Detroit Lions vs. Pittsburgh Steelers: Game recap, highlights from preseason finale

The Detroit Lions were victorious in the final preseason game of 2024.

The Lions took down the Pittsburgh Steelers 24-17 at Ford Field on Saturday afternoon in the final exhibition game of the preseason. It was the final chance for players to make the case to the coaching staff and front office for one of the spots on the Lions’ 53-man roster.

There aren’t many spots left up for grabs on the Lions’ contending-level roster, a testament to the roster overhaul in the last three seasons, but Campbell said earlier this week there were around a half-dozen slots still open. The Lions’ starters rested, allowing young players and the depth pieces to fight for those spots. Here’s Dave Birkett’s prediction of what the 53-man roster may look like by the deadline at 4 p.m. on Tuesday from before the game if you are curious.

Detroit Lions vs. Pittsburgh Steelers preseason game recap

Final: Lions close preseason with 24-17 win over Steelers

The Lions were able to get a stop against the Steelers’ reserve offense near midfield after Pittsburgh contemplated going for it on 4th down, but two penalties, including a false start aided by crowd noise, forced a punt and the Lions were able to run out the final 2:40 on the clock thanks to strong runs from Zonovan Knight.

The Lions outscored the Steelers 24-3 after the first two possessions of the game and found a rythym in the second quarter under backup quarterback Hendon Hooker, who played over three quarters. Hooker finished 12-of-20 for 114 yards, 1 touchdown, 1 interception and ran 10 times for 93 yards, also leading the team in rushing. Maurice Alexander was the team’s leading receiver with four catches for 60 yards. Ty Summers led the defense with eight total tackles and 1½ sacks from off-ball linebacker, and Isaac Ukwu also recorded a strip-sack from the edge.

5:23, 4Q: Jake Bates hits 46-yard field goal, Lions lead 24-17

Hendon Hooker did not return to the field, giving way to training camp signee Jake Fromm rather than Nate Sudfeld. In his first action with the Lions, Fromm led a 64-yard drive that ended in a successful 46-yard kick from Jake Bates, who is now 1-of-2 on field goals today. Fromm completed four of his six passes for 61 yards, showing an ability to rip a throw to an in-breaking route, completing passes on a post to Maurice Alexander and dig from Jalon Calhoun. The drive ended after Jake Funk dropped a would-be touchdown on a wheel route on 3rd-and-2 from the Pittsburgh 23.

12:39, 4Q: Jermar Jefferson gives Lions a 21-17 lead on draw

The Lions defense got an instant stop after the interception, forcing a punt, and turned in a 7-play, 88-yard drive that ended with a patient Jermar Jefferson touchdown run on a draw from seven yards out. Jefferson faked right on the handoff and immediately cut upfield for an easy trot into the end zone. Hooker picked up the first first down with a 10-yard scramble, followed with a 29-yard completion to Maurice Alexander over the middle on a late-developing dig to reach Pittsburgh territory. He picked up 20 yards on the next two plays with a pair of scrambles, setting Jefferson up to punch it in on the next two plays for the lead.

2:28, 3Q: Cam Sutton intercepts Hendon Hooker

The former Lion has a highlight in his return to Ford Field. Cam Sutton, who was released from the team in March due to a legal incident in Florida and signed with the Steelers on a veteran minimum, intercepted a tipped pass from Hendon Hooker. Hooker tried to hit Isaiah Williams on a dig over the middle but the pass was just a step too far in front, bouncing off his hands to Sutton, who was lined up at safety. Sutton will serve an 8-game suspension at the start of the regular season for the incident that prompted the Lions to part ways.

3:20, 3Q: Steelers take 17-14 lead on Boswell chip shot

The Steelers completed the six-point swing by going 72 yards in eight plays and finishing with a short, successful field goal from Chris Boswell to go up by a field goal. After Bates’ miss on the other end, Pittsburgh instantly reached Detroit’s red zone with a 59-yard completion to Dez Fitzpatrick, who beat Steven Gilmore through pass interference on a sideline fade, before being tackled at the Lions’ 19. Pittsburgh picked up one more first down on an illegal contact penalty, but the Lions defense produced three straight plays with no gain to force the field goal. Mitchell Agude stopped runs on first and second down by crashing from the edge before an incomplete pass on third down.

7:19, 3Q: Jake Bates pushes 30-yard FG, game remains tied at 14

The Lions took nearly eight minutes off the clock with the first drive of the third quarter, but ended the drive with no points after a false start stopped a 4th-and-1 attempt and Jake Bates missed the subsequent 30-yard field goal wide right in his first field goal attempt at Ford Field with the Lions. Detroit drove 58 yards in 14 plays, primarily picking up yards on the ground from Hendon Hooker’s scrambles and Zonovan Knight. Hooker, who remained in over Nate Sudfeld, got the first first down with a completion over the middle to Shane Zylstra, then scrambled for the next two first downs. He found Zylstra again for an 8-yard gain inside the Steelers’ red zone, then scrambled down the 7-yard line himself, but could not pick up the first down.

Halftime: Lions, Steelers tied at 14 after Jermar Jefferson TD run

The Lions finished the half strong to dig themselves out of the early two-touchdown deficit. After Ukwu’s strip sack, Hendon Hooker and the Lions’ offense quickly moved into the red zone on an 18-yard completion to Kaden Davis, followed by a 7-yard run from Jefferson. The Lions ran it three straight times from the 8-yard line, eventually finding the end zone on a Jefferson inside zone from the 1-yard line.

The offense awoke from a slumber that lasted well into the second quarter, scoring on the final two drives after managing just seven yards total on the first four. The Steelers trotted out their starters on offense on the first two series with Russell Wilson and Justin Fields, leading to touchdowns on both drives, but the Lions’ defense shut down Fields and Kyle Allen for the rest of the half. The Lions finished with 115 yards, most of which came on the final two drives, while the Steelers finished with 108 total yards, 95 of which came on the first two drives.

A big reason for the slow start was the lack of pass protection from Detroit. Hooker was sacked four times in the first half, including a strip sack to set up Pittsburgh’s second touchdown. The second-year quarterback finished 7-of-13 for 63 yards and one touchdown to Jake Funk while rushing for 34 yards. On defense, linebacker Ty Summers was a first-half standout with six tackles and 1½ sacks.

1:53, 2Q: Isaac Ukwu strip sacks Kyle Allen, Lions recover

The Lions’ defense instantly got the ball back, thanks to a perfect bullrush and swipe from edge rusher Isaac Ukwu. Ukwu drove left tackle Devery Hamilton directly into Allen’s lap and reached around with a perfectly-timed slap of the throwing arm as Allen was releasing it. Nose tackle Chris Smith emerged with the loose ball at the Pittsburgh 33-yard line.

2:33, 2Q: Hooker finds Jake Funk for TD, cuts deficit to 14-7

The Lions offense figured something out just before halftime, driving 72 yards in 12 plays to find the end zone on a play-action pass from the goal line, where Hooker waited for Funk to create separation in the flat before calmly finding him for the score. The drive started with a first down on a run from Funk up the middle on 3rd-and-2, followed by a 10-yard run on the next set out downs. Isaiah Williams, who has been a threat again in the returning game, picked up 15 yards with a reception on a slant, followed by a 15-yard Funk run and 19-yard Hooker scramble all the way down to the 2-yard line.

9:37, 2Q: Lions offense quickly punts again

The Lions have had no success on offense in the first half with Hendon Hooker running the show. The Lions went three-and-out again after a third-down sack sank the drive again. This time, left tackle Giovanni Manu was beaten off the edge, forcing Hooker to step up into edge rusher Julius Welschof, who beat center Kingsley Eguakun in the middle. The Lions have seven net yards after four possessions with two first downs and are 2/6 on third-down conversion attempts. The Lions have given up four sacks and Hooker has struggled to find a rhythm navigating the collapsing pocket.

6:05, 1Q: La’Mical Perine goal line TD gives Steelers 14-0 lead

The Steelers quickly turned the fumble into a touchdown to double up the Lions early. Justin Fields came into the game for the second series to replace Russell Wilson under center. The Steelers kept the ball on the ground for all but one play, methodically moving the ball through Lions territory outside of a 22-yard Fields completion to tight end MyCole Pruitt, who slipped behind linebacker Ty Summers while Fields was moving outside of the pocket. After a holding call against defensive tackle Brodric Martin on the goal line, Perine stuffed it home on a read option from a yard out.

9:38, 1Q: Hendon Hooker strip-sacked by Nick Herbig, Steelers recover

Hendon Hooker, making his home debut with the Lions, got the start over Nate Sudfeld to lead the Lions backup offense, but the first possession did not go as planned. The Lions picked up one first down on a nice extended play by Hooker, finding tight end Shane Zylstra, but took three straight sacks on the next set of downs, including a strip sack on third down, giving the ball to Pittsburgh at Detroit’s 35. Herbig got around starting right tackle Colby Sorsdal and slapped Hooker’s arm while he was cocking to throw, jarring it loose.

12:47, 1Q: Cordarrelle Patterson breaks 31-yard TD, Steelers lead 7-0

The Steelers starting offense got things started with a 60-yard touchdown drive lasting just over two minutes. Starting quarterback Russell Wilson converted a 3rd-and-11 with a 32 yard gain on a flag route to George Pickens, who easily separated from corner Essang Bassey. Two plays later, Cordarrelle Patterson took an off-tackle run to the left and made Brandon Joseph miss for the big touchdown run.

Pregame notes

The Lions will roll with the quarterback duo of Nate Sudfeld and Hendon Hooker as the two continue to battle for the backup spot behind Jared Goff. Campbell said Tuesday the last preseason game is critical for Hooker, who will be playing in his third NFL game ever and had to leave the first preseason game early.

“We want to get (Hooker) a real good look,” Campbell said. “We’d love to get him a lot of reps this week. I think the idea would be, you’d love to start him this week. I’d like to start him, and then it’s just a matter of how much does he play? Is it a couple of series and Nate goes in and then he’s back? Or is it a quarter or is it a half? But he’s going to get a really good look.”

Rookie Sione Vaki has been one of the early stars of the first two preseason games as a receiving option out of the backfield and should handle plenty of work against Pittsburgh along with Craig Reynolds, Zonovan Knight and Jermar Jefferson. The depth options at receiver behind Amon-Ra St. Brown, Jameson Williams and Kalif Raymond are fighting for a spot and the last game will determine who makes it between options like Donovan Peoples-Jones, Isaiah Williams and Daurice Fountain. The depth pieces on the offensive line, particularly the interior, will also be under a close look to find the last backup for Detroit’s top unit.

On defense, the main competition is at edge rusher and in the secondary. The final safety spot likely comes down to C.J. Moore and Brandon Joseph while Khalil Dorsey, Kindle Vildor and Steven Gilmore fight for a spot at cornerback. Isaac Ukwu, Mitchell Agude and Mathieu Betts will all get extensive playing time at edge to determine the final backups on the defensive line.