Lions Top Cincy 27-26 in Preseason Opener

Posted by Matt Loede on August 10th, 2007 filed in Game Stories

Calvin Johnson caught both of his passes just before halftime, and Detroit made a rousing fourth-quarter comeback long after he exited the game, as the Lions downed Cincinnati, 27-26, in the preseason opener for both clubs at Ford Field. The game was still in doubt until Shayne Graham, who had converted on four earlier field goals, missed a 48-yard attempt in the waning seconds.

Johnson, the second pick in the NFL Draft, caught a pair of balls from J.T. O’Sullivan in a drive that resulted in a field goal at the end of the first half.

Chris Henry caught six passes for 86 yards and one touchdown, a nine-yard strike from Doug Johnson during the second quarter. Johnson, who threw for 150 yards and an interception, replaced an effective Carson Palmer after the franchise quarterback completed 7-of-10 passes for 93 yards.

The Lions aired it out 47 times on the night, however starting signal-caller Jon Kitna finished just 3-of-5 for 52 yards. Shaun McDonald was the big receiving star with five catches for 146 yards, including an 83-yard pitch-and-catch with O’Sullivan in the second quarter.

O’Sullivan finished 12-of-19 for 225 yards and an interception, while Dan Orlovsky went 15-of-23 for 220 yards with two touchdowns and one interception. Three straight Graham field goals — a 23-yard chip shot and a pair of lengthy drives from 47 and 48 yards — gave the Bengals a 9-0 lead before O’Sullivan and McDonald hooked up on an 83-yard scoring play that trimmed the deficit to 9-7.

Johnson found Henry later in the quarter for a nine-yard score and Hanson’s field goal ended the scoring in the first half at 16-10. Graham’s fourth boot put the Bengals up 19-10 and Matt Toeaina’s 81-yard interception return made the score 26-10. However, the Lions stormed back from there.

Orlovsky found Ronald Bellamy for a five-yard score, Kenny Byrd drilled a 25-yard field goal through the uprights and Kevin Kasper hauled in another Orlovsky strike, a seven-yard score that proved to be the game-winner with 1:55 left.