Jahmyr Gibbs scored three touchdowns and totaled 164 yards and the Lions made a stop to end a shootout in the final minute to defeat the New York Jets 31-24 on Sunday in Detroit.
The Lions reclaimed the lead 31-24 with 2:25 remaining. Gibbs caught a Jared Goff swing pass at the line of scrimmage in the right flat and jogged in from 11 yards out in an apparent blown coverage by the Jets.
New York drove inside the 30 of the Lions before Garrett Wilson, who had 10 receptions for 107 yards and a fourth-quarter TD, required medical attention. Wilson was hit by Ennis Rakestraw and Chuck Clark as a Geno Smith pass arrived. The injury timeout with 51 seconds left cost the Jets their final timeout.
On the next play, Smith was sacked by Clark near the 33 on a jailbreak blitz up the middle and fumbled. Jack Campbell scooped up the ball to end the game. It was New York’s first turnover of the game.
Smith had thrown TD passes on the previous two fourth-quarter drives and finished with three TD passes and 321 yards on 31-of-37 passing. Jets rookie first-round pick Kenyon Sadiq caught seven passes for 105 yards and TD.
Goff was 25 of 32 for 269 yards and two TDs. Gibbs had 20 carries for 99 yards and two rushing touchdowns and caught seven passes for 65 yards with a score.
A gamble on fourth down with over eight minutes left and an eight-point lead backfired on the Lions. Backup running back Sione Vaki was hit behind the line of scrimmage, turning the ball over on downs to the Jets at their own 45.
Smith converted on 4th-and-6 at the Detroit 23 with 4:11 left. He hit Wilson down the right sideline for a touchdown and tied the game at 24 with the two-point pass to Sterling Shepard. Wilson caught four passes for 48 yards on the 55-yard drive with Breece Hall in the locker room because of a thigh injury.
On their first possession of the fourth quarter, the Jets were set up with first-and-goal inside the 5 but two running plays gained nothing and Hall was hurt on second down on a pitch right. Trevor Nowaske met Hall near the sideline and took him to the ground hard. Hall grabbed his right hip and outer thigh before staying on the turf to await Jets trainers. He did not return, finishing with 32 rushing yards.
On third down, Smith put the ball on the money to Jeremy Ruckert two paces into the end zone for a 4-yard score. Down 24-16, the Jets opted for a two-point try that failed when Smith scrambled from pressure and threw the ball away.
