The Detroit Lions just walked into Ford Field on Sunday and imposed their will on defense in a way that we haven't seen them do in a long time. The fact that they did it the week after a hard loss in overtime makes it all the more better. 

They held the Atlanta Falcons to just 183 total yards and six points. They sacked the Falcons seven times and held them to 4-14 on third down. It was one of the best defensive showings the Lions have had in a long time. But how long? Let's take a look and find out shall we? 

The 183 yards that the Lions held the Falcons to is the the lowest since 2018 when the Lions held the Packers to 175 total yards in a 31-0 win. This was one of those last week of the season specials from Matt Patricia. The games where you suddenly see creativity and good things before they disappeared completely.

That was also the last time the Lions kept a team from scoring a touchdown. 

In terms of other times the Lions have held a team under 200 total yards, the Lions did it two other times outside of Sunday and that 2018 game. They held the Packers to just 126 total yards on Thanksgiving in 2013 and the New York Giants to 197 on Monday Night Football in 2014. 

If you're wondering what the fewest yards the Lions have ever held a team to, it's 24. That is not a typo. The Lions held the Bears to an NFL record low 24 total yards in an 23-7 win in 1981. The Bears had negative 20 passing yards in that game. 

What about the sacks? The Lions had seven of them. Surely they haven't had anything like that in a long time. Actually, they did that very same thing earlier this year. On January 1st, the Lions sacked Justin Fields seven times. So hey, that's cool. 

Previous to that, the Lions hadn't recorded seven or more sacks since 2014 when they had eight against the Vikings in a 17-3 win. 

If you're curious as to what the Lions all time record is, it's 11. The Lions had a 11 sacks in a 13-11 win over the Eagles in 1986. They did it twice actually. The other time was in a 12-7 win over the Packers in 1965. You know it's old when you see something like the number 12 in a final score and the team with 12 won. 

So that's that. This was definitely one of the best defensive performances the Lions have had in the last 10 years. It's one of the best they've had in 20 years. Maybe even 30. 

Let's see if they bring that same energy to Lambeau on Thursday. 

4 Winners and 2 losers from Lions vs Falcons

The Detroit Lions needed an answer after a tough loss to the Seattle Seahawks in overtime in Week 2. They definitely got that in their 20-6 Week 3 win over the Atlanta Falcons.  The Lions played a complete game for the most part and they were able to be in the drivers seat the whole […]

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