Detroit Lions Finally Learning How to Close out Games

With two straight wins sealed by strong late-game performances, the 2014 Detroit Lions appear to have turned a very tricky and vital corner. These Lions are learning how to close out victories.

It stands in stark contrast to last season, when the Lions often pounced on their prey early but couldn't complete the kill. The inability to finish was a major factor in Jim Schwartz's firing as head coach.

Here are Detroit's final six losses, which occurred in the team's last seven games. The only victory was a 40-10 blowout of the Packers that was never in doubt.

Opp.	4Q Lead	Final
PIT	27-23	27-37
TB	21-17	17-24
PHI	20-14	20-34
BAL	16-15	16-18
NYG	20-13	20-23
MIN	13-7	14-13

Notice a common denominator? The other team scored last. While that might appear to be a defensive issue, the problem was always much more about the Detroit offense and its inability to convert down the stretch. 

This year has been different, particularly in the last two weeks. 

Detroit held a 19-7 lead as the Green Bay Packers took over with 10:40 left in the fourth quarter. Even with Aaron Rodgers struggling all afternoon, it wouldn't have surprised one person in Michigan if the Packers ultimately rallied for the victory. 

Rodgers finally got his offense moving, but Detroit's defense bent without breaking. This great play in coverage from linebacker DeAndre Levy on fourth down gave the ball back to Detroit with 6:54 to go.

That's still a lot of time for bad things to happen. Four of those six above losses came at a later juncture than the amount of ticks left on the Ford Field clock. 

Rick Osentoski/Associated Press

After two run plays accomplished little, Matthew Stafford found Golden Tate for a huge conversion. Reggie Bush picked up four tough yards on 3rd-and-3 to move the chains and keep the clock running.

The next third-down situation saw Detroit needing four yards with 2:55 remaining. Again, Lions fans could not be faulted for expecting the worst. Instead, Joique Bell eked out just enough to convert. With Green Bay out of timeouts, Detroit ended the game in victory formation. 

Even though the running game had not been effective all afternoon, head coach Jim Caldwell and offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi stuck with it. They realized a two-yard run eating 40 seconds off the clock was more valuable than risking a 12-yard pass that could move the chains but could also stop the clock. 

That is a direct fundamental shift from the late losses of a year ago. The concept of playing against the clock instead of the other team is not something the Schwartz regime ever realized.

One game does not mark enough of a sample size for change, even though it was against one of the best quarterbacks of the era. "That was nice, now do it again" was a common refrain from (rightfully) skeptical Lions fans. 

Skeptics, I give you this week's game against the New York Jets. 

Detroit took a 24-10 lead when Stafford snuck into the end zone on the first play of the fourth quarter. It was time for the defense to come up big, and they did. 

Plays	Yards	Result
6	34	Darius Slay INT
3	20	Darryl Tapp Fumble Recovery

Unfortunately, the Detroit offense sputtered. Not having Calvin Johnson or Bell because of injuries hurt, as did New York's greater sense of defensive urgency.

When Chris Johnson broke several weak tackling efforts and scampered into the end zone to cut the lead in half, the dreaded "same old Lions" feelings sickeningly awakened. 

Detroit's offense did little on three runs other than milking 2:22 off the clock. The tension and resignation was omnipresent.

"

Reggie Bush comes up short on third down. Joique Bell getting hurt may cost them this game.

— Pride Of Detroit (@PrideOfDetroit) September 28, 2014"

The "same old Lions" were about to roar. Detroit fans have seen this movie too many times, yet they found themselves like Alex in A Clockwork Orange, eyelids and arms restrained while being forced to watch yet another torture. 

Once again, the movie turned from horror to feel-good bromance. 

It started with a booming Sam Martin punt, a 55-yard effort that pinned the Jets deep in their own territory. After a nine-yard reception by rookie tight end Jace Amaro, the Jets were feeling confident. That's when James Ihedigbo rewrote the script.

His tackle for loss was a vital shot in the arm for the Lions defense. When Chris Ivory dropped an easy swing pass on the next play, Detroit's defense had done its job. Now it was time for the offense to redeem itself for a sloppy fourth quarter to that point.

Bush had run for just 18 yards on nine carries to that point, and he was the only healthy running back on the team. Grinding out tough yards has never been Bush's forte. Could the defensive stand be just a teaser, with the real killer still lurking to hunt down the Lions?

Bush donned the hero cape. The next three Detroit plays:

• Bush left tackle for five yards
• Bush right end for 16 yards
• Bush right guard for six yards

Those 27 yards took the game to the two-minute warning. The Jets still had one timeout, with the Lions facing 2nd-and-4. Detroit had to convert to ice the game.

With everyone in MetLife Stadium expecting Bush to get another crack, Stafford took matters into his own hands.

It was a brilliant play call. Sending a battered quarterback on a naked bootleg, to the side of the field where the third-string right tackle had struggled all day, was perhaps the last possible option the Jets defense considered.

"

Lombardi with the great playcall, Stafford bootleg, to clinch this one.

— Dave Birkett (@davebirkett) September 28, 2014"

The Lions out-executed the opponent. Caldwell and his assistants won the chess match against Rex Ryan and their Jets counterparts. Detroit beat both the clock and the enemy for the second week in a row.

This closeout was not as pretty. Yet that makes it all the better, because it proves these Lions can overcome a little adversity and bumps along the road and still get the job done. 

That's not something anyone would ever associate with the Detroit Lions. This has been a franchise adept at finding new and more painful ways to lose games, crashing into the deer in the road instead of swerving around and getting back on course. 

"

That's the 3rd kneel down for the Lions to end a game this year. It speaks to the whole "finishing" thing this offseason. #DETvsNYJ

— Tim Twentyman (@ttwentyman) September 28, 2014"

Going into victory formation is the goal in every game. These Lions have accomplished that feat in three of the four games this season after doing it just once in the final seven attempts a year ago. 

It's okay to remain skeptical; years of failure don't get washed away with one good month. The Lions were 3-1 last year too, after all.

Yet it's also okay to start believing that maybe, just maybe, this time it's for real. This core group appears to have learned from its failures, with the help of a fresh coaching staff with a stronger tactical sense and more even-handed approach.