'It hurts': Campbell, Lions see magical year end

DETROIT -- It was a somber scene inside the Detroit Lions locker room on Saturday night as players left Ford Field disappointed.

After a magical regular season run, the top-seeded Lions suffered a 45-31 upset loss to the Washington Commanders behind a five-turnover performance in the NFC Divisional Round matchup.

Coach Dan Campbell got emotional afterward while trying to discuss what the record-setting 15-win season and the players meant to him following the Lions' playoff elimination.

It was hard for him to put the loss into words. The Lions became the first team in NFL history to lose a playoff game when having 300+ pass yards and 200+ rushing yards in the same game.

"We just didn't play great, and I mentioned we didn't complement each other and that's the same thing. At the end of the day, I didn't have them ready," Campbell said. "It's hard to look at it."

After Lions All-Pro receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown completed his postgame interviews, veteran quarterback Jared Goff went over and sat beside him at his locker before putting his face in his hands in disbelief.

Goff also received a hug from safety Kerby Joseph as his teammates supported him after a tough game where he threw three interceptions and lost a fumble. He finished 23-for-40 for 313 yards with a touchdown, but also briefly exited the game in the second quarter to be evaluated for a concussion after absorbing a big hit during Commanders safety Quan Martin's interception pick-six touchdown.

"I'm still kind of processing this. I'm going to have some hard nights coming up unfortunately. It's hard. I wish I could give you guys a better answer right now," Goff said. "It's disappointing. It's hard. We had everything we wanted. Home field advantage, the fans were incredible and unfortunately, we just let it slip out of our hands."

In a back-and-forth first half battle, the Lions trailed by 10 at halftime. With 52 points combined at halftime, it matched the highest scoring first half in any game since the 2019 Divisional Playoffs between the Chiefs and Texans, who also scored 52 points, according to ESPN Research.

Campbell described the beginning of the game as being "odd" as they struggled to find a groove as early as the first quarter. On the defense's second play of the game, starting cornerback Amik Robertson also left and wouldn't return after breaking his arm. He will undergo surgery on Sunday, according to Campbell.

Robertson joined a long line of injuries, notably on defense, as Detroit was playing with 16 players on the injured reserve list. Still, Campbell refused to make any excuses, and said the loss didn't hurt any extra, based upon their No. 1 seeding.

"No. It just hurts to lose, man and I don't care if you're the seven seed, six seed, five seed, one seed, because I've lost at all of them damn near and it stings," Campbell said. "And it, hurts ... it hurts."

After missing the last three regular season games with an MCL injury, running back David Montgomery returned with seven carries for 28 yards. However, Detroit's other running back Jahmyr Gibbs continued to establish himself as a bonafide star with two touchdowns. Gibbs' 22 scrimmage touchdowns this season, tied NFL great Gale Sayers (1965) for the most in a season by a player 22 years old or younger.

The Lions led the league in scoring (33.2 points per game) during the regular season with back-to-back NFC North division titles.

Detroit also won every road game for the first time in a season while winning 11 straight games at one point, but as great as the year was for the organization, it was too soon for Campbell to reflect on those new franchise marks following the Commanders loss.

"No. I just think it's just not the time, man. It's hard when you lose, and you lose these games, man," Campbell said as he fought back tears. "It's like the players, what they put into it. A lot of people don't know what they go through. You have to get up, body's beat to s---, mentally stay locked in and do those things, so long season."