The Detroit Lions established their will to the tune of 33 minutes in time of possession and a 32-yard advantage in rushing yards at the final whistle. The Houston Texans won the game, 41-25.
Editor's note: All of PFF's grades and advanced stats from this game will be finalized and made available to ELITE subscribers within 24 hours of the final whistle.
STORY OF THE GAME
Star quarterback Deshaun Watson completed 12-of-25 passes for 318 yards and four touchdowns en route to a 150.4 passer rating and overall dominant offensive performance. He connected with veteran wideout Will Fuller V six times for 171 yards and two touchdowns on the day. Brandin Cooks and Duke Johnson Jr. also combined for 128 receiving yards and a score (Johnson) from nine targets.
And Watson did so behind a poor showing from his offensive line. On first review, three of the Texans’ offensive linemen earned sub-60.0 PFF grades.
While the intent to run the football was strong, the end result for Detroit was dismal. Adrian Peterson and Kerryon Johnson leveraged a slew of early-down carries to combine for 101 rushing yards on 26 carries (3.9 yards per carry). Peterson also punched in two short-yardage TDs to give the fantasy football community an early start on Thanksgiving dessert.
Matt Patricia and the Lions’ coaching staff did everything they could to put quarterback Matthew Stafford in a position to play hero ball on long third downs and trailing big. The veteran signal-caller finished the game with just 28 completions on 42 attempts for 295 yards, one touchdown and an interception in addition to his four sacks.
The lone bright spot on the defensive side of the ball in this contest was Texans standout J.J. Watt. He had a pick-six early in the game and continued to dominate in the trenches for the full 60 minutes. He’ll finish PFF’s grading reviews with one of the — if not the — highest PFF grades on either defense.
ROOKIE WATCH
Lions rookie offensive guard Jonah Jackson didn’t have a strong game in pass protection. He allowed multiple pressures in the contest and should finish PFF’s grading review process with a sub-50.0 PFF pass-blocking grade. Fellow Lions rookie John Penisini also played 25 snaps in the game, but his performance was forgettable outside of drawing a hold on a would-be early Fuller touchdown reception.
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