Matthew Stafford threw two touchdown passes while leading a ball-control attack, and the Detroit Lions gave former New England defensive coordinator Matt Patricia his first head coaching victory by defeating the visiting Patriots 26-10 on Sunday night.
Stafford hit on 27 of 36 passes for 262 yards with one interception. Kenny Golladay caught six passes for 53 yards and a touchdown, and Marvin Jones caught four passes for 69 yards and a score for Detroit (1-2).
Rookie Kerryon Johnson became the first Lions back to rush for at least 100 yards since Reggie Bush on Thanksgiving 2013. Johnson gained 101 yards on 16 carries as the Lions possessed the ball for more than 39 minutes. Matt Prater supplied four field goals.
Tom Brady completed 14 of 26 passes for 133 yards, one touchdown and one interception for the Patriots (1-2).
The Lions led 13-3 at halftime.
Detroit methodically drove 12 plays on its first possession but settled for a Prater 38-yard field goal.
Golladay scored on a 4-yard pass from Stafford early in the second quarter. The second-year wide receiver was originally ruled short of the goal line, but a replay review reversed the call. The Lions moved inside the 10 on a 15-yard reception by Jones.
Another long Detroit drive – 14 plays, 71 yards – resulted in a 25-yard Prater field goal with 4:58 left in the second quarter.
New England was unable to pick up a first down until its final possession on the first half. The Patriots drove 57 yards in 11 plays but had to settle for Stephen Gostkowski’s 36-yard field goal when they failed to convert a third-and-1 situation.
Ja’Whaun Bentley picked off a Stafford pass in the opening minutes of the second half. The Patriots cashed in on Brady’s 10-yard pass to James White to cut Detroit’s lead to 13-10.
Detroit got those points back on its next possession. Jones beat single coverage on a 33-yard scoring pass from Stafford to make it 20-10 and finish off a 75-yard drive.
Prater’s 32-yard field goal with 12:48 remaining increased Detroit’s lead to 13.
Cornerback Darius Slay picked off a Brady pass with 7:23 left, and Prater tacked on a 30-yard field goal with two minutes remaining.
“Two weeks where you get behind,” Brady said after the game. “Just not making enough plays early in the game. We’re behind and we’re just fighting uphill all day. It’s no way to play football, it’s no way to execute at a very high level and we’re just not doing anything well enough.”
Earlier, Russell Wilson threw two touchdown passes and Earl Thomas tallied two interceptions as Seattle won its home opener. The Seahawks (1-2) improved their record in Seattle in the month of September to 14-0 under ninth-year head coach Pete Carroll.
After giving up 12 sacks in the first two games, Seattle surrendered only two to the Cowboys (1-2) as Wilson completed 16 of 26 passes for 192 yards with no interceptions. Chris Carson carried 32 times for a career-high 102 yards and a touchdown.
Seattle sacked a struggling Dak Prescott five times. He was 19 of 34 for 168 yards with one touchdown and the two picks by Thomas. Prescott has now thrown for fewer than 200 yards in five straight games and nine of his past 11.
The first interception by Thomas was a sensational shoelace snag after rookie Michael Gallup lost control of the ball in the first quarter. The second pick, on a deflection, came with a little more than three minutes left in the game and quashed any Cowboys comeback hopes.
NFL Network reported earlier Sunday that the Cowboys are still trying to trade for Thomas, who was flagged for taunting after bowing to the Dallas sideline after his second takeaway. The six-time Pro Bowl selection is a Texas native and played at the University of Texas, and he told Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett last year “if you get the chance, come get me.” Thomas, 29, wants a new contract and is reportedly facing team fines for detrimental conduct after missing practices last week.
Ratcheting up the need for safety help, the Cowboys lost starter Jeff Heath to an apparent left ankle injury in the second quarter. A few plays later, Tyler Lockett got behind the secondary on the right sideline and high-stepped it home with a 52-yard touchdown from Wilson to make it 14-3.
Sebastian Janikowski’s 47-yard field goal – aided by Randy Gregory’s 15-yard penalty – pushed Seattle’s lead to 17-3 at halftime.
Brett Maher’s second field goal, from 35 yards out, trimmed the Dallas deficit to 17-6 with 3:43 left in the third quarter.
The Seahawks responded with a 10-play, 72-yard drive, capped by a 5-yard touchdown run up the middle by Carson. The drive consumed nearly six minutes and put Seattle up 24-6 with 12:54 left.
On a day when the rest of the NFC East went 3-0, the Cowboys scored their only touchdown with 7:11 left. Prescott flipped the ball to wide receiver Tavon Austin in the backfield and he took it in from 3 yards out to make it 24-13.