Lions can’t close deal against Redskins
The Detroit Lions have held a lead in all 11 of the team’s games this season. However, when those 11 games have come to a close, the Lions have a mere three wins.
An ill-timed interception paved the way for the Washington Redskins to rally for a 19-16 win at home over the Lions to hand Detroit its fourth-straight loss and seventh in the last eight games.
“It comes down to not making plays at the end of the game and that has been a common theme over these past few weeks,” said quarterback Jeff Driskel, who made his third-straight start in place of injured Matthew Stafford. “You just have to find a way to make them.
“At the end of the day, we have the confidence that we are going to make them and we just didn’t do it. It’s frustrating when you’re in position to go win football games and you come up short.”
Penalties — six in the second half after taking zero in the first half — and turnovers (three interceptions and a fumble) doomed the Lions against a Washington team that came in with one win this season and had not one at home since Oct. 14, 2018.
“Certainly, we have to do it better from that standpoint to try to turn the tables here on the win-loss,” said Lions head coach Matt Patricia, whose is 9-17-1 in parts of two seasons. “We know we’re in a lot of close games and we’re real close on all of these things.
“I think everyone is going to have the same frustration of not being able to close them out or finish it or whatever it is, but the good thing for the group is they really do work hard and go back at it.”
The Lions are battling injuries and six starters were sidelined for Sunday’s game, but it was a match with a team with just one win in 10 games coming in with an interim head coach and a rookie quarterback, Dwayne Haskins, making just his third NFL start.
Washington drove 54 yards in nine plays to tie the game at 1616 with just under two minutes to play in regulation.
Driskel had a chance to drive the Lions for the game-winning score. Instead, he threw his second of three interceptions in the game at the Washington 46-yard line. With that, the Redskins turned it into the game-winning field goal with 16 seconds to play.
“We just have to move on to the next game right now,” said Lions linebacker Jarrad Davis, whose team will play host to the Chicago Bears (5-6) in their annual U.S. Thanksgiving game on Thursday. “It is one of those things where it is hard, but it’s fair. We just can’t let this loss turn into another one.”