Stafford has Lions on a roll
The NFL's highest paid player has the Detroit Lions rolling into early showdown against the defending NFC champion Atlanta Falcons.
How big can a game really be in Week 3? Well, there are only three undefeated teams left in the NFC: the Lions, the Falcons and the Carolina Panthers.
Matthew Stafford kept the Lions rolling Monday night, scrambling to frustrate the New York Giants' defense and throwing two third-down touchdown passes in a 24-10 victory.
Jamal Agnew added an 88-yard punt return TD in the fourth quarter, helping Stafford and the Lions avenge a loss here from December. Detroit even stifled star receiver Odell Beckham Jr. in his return to the Giants' lineup, setting up the matchup at home against Atlanta.
Stafford completed 15 of 21 passes for 122 yards and has six TD passes this season. He downplayed the win's impact as a statement.
“I think that's stuff you guys like to talk about and write about,” said Stafford, who threw touchdown passes of 27 yards to Marvin Jones and 7 to Eric Ebron. “For us, we're on a short week playing a Super Bowl runner-up. We'll enjoy this one for about 30 minutes and start looking at Atlanta.”
Detroit got contributions from all phases. The defense sacked Eli Manning five times, with Ezekiel Ansah getting three. The special teams had the punt return and Matt Prater's 56-yard field goal that hit the upright and fell over the right way.
Three-time Pro Bowl tight end Greg Olsen of the Panthers and receiver Corey Coleman of the Browns were placed on injured reserve.
Olsen suffered a Jones fracture in his right foot during the Panthers’ 9-3 victory over the Bills on Sunday. He underwent surgery Monday.
The injury ends Olsen’s streak of 160 consecutive games played. It’s the second-longest active streak among tight ends behind the Cowboys’ Jason Witten (221).
Olsen is eligible to return Nov. 26 when the Panthers visit the Jets.
Coleman broke his right hand for the second time in two years during the Browns’ 24-10 loss to the Ravens on Sunday. He underwent surgery Monday.
Coleman is eligible to return Nov. 19 when the Browns host the Jaguars.
The No. 15 overall pick in the 2016 draft suffered the same injury during practice as a rookie. He missed six games last season.
The Jets waived receiver Kalif Raymond two days after his fumbled punt changed momentum in the team’s 45-20 loss to the Raiders.
Raymond was claimed off waivers by the Jets on Sept. 3 after he played his rookie season with the Broncos. He served as the Jets’ returner on punts and kickoffs in the first two games.
Raymond mishandled two punts in the opener against the Bills but recovered both fumbles. Against the Raiders, he fumbled a punt with 1 minute, 50 seconds left in the first half and the Jets trailing 14-10. The Raiders recovered the fumble at the Jets 4 and scored three plays later.
The Jaguars claimed receiver Jaelen Strong off waivers a day after the Texans released the third-year receiver.