Jared Goff passed for 315 yards and three touchdowns but Detroit lost top defensive player Aidan Hutchinson in a 47-9 thumping of Dallas in Arlington, Texas on Sunday.
Hutchinson suffered a serious left leg injury in the third quarter while sacking Dallas quarterback Dak Prescott and was carted off the field. After the game, Lions coach Dan Campbell said it was a tibia injury and that Hutchinson would remain in the Dallas area while the team flew back to Detroit.
David Montgomery rushed for 80 yards and two touchdowns for the Lions (4-1), who have won three in a row.
Prescott passed for 178 yards and was intercepted twice, both by Brian Branch, as the Cowboys (3-3) dropped to 0-3 in home games. Cooper Rush relieved Prescott and was 8-for-11 passing for 46 yards and an interception.
CeeDee Lamb had seven catches for 89 yards for Dallas.
Detroit raced to a 27-6 halftime advantage.
Brandon Aubrey kicked a 34-yard field goal to complete Dallas’ first drive.
The Lions needed only five plays to drive 70 yards on their first possession. Goff hit Tim Patrick on a 42-yard pass play and Montgomery finished it off with a 16-yard run.
The Cowboys drove 63 yards on their next possession but Prescott was picked off in the end zone by Branch.
Jake Bates kicked a 40-yard field goal for Detroit early in the second quarter.
Following a Dallas punt, the Lions used some razzle-dazzle to blindside the Cowboys defense and take a two-touchdown lead.
The Lions ran a flea flicker to spring Sam LaPorta open on the right side.
The tight end hauled in Goff’s heave and dove into the end zone to complete the 52-yard play.
Bates made a 48-yard field goal with 3:57 remaining in the half.
After Dallas gambled on fourth down in its territory and Prescott threw an incompletion, the Lions scored on Montgomery’s 1-yard dive.
KaVontae Turpin’s 79-yard kick return allowed Aubrey to kick a 47-yard field goal before the half ended.
The Lions wasted little time getting on the board in the second half, as Goff hooked up with Jameson Williams on a 37-yard touchdown pass just 2:25 into the third quarter.
Aubrey had a 50-yard field goal midway through the third, which was offset by Bates’ 33-yarder later in the quarter. Bates kicked another 33-yarder in the first minute of the fourth quarter.
Branch’s second interception of the game was quickly cashed in, as Goff tossed a 4-yard touchdown pass to Amon-Ra St. Brown.