Packers vs. Lions, Final Score: Packers Inefficient On Offense In 19-7 Road Loss

The Green Bay Packers lost on the road today in Detroit against the Lions by the final score of 19-7. Aaron Rodgers passed only for 162 yards and one touchdown. Matthew Stafford went 22 of 34 for 246 yards, but had two interceptions. On the ground, Eddie Lacy only gained 36 yards on the ground, while Reggie Bush totaled 99 on the ground and receiving.

Here's our game recap of everything that happened Sunday:

First half

Detroit ended their first drive fast and punted to Green Bay after a short five-play drive. Randall Cobb returned the first punt of the game for 22 yards (which felt more like 60) and helped the Packers set up shop with good field position. On the second play of the game (second carry) Eddie Lacy lost the ball as it was picked up right away by nickel back Don Carey, who took it 39 yards to the opposite side of the field for the touchdown. After the extra point, the Lions went up 7-0 early.

James Starks took over for Lacy on the second drive, but was ineffective. After a ball sailed in and out of the hands of Randall Cobb on third and 3, the Packers punted the ball. The ended with the same result on their third drive, as Rodgers was sacked by Stephen Tulloch on third and 10.

On the next drive, Matthew Stafford threw an interception for the second straight game. Ha Ha Clinton-Dix registered the first Packers turnover of the day, and the first pick by a safety since December 2, 2012 (Morgan Burnett's two picks against Minnesota), as a tipped ball fell right into his hands near the sidelines. On that drive, Rodgers escaped Ndamukong Suh rushing from the inside and rolled out to his right as he delivered a pass near the sideline to Jordy Nelson to set up shop at the 19. The Packers went down the field on a total of nine plays for 59 yards that resulted in a touchdown after the turnover. Rodgers delivered a beautiful strike in the end zone to Andrew Quarless who hauled in the pass for the score. That tied the game up at 7 with under a minute in the first quarter.

Detroit's next drive ended after Stafford was intercepted by Davon House who dove and picked off a ball intended for Calvin Johnson. House was ruled down at the 1 yard line, and the Packers started their next drive at that spot. On the first play, Lacy was hit by linebacker DeAndre Levy behind the line of scrimmage to register a safety for the Lions. That made the score 9-7 Lions.

The Packers' defense held up after Detroit moved down the field after the score. After a near-interception by Clay Matthews (the ball literally sailed right through his hands), Mike Neal sacked an escaping Stafford who rolled out to his right on third and goal and forced Detroit to settle for a field goal. Rookie kicker Nate Freese connected on a 30-yard field goal to put the Lions up by 5 after a 13-play drive.

Before the end of the first half, Stafford and company had a chance to add on another set of three points, but weren't able to do so after Freese missed from 41. Mike McCarthy called a timeout for the Packers with 17 seconds left, which was followed by a 52-yard completion from Stafford to Corey Fuller to set up the possible opportunity. Detroit missed out, but still led 12-7 heading into the tunnel.

Second half

After they forced the Packers to punt on their opening drive, the Lions started hot as they went 74 yards down the field. Unfortunately, after getting the ball in space and passing the ball efficiently out of play-action, Stafford was hit by Julius Peppers (the washed up guy?) as he recorded a strip-sack/fumble to give Green Bay the ball at the 13. Green Bay's offense remained inefficient and out of sync, though, and punted to Detroit once again.

With much of the third quarter going by quietly, the first score of the second half came at the start of the fourth. The Packers called a timeout with 10:47 and on the very next play, Reggie Bush scampered 26 yards to the end zone to give the Lions a 19-7 after the extra point. Before that run, Detroit's longest run of the season was just 12 yards. Micah Hyde was late reacting to the play, which led to Bush eventually bulldozing his way in up the field.

It took a while, but the offense finally turned things up and were able to move the ball somewhat down the field. Rodgers helped move the offense 70 yards down the field only to be stopped on downs. Rodgers looked for Nelson in the end zone (who was partially covered by a linebacker), but was a tad bit behind on the throw that would've cut the lead to one score. Detroit ran the ball and the clock out as they defeated the Packers at home as they moved to 2-1.

Green Bay (now 1-2) will prepare for their next division matchup against the Chicago Bears on the road next Sunday. We'll have more post-game reaction and analysis up shortly.