Lions fall turkey leg short

1st Quarter The Lions headed into their 62nd annual Thanksgiving game still looking for their first win. Green Bay won the coin toss and elected to receive but Detroit's defense halted their opening drive. The Lions turned the ball over on their first drive when a 42-yard Charlie Batch-to-Johnnie Morton pass was knocked out of Morton's arms and recovered by Green Bay in the end zone. The Packers capitalized on the turnover with a 80-yard, five-play drive capped by running back Ahman Green's 26-yard touchdown. That put Green Bay on the board first, 7-0. With six minutes to go in the quarter, Cory Schlesinger took the snap and ran 26-yards before being tackled on fourth-and-8 on a fake punt. Lions' kicker Jason Hanson capped off the drive with a 33-yard field goal to put three on the board for Detroit. On the next series Lions' right end Tracy Scroggins killed the Packers' drive when he sacked quarterback Brett Favre on third-and-four. Green Bay 7, Detroit 3


Lions receiver Johnnie Morton looks in one of his two first-half receptions.
2nd Quarter The Lions started the second out with the ball at midfield and after nine plays and 42-yards of Silverdome turf traversed, Jason Hanson came through again with a 54-yard field goal to bring the Lions within one. It was the 25th-consecutive field goal Hason has made against Green Bay. On the next drive, Green Bay regained a four-point edge with a 46-yard field goal by Ryan Longwell. The Lions' defense then provided a spark. With 3:43 left in the half Lions' linebacker Chris Claiborne sacked Brett Favre and forced a fumble. Defensive end James Hall recovered and sprinted eight-yards to the end zone for Detroit's first touchdown of the game to give the Lions the 13-10 lead. It was Hall's first career touchdown. Green Bay came right back as Favre directed a 81-yard, nine-play drive over 3:25 to regain a 17-13 advantage heading into halftime. Favre found rookie tight end David Martin for a one-yard TD pass with 18 seconds remaining in the half. Favre completed 10-of-15 passes for 99 yards and one touchdown in the first half while Green pitched in with 69 yards on the ground. Detroit's running game resurfaced with the return of James Stewart, who missed the last four games with an ankle sprain. Stewart rushed eight times for 59 yards. Batch completed 6-of-11 of his attempts for 100 yards and rookie quarterback Mike McMahon threw twice and completed one for 12 yards in one offensive series of work. Green Bay 17, Detroit 13


Ahman Green victimized the Lions with one rushing touchdown and one receiving
3rd Quarter The Lions' offense got off to a good start with a 38-yard run by James Stewart that helped push him over the 100-yard mark for the first time this season. As the Lions approached their end zone Batch was intercepted by Packers' linebacker Nate Wayne as he was trying to connect with Morton. The Packers converted on the interception as Favre connected with Green for a 35-yard touchdown to put the pack up by 11. Green Bay 24, Detroit 13

4th Quarter Heading into the fourth quarter of play still down by 11, the Lions turned the ball over again as Charlie Batch was stripped of the ball by Packers' defensive end Kabeer Gbaja-Biamila. Lions' running back Lamont Warren fell on the ball in the Packers' end zone for a safety, making the score 26-13 in Green Bay's favor. On the next series Green Bay moved down the field quickly when Favre connected with tight end Bubba Franks for 30. Green Bay struck again with seven minutes to go with a 39-yard Longwell field goal to widen the gap. The Lions then placed McMahon into the game and the Lions subsequently went 71-yards over 18 plays capped by a one-yard Lamont Warren touchdown run. McMahon ran in the two-point conversion to cut the lead to 29-21. Hanson's on-side kick was recovered by Detroit's Todd Lyght at the Green Bay 31-yardline. After a near-touchdown pass to Warren, on fourth-and-8, McMahon found Scotty Anderson for a 29-yard touchdown pass to cut the lead to two with 10 seconds left in the game. On the attempted two-point conversion, McMahon's intended pass for Schlesinger fell incomplete at the back of the end zone. Hanson's second onside kick was recovered by Green Bay, who survived with a 29-27 victory. Green finished the game with 102 yards on the ground and 48 receiving. Favre completed 18-of-26 passes for 252 yards and two touchdowns. McMahon wrapped his day with 9-of-20 passing for 89 yards and 12 yards rushing. Green Bay 29, Detroit 27