Jahmyr Gibbs scored three touchdowns, Jared Goff passed for 320 yards and three scores and the visiting Detroit Lions routed the Washington Commanders 44-22 on Sunday.
Gibbs rushed for 142 yards and two scores and caught a touchdown pass for Detroit (6-3), which scored on its first eight possessions.
Goff completed 25 of 33 passes for his second 300-yard game of the season, and Jameson Williams had six receptions for 119 yards and a touchdown.
The Lions, who gained a measure of revenge for the Commanders’ 45-31 upset win in an NFC Divisional playoff game last January, finished with 546 yards of offense and 30 first downs.
With President Trump on hand, the Commanders (3-7) lost their fifth straight game and have been outscored 154-65 over the past four.
Starting in place of injured Jayden Daniels, Marcus Mariota was 16-of-22 passing for 213 yards and two touchdowns.
The Lions scored touchdowns on three straight drives before settling for a field goal and a 25-10 halftime lead.
Washington punted on the opening possession and Detroit drove 75 yards in 10 plays. Goff went 4-for-5 and hit Gibbs for a 14-yard touchdown.
After a 48-yard kick-off return by Noah Igbinoghene resulted in a Commanders field goal, the Lions increased their lead to 14-3 as Amon-Ra St. Brown caught a 9-yard touchdown pass with 1:54 left in the first quarter.
Gibbs did the heavy lifting on the next Detroit possession, catching one pass and running four times for 53 yards, including a 28-yard run early in the drive and 13-yard touchdown run to end it. After Commanders lineman Daron Payne punched St. Brown and was ejected, David Montgomery ran one yard for the two-point conversion.
Washington rallied as Mariota connected with Jaylin Lane for 41 yards to the Detroit 33 and Chris Rodriguez scored from the one to pull and Washington within 22-10 with 3:39 left in the half.
Goff and Mariota traded touchdown passes to start the third quarter. The Lions went 72 yards with Goff passing 14 yards to Williams for a touchdown. The Commanders answered as Mariota capped a 65-yard drive with a 1-yard pass to Deebo Samuel and the Lions’ lead was 32-16.
With Detroit leading 35-16 early in the fourth quarter, Gibbs went around the right end for a 43-yard touchdown run and, after a missed extra point, the Lions lead was 41-16 with 12:50 remaining.
Mariota threw a four-yard touchdown pass to Ben Sinnott but the two-point try failed and Detroit’s lead was 41-22.
–Field Level Media
