Lions vs. Packers: Score and Twitter Reaction as Green Bay Clinches NFC North

For the first 28 minutes, things couldn't have gone better for the Green Bay Packers. They held a strong lead and appeared on their way to an emphatic statement victory to carry them into the playoffs as a division winner. Then came the scramble, the crumple to the ground, and the look of agony on Aaron Rodgers' face as his and the Packers' playoff lives flashed before their eyes.      

And then came the latest bit of heroics from the likely NFL MVP. 

Rodgers gutted through pain in his injured calf and accounted for three total touchdowns, as the Packers earned a 30-20 win over the Detroit Lions to take the NFC North championship. 

Injured in last week's win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Rodgers appeared to seriously re-aggravate his calf strain on a four-yard touchdown pass to Randall Cobb late in the second quarter. Rodgers crumpled to the ground without contact and stayed there for several minutes. He needed a cart to get to the locker room, and it appeared the Packers would have to topple Detroit with backup Matt Flynn under center.

By the time Rodgers re-entered the game midway through the third quarter, Green Bay's 14-0 lead had become a 14-14 tie. It took him exactly one drive to rectify that. Rodgers' second passing TD to Cobb gave the Packers a touchdown lead they would not relinquish for the remainder of the game. Rodgers finished with 226 yards, completing 17 of 22 passes. 

"He's a great player," wide receiver Jordy Nelson told reporters about Rodgers this week. "He's, to me, the best quarterback in the league and can do so many things. He controls our offense, he runs our offense, he puts us in situations to be successful, and he'll make plays with his arm or his legs. I think that's what makes him tough."

The Packers' win gives them four straight NFC North crowns. They will have a first-round bye for the first time since 2011, when Rodgers won his first MVP. Texans defensive end J.J. Watt and Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo are considered Rodgers' only real competition for this year's top honor, which is closer than any race in recent memory.

Mike McGinnis/Getty Images

Watt became the first player in NFL history to have 20 sacks in two different seasons Sunday. Romo led the Cowboys to a perfect December, throwing 12 touchdowns against a single pick. But Rodgers' heroics Sunday while hurt—he was seen noticeably limping throughout the second half—might have swung the momentum back in his favor.

The Packers offense gained 377 yards overall, with Eddie Lacy churning out 100 yards on 26 carries. James Starks and John Kuhn also got extended work, as Mike McCarthy tried limiting Rodgers' exposure whenever possible.

The Green Bay defense, at times a weakness this season, also stepped up when needed. Aside from the two touchdown drives that brought the Lions back into the game, the Packers did an excellent job of keeping Detroit off the scoreboard. Two lengthy first-half drives resulted in zero points after Lions head coach Jim Caldwell punted from the Packers' 37-yard line once and then failed on a fourth-down conversion on the following drive.

Matthew Stafford threw for 217 yards and three touchdowns but completed only 20 of 41 passes. Stafford's 22 touchdowns in 2014 are the second-lowest of his career in which he's played all 16 games. Outside of two touchdown passes, Stafford struggled getting the ball to Calvin Johnson. The Pro Bowl wideout finished with 39 yards on four receptions despite being targeted 11 times.

Almost nothing the Lions attempted worked after Rodgers' return—whether by chance or divine intervention. In six drives following Stafford and Johnson's second touchdown connection to tie the game at 14-14, the Lions had a three-and-out, fumble, turnover on downs, and safety. Joique Bell's fumble helped set up a Rodgers touchdown run that basically served as the game-winning score. 

The loss is Detroit's 24th straight at Lambeau Field, a streak that dates to 1993. Coincidentally, that's the same year the Lions last won a division championship—another streak they would have broken with a win. The Lions instead will be forced to head on the road next week and take on the third-seeded Dallas Cowboys, who have reeled off four straight impressive victories.

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Dallas scored at least 38 points in each of its four December wins, leading each game at one juncture by three or more touchdowns. The Lions have allowed only two opponents to score 30 or more points this season: New England in Week 12 and the Packers on Sunday.

One player that will likely stir some debate in the coming days is Ndamukong Suh. Late in the fourth quarter, the Lions defensive tackle twice stepped on Rodgers' injured leg. Whether the incident was on purpose or not is unclear, as Suh appeared to stumble backward into Rodgers. But Suh's track record of poor on-field decisions—he's been suspended and fined multiple times for questionable tactics—will undoubtedly cause some to believe he was being malicious. 

"

Pereira says Suh didn't intentionally step on Rodgers because he didn't stomp on him. Can be one without the other.

— Cian Fahey (@Cianaf) December 29, 2014"

Detroit was forced to play without longtime center Dominic Raiola on Sunday after he was suspended for stomping on the leg of Bears defensive tackle Ego Ferguson in Week 16. Should Suh be punished for stepping on Rodgers, it'd merely be the latest in a series of mistakes from a team that has failed time and again to get out of its own way.

For now, though, the narrative is another one that's all too familiar to Lions fans. Time and again, they've attempted to take down Rodgers on his home turf. And time and again, he's halted the efforts. On Sunday, he proved he could even do it on one leg.

Follow Tyler Conway (@tylerconway22) on Twitter