The Lions started to find their footing on their second drive as Matthew Stafford hit Golden Tate for an 11-yard catch, Zach Zenner followed with a 9-yard run and Stafford hit tight end Clay Harbor for a 9-yard gain to pick up a pair of first downs.
Things continued to go the Lions way after they got a lucky bounce on third-and-9 as a ricocheted pass ended up in the hands of Tate for a 16-yard completion to cross midfield.
But the drive fizzled out with back-to-back Stafford incompletions and Matt Prater badly missed a 49-yard field goal attempt, which will give Washington the ball at its 39 with 3:51 left in the first quarter and the game still scoreless.