Lions open 2023 Season with a 21-20 win over the Super Bowl Champion Kansas City Chiefs

Lions open 2023 Season with a 21-20 win over the Super Bowl Champion Kansas City Chiefs
The upstart Detroit Lions defeated the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs by a score of 21-20 in the opening game of the 2023 NFL season.

Kansas City had multiple opportunities to win, but its wide receiver group's errors ultimately cost them the game. Three drops by Kadarius Toney, one of which led to a pick-six. Skyy Moore dripped. Another came from Jerick McKinnon. On second-and-1, Toney squandered yards on a jet sweep, turning a potential touchdown drive into a field goal. Later, Rashee Rice lost ground on a third-and-1 reverse, resulting in a punt after a first down. They disappointed Patrick Mahomes the entire game.

The Lions profited when their rivals provided a chance. They were down 14-7 at the half but put together a nine-play, 75-yard drive that mostly involved David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs finding lanes in the run game and ended with Montgomery crashing into the end zone for the eventual game-winning score after Toney's drop resulted in rookie defensive back Brian Branch tying the game at 14 and mistakes by the Chiefs led to two promising drives ending in field goals.

After the Lions turned the ball over on downs close to midfield, the Chiefs had one more opportunity to construct a game-winning drive, but Toney's third drop, followed by holding penalties on Donovan Smith and Jawaan Taylor, dashed those hopes. The Lions ran out the clock after the Chiefs themselves turned the ball over on downs, earning themselves a 1-0 start to the year while the champions fell to 0-1.
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