2012 Detroit Lions season The Detroit Lions season was the franchise ' s 83rd season in the National Football League , their 79th as the Detroit Lions and the fourth under head coach Jim Schwartz . The Lions failed to improve from their 10 – 6 record in 2011 , during which they made it to the postseason as a wild card team . The Lions spent most of the season at the bottom of their division , and ended the season with an eight - game losing streak , their worst skid since the winless 2008 season . It was also the franchise ' s 21st consecutive season without a playoff win . The Lions set an NFL record with 740 pass attempts during the season ( 46 . 25 attempts per game ) , breaking a record that had stood for thirty years . Offseason . Signings . Jacob Lacey signed with the Detroit Lions on March 20 , 2012 . Releases . Cornerback Aaron Berry was released on July 23 , 2012 after his second arrest of the offseason . All times are Eastern . Regular season results . Week 1 : vs . St . Louis Rams . To open the regular season , the Lions hosted the St . Louis Rams . The Rams took an early lead when Greg Zuerlein kicked a 48 yard field goal , the only scoring drive of the first quarter . The Lions responded in the second quarter when Joique Bell ran in a touchdown from 1 yard out . St . Louis made it a 1 point game when Greg Zuerlein kicked a 29 yard field goal , and took the lead again when Cortland Finnegan intercepted a Matthew Stafford pass and ran it back 31 yards for a touchdown . The final points of the half were scored when Detroit ' s Jason Hanson kicked a 41 yard field goal . The only points of the third quarter was a 45 yard field goal by Jason Hanson to tie the game . In the final quarter , the score continued to sea - saw . First the Rams ' Brandon Gibson caught a 23 yard touchdown pass from Sam Bradford to take the lead back again , but the Lions soon tied it back up when Kevin Smith ran in a touchdown from 5 yards out . The Rams then went up by 3 points when kicked Greg Zuerlein his third field goal of the game , this one from 46 yards out . In the final 2 minutes , the Lions completed their third 80 yard scoring drive with a game - winning 5 yard touchdown catch by Kevin Smith , his second of the game . The Lions were able to start 1 – 0 and capture their second straight regular season opening win . Week 2 : at San Francisco 49ers . In week 2 , the Lions flew west to play the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday Night Football . The 49ers got on the board first with a 21 yard touchdown pass from Alex Smith to Vernon Davis . The Lions responded with two field goals by Jason Hanson , from 38 and 41 yards respectively . The only scoring play of the second quarter was a 1 yard touchdown run by Frank Gore . In the third quarter came a pair of field goals , first a 36 yard kick by San Francisco ' s David Akers , and later a 40 yard one from Detroit ' s Jason Hanson . In the final quarter , both teams kicked two more field goals both from 48 yards out , first the 49ers ' David Akers , then the Lions ' Jason Hanson . Next , San Francisco ' s Vernon Davis caught his second touchdown pass of the game , this one from 23 yards out . Lastly , Detroit scored their only touchdown of the game when Brandon Pettigrew caught a 9 yard pass from Matthew Stafford dropping the team to 1 - 1 . Week 3 : at Tennessee Titans . In week 3 , the Lions traveled south to Nashville to play the Tennessee Titans . Detroit started the scoring in the first quarter with a pair of field goals by Jason Hanson , from 47 and 53 yards respectively . The Titans responded with a 31 yard field goal by Rob Bironas , and took the lead when Darius Reynaud caught a Ben Graham punt and threw a lateral to Tommie Campbell who ran back a 65 - yard touchdown . Tennessee added more points in the second quarter when Jared Cook caught a 61 yard touchdown pass from Jake Locker . The Lions responded when Jason Hanson kicked a 33 yard field goal . The final points of the first half was a 38 yard kick by The Titans ' Rob Bironas . The only points of the third quarter was a 1 yard touchdown run by Detroit ' s Mikel Leshoure , sandwiched between two missed FGAs by Bironas . The fourth quarter scoring started when Jason Hanson kicked a 26 yard field goal . Next , the Lions ' Nate Burleson caught a 3 yard touchdown pass from Matthew Stafford and the same duo completed a two - point conversion . Tennessee then scored 3 consecutive touchdowns . First , Darius Reynaud returned a kickoff 105 yards for a touchdown . Following a Lions punt , Nate Washington caught a 71 yard touchdown pass from Locker . The Lions drove deep into Titans territory on the next drive but Alterraun Verner yanked the ball out of Brandon Pettigrew ' s hands and ran back a 72 - yard touchdown . Matthew Stafford had to come out of the game with a pulled leg muscle and Shaun Hill responded with a drive ending in a three - yard touchdown to Calvin Johnson with just twenty seconds to go . The Lions kicked onside and Amari Spievey caught the ball off a bounce at the Detroit 35 - yard line . On the final play of regulation , Hill went deep and Titus Young caught the 41 yard touchdown off a partial deflection . Tied 41 – 41 , the game went to overtime . After winning the coin toss , the Titans ' Rob Bironas kicked the game - winning a field goal from 26 yards out . The Lions then drove down field , but were stopped on a fourth - down stand at the Titans 7 - yard line as the team fell to 1 - 2 . Week 4 : vs . Minnesota Vikings . In week 4 , the Lions hosted their NFC North Division rivals the Minnesota Vikings . The Vikings took an early lead when Percy Harvin returned the opening kickoff 105 yards for a touchdown . The Lions responded with a 40 yard field goal by Jason Hanson . Minnesota ' s Blair Walsh then kicked a field goal from 49 yards out . Both teams kicked a field goal in the second quarter , first Minnesota ' s Blair Walsh from 27 yards out , then Detroit ' s Jason Hanson from 31 yards . The only scoring drive of the third quarter was when the Vikings ' Marcus Sherels returned a punt 77 yards for a touchdown . The Lions scored the only points of the final quarter when quarterback Matthew Stafford completed a 1 yard run for a touchdown . With the loss , the Lions went into their bye week at 1 – 3 . Week 6 : at Philadelphia Eagles . After their bye week , the Lions traveled east to play the Philadelphia Eagles . The Lions took an early lead in the first quarter with two field goals by Jason Hanson , from 46 and 34 yards out . The only scoring drive of the second quarter was a 2 - yard touchdown pass from Michael Vick to LeSean McCoy to put Philadelphia up by 1 point . In the third quarter the Eagles ' Alex Henery kicked 2 field goals , from 26 and 32 yards out . In the fourth quarter , Alex Henery kicked a 49 yard field goal . The Lions responded with a 1 yard touchdown run by Matthew Stafford . The Eagles ' Jeremy Maclin then caught a 70 yard touchdown pass from Michael Vick . The Lions responded with their own touchdown pass , a 17 - yarder from Matthew Stafford to Nate Burleson . The Lions took it to overtime after Jason Hanson kicked a 19 yard field goal . On the second drive in Overtime , the Lions ' Jason Hanson kicked the game winning field goal from 45 yards out . With the win , the Lions improved to 2 - 3 , snapping their 3 - game losing streak . Week 7 : at Chicago Bears . In week 7 , the Lions traveled to Chicago to take on their NFC North Division arch - rivals the Chicago Bears on Monday Night Football . The Bears struck first when Brandon Marshall caught a 7 - yard touchdown pass from Jay Cutler , and added more points when Robbie Gould kicked a 39 - yard field goal . After a scoreless second quarter , the Bears ' Robbie Gould scored the only points of the third quarter with a 21 - yard field goal . The Lions scored their only points of the game in the fourth quarter when Ryan Broyles caught a 12 - yard touchdown pass from Matthew Stafford . It was their fifth straight loss at Chicago as they dropped to 2 - 4 on the season . Week 8 : vs . Seattle Seahawks . In week 8 , the Lions hosted the Seattle Seahawks . Seattle started the scoring with a 23 - yard field goal by Steven Hauschka . The Lions then took the lead when Ryan Broyles caught a 6 yard touchdown pass from Matthew Stafford . In the second quarter , the Seahawks scored 2 consecutive touchdowns : first with a Marshawn Lynch 77 - yard run , then with a Sidney Rice 9 - yard catch from Russell Wilson . The Lions responded with a Titus Young 46 - yard touchdown pass from Matthew Stafford . After a scoreless third quarter , the Lions took the lead back when Matthew Stafford ran in a touchdown from 1 yard out . Seattle went up by 3 points with a Zach Miller 16 - yard catch from Russell Wilson . The Lions ' Titus Young then scored the game - winning touchdown with 1 - yard pass from Matthew Stafford . Week 9 : at Jacksonville Jaguars . In week 9 , the Lions flew south to play the Jacksonville Jaguars . After a scoreless first quarter , the Lions ' Mikel Leshoure ran in three consecutive touchdowns , from 7 , 1 , and 8 yards out respectively to take a 21 - point lead going into halftime . Leshoure became the first Lions rusher to score three touchdowns in the first half . After a scoreless third quarter , Detroit ' s Jason Hanson kicked a 42 yard field goal . The Jaguars finally got on the board when Micheal Spurlock caught a 5 yard touchdown pass from Blaine Gabbert ; they then completed a two - point conversion when Blaine Gabbert completed a pass to Rashad Jennings . The Lions responded with a 10 - yard touchdown run from Joique Bell . Jacksonville scored the final points of the game with a 6 - yard touchdown catch from Blaine Gabbert to Justin Blackmon ; they again went for a two - point conversion , but were unsuccessful this time . It was the Lions ' most lopsided win of the season and would also be their final victory of the 2012 season . Week 10 : at Minnesota Vikings . In week 10 , the Lions traveled to Minneapolis to play their NFC North rival the Minnesota Vikings . Minnesota took an early lead when Jarius Wright caught a 3 - yard touchdown pass from Christian Ponder , and added more points when Blair Walsh kicked a 58 yard field goal . In the second quarter , the Lions scored their only points of the first half when Jason Hanson scored a 41 - yard field goal . The Vikings responded with a 23 - yard field goal by Blair Walsh . After halftime , the Blair Walsh kicked another 23 - yard field goal . The Lions responded with a Brandon Pettigrew caught a 16 - yard touchdown yard pass from Matthew Stafford . In the final quarter , Minnesota ' s Kyle Rudolph caught a 20 - yard touchdown pass from Christian Ponder , and Adrian Peterson ran the ball in for a two - point conversion . The Lions responded when Titus Young caught a 1 - yard touchdown pass from Matthew Stafford . The Vikings added to their lead when Adrian Peterson completed a 61 - yard touchdown run , then Blair Walsh scored a 33 - yard field goal . The Lions scored the game ' s final points when Calvin Johnson caught an 11 - yard touchdown pass from Matthew Stafford . Week 11 : vs . Green Bay Packers . In week 11 , the Lions hosted their NFC North Division rivals the Green Bay Packers . The only scoring play of the first quarter was when Detroit ' s Jason Hanson kicked a 30 yard field goal . The Packers got on the board in the second quarter when Jermichael Finley caught a 20 - yard touchdown pass from Aaron Rodgers . The Lions responded with a 1 - yard touchdown run by Mikel Leshoure . In the third quarter , the Packers ' M . D . Jennings intercepted a Matthew Stafford pass and ran it back 72 yards for a touchdown . The Lions responded with a Calvin Johnson 25 - yard touchdown pass from Matthew Stafford . The Lions scored their final points in the fourth quarter when Jason Hanson kicked a 27 yard field goal . The Packers then scored a touchdown when Randall Cobb caught a 22 yard pass from Aaron Rodgers , and capped off their win with a 39 yard field goal by Mason Crosby . Week 12 : vs . Houston Texans . For their annual Thanksgiving Classic game , the Lions hosted the Houston Texans . The Lions got on the board early when Mikel Leshoure ran in a touchdown from 2 yards out . The score sea - sawed in the second quarter , with each team scoring a pair of touchdowns . First , the Texans ' Arian Foster rushed in a touchdown from 6 yards out . The Lions responded with a 5 - yard touchdown run from Mike Foster . Houston ' s Owen Daniels then caught a 9 - yard touchdown pass from Matt Schaub . The Lions ' Calvin Johnson then caught a 22 - yard touchdown pass . After halftime , Detroit ' s Jason Hanson kicked a 46 - yard field goal . Houston responded with a 81 - yard touchdown rush by Justin Forsett , which would have been overturned by an official review , but Coach Jim Schwartz ' s challenge flag negated the review . The Texans tied it up yet again with a 45 - yard field goal by Shayne Graham . In the fourth quarter , the Lions took the lead back with a 23 - yard touchdown run by Joique Bell , but Houston tied it back up with a 1 - yard run by Arian Foster inside the 2 - minute warning to take it to overtime . After a pair of turnovers and missed field goals by each team , Houston ' s Shayne Graham kicked the game - winning field goal from 32 - yards out . It was the Lions ' ninth consecutive Thanksgiving loss . Week 13 : vs . Indianapolis Colts . In week 13 , the Lions hosted the Indianapolis Colts . The started the scoring when Jason Hanson kicked a 48 yard field goal . The Colts responded with a 17 yard touchdown catch by Donnie Avery from Andrew Luck . Detroit replied when Brandon Pettigrew caught a 16 yard touchdown pass from Matthew Stafford , and added to their lead in the second quarter when Mikel Leshoure ran in a touchdown from 6 yards out . The Colts scored their only points of the second quarter when Coby Fleener caught a 26 yard touchdown pass from Andrew Luck . The Lions closed out the half with 2 field goals from Jason Hanson from 33 and 52 yards out respectively . Each team scored a touchdown in the third quarter . First the Colts ' Vick Ballard ran one in from 11 yards out , then Detroit ' s Calvin Johnson caught 46 yard touchdown pass from Matthew Stafford . The Lions ' only points of the final quarter was a 31 yard field goal by Jason Hanson . The Colts then rallied from behind with two touchdowns . First LaVon Brazill caught a 42 yard pass from Andrew Luck , then Donnie Avery caught a 14 yard pass from Andrew Luck in the final seconds of the game for the win . It was the Lions ' third consecutive loss in which they were leading with less than 2 minutes left in the game . Week 14 : at Green Bay Packers . In week 14 , the Lions flew across Lake Michigan for a rematch with NFC North Division rivals the Green Bay Packers on Sunday Night Football . The only scoring drive of the first quarter was when Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford ran in a touchdown himself from 4 yards out . The Lions added more points in the second quarter when Tony Scheffler caught a Matthew Stafford pass from 3 yards out . The Packers got on the board when Mason Crosby kicked a 49 yard field goal , and added more points when Mike Daniels picked up a Matthew Stafford fumble and ran it back 43 yards for a touchdown to make it 14 – 10 at halftime . In the third quarter , the Packers took their first lead of the game when quarterback Aaron Rodgers ran in a touchdown from 27 yards , but the Lions tied it up a few minutes later when Jason Hanson kicked a 46 yard field goal . In the final quarter , the Packers took the lead back when DuJuan Harris ran in a touchdown from 14 yards out , and went up by 10 points when Mason Crosby kicked a 41 yard field goal . The Lions ' Jason Hanson kicked a 34 yard field goal in the final seconds of the game , and the Lions attempted to recover an onside kick afterward to try to tie it up and take it to overtime , but failed . It was the Packers ' 22nd consecutive home win over the Lions , a streak that dates back to 1992 , and now eclipses the Lions ' current road losing streak vs the Washington Redskins , which stands at 0 – 21 . Week 15 : at Arizona Cardinals . In week 15 , the Lions played their last road game of the season out west against the Arizona Cardinals . After a scoreless first quarter , the Lions scored their only points of the first half with a 1 - yard touchdown run by Mikel Leshoure . The Cardinals responded with 3 consecutive touchdowns : first , Beanie Wells scored a pair of rushing touchdowns from 5 and 1 yards out respectively , then Rashad Johnson intercepted a Matthew Stafford pass and ran it back 53 yards to put the Cardinals up 21 – 7 at halftime . Each team kicked a field goal in the third quarter : first the Cardinals ' Jay Feely from 51 yards , then Detroit ' s Jason Hanson from 41 yards . Arizona capped their win with two touchdowns in the final quarter : first Greg Toler intercepted a Matthew Stafford pass in the end zone and ran 102 yards for a touchdown , then Beanie Wells scored his third touchdown of the game , this one from 31 yards out . Week 16 : vs . Atlanta Falcons . In week 16 , the Lions hosted the Atlanta Falcons on a Saturday night . Atlanta took an early lead , which they never gave back , when Roddy White caught a 44 - yard touchdown pass from Matt Ryan . The Lions responded with a 34 - yard field goal by Jason Hanson . In the second quarter , the Falcons ' Roddy White caught another touchdown pass , this one from 39 yards out . Atlanta added more points when Julio Jones caught a 16 yard touchdown pass . The Lions ended the first half with a 38 - yard field goal by Jason Hanson . The only points of the third quarter was a 1 yard touchdown run by Detroit ' s Mikel Leshoure . The Lions scored another field goal to start the fourth quarter , this one from 20 yards out . The Falcons added 10 more points when Michael Palmer caught a 1 - yard touchdown pass , then Matt Bryant kicked a 20 - yard field goal . The Lions scored the game ' s final points when Atlanta ' s Michael Turner was tackled in his own end zone for a Detroit safety . The game ' s biggest highlight was when Detroit ' s Calvin Johnson surpassed Jerry Rice ' s 1 , 848 yard single season receiving record from 1995 . At the end of the game , Johnson had compiled 1 , 892 receiving yards on the year . Week 17 : vs . Chicago Bears . For their last game of the season , the Lions hosted a rematch against their NFC North Division rival the Chicago Bears . The Lions took an early lead in the first quarter when Jason Hanson kicked a 44 yard field goal . The Bears then took the lead , which they never gave back , when Earl Bennett caught a 60 - yard touchdown pass from Jay Cutler , and added more 3 points when Olindo Mare kicked a 33 - yard field goal . The Lions responded when Kris Durham caught a 25 - yard touchdown pass from Matthew Stafford to make it 20 – 10 at halftime . After the intermission , Detroit scored another touchdown , this one with a 10 - yard catch by Will Heller from Matthew Stafford . The Bears responded with a pair of field goals by Olindo Mare , first one from 28 - yards late in the third quarter , then one from 20 yards out early in the fourth . The Lions scored the final points of the game when Brian Robiskie caught a 9 - yard pass from Matthew Stafford . With their eight consecutive loss , the Lions finished their season at 4 – 12 . Also , for the second time under Coach Schwartz ' s tenure which began in 2009 , the team failed to win a single division game . It was also his third losing season .