Matthew Stafford and Calvin Johnson Must Attack the Green Bay Packers

Matthew Stafford played his worst game of the season against the Green Bay Packers.

It wasn't just the three interceptions; Stafford and the Lions withdrew into a shell. Between close-to-the-vest play-calling and timid execution, the Lions gained only 6.13 yards per pass attempt. Worse, they gained only 8.6 yards per completion, down from an average of 11.8.

Put simply: against Green Bay, the average Lions catch was three yards shorter than in every other game. Whether by design or by lack of confidence, the Lions were playing not to lose.

Given that, it shouldn't surprise that Calvin Johnson had one of his worst games as well. Though he was targeted eight times according to Pro Football Focus, he caught only four passes. Yes, one of those catches was a 3-yard garbage-time touchdown, but on the day he was essentially invisible.

This, against a Packers pass defense that has surrendered 4,294 yards (second-most in the NFL) on 578 attempts. That's a walloping 7.43 yards per pass attempt allowed! All else being equal, the Packers' secondary should not have been able to ground the high-flying Lions.

Against San Diego, Stafford and Johnson set the tone with a 46-yard completion on the first play of the game—and they kept the throttle wide open until the closing gun. The effectiveness of the passing offense kept the Chargers secondary reeling.

By the time it was over, Stafford had one of the best games of his life. He completed 29-of-36 for 373 yards, 3 TDs and no interceptions. All this against the Chargers' 10th-ranked pass defense, a much stingier unit than the one from Titletown.

I'm not going to beat this dead horse again; if you've read this far it hasn't escaped your notice that the Lions haven't won in Lambeau since 1991. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, that is the longest road losing streak in NFL history.

If the Lions want to change that, Stafford will have to get the ball to his most potent weapon, Johnson, early and often. He'll have to play with some of the confidence and accuracy he practically oozed against San Diego.

In order for the Lions to clinch the fifth seed in the NFC, Stafford and Johnson won't have to have the statistical games of their lives. However, they'll have to do much better than their worst effort of the season.