Sunday found the Lions leading 17-16 in the final seconds for the second time in the last three weeks and the result wound up being the same as it did against the Ravens in Week Three.
The Lions scored a touchdown with 37 seconds left on the clock and head coach Dan Campbell opted to go for two to try for a win instead of a tie. The Lions converted, but the Vikings were able to quickly drive for a field goal attempt.
Vikings kicker Greg Joseph didn’t set a new record for the longest field goal in NFL history, but he did hit a 54-yard kick to make the Lions 19-17 losers for the second time this season. The loss dropped the Lions to 0-5 on the season and Campbell choked up during his press conference while discussing a loss he believes will make the Lions a better team at some point in the future.
“When you put everything out there on the line like they did and like they do, you want it for them and you want it for everybody,” Campbell said, via Justin Rogers of the Detroit News. “Everybody gives of themselves, a lot of time, lot of effort. Hey, that’s what we do. And you just, you want it. You want it for everybody, man. And you want to earn one and we’re this close. We haven’t done it, so we’re still, we’re not quite there. We haven’t quite got over the hump, but I do think in the long run this is going to pay dividends for us. As ugly as it is right now and hard to swallow, I do think we’re building something special here that’s going to serve us well in the long term.”
The Lions have done a lot of losing over the years and they haven’t resulted in better teams, so Campbell may not find a lot of buyers for his view until the Lions actually show they’re capable of winning games rather than losing in heartbreaking fashion.