-
Rob Demowski
Detroit–the green Bay Packers He probably wouldn’t mind if the NFL scheduled him for the Thanksgiving game again next year. And the year after that. And the year after that.
jordan love And Micah Parsons Enjoyed holiday football once again. The Packers quarterback and defensive star joined a few others in Thursday’s 31-24 win. detroit lions,
Love was perfect on Turkey Day. The Packers have played on this day in all three years that he has been the starting quarterback and have won each time, with Love playing better each year. This time, it was with four touchdown passes, including a pair on fourth down.
Parsons, was a regular participant in the day from his time dallas cowboysHe added 2.5 more sacks against the Lions to bring his career total to 8.5 sacks in five games on Thanksgiving.
Throw big games from receivers dontevian wicks (six catches for 94 yards and two touchdowns) and Christian Watson (Four catches for 80 yards and a touchdown) Also, coach Matt LaFleur beat the Lions at their own game by dominating on fourth down, and almost everyone in the visiting locker room went home happy.
“It definitely brings a different excitement, energy out there,” Watson said of playing on Thanksgiving. “I mean, most of the time we bring our energy and just go out there and play football,” Watson said. “But these definitely give them a little boost, so it’s definitely fun to play these Thanksgiving games.”
The Packers defeated the Lions last season after defeating them; The Packers’ 2024 Thanksgiving game was a home win over the Dolphins.
They won Thursday’s game thanks to LaFleur’s offensive call on fourth-and-3 from the Lions’ 45-yard line, when Love hit Wicks for a 16-yard completion with 1:55 left. This meant the Packers finished 3-for-3 on fourth downs, while the Lions finished 0-for-2 on fourth downs. A week after the Packers defeated the Vikings with a conservative, run-first game plan, they went hyper-aggressive against Detroit.
Love became the first Packer with multiple touchdown passes on fourth down in the same game since at least 1978, when the Elias Sports Bureau began tracking that statistic. Love completed 18 of 30 passes for 234 yards and four touchdowns – only the third time in his career he has thrown so many passes in a game – while still playing with a painful left shoulder injury.
In three Thanksgiving games as a starter, Love has completed 68% of his passes for 776 yards with nine touchdowns and no interceptions.
“He’s the one,” Parsons said. “He’s going to show. Hurt, injured, he’s going to fight for his guys and play at the highest level. J-Love is the ultimate competitor. There aren’t a lot of quarterbacks that fight like he does, with everything he’s been through – despite all the injuries. He just comes in and works. It’s starting to show. The jump he’s making this year is night and day.”
A week after Parsons became the second player to record double-digit sacks in the first five seasons of his career, he reached 12.5 sacks on the season and became the first player in NFL history with at least 12 sacks in his first five seasons (since sacks were first tracked in 1982).
“His performance was great,” LaFleur said.
The Packers (8-3-1) have joined themselves in the NFC North race with the Bears (8-3), who come to Green Bay on Sunday, Dec. 7.
“This was a big win for where we want to go, win the division, win the playoffs,” Parsons said. “That was a playoff game. We’ve just got to pile these up.”
One downside for the Packers on Thanksgiving was losing defensive tackle devonte wyattHe is believed to have suffered an ankle injury in the second half, ending his season,
“It doesn’t look good, guys,” LaFleur said. “I’m sick for him, I’m sick for us. I mean, it’s a serious loss for our football team, obviously for our defense.”
