Lions Roar Past Commanders 44-22 in Week 10

Washington Commanders’ cornerback Johnathon Jones punching the ball out of Lions’ hands in 44-22 loss on Sunday, Nov. 9 at Northwest Stadium. (Abdullah Konte/The Washington Informer)

The Commanders endured yet another brutal loss at home, having lost five consecutive games, but this time in an NFC showdown to a team that Washington eliminated in the playoffs last year: the Detroit Lions. 

Despite a frustrating time for the Commanders, with the 44-22 loss to the Lions and yet another week of injuries– including for star quarterback Jayden Daniels—  the team is working to overcome challenges and build a deeper sense of brotherhood. 

“[Linebacker] Bobby [Wagner] said something at halftime, and I really appreciate the fact that he led us, and said, ‘Hey, this is on us. We have to figure it out. It's not just offense, it's not just defense, it's not just special teams, it's on everybody,’” said quarterback Marcus Mariota. “And at the end of the day, like I said, going into this game, I believe in the guys in this locker room, but we have to figure out what it is and what these details are if we're missing the lack of execution.”

With President Donald Trump in attendance causing major traffic on the I-95 beltway and rising tensions throughout the matchup, it was a tough game for the team and fans alike. 

Washington dropped 3-7 on the 44-22 loss, as the team remained third in the NFC East, while Lions advanced to 6-3 tying for second in the NFC North. 

For Washington, it was a loss that made unwanted history as this marked the team’s fourth consecutive loss by 21-plus points, which hasn’t happened since the 2002 Arizona Cardinals. 

The Commanders’ defensive woe persisted and sank to an unbelievable level in their loss to the Detroit Lions. Although Coach Dan Quinn vowed to make changes heading into Week 10, the only noticeable adjustment was bringing defensive coordinator Joe Whitt Jr. down to the field to call plays. Unfortunately for Washington, the results looked no different. 

Washington’s defense gave up three touchdowns on the first three drives of the game and players started to show forms of frustration for the lack of execution. 

After the Lions powered in their third touchdown increasing the score 22-3 in the first half, one of the Commanders high performing defensive tackles’ Daron Payne was ejected for punching Lions wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown in the face when he walked past him. 

Payne’s punch wasn’t the only signal of frustration in Sunday’s matchup, as defensive tackle Javon Kinlaw was flagged for pushing an official after the next play and safety Quan Martin received a penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct a couple of drives later. 

“I get the frustration, but we've got to find a way to channel our frustration better or different than that,” said Head Coach Dan Quinn. “That part [I] obviously addressed it hard at halftime about our poise and what it's got to look like and where it goes.” 

Any glimpse of a playoff appearance has been slowly fading for Washington. And the Commanders must make some serious changes to the defensive unit if they want to have success heading into next season. 

The Washington Commanders are set for a trip this week to Madrid, Spain to face AFC Opponent, the Miami Dolphins at Santiago Bernabeu Stadium before their Week 12 bye week. 

Kickoff will be at 9:30 a.m. EST on NFL Network. 

“We're way off and that's up to us to fix that and [I] also told the team, it's for us to go away [to Madrid next week], get it together… not the worst thing for us,” said Quinn. “We’ve got to find solutions, where we're at and doing that together, that's the right space to go do it. So, we'll take it on the road tomorrow night and we’ve got a lot of things to fix.” hat was a good step tonight.”