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Game Notes: Lions vs. Chargers

Posted Dec 24, 2011

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  • With a start in in today’s game, T Jeff Backus extended his franchise record of consecutive starts to 175. It also marks his 175th game of his career, tying WR Leonard Thomson for seventh on the team’s all-time career games played list.
  • TE Brandon Pettigrew opened the game by giving the Lions a 7-0 lead with a 7-yard touchdown grab on the opening drive. Petigrew now has set a new single-season career high with 5 touchdown grabs this season.
  • By connecting on a 50-yard field goal to give the Lions a 10-0 lead in the first quarter, K Jason Hanson became the first player in NFL history to make to 50 50-yard field goals. He holds the NFL’s all-time record for career 50-yarders.
  • Hanson has now made 5 50-yard field goals on the season for the second time in his career. Previously he made 8 in 2008.
  • By adding the 50-yard field goal to his PAT from the open offensive drive, Hanson has scored 4 points in the game and moved his career tally to 2,005. He passed QB/K George Blanda (2,002) and K Matt Stover (2,004) to move into second place on the NFL’s all-time scoring list.
  • Lions QB Matthew Stafford led the Lions to a 17-0 lead by completing a 3-yard pass to RB Kevin Smith. On the drive, he passed QB Scott Mitchell (4,338 in 1995) to set a new single-season franchise record for passing yards. He finished the Lions third drive of the game by pushing his season yards total to 4,344 yards.
  • On his 5th catch in today’s game, Pettigrew has broken his own club record for receptions by a tight end in a season. He passed his previous record of 71 set in 2010.
  • Pettigrew is the first tight end in Lions history with 70 receptions in two different seasons.
  • RB Kevin Smith’s 6-yard touchdown run to give the Lions a 31-10 lead was the team’s fourth touchdown of the game and the Lions 51st touchdown of the season. It set a new franchise record for total touchdowns of the season surpassing the repvious record of 50 scored in 1995.
  • Hanson connected on his fourth PAT of the game to give the Lions a 31-10 lead. He moved his season total to 49 breaking a club for PATs in a season. Hanson broke his own team record of 48 set in 1995.
  • The Lions earned an NFC Wild Card playoff berth with a 38-10 win over the San Diego Chargers. It is the first time the team has qualified for the playoffs since it earned a Wild Card spot in 1999.
  • The team’s record improves to 10-5, marking the most wins (10) by the club through 15 games since it had 11 through 15 games in 1991. The last time the Lions finished with 10 wins was 1995 when the team won its 10th game in the final week of the season.
  • Detroit’s record vs. the AFC West this year is 4-0. Since the NFL realigned into four divisions in each conference (2002) and played under the current scheduling rotation, this is the first time the Lions swept a division (NFC North, NFC or AFC) during that span.
  • Detroit has won 10 games this season for the eighth time since the franchise relocated to Detroit in 1934.
  • By scoring 38 points today in the Lions win, the team has now scored 433 points on the season. It is the second time in team history that Lions have scored over 400 points in a season. The 2011 team is 3 points shy of the all-team team record of 436 points scored in 1995.
  • The Lions 38 points were tallied mostly by the team’s 5 touchdowns it scored (3 passing, 1 rushing and 1 interception return). The team now has 52 total touchdowns this season which is a new team single-season record.
  • RB Kevin Smith’s 6-yard touchdown run that gave the Lions a 31-10 lead was the team’s fourth touchdown of the game and the Lions 51st touchdown of the season. It set a new franchise record for total touchdowns of the season surpassing the previous record of 50 scored in 1995.
  • With 38 points today, the team is now averaging 28.9 points per game. The team is slightly ahead of the all-time team record of 28.7 points per game registered in 1952 (344 in 12 games).
  • In four games this year vs. AFC West opponents, the Lions outscored those four teams 159-50.

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