Grades: Lions Offense Finds Groove, Trick Play Dazzles

Grading Lions' Week 16 win over Bears.

Detroit Lions wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown (14). / Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Detroit Lions bounced back from their first defeat since Week 2 with an emphatic 34-17 win over the Chicago Bears.

Detroit scored points on each of its first five drives, and did enough defensively to keep the Bears at bay throughout the game.

Here are grades for each position group based on their performance in Sunday's game.

Quarterback: A

Jared Goff set a new NFL record with his 30th game passing for at least 300 yards with a passer rating over 100. He has done so 11 times this year, and has set a new bar for quarterbacks with the most games of this nature through a player's first nine seasons.

The veteran had a solid day, throwing for three touchdowns including a career-long 82-yard pass to Jameson Williams in the second quarter. He also hit Amon-Ra St. Brown on a screen pass for a touchdown, and added a third quarter scoring pass to Sam LaPorta on a nifty trick play.

Goff was 23-of-32 passing for 336 yards and three touchdowns while avoiding a turnover for the second straight game. Over the last two weeks, Goff has thrown for 830 yards, eight touchdowns and no interceptions.

He did have a pair of inaccurate passes in the first half, but these misses were likely due to the pressure in his face. He also nearly had a screen pass picked off in the first quarter in the red zone. However, he was pristine with his accuracy for much of the final three quarters.

Running backs: A-

With David Montgomery sidelined, Jahmyr Gibbs stepped into the lead role for the first time this season. He carried the ball 17 times before halftime, along with three catches to give him 20 total touches in the first two quarters.

Gibbs punched in a 1-yard touchdown in the first quarter. He demonstrated an ability to get the tough yards between the tackles, and Detroit also got him the ball in the screen game as well.

Craig Reynolds and Jermar Jefferson each got opportunities to compliment Gibbs. Reynolds had four carries for 18 yards, while Jefferson had three for 13 in his first NFL action since his rookie year in 2021.

Rookie Sione Vaki got involved late in the first half, catching two passes for 20 yards.

Wide receivers: A

Jameson Williams paced the receiving corps on Sunday, notching a career-high 143 yards on five receptions. Among these receptions was a career-best 82-yard touchdown catch from Jared Goff on a perfect throw-and-catch deep down the field.

Williams was flagged for taunting early in the game, but bounced back to have a solid afternoon. In addition to his touchdown, he had a 25-yard catch on which he shook multiple Bears defenders.

Amon-Ra St. Brown was steady as ever, hauling in six catches for 70 yards. He had two big plays, one being a screen pass that he caught and maneuvered his way into the end zone for a 10-yard score.

Later in the game, he would demonstrate more elusiveness in taking a pass short of the sticks for an 18-yard gain to convert a third-and-17.

Tight ends: A

Sam LaPorta was on the receiving end of the trick-play touchdown pass from Goff, as he ran a delay route while the Lions were giving the illusion of a fumble in the backfield. He caught the 21-yard score to extend Detroit's lead to 20 in the third quarter.

That touchdown catch was the longest of LaPorta's four catches on Sunday, as he totaled 43 yards. Brock Wright was not targeted but had his steady presence in two-tight end packages as a blocker.

Studs and Duds: Gibbs Owns Lead Back Role

Did Ben Johnson hit them with a fake trip? Hell yea
87 Touchdown pic.twitter.com/eepws6SIf8

— DetroitSportsPodcast (@DetroitPodcast) December 22, 2024

Offensive line: A-

With Graham Glasgow sidelined, the Lions turned to rookie Christian Mahogany to make his first career start. Mahogany showed plenty of promise in his first taste of extended action, and showed up as a downfield blocker on screen plays.

As a whole, the group had a much better showing than last week, as they were able to generate run lanes for Gibbs throughout the afternoon. The group dominated in the run game, and the different screen pass looks allowed them to get active out in space.

Mahogany did get whistled for a false start, but for the most part it was a solid first start for the 2024 sixth-round pick.

Defensive line: B-

Caleb Williams' mobility presented some problems for the Lions' defensive line, as they weren't able to corral him despite having several opportunities early. Though Detroit would get two second-half sacks, there were multiple other missed opportunities.

Za'Darius Smith had a couple of looks but couldn't bring him down, and was flagged for roughing the passer in the fourth quarter. Pat O'Connor, meanwhile was flagged for offsides.

The lone defensive lineman to get a sack was Al-Quadin Muhammad, who continued his success against one of his former teams. He got to Williams in the fourth quarter to force a punt that helped to seal the win.

Detroit was solid against the run, limiting the Bears to 25 rushing yards aside from the 34 Williams gained on scrambles. Josh Paschal recovered the first of two Chicago fumbles in the first quarter.

Linebackers: B

Jack Campbell had another solid showing, notching seven tackles and a pass defensed. With Kwon Alexander inactive, Ben Niemann got the start and finished with four tackles.

Ezekiel Turner and Trevor Nowaske also saw some time in rotational situations. Turner was beat by Cole Kmet for a touchdown in the second quarter, while Nowaske had one tackle. Mitchell Agude and David Long each had one tackle apiece.

Secondary: B

Without Carlton Davis, and Ifeatu Melifonwu returning, the Lions did some shuffling to their secondary. Amik Robertson got the start as an outside corner opposite Terrion Arnold, while Brian Branch slid up to nickel and Melifonwu went to safety.

Branch had a game-high 12 tackles, with one for loss, along with two pass breakups. Both Branch and Robertson were near the ball when Rome Odunze fumbled, though the forced fumble was ultimately credited to Agude.

Arnold had a good pass breakup in coverage in the end zone, but bit hard on a double move and was beaten for a touchdown by Keenan Allen. The rookie was beat again by Allen on a fourth-down conversion.

In his 2024 debut, Melifonwu recorded a sack and narrowly missed another early in the game when Williams evaded him on a well-timed blitz.

Special teams: A-

Jake Bates hit each of his first two field goal attempts to help give Detroit an early lead. He had a chance at a 60-yarder at the end of the half, but a false start on Hogan Hatten pushed the attempt a key five yards. Bates missed from 65 on a kick that appeared to have the necessary distance but stayed wide right.

With Maurice Alexander being waived Saturday, Tom Kennedy handled punt return duties. He fair caught two, and returned one for nine yards. Sione Vaki averaged 27.5 yards per kick return attempt.

Jack Fox had to punt just one time Sunday and netted 38 yards on the boot.

Coaching: A

The Lions were tasked with bouncing back after a tough defeat at the hands of the Buffalo Bills. Amidst a rash of injuries to key players, the Lions didn't waver in their confidence and were ready to go from kickoff against Chicago.

Detroit's first half offensive effort wasn't the cleanest, as they had to settle for field goals on two of their first three trips into the red zone. However, they were able to find the end zone in unique ways, along with the deep ball from Goff to Williams, to help fuel the onslaught.

While Detroit scored just one time in the second half, they were able to play ball control to help limit the action that the Bears were able to have in response. Detroit controlled the game in all three phases, and have positioned themselves in a great spot to potentially clinch the No. 1 seed and the NFC North with a win and a Vikings loss in Week 17.