ARLINGTON, Texas – This wasn’t the scene you’d expect after a 39-point victory.

Upon arriving at the AT&T Stadium locker room late Sunday evening, spectators were treated to several sights and sounds. Left tackle Taylor Decker could be seen discussing how the offense wanted to make a statement en route to a 47-point day.

Wait a few minutes and turn the corner, and you’ll see Detroit’s starting secondary huddled in the back, reflecting on a five-turnover day against the Cowboys. This was the most complete game of the Dan Campbell era for the Lions: an absolute dismantling and a 47-9 victory.

It was essentially three hours of video evidence for national experts to use in crowning the Lions as perhaps the NFL’s best team on Monday morning.

And yet you wouldn’t know it if you watched Dan Campbell’s post-game press conference on mute, or asked players on this team about the 6-foot-2, Michigan-made elephant that wasn’t in the room.

“Let me start here: I hate it for Hutch,” Campbell said after the game, announcing that his star edge rusher Aidan Hutchinson had suffered a broken tibia. “That’s difficult. You know, it was tough, and he’s in good hands now. He is taken care of. He stays here. Obviously he’s going to be down for a while. And that is difficult. It’s hard when you lose someone like him, but after this we know a lot more and of course we wish him the best.”

There are few words players can use to describe a game like this and its aftermath, but we’ll try to do that here. Bittersweet is a good starting point.

This was something of a revenge game for the Lions. A native of Texas, Campbell grew up watching this Cowboys franchise and would later play for it. Many of his coaching philosophies emerged during his time in this city. But before Sunday, he had never beaten his home state organization as head coach, winning 0-2 in his previous two meetings. Both in Dallas.

GO DEEPER

Lions’ Aidan Hutchinson admitted to hospital after breaking his tibia against Cowboys

Last year’s game in particular is still a sore subject in Detroit. Officials waved away a potential game-winning two-point conversion and flagged the Lions for an ineligible receiver penalty. Campbell was confident his team was reporting correctly and doing everything right. The officials disagreed. Often a losing battle.

The Lions were left angry. Frustrated. Ripped off with a win last December. Nearly a year later, they wouldn’t leave things to chance.

“As controversial as last year was, so was last year,” Hutchinson said Tuesday. “I think we’re very hopeful and we’re all ready to get here. This year we have a mission.”

Those words are bittersweet knowing what would happen later. But they were true then and remained true on Sunday. These were two teams that were considered equals. What we know now is that they are at different levels in the NFL hierarchy.

Detroit looks like a team that is developing into a fully realized version of itself. Offensively, this is one of the best performances we’ve seen in the Campbell era.

Quarterback Jared Goff was 18 of 25 for 315 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions. Those three scores went to the usual suspects. One for Amon-Ra St. Brown, one for Jameson Williams and one for Sam LaPorta – his first of the season, with a sort of flea flicker.

The Lions are usually a picky team when it comes to their three go-to receivers, but they all did damage on Sunday. That score in particular gave them an impressive 17-3 lead early in the second quarter. And it was far from their last.

Ben Johnson has been in the lab 🧑‍🍳 #DETVsDAL | 📺 FOX pic.twitter.com/JCSzYrA9qb

— Detroit Lions (@Lions) October 13, 2024

It was the kind of day where you felt the offense was going to score every time the ball was touched. And that almost happened. Aside from a kneel with eight seconds left in the first half, Detroit’s starting offense scored a touchdown or field goal on all nine of its drives before Hendon Hooker and the reserves took over.

It got contributions from stars like Jahmyr Gibbs and the newly expanded David Montgomery (171 combined scrimmage yards and two touchdowns), and unsung heroes like Kalif Raymond (73 receiving yards) and Tim Patrick (68 receiving yards). Dan Skipper declared eligibility during the play and even targeted Decker in the end zone.

Leading 37-9 with less than a minute left in the third quarter, the Lions broke up a hook-and-ladder play to right tackle Penei Sewell. Yes, Swell. They call it ‘Grenade Special’. He almost scored on it, although not for a penalty.

It doesn’t matter. They would add 10 more points before the day was over. Whoa hum.

In total, the Lions recorded 47 points, 184 rushing yards, 308 net passing yards, 492 yards of offense and zero turnovers. When the offense was down, it relied on Jake Bates, who was a perfect 4-for-4 with 48 yards on field goal attempts, in addition to going 5-for-5 on PATs.

As clean and balanced a game as you’ll see from this bunch, and a concerted effort across the board to show a national audience the kind of time these Lions are performing at this year.

This felt intentional. This felt…personal.

“We knew we were going to get here and we were going to release the clip,” Decker said. “We want to make a statement and get this victory.”

Brian Branch intercepts a pass in the end zone. Detroit’s defense allowed just nine points against the Cowboys. (Sam Hodde/Getty Images)

You know you’re doing well when you can have a legitimate discussion about which unit had the better performance after one of the best offenses in the league put up 47. Make your choice. But before you do: a plea for the defense.

If there were still concerns about this defense after a poor effort against the Seahawks two weeks ago, Aaron Glenn’s unit did its best to put them to rest. This Detroit defense allowed just nine points, 251 yards, and 3.9 yards per play. Five turnover figures were recorded. It forced two fumbles – one from DB Brian Branch and another from LB Jalen Reeves-Maybin. Dallas rushed for 53 yards on 17 attempts (3.1 yards per rush). It limited Dak Prescott, widely considered a top-10 quarterback, to 178 yards on 17 of 33 attempts. The Lions sacked him four times, picked him twice and got another one out of his backup, Cooper Rush, for good measure.

Complete and total domination.

“We knew it was going to be a statement game,” Alex Anzalone said, echoing Decker’s comments. “It’s one of the decisive games in your season, I think. You can prove a point. You know, 3:25 Central, 4:25 East game that a lot of people are watching in Dallas. I think this was an opportunity for us to take advantage of.”

“I thought we really played the most complete game we’ve probably played here in a long time,” Campbell said. “If not, then most since we got here. I just thought all the phases merged into each other.”

In almost any other scenario, this would be the game you point at and puff your chest as a player, coach, or fan of this franchise. It was a reminder of what this year should have been like as the offseason began and the officials strategized to improve this team. The attack once again appears to be one of the best in the league. The secondary was fantastic in this game, and the defense as a whole flew to the football and made Dallas work for what little it got.

But amid several conversations after perhaps the Lions’ best game under Campbell, the tone quickly changed when asked about the loss of Hutchinson. Perhaps the best example of how bittersweet a day this was for the Lions: Hutchinson sacked Prescott and had to be carted off the field after breaking his tibia. Players took a knee around him and felt the severity in real time. In the locker you saw a smile and then a sudden blank look when Hutchinson’s name came up.

He will remain in Dallas for the time being and undergo immediate surgery. The Lions are awaiting further notice, but this injury effectively ends Hutchinson’s season as he enters the 2024 season as a defensive player of the year caliber. A brutal, brutal blow to an otherwise ideal trip.

“Obviously it’s tough, man,” Lions defensive tackle DJ Reader said of Hutchinson’s injury. ‘That’s our man. He is our man through and through. So it’s difficult. It sucks.”

“When you see a guy like that come in every day, willing and wanting to be great, and we all know injuries are part of this game, but yet all that hard work just — that’s why I’m sad the most,” Sewell said . “Just because I know what kind of player he is and I know how much work he puts in and the sacrifices he makes.”

The Lions will do their best to keep the momentum going without one of their best players. That starts next week with a game against the 5-0 Vikings in Minnesota. Three of their next four games are on the road, including trips to Green Bay (4-2) and Houston (5-1). In many ways, it will be the ultimate test to see if they are equipped to handle the loss of one of their difference makers.

And so the Lions’ flight home will likely resemble Sunday’s postgame scene. A pat on the back for a job well done, mixed with a sobering reality that awaits them the rest of the way. They return to a city that feels the same.

How the front office, coaching staff and locker room react will tell us a lot about these Lions and how far they can go.

(Top photo: Cooper Neill / Getty Images)