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Carlton Davis is turning the tide for the Lions in the stadium where the Texans burned him last year

by November 11, 2024

Houston— The last time Detroit Lions cornerback Carlton Davis played in Houston, he felt like he had cost his team the game.

It was week 9 of last season. At the time, he was with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers before a trade sent him to Detroit last offseason.

Texas quarterback CJ Stroud took Houston down the field in a four-point game and delivered a strike to Tank Dell in the end zone with Davis covering him with ten seconds left, winning the game 39-37. It was his third touchdown allowed of the game.

Up in the press box at NRG Stadium is a large, framed photo of the Dell landing right next to the elevator.

So yeah, his two-interception performance against the Texans in Sunday night’s 26-23 walk-off win over the Texans at NRG Stadium felt, as he put it, “fucking great.”

“I had a terrible game. It was probably one of the worst games I’ve ever had in my life … and when I came back here a year later, it was just a heavy burden for me,” Davis said. “I wanted to get revenge. Honestly, it’s never personal for me, but I felt it in my heart. And when we lost, I just said to myself, ‘Brother, you have to have a chance.’

“I won’t be sad about these guys twice.”

With the Lions trailing Houston 23-7 at halftime, Davis turned the tide.

It was almost poetic. NBC’s “Sunday Night Football” was still airing a halftime interview with Dan Campbell as Houston lined up for its first play of the second half. Campbell told the sideline reporter, “Our defense needs to gain some insight.”

And then, boom.

Davis hit a quick out route to Dell – the same player who had beaten him for the game-winner 371 days ago – and made the interception to breathe some life back into Detroit’s sideline.

Call it veteran knowledge, call it good film study, call it whatever you want. It was just a great play – and one that the Lions desperately needed.

“I know this team. They like to run out, run out and then do a double move. So when they ran two (out routes), I didn’t play it too hard and they completed it. And I.” “I knew after halftime they wanted to get back there because they’re a team that loves repeating successful games,” Davis said.

“So when they came back to it, they gave me the set I was looking for… I knew I could do it… because they had had success before and had probably thrown three outs at me before, so.” I knew that they were willing to do it again.

His interceptions were the first and second by a Lions cornerback this year.

“Kudos to CD, man,” said Lions safety Kerby Joseph, who is tied for the top spot in picks. “He played a fantastic game.”

Davis’ other interception came just 5 minutes and 58 seconds later. The Texans tried to regain a three-point lead after David Montgomery broke through with a 3-yard rushing touchdown, cutting the deficit to 10. Dell was wide open in the end zone, but Stroud took too long to pass the ball, allowing Davis to close the gap and score a touchback.

“I couldn’t leave that stadium twice two years in a row because I couldn’t say I was a winner and I wasn’t able to beat that team,” Davis said. “They are a good team, but at the same time the competitor in me just needed it. I had to show them because it’s not about stats or whatever.”

“At the end of the day, honestly for me it’s all about respect and I want to earn the respect of every team I play against.”

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@nolanbianchi

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