Throughout this week, we are going to go through the 10 plays (with some liberties for moments) that shaped the 2015 season for the Detroit Lions.
The play: With the Lions opening the second half on the road against the Green Bay Packers, rookie kick returner Ameer Abdullah provided it. He took the kickoff and returned all the way to the Packers' 1-yard line when he was caught from behind by Green Bay's Micah Hyde. The 104-yard non-touchdown return tied a NFL record with Percy Harvin for the longest non-scoring play in league history.
The situation: The Lions could get nothing going offensively in the first half with 102 total yards (19 rushing, 83 passing). Neither team could do much on offense, with a 3-3 score at the half. The Lions knew they'd need a spark from special teams or the offense to win in Wisconsin for the first time since 1991. Abdullah took the ball in the end zone, ran up the middle of the field, cut to the left around the Detroit 45-yard line and headed toward the sideline to avoid Hyde. Hyde dove at the Green Bay 5-yard line and grabbed Abdullah's ankle, knocking him down at the 1-yard line.
The reason it mattered: It gave Detroit signs of life away from its defense. The Lions scored a touchdown on the play -- a 2-yard pass from Matthew Stafford to Brandon Pettigrew -- but the Lions managed only a 9-3 lead after Matt Prater missed extra point. With Green Bay's offense stagnant until midway through the fourth quarter, it really gave the Lions a sense they could win in Green Bay. Considering Detroit's season to that point -- the worst record in the NFL (1-7) and blowout losses to the Arizona Cardinals and Kansas City Chiefs -- it was a sign of life against a good team for the first time since Week 1. A lot of wackiness happened toward the end of the game, but if Abdullah doesn't pick up that return in the second half, it's tough to see how the Lions win that game.
How Abdullah did returning kicks on the season: It was a bright spot for him. He led the NFL in kick return yardage (1,077 yards) and was sixth in average kick return (29.11). He was third among players who returned kicks regularly, behind the Minnesota Vikings' Cordarrelle Patterson (31.84) and the Chicago Bears' Deonte Thompson (29.21). He also had the most kick returns in the league, with 37. The next-most was another rookie, Seattle's Tyler Lockett, who had 33.
What Ameer Abdullah said about the play and the record: "For real? Jokes on me." He would then add "that sparked a good start to the second half. From that point on, we felt we could really dictate the game.: