Eric Woodyard
DETROIT — Two years later, Dan Campbell still gets upset at the thought of how the Detroit Lions‘ game at the Dallas Cowboys ended on the night of Dec. 30, 2023.
The controversial prime-time loss remains a triggering moment for the Lions coach. But that night, while never forgotten by the Lions and their fans, was the start of something more for a journeyman offensive lineman who emerged as a cult hero for his role in the contest that now bears his name in Detroit: “The Dan Skipper Game.”
Detroit thought it had sealed the win. With 23 seconds left and down by a point in a back-and-forth nail-biter between two of the NFL’s top teams, starting left tackle Taylor Decker caught Jared Goff‘s 2-point conversion attempt to give the Lions a 21-20 lead. But a flag was called on the play alleging Decker had not reported himself as an eligible receiver. Officials said after the game it was Skipper, instead, who had done so. Detroit would go for 2 again, but it failed on two more attempts before ultimately losing 20-19.
“I think more than anything it just makes you mad, that’s about it,” Campbell said during Sunday’s practice ahead of the Dec. 4 rematch with the Cowboys at Ford Field (8:15 ET, Prime Video). “But all good. If you’re a fan, that was a heck of a game, I know that.”
In the days following that loss in Dallas, fans and the Detroit community rallied around Skipper to the point that now, Ford Field erupts every time he reports as eligible as the Lions’ sixth offensive lineman for their jumbo package — an occurrence that will inevitably be the case Thursday night.
“Looking back, it definitely changed a lot of things in my life. It’s something to tell my kids about. It’ll be a lot of fun one day,” Skipper told ESPN. “I’m still bitter about it. There’s still some lingering frustration that may not ever go away, but at this point it’s pretty cool just how the city’s rallied behind me really and made us feel at home and it’s been awesome.”
Here are must-read quotes from those who witnessed that wild finish in Arlington, Texas, two seasons ago.
By the end of December, the Cowboys hadn’t lost a home contest all season at 7-0, while Detroit was coming off an emotional win at Minnesota where it clinched the NFC North title for the first time in 30 years while trying to secure one of the top two seeds in the NFC.
It was also a homecoming for Campbell, a native of Clifton, Texas. Campbell played for Texas A&M and played for the Cowboys from 2003-05 but was leading one of the greatest turnarounds in franchise history during his third season as Detroit’s head coach.
Hall of Fame defensive end Michael Strahan to ESPN before kickoff in 2023: “[Campbell] has turned that thing around, man. This team has the confidence that he has, they know he believes in them and as you’re going to see tonight, this thing can be anywhere. Who would’ve ever thought the Detroit Lions would come to play the Dallas Cowboys and Dallas has the record they have, that people would go, ‘We don’t know whose going to win this game?’ I think that’s all attributed to Dan Campbell and what he’s done with this team.”
Dave Birkett, Lions beat writer for Detroit Free Press since 2010: “It was the second-to-last game of the season and we thought both the Lions and Cowboys were really good teams and thought it might be a playoff showdown.”
Amon-Ra St. Brown, Lions wide receiver: “I remember we were trying to get the 1-seed at the time … and if we lost, we would probably get the 3-seed because we really can’t get the 2-seed, so we were going all for the 1-seed.”
Skipper: “I feel like we kind of turned the tables a little bit. We were on a roll. I was thinking ‘just go in there and win one,’ and that would be a big one at the time. They were pretty hot. I was just thinking, ‘How do we win another game?'”
Birkett: “From the Lions’ standpoint, this is the first time that they had finally crossed that threshold where they were a really good team. I’ve covered this team for a long, long time and they were bad for many years, but under Dan Campbell they started to turn it around in 2022, so 2023 was the year where you’re like, ‘this team has a shot to go far in the playoff and maybe make the Super Bowl’ and that game against the Cowboys, you knew was like a litmus test for how good the Lions were.”
For Skipper, the game also felt personal, as he returned to Dallas after being cut by the organization in 2017. Skipper signed with the Cowboys as an undrafted rookie free agent out of Arkansas but failed to make the 53-man roster coming out of training camp, then was signed to the practice squad only to get released on Sept. 20, 2017, before beginning his first stint with the Lions’ practice squad five days later.
Skipper: “I have a lot of personal history with those guys. Anytime someone fires you, you have a little extra hate in your heart. So, yeah, definitely wanted that one. And then going back, just even that stadium … that f—ing place, I’ve got a terrible record in that joint, so yeah, just trying to go in there and finally win one. The debacle played out.”
Kalif Raymond, Lions wide receiver: “I want to say we were even ticked off from the year before we lost to them at the same place. I feel like every time we go into Dallas we had a sour taste. So, we just want to make a statement.”
It was a slow start for both teams, but the Cowboys led 7-3 after two quarters following a 92-yard touchdown reception by Dallas receiver CeeDee Lamb on the second possession of the game.
Dallas also inducted two-time Super Bowl-winning coach Jimmy Johnson into its ring of honor at halftime, so numerous franchise legends were in attendance, including Roger Staubach, Emmitt Smith, Tony Dorsett, Troy Aikman and Michael Irvin.
Jahmyr Gibbs, Lions running back: “It was fun. It was a lot of energy in that stadium.”
Penei Sewell, Lions offensive tackle: “It was kind of a rough game offensively at first. They were giving us different looks that we weren’t quite prepared for.”
Johnson in 2023 on entering the Cowboys Ring of Honor: “Well, I don’t think anybody can ever imagine what this means to me. This was a special time in my life. This was something that paid dividends for me the rest of my life. It’s something that I’m extremely proud of. We took over the worst football team in the NFL … the worst! Three straight losing seasons and a 3-13 record and not only did we win Super Bowls, we were able to put together the team of ’90s. So obviously, I’m very proud of that and I’m proud to have my name up in the stadium.”
Midway through the fourth quarter, the Cowboys took a 17-13 edge after Brandin Cooks‘ 8-yard touchdown reception from Dak Prescott. The Cowboys then took a 20-13 edge after a 43-yard field goal by Brandon Aubrey with less than two minutes left as the Lions began their final drive. Lions QB Jared Goff would complete an 11-yard touchdown pass to St. Brown with 23 seconds remaining to cap a nine-play, 1:18 drive as they trailed 20-19, but decided to go for two instead of kicking the extra point.
Sewell: “We had a chance at the end of the game to go with a two-minute drive down [the field]. We ended up scoring and then we knew that play was in that week, but I didn’t think (Campbell would) call it for a situation like this. But yeah, he called it and to my knowledge the refs already knew about that play. Like, it’s one of those plays that they have a meeting about and they tell them beforehand.”
Skipper: “It’s kind of like every week. You kind of find out early in the week, how it’s going to be called a little bit. I knew that there were a couple trick-play type things that were jumbo but not a whole lot. I wasn’t expected to play a bunch of snaps.”
Raymond: “All I know is we talked about it in detail, like what was going to happen. We talked about how that game was going to happen and then also that play in detail before the game because we knew exactly what the expectation was. So, it was no surprise by everybody, and it was a surprise to everybody because everybody knew the expectation that game was.”
Skipper: “Sure enough, it gets called. Going into it, we’d talked and repped it for a while, so we knew what we were getting.”
Officials flagged Lions offensive lineman Taylor Decker after he caught a clean pass after breaking free from the end of the line that appeared to be the potential game-winning 2-point conversion with 23 seconds left. Decker was called for an illegal touching penalty for not reporting as eligible after catching the play-action pass from Goff in the end zone that left the crowd stunned momentarily.
The Lions and the referees gave contradictory accounts afterward, with Detroit saying definitively that Decker reported as an eligible receiver and Skipper did not. Skipper also said afterward that he did not report to an official.
However, in a pool report, NFL referee Brad Allen said the opposite, that Skipper reported to him as eligible and Decker did not.
Allen said of Decker in the 2023 pool report: “On this particular play, No. 70 [Skipper], who had reported during the game a couple of times, reported to me as eligible. Then he lined up at the tackle position. So, actually, he didn’t have to report at all. Number 68 [Decker], who ended up going downfield and touching the pass, did not report. Therefore, he is an ineligible touching a pass that goes beyond the line, which makes it a foul. So, the issue is, No. 70 [Skipper] did report, No. 68 [Decker] did not.”
Decker in 2023 on what the officials told him after he was flagged on the 2-point conversion: “They didn’t tell me anything after the play. 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 went to the ref, said ‘report.’ Yeah, I don’t know. It was my understanding, too, you know, Dan brings up the possibility of those sorts of plays pregame, so I did what I was told to do. Did how we did it in practice all week, and that’s probably all I’m really going to touch on with that.”
Skipper: “Several years later, we’re all human. We all make mistakes. Ran on the field, and they said, ‘Hey 68’s eligible.’ All three of us were in there and they went over and said 68 in front of the ball. Just the whole debacle for how that was handled after the fact and then even after they threw the flag, you could see the referee on the opposite sideline talking about the fact that they knew the play was coming and f—ed it up.
“That was one of the few times I’ve seen red. That was frustrating to say the least.”
Sewell: “Emotions were a roller coaster. It was very high because we caught the game-winning touchdown and then we’re all going to the sideline and the refs said there was a flag on the play and that happened. And we went up again, we’re like ‘all right, cool, whatever, they called it.’ Went over again. They went offside and we had an incomplete so we’re like, ‘OK, we have another opportunity.’ And then we just went incomplete again.”
Skipper: “Unfortunately, no one was miked. I think the refs got confused. I’ll go to my grave telling you how it was executed. How it went down, and I think there’s two other guys that would back me up on that one and one guy who didn’t see it that way. So, it is what it is, it’s all good.”
Detroit would continue to go for the win in a 2-point conversion fest but was stopped twice after the controversial play. Goff was intercepted on the next attempt, but the Cowboys were flagged for being offside. Then on the final attempt, Goff threw another incomplete pass to tight end James Mitchell that was short of the goal line as the Lions fell short of a comeback victory, losing their sixth straight game to the Cowboys.
Birkett: “I’m definitely in my head like, ‘Wow this guy [Campbell], this is a little crazy.’ I can’t believe all this is happening, but I will say I thought for sure when they were going for it a third time, they were going to get it. And you know most teams have a couple two-point plays per week and then they ran three of them, but that was just the ultimate belief that he has like, ‘We’re going for it.’ It doesn’t matter where we’re at on the field, doesn’t matter what’s going on in the game, we’re going to get this and we’re going to win this game. Didn’t work out, but that’s certainly the thought that I had watching that was like, ‘holy crap, they’re going to get this’ but then they didn’t.”
St. Brown: “I remember going for the 2-point conversion after that like three times so that’s really what stood out to me. In my head I was like, ‘We’re going to go for it again?’ And then we got the flag, and it’s like ‘We’re going to go for it again?’ That was probably one of the only times since I’ve been here where it was like, ‘I probably would’ve kicked the field goal there.’ But we were rocking with it. It was 1 seed or 3 seed, so that’s what we did. It was a fun game.”
Dak Prescott, Cowboys QB, in 2023 after win: “To us getting the stop on the last one, it was just a roller coaster, a roller coaster of thoughts and that sense of let me get the ball. From earlier with the punt conversion they got to one of the early fourth downs, I said this guy is crazy. Respect with the craziness talking about Coach Campbell. I love it. I really do. You’re playing to win a game and not lose a game. That’s what he did tonight. Credit that mindset. That’s a helluva team. I wouldn’t be surprised if we see them again.”
Gibbs: “It was crazy. It was my first time doing that. Cool experience though.”
Campbell: “If anything, you get in that situation again, you try to find a way to win that one instead of how do you keep it out of the hands of the officials? That’s really what you’re trying to do. Just leave it out of there, that way it’s just up to you.”
As he entered the postgame news conference, Campbell was visibly frustrated after a controversial penalty negated what would have been the go-ahead 2-point conversion late in the game. Detroit’s loss in Dallas would become a trending topic across the sports world as flashing billboards were spotted in metro Detroit alongside Interstate 75 and I-696 from an anonymous donor that read: “DECKER REPORTED”.
In the aftermath, Campbell said he woke up feeling fine the very next day. The following season, Detroit would use that 2023 experience as motivation when they delivered a 47-9 beatdown against the Cowboys in Dallas to end its losing streak.
Birkett: “So my recollection was Dan was definitely frustrated, and I believe Lions PR tried to cut his press conference off after a couple minutes and it was a little bit unclear in my recollection what he was frustrated about. Was he frustrated with Dan Skipper? Was he frustrated with Taylor Decker? Was he frustrated with the officials? And so I think I was trying to get to that at the end of the press conference so I was like, ‘what is your frustration about?’ And he said something to the effect of ‘I don’t like losing, Dave!’ And that sort of went viral because ESPN’s showing it on ‘SportsCenter’ and wherever it was and I got back up from the press conference after that and I had a text from Calvin Johnson that was like, ‘Were you the one that pissed Coach off?’ And that’s when I knew like ‘Oh, my God, this thing has taken off.'”
St. Brown: “I felt that was the first game where you feel like you won, but you actually lost.”
Goff: “It was a very sad moment for all of us. But it created some notoriety for [Skipper]. It was unfortunate the way that happened at the end and would’ve been a cool story otherwise, but I’m glad it’s made him a culture symbol in our city.”
Birkett: “It’s crazy now because anytime [Skipper] steps on the field and they announce 70’s reporting as eligible, Detroit fans go wild. He’s become like the ultimate cult hero and really a symbol of the team and kind of this era of Lions football where this guy, who’s a sixth lineman, who had to scratch and claw for every inch of his playing career and got cut I don’t know how many times, is now this guy that the Lions can’t do without because he’s a valuable part of what the Lions do with their jumbo package but also that fans truly embrace.”
Campbell: “Skip’s a different breed of man. He’s something else. … He’s reliable, dependable, and he does a lot of jobs for us.”
Skipper: “It just goes to show that when you roll with Detroit, there’s no place better to be. It’s one of those really special places that has been beaten down and thought of as a certain way, but you get here and it’s not like that. I think when people come, they’re always just so shocked that it is what it is. That’s the people, that’s the things that this place has done, and it’s changed so much. At this point, people talk s— and I’m like show up and they see it’s a sweet place. This team we try to embody what this city’s about.”
