Detroit Lions: Winners and Losers from Lions' Win vs. Broncos

The Detroit Lions crushed their competition as they defeated Tim Tebow and the Denver Broncos, 45-10 in NFL Week 8. Winners and losers were evident for the Lions, as the positive outweighed the negatives in the Lions' win.

The Lions legitimized themselves as an NFL playoff contender with the win that made them 6-2 on the season. The team is now an impressive 4-0 on the road. Just think, the Lions have already secured a .500 record on the road this season—and it's only October!

The Lions team head into their Week 9 bye on a high-note, but there's plenty of room for improvement.

Here are the winners and losers vs. the Broncos.

Winner: Stephen Tulloch for "Tebowing" Tebow

Detroit Lions linebacker Stephen Tulloch got in on the newest pop culture phenomenon that's sweeping the nation against the Denver Broncos.

After sacking Broncos' quarterback Tim Tebow in the first quarter, Tulloch celebrated by doing the "Tebow", which is a mix between a marriage proposal and a Rodin's The Thinker. Tebow may want rethink his signature move—the "Tebow" is the newest fad and is more of a joke than anything else. Taken as a moment of reflection, it's pretty funny.

The Lions got to Tebow all afternoon and Tulloch lead the team with eight tackles.

Loser: Jim Schwartz for Leaving Matthew Stafford in the Game Too Long

If Detroit Lions head coach Jim Schwartz made a mistake against the Denver Broncos, it was that he left quarterback Matthew Stafford in the game too long.

The Lions were up 38-3 and Stafford had just thrown a 56-yard touchdown to Calvin Johnson. The Lions quickly stopped the Broncos and Schwartz elected to send the first-string offense back of the field for one more drive.

On second down of that drive, Stafford took a shot from Broncos' linebacker Von Miller that sent Stafford down hard. Everyone knows that Stafford was hobbled with an injured ankle coming into the game—why was he in when the team was up by 35?

Stafford already had 267 yards and three touchdowns—he had made his mark and the game was decided.

Jim Schwartz learned his lesson in regards to his franchise quarterback on Sunday.

Winner: Chris Houston for His 100-Yard Pick-Six

Detroit Lions' cornerback Chris Houston intercepted Denver Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow in the fourth-quarter in Week 8 and returned it 100-yards for  touchdown.

Any interception in the NFL is thrilling, especially when the defender takes it to the house.

Houston did just that on Sunday—he also added six tackles.

Winner: Tony Scheffler for Getting Sweet Revenge

Former Denver Broncos' tight end Tony Scheffler is now a member of the Detroit Lions and is loving life right now. Scheffler caught a 1-yard touchdown catch against his former mates in Week 8.

What was better was the Lions reached the red zone by a circus-like juggling catch from Scheffler that resulted in a 28-yard gain. The catch was one of the better catches in the NFL this year. 

Scheffler ended up with three catches for 38-yards and a score. Combined with fellow tight-end Brandon Pettigrew, the Lions have one of the better tight-end tandems in the NFL.

Loser: Calvin Johnson in the 1st and 4th Quarters

Detroit Lions star receiver Calvin Johnson was not targeted in the first or fourth quarters of Week 8's game.

While it's true that he was pulled by the fourth quarter to prevent injury in the Lions 45-10 blowout win, he was wasn't a factor in the first quarter.

This fact is somewhat perplexing, but offensive coordinator Scott Linehan chose to do so. Maybe his strategy was to focus on others in hopes of dialing-up Johnson's number after the others established themselves. Needless to say, it worked.

Winner: Calvin Johnson in the 2nd and 3rd Quarters

What Detroit Lions wide receiver Calvin Johnson missed out early and late, he made up for in the middle.

Johnson had six catches for 125 against the Denver Broncos in the second and third quarters alone. His last, a 56-yard touchdown catch that put the Lions up 38-3.

Fans simply looking at the box score won't realize that Johnson was only a factor for half of the game. This fact is a testament to how much of an impact this man can make in an NFL game. On this Halloween weekend, Johnson was scary good.

Winner: Scott Linehan's Play Calling

Detroit Lions' offensive coordinator called a great game against the Denver Broncos.

The Lions' offense was balanced and kept the Broncos' defense honest in Week 8. Linehan called 32 passing plays and 28 rushing plays.

The Lions earned 113 yards on the ground behind Linehan's persistence. This is a big win for the Lions as they gained some confidence in the running game heading into the bye week.

Winner: The Offensive Line

The Detroit Lions offensive line protected quarterback Matthew Stafford against the Denver Broncos.

While they did allow two sacks, it was better than their eight allowed in the previous two games. Keeping Stafford clean is the key to the season for the Lions, and the offensive line looked strong against the Broncos.

The offensive line also helped the Lions to total 113 yards on the ground, which is a welcomed sign for the team. It was also nice to see positive yards on first down from the Lions.

Overall, it was a very positive day for the offensive line heading into the bye week.

Loser: Cornerback Eric Wright

Detroit Lions cornerback Eric Wright was injured against the Denver Broncos. Wright, 26, tallied four tackled in the game but appeared to injure his left leg on the Denver Broncos only touchdown of the day.

Wright didn't appear to be hit on the play, rather he just dove and missed a tackle, then fell to the ground, reaching in the area of his left hip. It may have been just a cramp, but Wright was beaten badly by Denver Broncos' receiver Eric Decker on his way to the end zone. 

While it is unclear on the severity of Wright's injury, he is a much welcomed improvement to the Lions' secondary and fans hope he'll be fine after the upcoming bye week.

Winner: Titus Young for His First NFL Touchdown

Detroit Lions' rookie wide receiver caught his first touchdown of his NFL career against the Denver Broncos. The touchdown came in the first quarter as the Lions trailed 3-0. They never trailed again and the route was on.

Quarterback Matthew Stafford found a wide-open Young alone in the end zone for 41-yard touchdown catch. Young earned that six points as he also caught two other balls on the drive for first downs. On the day, he had four receptions for 66 yards and a touchdown.

Young may never catch an easier touchdown again.

Loser: The Run Defense

Once again the Detroit Lions' run defense was atrocious on Sunday. The Denver Broncos ran for 195 yards on the Lions defense.

Although the Lions dominated the game and sacked Broncos' quarterback Tim Tebow seven times and caused three turnovers, they won't beat many teams giving up 195 yards on the ground.

If there's one thing the Lions must improve upon, it's rushing defense. It's embarrassing.

Winner: Defensive End Cliff Avril for Having a Career Day

Detroit Lions defensive end Cliff Avril had fun against the Denver Broncos in Week 8. He had three tackles, two sacks, two forced fumbles and a touchdown in the game. It doesn't get much better than that.

Avril was just too much for offensive line and made it apparent to the Broncos that this was not their day when he took his second forced fumble of the day 24-yards for a touchdown. His touchdown was early in the third quarter and put the Lions up 31-3, crushing any hope that the Broncos may have had.

Avril had one of those games that propels players into the Pro Bowl.