Michael Whitaker
The Detroit Lions were depleted this week in practice, as several players weren’t able to go thanks to health and safety protocols. They were also without several starters this afternoon against the Denver Broncos thanks to both COVID-19 protocols as well as injuries.
Of course, it didn’t help that they also lost Jerry Jacobs and Alex Anzalone over the course of today’s game as well.
For the Lions, who were forced to call up several reinforcements for this afternoon’s game from the practice squad, nobody is going to feel sorry for them.
It doesn’t matter,” Jared Goff said. “Nobody feels sorry for us, including ourselves. We came out here intending to win and came up short – doesn’t matter who is on the field.”
Though the Lions were able to make things close by coming within four points of the host Broncos, it was several consecutive turnovers in the second half that sealed their fate.
“We had the momentum, it was 14-10 but then we weren’t able to get points on the board,” Goff said. “We still felt like we were in a good place, but just couldn’t get anything going.”
With the loss, the Lions became the first NFL team eliminated from playoff contention. And though their 1-11-1 record doesn’t exactly look promising, Goff explained very matter-of-factly how he and his teammates can feel good about this season as it begins to wind down.
“Four straight wins,” he answered. “We’ve got Arizona next week and we’ll deal with whoever we have after that. But it’d be tough to stand up here if I didn’t believe in those guys. I’m not BS-ing you guys, I believe in these guys and I believe we can play with anyone. And I believe in our coaches.”
“At the end of the day, we’re playing for pride and who we are. Your character shows up in these games – you find out about a lot of people in times like this.”
– – Quotes via Detroit Lions Link – –
