Calvin Johnson caught seven balls for 161 yards and a score despite "all kinds" of bracket and double coverages from Cleveland in Week 11.
Kevin Smith's biggest game of the year also freed up the passing game to take shots downfield. Johnson beat the entire Browns defense on his 75-yard score. Assuming Matthew Stafford (left shoulder) is able to finish out the season, the Lions' offense has dangerous potential for the final six games.
Lions SS Ko Simpson was forced to leave Sunday's win over the Browns with a knee injury and did not return.
Simpson is in danger of missing Thursday's game against the Packers. He was already filling in for Marquand Manuel (injured reserve, shoulder), leaving seldom used Marvin White as a first-teamer. Aaron Rodgers should have a field day against this secondary on Thanksgiving.
Aaron Brown was active and scored a touchdown in the Lions' Week 11 win over the Browns, just one week after being a healthy scratch.
Brown was probably only active because returner Derrick Williams (hip) was sidelined. It's still a big step for Brown, a rookie, to bounce back and contribute to a win. He was the primary kick returner and third running back.
ESPN's Chris Mortensen reports that Matthew Stafford is "iffy" for Thursday's game against the Packers.
X-rays revealed no fracture to Stafford's collarbone, which the team initially feared, but he reentered Sunday's game against the advice of doctors. Stafford will undergo an MRI on Monday, though the secretive Lions won't tell anyone the results. They'll call him a "game-day decision" for Week 12.
X-rays came back negative on Matthew Stafford's left shoulder following Sunday's 38-37 win over Cleveland.
Coach Jim Schwartz, as usual, said it's "too early to tell" if Stafford will be ready for Week 12. The Lions will play his status close to the vest, but Stafford reentered Sunday's game and finished in overtime, throwing the game-winning touchdown pass to Brandon Pettigrew. The minor injury is to his non-throwing shoulder, so Stafford isn't likely to miss next week.
Matthew Stafford completed 26-of-43 passes for 422 yards, five touchdowns and two interceptions in Week 11 against the Browns.
Stafford had 421 yards and four scores with eight seconds remaining and THEN things got crazy. Down six, he scrambled for an eternity and launched a hail mary into the end zone. The pass was intercepted and Stafford was driven into the turf, leaving the field with his left arm dangling. However, a pass interference call gave Detroit the ball at the one-yard line. Daunte Culpepper initially came in for the final play, but after a timeout Stafford was back on the field, clearly in pain, and found Brandon Pettigrew for the game-winning score to become the youngest quarterback in NFL history with five touchdowns. Hopefully the injury proves minor, because that would be a rough capper to what was an absolutely amazing game.
Calvin Johnson caught seven passes for 161 yards and one touchdown in Week 11 against the Browns.
Johnson narrowly missed a touchdown catch in the second quarter and came down hard on the play, limping off the field. He was in and out of the game quite a bit after that while clearly in pain, yet still managed to get completely behind the defense for a 75-yard touchdown and topped 100 yards for just the second time this season.
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