr Gibbs, one of the league's most versatile weapons, early and often, and he rewarded Detroit with 120 all-purpose yards and three total touchdowns.

Meanwhile, David Montgomery, Gibbs’ backfield partner, had his most efficient day on the ground in weeks. He came through with 60 yards on six carries, including a 35-yard touchdown run in the second quarter. He ran strong and hard, and looked like his old self in the Week 14 affair.

The game also was the 15th instance in which Gibbs and Montgomery both produced a touchdown from scrimmage in the same contest. This marks the NFL record (in the Super Bowl era) for the most times in which each member of a backfield duo has recorded a score in the same game.

Detroit's star wide receivers Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams each also delivered clutch performances. St. Brown, who battled an ankle ailment all week long, and Williams each amassed at least six catches and 90-plus receiving yards in the winning effort.

St. Brown validated his status as one of the game's toughest competitors, gutting it out for the Lions in a game they had to have to preserve their playoff hopes. 

He notably caught passes on scoring drives at the end of both halves, including a 37-yard reception on Detroit's very last touchdown drive of the game. It set up Gibbs' third and final rushing TD of the night, a score which gave Detroit a two-touchdown advantage (44-30) and sealed the deal in the primetime showdown.

Meanwhile, on the defensive end, the Lions’ pass-rush, which had basically been missing in action over the last four weeks with just four sacks, reemerged in a big fashion.

Detroit compiled five total sacks – three in the first half and two in the fourth quarter – and EDGE Al-Quadin Muhammad led the way with three of his own.

Additionally, linebacker Jack Campbell, in the midst of a career-best campaign, produced a monstrous effort. In the first half alone, he recorded a sack (and near safety) of Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott, and forced Dallas tight end Jake Ferguson to cough up the football, leading to a Lions TD. It was one of three takeaways for Detroit in the Week 14 contest, with linebacker Derrick Barnes and cornerback D.J. Reed also securing pivotal interceptions.

In addition to Campbell's first-half production, he finished with a game-high 12 total tackles, certifying his status as one of the game's very best linebackers. Detroit needed each one of his tackles to pull out the victory Thursday night, too. 

“We challenged a number of our guys, and, man, they really showed up for us,” Campbell said in the postgame. “That’s a damn good win. That team is hot. It was a hot team coming in here. That’s a potent offense. Was it perfect? No. We still got some stuff that wasn’t good. We had some of these penalties. We had some young guys that we got to clean some of this up – false starts, stuff like that. But, we overcame a lot. That’s what this team does. So, I’m proud of them.”

In their Week 14 matchup with Dallas, the Lions faced the definition of a sink-or-swim situation. They could have either returned to playing a winning brand of football and taken care of business at home, or faltered under pressure and allowed their postseason odds to sink even further.

Luckily for the Lions’ sake, they chose the former, and it was largely due to their star players stepping up in significant ways. 

From Gibbs and Montgomery to St. Brown and Williams (and Campbell on the defensive side), each of Detroit's big-time players seemingly came through with big-time, clutch performances. It's what those players are paid to do, and they certainly delivered.

And because of it, Campbell's squad “swam” to victory against the surging Cowboys.

Undeniably, the Lions saved their 2025 season with the Week 14 win.