The 104th season of the NFL officially got underway on Thursday night with the Kansas City Chiefs playing host to the Detroit Lions. And it was the road team that was able to draw first blood. With just under three minutes remaining in the opening quarter of the season, Lions quarterback Jared Goff connected with star wideout Amon-Ra St. Brown on a nine-yard touchdown to put Detroit up, 7-0.
Goff spotted St. Brown coming across the middle of the field and the wideout had a relatively easy scamper into the end zone.
The Lions get on the board first 😎@jaredgoff16 | @amonra_stbrown
— NFL (@NFL) September 8, 2023
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That score concluded a 14-play, 91-yard drive by the Lions, which included a gutsy call by head coach Dan Campbell. Initially, it looked as if Detroit was going to go three-and-out after a throw by Goff to Marvin Jones fell short of the first down marker on a third-and-7 attempt. However, Campbell ran a fake punt from his own 17-yard line and was able to keep the drive alive with the conversion. On top of the score, the drive also chewed 8:04 off the clock, keeping Patrick Mahomes on the side as a mere spectator.
Through the opening quarter, St. Brown caught all three of his targets for 27 and, of course, a touchdown. Meanwhile, Goff was an efficient 5-of-8 for 53 yards and a touchdown. Detroit went on to win 21-20 in an impressive comeback effort.
The Lions were a top-five scoring offense in 2022, averaging 26.6 points per game and they are off to a strong start here in the regular season opener.
