GREEN BAY, Wis. -- The streak is over.
The Detroit Lions' 24-game losing streak in Wisconsin, one that spanned 13 starting quarterbacks, nine head coaches and four U.S. presidents -- and took place in two different stadiums (Lambeau Field and Milwaukee County Stadium) -- is no more.
This has been a season of disappointment for the Lions, in which little has gone right and in which five coaches and front-office personnel, including the team president, general manager and offensive coordinator, have been fired. Yet this was the Lions team that snapped the streak in an 18-16 win over Green Bay on Sunday at Lambeau Field.
After the Lions stopped the Packers on a two-point conversion with 32 seconds left, players ran down the sideline to celebrate. Josh Bynes, almost at midfield, pointed his fingers to the sky. The Lions appeared to have the game won.
But not quite. The Lions lost the onside kick, giving the Packers one more chance. But Mason Crosby’s 52-yard field goal try missed, allowing the Lions to finally celebrate. And they did, running on to the field with a most surprising win.
Better Lions teams than this one have lost in Wisconsin, including most of the teams in the Wayne Fontes era and the 2011 and 2014 teams that went to the playoffs. Worse Lions teams than this one have lost here, too, including the winless team in 2008.
But this team, with the worst record in the NFL entering Sunday, managed to do what no Lions team has done since 1991: beat the Packers at home.
It happened with a mix of a defense that stopped Green Bay’s run game and kept Aaron Rodgers from looking like the MVP candidate he typically seems to be. It happened with the Lions having a 104-yard kick return on which they didn’t score a touchdown. It happened on a day when kicker Matt Prater made both of his field goal attempts -- keeping him perfect on the season -- but missed two extra points that could have closed out the game much earlier than the final minute.
And it was those two missed extra points that let the game come down to a late two-point conversion try after Rodgers threw a touchdown pass to Justin Perillo. But the Packers missed the conversion with a pass breakup by Crezdon Butler, who was signed Saturday.
Green Bay recovered the ensuing onside kick, giving them one more shot, but Crosby’s miss sealed the very unlikely win.
And in this season, with all the Lions have been through and how disappointing the year has been, Detroit’s win in Green Bay might be more surprising than anything else the Lions have done.
What it means: In the scheme of the season, not much. The Lions still are not going to make the playoffs and still appear to be a franchise with a lot of issues, especially on offense. But for one day, Detroit’s players, coaches and front office can get a reprieve from their rough season because they did something that they hadn’t done in 22-year-old tight end Eric Ebron’s lifetime.
What were they thinking? On a third-and-1 with 10:30 left in the game and the Lions clinging to a 12-3 lead, they gave the ball on a quick handoff to fullback Michael Burton. Not surprisingly, the play failed and forced the Lions to punt. There were a couple of odd offensive play calls from coordinator Jim Bob Cooter, but otherwise, it was the best game the Lions played this season.
One reason to get excited: There are many reasons -- especially given this unsuccessful season for Detroit -- but the biggest would be the Lions' snapping their long losing streak to the Packers in Wisconsin. In a more micro view, Detroit’s defense was strong against Green Bay, pressuring Rodgers and covering his receivers well.
One reason to panic: The Lions' offense still was essentially ineffective. They had 176 yards through three quarters, and their only touchdown came after Ameer Abdullah returned a kickoff to the 1-yard line.
Fantasy watch: Like they’ve been throughout much of the season, the Lions were not the best usage of your fantasy starting spots Sunday.
Ouch: Golden Tate played a bunch Sunday, but it was clear that the receiver was playing through a lot of pain throughout the game. Cornerbacks Nevin Lawson and Josh Wilson (undisclosed) also were hurt on Green Bay’s final drive of the game.
Abdullah’s big run: Abdullah had a pretty big rarity. He returned a kick 104 yards -- and didn’t score a touchdown. It tied Percy Harvin’s 104-yard return in 2011 as the longest play in NFL history not resulting in a touchdown. Returns (kick, fumble, interception and missed field goal) are the only plays that can go longer than 99 yards in a game.