Matthew Stafford was having another strong game Sunday under interim head coach Darrell Bevell -- 24 of 34 for 244 yards and a touchdown.
Then he got crunched by Kenny Clark.
The 315-pound nose tackle for the Packers leveled Stafford as he was scrambling toward the end zone late in the fourth quarter, and Stafford got up holding his ribs. He stayed in the game to deliver a hand-off to Kerryon Johnson, who scored on the next play.
Stafford was promptly taken to the locker room by team trainers, then returned to the sidelines shortly thereafter to throw a few passes. But he never returned to the field. He was replaced by backup Chase Daniel for Detroit's final drive in a 31-24 loss.
The Lions confirmed it was an injury to Stafford's ribs.
Bevell said he thought about putting Stafford back in the game, but ultimately didn't feel comfortable putting him at risk.
"No. 1, can he protect himself? And then obviously No. 2, can he function, can he throw the ball? We were assessing that, and just felt at that time it was more important to get Chase out there and not put him back in that situation," Bevell said.
Daniel said Stafford was in visible pain as they were throwing to one another on the sidelines.
"He was in pain, for sure. He had just gotten bent over backwards and sideways. He took a crucial hit, but he was the main reason why we scored on that drive. That was a big third-down (conversion)," Daniel said. "He came off holding down air. I just saw the hit on replay. It wasn't dirty or anything like that, but it looked like it hurt."
And Stafford was visibly upset when he learned he wouldn't be returning to the game, hurling a ball into the ground near the Lions' bench. Daniel, an 11-year vet who's played for five different teams, added this about Detroit's longtime quarterback:
"Listen, he's honestly one of the toughest guys and competitors that I've ever been on a team with. The dude's a warrior. He's hurting right now, but I think he's going to work through whatever he's got and try to be out there for the team."
Bevell confirmed Stafford was getting X-rays after the game.
"Everybody in this world knows how tough 9 is, and I probably don’t know anybody that’s tougher than him," said Marvin Jones. "Definitely knew he wanted to finish the game. He’s an ironman, there’s no doubt about that."
Stafford, 33, dealt with back injuries each of the past two seasons. His status for the rest of this season isn't yet clear; Bevell said it's "too early to tell" whether his quarterback could miss time.
"Matthew Stafford is as tough as they come," he said. "He’s a huge competitor. I know he’s going to want to be out there with his team, so it's going to have to be pretty drastic for him not to be out there."