The Lions dug deep into their bag of tricks during their matchup with the Bills on Sunday afternoon.
Jousting with one of the NFL’s most high-powered attacks, scoring was of vital importance to Campbell’s squad. Facing a 2nd-and-4 inside of Buffalo’s 10-yard line at the end of the second quarter, Detroit struck, dialing up a piece of chicanery that could very well find itself in a David Blaine routine in the coming few months.
With that, here’s what you need to know about offensive lineman’s Dan Skipper’s eye-catching score — and the story of how it came to be.
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Dan Skipper touchdown video
Skipper delivered a stirring rendition of Calvin Johnson’s career highlights towards the end of the second quarter of Detroit’s clash with the Bills. The Lions orchestrated a clever bit of play, listing Skipper as an eligible receiver for the choreographed chaos.
Goff authored up a play-action, fooling Buffalo’s front seven with a sumptuous fake handoff.
Goff’s deception, coupled with some slick route-running, opened up the field for Skipper.
The 6-foot-9 sentry did the rest, corralling Goff’s lofted pass attempt before escaping the Bills’ glance and bursting into the end zone.
OL DAN SKIPPER RECEIVING TOUCHDOWN.
📺: #BUFvsDET on CBS/Paramount+
📱: https://t.co/waVpO909ge pic.twitter.com/fmdNnVDnPe— NFL (@NFL) December 15, 2024
Skipper’s celebration belied his stunning sprint. He spurned the choreographed dances that typically make up the ecosystem of post-touchdown jigs, instead stretching his arms wide, firing off a pair of fist pumps, and cloaking himself with his teammates’ embraces.
Head coach Dan Campbell and OC Ben Johnson are well aware of the risk that comes with crafting play calls designed for big guys. Penalties can arise, as was the case when Taylor Decker saw his two-point score turn to ashes after an illegal touching call went against him in a loss to the Cowboys last year.
During that contest, Skipper was the issue. Decker was supposed to report himself as an eligible receiver, but it was Skipper who offered up his services as a potential pass-catcher. The ball was subsequently tossed in Decker’s direction — an illegal act, according to the NFL’s rule books.
“It’s three fouls, all five yards.”
– ESPN’s John Parry agreed with the penalty that nullified the Lions apparent go-ahead two-point conversion. pic.twitter.com/44a5EEV269
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) December 31, 2023
“The explanation was 70 [offensive tackle Dan Skipper] reported,” Dan Campbell said after the game. “Two people can’t report. I don’t want to talk about it. I explained everything pregame to a T. 70 reported. 68 didn’t. We threw it to 68. That was the explanation.”
Skipper made up for his error in a major way on Sunday. His team was more than grateful for his contribution, too.
