Darius Slay is rarely if ever surprised by his own feats, but even the Detroit Lions' swaggiest cornerback had trouble believing how well his defense played Sunday against Tom Brady.
One of the most accomplished quarterbacks ever, Brady completed just 14 of 26 passes for a measly 133 yards as the Lions overwhelmed the New England Patriots in a 26-10 victory at Ford Field.
Brady's passing total was his lowest since Week 17 of the 2014 season, when he played just a half of football in a meaningless game against the Buffalo Bills.
The Lions had their best defensive performance as measured by yards allowed (209) since Week 1 of the same year.
"That (expletive) is amazing," Slay told reporters in the locker room after the game. "That (expletive) is crazy. It was like, 'Whew.' I looked up and said, 'Damn, we doing that (expletive) for real.'"
The Lions dominated Brady and the Patriots' bumbling offense from the opening kick on Sunday, forcing three-and-outs on three straight possessions and suffocating their passing attack downfield.
Brady misfired on three of his first four passes, threw a late interception to Slay on a Hail Mary-type heave, and grew so frustrated with his receivers inability to get open that at one point he simply chucked the ball 50 yards in the air and drew an intentional grounding penalty.
“I’m not going to say (it was a) surprise because I have a lot of faith in my teammates," said linebacker Eli Harold, who had two sacks. "But it was shocking to see a high-power offense like that struggle. It was fun. Our offense was out there running the ball, and that’s what happens when their defense is tired. They can’t get their guy on the field, the offense on the field, and we made it happen.”
While the Patriots were short-handed on offense, with top receiver Julian Edelman serving Game 3 of a four-game suspension, the newly-acquired Josh Gordon inactive and running back Jeremy Hill injured and out for the year, the Lions' impressive showing was the result of three primary ingredients.
First, the Lions controlled the clock – they held the ball for 39 minutes, 15 seconds of a 60-minute game – with a patient offense and productive running game. Rookie Kerryon Johnson became the first Lion to rush for 100 yards in nearly five years, and the Lions converted 50 percent of their third downs (7-for-14).
Second, the Lions blanketed Brady's only real receiving threat, tight end Rob Gronkowski.
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