The Lions beat the Ravens 38-30 on Monday night, and in the process made a statement that even without Aaron Glenn and Ben Johnson, they were still very much the Detroit team that went 15-2 last season.

On offense they used trick plays and scored historically significant touchdowns in bunches. On defense they sacked Lamar Jackson seven times and forced the only turnover of the game.

But it was coach Dan Campbell's aggression on fourth down that again defined the team and put the game away in the final minutes. Facing fourth-and-two at midfield going into the two-minute warning, Campbell did not hesitate. The Lions came out of the break and went for it for the third time in the game and converted for the third time by throwing a play-action pass to Amon-Ra St. Brown.

"He's got big onions," ESPN commentator Troy Aikman said of Campbell as the Lions approached the line. "I mean this is a bold move. Even with a first down they cannot run out the clock because the Ravens still have all three timeouts."

Anyone surprised about Campbell going for it in this situation hasn't been paying attention. Even if a first down didn't quite ice the game, the team's aggression did, as David Montgomery scored his second touchdown of the game on the very next play.

And suddenly the Lions are tied for first place in the NFC North.

More NFL on Sports Illustrated


This article was originally published on www.si.com as Troy Aikman Was in Awe of Dan Campbell’s ‘Big Onions’ Before Huge Fourth Down Call.

Test hyperlink for boilerplate