The Green Bay Packers got star efforts from Jordan Love and Micah Parsons and a truly clutch performance from Dontayvion Wicks to power an impressive 31-24 win over the rival Detroit Lions at Ford Field on Thanksgiving Day 2025.
Love threw four touchdown passes. Parsons had 2.5 sacks. And Wicks made two huge plays on fourth down, including the dagger catch on fourth down with under two minutes to go.
Six standouts from the Packers’ Thanksgiving win over the Lions:
QB Jordan Love
Love threw four touchdown passes, converted three fourth downs with passes, didn’t take a sack and didn’t turn the ball over. He hit Dontayvion Wicks for a 22-yard score and Romeo Doubs for a 2-yard score on fourth down, and his 51-yard bomb to Christian Watson was a big play early in the second half. As usual, Love was unstoppable from clean pockets. With the game on the line, Matt LaFleur put the ball in his hands, and he converted a fadeaway throw to Wicks for the conversion. Masterful quarterbacking from Love.
DE Micah Parsons
Just a dominant, game-changing player every single week. Parsons feasted again on Thanksgiving, producing 2.5 sacks, four quarterback hits, a fourth down run stop and 10 total pressures. His final sack forced a field goal in the red zone. Parsons now has 12.5 sacks in 12 games with the Packers, and he became the first player in NFL history to produce at least 12 sacks in five straight seasons to start a career.
WR Dontayvion Wicks
Including a six-yard play that was counted as a run, Wicks produced 100 total yards and scored twice on seven total touches. He made an incredible catch on Love’s 22-yard score on fourth down in the first half, winning the ball in traffic and getting two feet down in bounds. Wicks also had a 2-yard touchdown catch, a 30-yard catch up the seam on a scoring drive and the dagger 16-yard catch on fourth down in the second half. In a big spot, and with the Packers down receivers, Wicks was a game-changer. Once again healthy, Wicks can be an impact player as a separator and ball winner.
S Evan Williams
The second-year safety is always around the ball, and he finished with nine tackles. Williams’ ability to fly downhill and make tackles against the run and checkdown passes shows up every single week. His interception streak was snapped at two games, but Williams was everywhere on Thursday against the Lions. Impressive young player.
RT Zach Tom
It took a collective effort, but the Packers didn’t allow Jordan Love to be sacked, and Aidan Hutchinson finished with zero quarterback hits. In fact, the Lions only had two quarterback hits total. Tom got plenty of opportunities against Hutchinson, one of the NFL’s best pass-rushers, and he won the majority of them. Love was dominant from clean pockets.
LB Isaiah McDuffie
Making another start at the Mike linebacker in place of Quay Walker, McDuffie produced 12 tackles and two tackles for loss, and he teamed with Micah Parsons on a crucial fourth down stop to open the second half. The Packers weren’t perfect against the run, and the Lions hit some passes to the middle of the field again zone coverage, but McDuffie plays smart and tough, and he was a big reason why Jahmyr Gibbs didn’t take over the game as a runner.
WR Christian Watson
There will be a few targets Watson wants back, including a couple of contested catch opportunities that came up empty, but Watson still finished with four catches for 80 yards, including a 51-yard touchdown pass in the second half. He also converted two third downs with catches, including one on the final drive. The 51-yard touchdown catch was the Packers’ longest of the season. Watson should have drawn a defensive pass interference penalty on third down in the second half, but it went uncalled even after a defender clearly held back one of his arms.
Honorable mention: LT Rasheed Walker
Do the Packers win without Walker’s clutch fumble recovery inside the red zone? He saved the day after Romeo Doubs fumbled at Detroit’s 5-yard line. Walker followed the play and was in position to recover the fumble with a few Lions in the area, and the Packers scored a touchdown to go up 31-21 three plays later.
This article originally appeared on Packers Wire: 7 standouts from Packers’ Thanksgiving Day win over the Lions
Reporting by Zach Kruse, Packers Wire / Packers Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
