Packers vs. Lions: 6 Things We Learned in Detroit's 27-15 Loss

In a way, you can tell the Detroit Lions have turned something of a corner.

They played a solid (if sloppy) game against the Packers, a 10-0 team, even playing them to a virtual draw in the first half, and there's no joy in the loss.

That may seem obvious, but these are the Lions. Moral victories are frequently all they get.

Not so this year. The culture of losing is gone (even if the drive-saving penalties remain), and in its place is a team that expects to win football games no matter how stiff the competition.

The Lions lost about a half-dozen key players to injury in this game alone, and were thin enough in the secondary to bring in special teams player John Wendling to play safety against Aaron Rodgers.

And the Lions still only lost by 12. There isn't one Lions fan that's happy about it.

So, the Thanksgiving losing streak continues, the Packers are the undisputed kings of the NFC North and the Lions still aren't at that "elite" level.

What else did we learn?

The Lions Can Match the Packers Step-for-Step...

If you saw the first half of this game, you saw two divisional rivals going toe to toe and just about playing each other to a draw.

The Lions made some little mistakes early that stalled long drives into Packers territory, but that aside, the Lions just about dominated for the majority of the first half other than a tipped interception that led to the Packers' first points.

Without those, the Lions could very easily have led the Packers, perhaps by multiple possessions, going into halftime.

Of course, that highlights the key difference between the Lions and Packers.

...but the Packers Are Just Better at Winning

If you saw the second half, you saw a 10-0, defending Super Bowl champion lay out a 7-3 team with its first taste of success in over a decade.

The Packers are a complete, polished team that knows how to do the little things that win games.

The Lions are, believe it or not, relatively close to the Packers in talent, but the Packers are far better as a unit overall. They know how to do the little things to win, or more specifically, avoid the little things that cause losses.

On multiple occasions, the Lions took a bad penalty that extended the Packers' drive after they'd made a big stop. It's an old story, but that's because it keeps happening.

The Lions needed to play a perfect game to beat the Packers, and it ended up being one of their sloppier games of the year in terms of untimely mistakes.

That's Right, That's Why the Lions Cut Kevin Smith

Be honest, how excited were you about Kevin Smith gashing the Packers' defense in the first quarter?

Smith looked like both the biggest mistake and the best decision the Lions made all year for about five quarters. He was finding gaps in the Packers' defense, and was a major component in why the Packers held the ball for less than two minutes in the entire first quarter.

Then he got hurt in a pileup and came off the field.

And then he came up lame on a reverse, and that was the game.

In a way, this game was a microcosm of Smith's career. Lots of promise, some huge performances and too many injuries to maintain any meaningful production.

I hope Smith is okay, and he has a week and a half to recover, but he showed everybody why the Lions decided to let him go after training camp.

Ndamukong Suh Might Actually Be Dirty

I've been quick to defend Ndamukong Suh against allegations that he's a dirty player.

Just because he has laid a couple of big hits on quarterbacks that got him flagged, that doesn't mean he's the football villain he's been made out to be.

But today, I watched Suh blatantly grind Evan Dietrich-Smith's face into the ground, then get up and kick at him.

How can anyone justifiably defend that?

That's not playing to the whistle. That's not just being gritty and tough.

Even if the kick wasn't intended for Smith on the ground, Suh's actions on that play are more blatantly dirty than anything he's done so far in his career.

I don't like to say it, and I don't like to see it, but with the talk already surrounding Suh about the integrity of his play, this is most likely the instance the sends that talk over the edge.

He could be looking at a short suspension for this, and if he is, I won't be able to complain.

The Lions Needed This Game More Than It Seemed

Deep down, I don't think anybody expected the Detroit Lions to come out and win this game.

The Green Bay Packers are an unstoppable force. The Lions tried to be the immovable object in their path, but only really succeeded for about a quarter and a half.

But now with the loss, the Lions slide back behind the Bears in the wild-card race, with the Falcons and Cowboys/Giants threatening.

If the Bears and Falcons win on Sunday, the Lions will slide out of playoff position in the NFC. With the divisional loss, the Lions lose their slight tiebreaker over the Bears, so the Bears may even lead the Lions with an equal record.

It may have been a near-given the Lions would lose both games against the Packers, but with as many teams as there are chasing them in the wild-card race, they can't afford any "gimme" losses.

Which is too bad, considering the Lions finish the regular season at Lambeau Field.

The Packers' Weaknesses Are Greatly Exaggerated

There are two things the Green Bay Packers were supposed to be really bad at in this game: Protecting Aaron Rodgers and defending the pass.

Chalk it up partially to a good game plan and partially to Suh's ejection, but Rodgers was barely touched and made all of zero mistakes. QB Matthew Stafford, on the other hand, was bothered all game long and threw a trio of interceptions that really accounted for a majority of Green Bay's points.

Every team in the NFC has been hoping for somebody to lay out an effective game plan to attack the weaknesses of the Packers and neutralize their strengths.

The Lions' strengths appeared to match up with the Packers' weaknesses, but the Lions were never really able to take advantage.

They seemed to have greater success running the ball, and Rodgers finished the game relatively clean. In a way, this is a good thing. 

Aside from some key mistakes, the Lions played the Packers close for most of the game, and perhaps showed some vulnerability.

But then again, teams have been thinking they'd exploit the Packers' "vulnerabilities" for months, and nobody has done it yet. For now, they just look overpowering.