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    • Lions’ top two WRs ‘show up’ in career performance in Jags blowout
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    Lions’ top two WRs ‘show up’ in career performance in Jags blowout

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    The Detroit Lions starters were already on the bench and getting some extra rest when the Jacksonville Jaguars showed their first sign of resistance.

    The starting offense did what it was supposed to do, and perfectly, by the time they fouled out at the 1:27 mark of the fourth quarter. To that point, the Lions had seven possessions, scored a touchdown on each possession and had a commanding 49-6 lead. Near the end, Detroit added a field goal for their second consecutive 52-point performance at home and set a franchise record with 645 yards of total offense in the 52–6 win.

    “I didn’t even know we had that many yards at the end of the game,” Amon-Ra St. Brown said. “But it was one of those games where I felt like everything was working.

    “And if something didn’t work, the next play would work. I think it’s a credit to everyone, the coaches, the players – our o-line, tight ends, wideouts, running backs, quarterback – everyone. We all played a share in it.”

    More: Lions reach new levels of perfection in Jaguars victory, like eating cherry pie in Traverse City

    The Lions bounced back from an uneven offensive performance in a comeback win over the Houston Texans last week. The Lions had to fight back to win on a last-second field goal after the offense struggled against Houston’s defensive line and Jared Goff threw a career-high five interceptions.

    All of these issues were in the rearview mirror a week later when Goff split the Jacksonville secondary and imposed their will on the Lions’ offensive line from the opening second. Goff threw for 412 yards, his most ever in a Lions uniform, while completing 24 of 29 passes without giveaways. As a team, the Lions rushed for 196 yards on 43 carries and averaged six yards per carry in the first half while going up 28-6 at the break.

    “We moved the ball pretty well,” Goff said. “I thought our run game was really good, obviously our passing game was pretty good too – everything works.

    “It felt like (offensive coordinator) Ben (Johnson) could call anything and we were going to make it work. Our guys showed up today.”

    Goff’s career play with the Lions also led to record days for his two top receivers. Amon-Ra St. Brown finished with 161 receiving yards, while Jameson Williams collected 124

    Goff targeted St. Brown early and often in the first half as the Lions built their lead and it worked every time. St. Brown finished the half with seven catches on seven targets for 88 yards and a touchdown. For the final touchdown of the first half, St. Brown got open on a crossing route against man coverage, received a perfect ball from Goff and spun down the field for a 27-yard touchdown.

    “I think Ben (Johnson) has put me in great positions,” St. Brown said. “I feel like a lot of the calls we got were the perfect call for the perfect defense. And when I wasn’t open, Jared was making progress.”

    St. Brown scored a touchdown for the eighth straight game, extending his franchise record of consecutive games with a receiving touchdown to eight. He also got into the end zone for the second time on the Lions’ seventh and final touchdown after Goff hit him on an out route in the corner of the end zone.

    The catch was his 11th, tying a career-high set in the Week 2 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and giving him a new single-game high in yardage on 11 targets.

    “(St. Brown) is definitely a big part of that,” Goff said of the offense’s rebounding performance. “It felt like towards the end we could call anything and he would open himself up and he came this week ready to go and showed up.”

    Goff spread it outside to ensure his main target was consistently fed. Eight other Lions players finished with a catch, with Williams leading the second group with four catches and a touchdown on six targets.

    Williams had two catches for 33 yards in the first half, including a 24-yard catch and run and a 9-yard gain on a hook-and-ladder play with St. Brown in two scoring drives in the second quarter. Goff went to Williams twice on the first drive of the third quarter, first hitting him for five yards and then finding him deep over the middle. Williams caught the second pass, immediately cut upfield and torched the defense for a 64-yard touchdown.

    “He’s the primary and I’m running away,” St. Brown said of Williams’ touchdown. “I see him catch it and as soon as I see the safety take the wrong angle where he’s out of position, I knew it was a touchdown.

    “And so I just meet him in the end zone, let him celebrate. I’ll wait about five minutes for him to finish, and then we’ll celebrate together.”

    The Lions had plenty of celebration on Sunday as they reset their career personal bests and delivered a second straight 52-point performance in front of the home crowd.

    “If I get to third or fourth in the progression, it’s a good player,” Goff said. “That is not the case everywhere, and I don’t take that for granted.

    “It’s something we have the luxury of with the experienced players we have and the O-line that can protect me long enough to reach the third and fourth progression. It’s often a good player who can do something with the ball .”

    Jared Ramsey is a sports reporter for the Detroit Free Press. Follow Jared on X @jared_ramsey22and email him at [email protected].

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