I'm World: Packers' Season

Toure's Stunning Catch Saved the Packers' Season

In the dying seconds of the Green Bay Packers' loss to the Detroit Lions, Samori Toure made a challenging catch to convert a fourth-and-2.

Aaron Rodgers had few options on Sunday against the Detroit Lions because the Green Bay Packers were in a desperate situation. Romeo Doubs was hurt during the game's opening play. Concussion testing was being done on Christian Watson. Rodgers turned to Samori Toure because Sammy Watkins was once more ineffective and Randall Cobb was placed on injured reserve.

With 1:09 left, the Packers faced a fourth-and-2 situation. Rodgers sent a deep pass to the seventh-round pick, who made an outstanding catch and gained 32 yards to the Lions' 17. After being outplayed on the play, cornerback Jeff Okudah attempted to strip Toure of the ball, but the ball rolled out of bounds before Okudah could recover.

It wasn't important. The Packers were defeated 15-9 when the drive stalled with four straight incomplete passes.

Toure had two catches for 34 yards in total for the day. Had Rodgers thrown it a little bit deeper on a third-and-11 from the Lions' 44 on the opening series of the second half, he would have had a better day and the Packers might have secured a victory that would have saved the season. Toure had slipped by the defenders, but the day's top performer, safety Kerby Joseph, intercepted the pass close to the goal line.

Definitely, I had some shaky throws, Rodgers admitted.

Dan Campbell, the head coach of the Lions, handed Aaron Glenn, the defensive coordinator, the game ball. Even though the Packers crossed midfield on each of their true possessions, his defense, which had been on pace to allow the most points in NFL history, managed to limit them to just one touchdown.

Campbell remarked, "Man, it's a heck of a job." "Coaches gave it everything he had, like he always does, and those boys came through. Today we knew we needed takeout. They rose up in that defense, man. We played aggressively, in my opinion. We did, in my opinion, pose a perimeter problem. Look, we were involved in the fight during some of their plays, and that is all you can ask for. We are involved. We are involved. They attempted to make a play, sure, but we really made them work for it and we were able to hold them off. And I believe it's essential for our defense to make the winning stop in the very last second.