Hear from Detroit Lions offensive lineman Taylor Decker, linebacker Alex Anzalone, and running back David Montgomery following the Lions’ 20-19 loss to the Dallas Cowboys during Week 17 of the 2023 season.

0:00-3:36 – Taylor Decker
3:37-6:32 – Alex Anzalone
6:33-9:25 – David Montgomery

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All right Taylor just to explain to us what they told you after that play uh they didn’t tell me anything after the play um I mean all I really want to say on it just so I don’t get myself into trouble is I mean I did

Exactly what coach told me to do and um went to the ref said report and uh yeah I don’t know and you know it was my understanding too that you know Dan brings up the possibility of those sorts of plays pregame so um I did did what I was told to do

Did how we did in practice a week and uh I mean that’s probably all I’m really going to touch on with that it looked like Jared did tell you to go over there and you were all over there MH just yeah I mean I there’s not much more I can add

To it I mean there’s you can see the video of it and um is what it is I guess what does it say about this team that they fought and got themselves back in position to make that play um I mean I would say that we had a lot

Of opportunities earlier in the game and we didn’t play clean enough offensively hats off to our defense they played a hell of a game um so definitely want to give those guys credit um and ultimately like when it came down to it we we tried to make all the plays

We could and we just came up one short it feel like a playoff atmosphere out there yeah definitely did I mean that’s Hank even said prior to that last two-minute Drive he’s like this is this is like playoff football right here so um it was good to go down there no

Timeouts and and execute that drive for a touchdown um like I said unfortunately just came up one point short final thing for me you had that ball in your hands and it felt like you had the lead how easy is it to shake that off and get ready to play again next

Week um I mean given the fact that we lost it’s going to be pretty easy you know I think we’re all going to be excited to get back out there and and go go get one more um before the before the playoffs the emotions the frustration just of that final sort of sequence

There all those plays you know it’s taken away from um I mean they they they called the they called The Penalty and it’s like all right well let’s let’s line back up and let’s make the play I mean there’s nothing we can do about it to that point we just have

To move on to the next play and try to try to score um try to win the game so um it’s kind of a gut punch but you got to turn the page real quick because you got about 20 seconds before you got uh before you got to run another

Play I didn’t get any explanation I I wasn’t going to talk to him in the game that’s probably never a good idea for a player who’s a little hot um so I I didn’t even talk to him when you turned around and saw a flag what went through your mind at that point

Um I don’t know I mean that’s not the the flag I would have expected but you you know I don’t know just kind of like I said just kind of have a gut punch was it on skip was it on you I mean clearly on you the penalty was called like I

Have no idea because I didn’t talk to the ref I mean I’m assuming it was on me because you know who else would it be on um so I mean there’s like I said there’s nothing I could do about it I just got to go into the next play can two players

Report I have no idea yeah I I I didn’t I didn’t hear who he said reported and all that so yeah some things aren’t going to go your way and um yeah it’s definitely a range of emotions big stop for the defense there when you had to

Hold them to a field goal at the end what’s that say about your guys out there yeah yeah we’re growing uh we’re growing as a group obviously stuff to clean up but um you know for the most part I thought we played really well today and um you know they they’re

Really good offense and you obviously dak’s a great quarterback so um you know I think all together together we played we played solid um but yeah stuff to stuff to bre on as well some lessons out there as well Kindle it looked like CD’s going in for a touchdown he’s able to JW

That ball loose that’s a huge play yeah honestly that’s that’s that’s huge in the Red Zone um you know let alone to turnover and yeah that’s a huge play and that’s that’s what defenses Thrive off of and we definitely needed that this is a game between two playoff teams does

This tell you you guys are ready for the playoffs you just need to tune a couple things up yeah for sure I I think so I think um you know obviously guys are you know disappointed right now but at the same time um you know there was a lot of

Good stuff on film a lot of stuff to build off of and you know we we won the North we have a you know at least a third seed from my from my perspective and um you know we have we have a home playoff game and that’s really when

These things count and uh we just have a lot to look forward to no Mor no moral victories you know obviously but just the way this defense played I mean they been 4 Points game hold them 20 points is that something really positive to take for sure yeah for sure I definitely

Think so there’s a lot of guys that stay uh stepped up and um yeah it’s definitely a lot to build off of and you know stuff to get excited about and just you know keep getting better better going forward take us through the emotions that you felt sort of in that final

Sequence there when you guys scor the touchdown it seems like you went on the two or take the two point um yeah there’s a lot of emotions obviously I think we we probably all had the same similar emotions um you know us and the

Fans but um you know at the end of the day it just you I don’t I guess I’ll let Dan comment on it but um yeah it’s definitely a range of emotions going up and down and you know just it’s disappointing but it is what it is seem

Very frustrated I mean does this lock room feel like the win was taken from him um to a certain extent I’d say I feel like you know it’s at the end of the day we we lost the game and um you know we have to look at ourselves in the

Mirror and see what we can do better and not let it come down to a single play um on the road you know what I mean so yeah it’s it’s tough but you know I think we we have a lot to look forward to and

That’s really you know we have a lot to build off of as a team kind of addressing this with d but CD had a huge game obviously the challenge of of covering a guy like that like that defensively yeah I think what what was that that that first that third

Down in the 90s so um take away that but yeah there’s definitely you know stuff to work on and um yeah he’s a great player and but yeah giving up that many yards to you know a receiver is not definitely not acceptable and you know just have to you know grow and get

Better from it a bunch of things well on offense that we know we need to clean up and be better um we had some egregious behavior on our side of the ball but you know you can never leave it in the hands of you know somebody else we should have we

Knew that you looking at that first half where you got into their territory numerous times and just came out and sitting on three for a while after being in there yeah definitely you know uh our defense playing how they played and being able to hold them on for a while

Was 7 to three for a while and um we like you said driving the ball we got to be able to capitalize in those in the moments and in those opportunities you feel like you got to go in the second half in particular with the running game

Which seemed to then forur the passing game yeah I I definitely think we did um you know just uh Ben came in let us know he was going to lean on the run a little bit more and we did that we were able to score um but yeah it’s tough but you

Guys hung in there and you found a way to almost take this thing is there something to build on out of this it’s always room to build um but I think for us it’s not it’s not merely us just looking at it it’s taking something from it we

Know that we better than what we perform to be um we know we can play better we will play better um yeah we got to be better they were really good at stopping on third down after that opening drive just what they doing it didn’t really seem matter what kind of situation they

Kind of seemed like they knew what was coming on those third Downs I don’t even think it was much of them it was more of you know like I said we didn’t do a lot of things well uh we made a bunch of mistakes on our side of the ball um you

Know we accountable for for those uh mistakes and some of those issu issues we got to clean up and we will U one will be better but I think ultimately we beat ourselves talked about this before but excuse me how much do players appreciate dance guts let’s call it right the

Willingness to run the fake pun to go for two at the end you know like I said at the beginning of the year um you know we got a bossy coach um and I wouldn’t want to have any other coach you know Dan is U the ideal perfect head coach in the NFL

You know um he coaches with passion um he’s not coaching to yell at know I’m saying he just he wants you to learn to be the best version of yourself and however that looks um he he does that um but him making that call like it was the

Right call um you know like I said like if things if we would have did things better on our side of the ball um we wouldn’t even had to been in them situations to where he had to make them calls when you were talking about this before but just the range of emotions

Through at the end on the two-point play you know you score the touchdown you see the hit and you know maybe take the lead it gets taken away from you explain what kind of ghost in your life right there yeah like I said um you know we lot we

Made a bunch of mistakes on our side of the ball um we shouldn’t even been in that position um so um it suck that it happened but you know we got some time now to to re-evaluate um where we are and where we want to go and we’ll get better from this thanks

David

41 Comments

  1. Decker reports to the Ref and The Ref shakes his head yes and verbally acknowledges what Decker said. Skipper wasn't even in the picture till after the Ref was walking away. The Lions Won.. The Refs took it away from them.. FACTS. If you say anything different it's either 2 things Your stupid or a Dallas fan with blinders on. #NFLRigged

  2. Truest statement. "We need to step up and not let it come down to a single play." That being said Lions robbed of one. Now the Vikings have to absorb our resolve!

  3. I think the lions should make the worst game ever against the vikings. Make terrible tv for the nfl as a response to getting screwed.

    But this is why im not in any position to make important decisions based on emotions.

  4. Moral to the story is take the effin points when they’re there! Taking the 3pts in the first half changes everything. Appreciate the confidence in the team, but you gotta have little to no confidence in officiating

  5. So the refs need immediate dismissal! He blatantly lied and had the game away to Dallas!! Where the outrage!! It’s obviously rigged!!

  6. Seen a lot of Lions getting screwed by the refs in my long Lions fan lifetime, but never anything quite like this. Way to let us down every single way possible over the years NFL, way to go..

  7. I’d like to congratulate the lions on their 21-20 victory over the cowboys.

    ONE PRIDE BAYBEE LETS GO ALL THE WAY

  8. The defense played a great football game. We made some amazing plays. At least we know that if we face Dallas in the playoffs we have the confidence to go win that game. OnePride❤🦁👑

  9. David Montgomery is right they did make a bunch of mistakes, one of them wasn’t handing him the ball 30 times yesterday!!!
    Those young men got robbed by the NFL officials, and I hope they use this and destroy the teams they play!

  10. Wins do not make winners, it’s how they respond to losses and adversity. This team is mature beyond its years, pure class. The Lions have responded well to losses all year. They play well with a chip on their shoulder. In hindsight this may be the chip on the shoulder we need as we approach the playoffs. Let’s hope it’s enough fuel to last all the way to the championship game.

  11. So what happens if this was to happen to a team in the Super Bowl? We need some sort of solution to problems like this on the field before the game ends

  12. uh excuse me. It was the Cowboys mistakes that even gave the Lions the opportunity to be in that position. AND even after that play, the Lions had additional two more plays to get the two point conversion. You'd think you'd be thanking Dallas for the those opportunities.

  13. I believe he did report that doesn’t matter if you line up in the wrong spot next to the receiver lol that’s why refs called what they did

  14. People aren't talking about the rest of the games going on, they are talking about how the Lions got robbed by crooked refs as well they should.

    When a coach goes over all of the trick plays like this with the refs in advance "PREGAME", how much more obvious does it need to be? I think that's what is so missed in all of this. On video, there is no doubt that Decker and the ref exchanged words and Skipper (#70) did not. Putting this in the context of coaches and refs going over the plays pregame… it's ugly.

    The refs AND the head coach goes over the trick plays IN ADVANCE BEFORE THE GAME to avoid any confusion with "eligible or ineligible O linemen". The refs knew in advance what the play would be, just as the refs knew in advance that there would be a fake punt and which O lineman needs to declare as an eligible receiver.

    AND WHO pays for Brad Allen's salary by the way? Is it the NFL? Or is it team owners (the stadium)? I've read this morning that team owners in some cases sign the checks. It's not like this isn't Brad Allen blowing calls effecting the odds in Vegas here. There is an ugly rot to this smell. An ugly rot. ☹

  15. Going to have to watch Teddy Two Gloves next week pick apart his old team now. This some bull junk.

  16. The one thing the lions need to work on is calling out refs, they act classy all the time but when it comes to refs they don’t say enough

  17. Denise Angott Smychynsky Mark my words.. The NFL competition committee and the NFL rules and commissioner. Will review what Dan Campbell did and the 3 players involved. And of course this will be after the season is over. But the result will be Dan Campbell and the 3 players involved will be suspended a few games and fines for the Team and each individuals and lost of draft picks. For intentionally deceiving the REF on their trick play. #58 had no business hiding #68 from trying to let the ref he was eligible while at the same time. #70 Running full speed at the REF signaling and yelling I'm eligible.

    It's ok to have a trick play .. But when you intentionally trick the REF .. You are going to be punished .

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