A day of hand-wringing didn’t do anything to change two truths about the Detroit Lions’ 20-13 loss to the Houston Texans on Sunday.
Coach Jim Caldwell, despite passionately defending them for a second straight day, made two poor decisions when he chose not to challenge a potential fumble by DeAndre Hopkins in the third quarter, and then opted for an onside kick with just under 3 minutes left in the game.
Even if Caldwell had made the right decision on both plays, there’s a good chance the Lions would still be sitting at 4-4 today.
First, there was enough uncertainty about the fumble that it’s unlikely replay officials would have overturned a call that was ruled an incomplete pass on the field.