Rashan Gary enjoyed quite a Thanksgiving Day feast at Ford Field in Detroit and then received a special reminder later why he had even more reason to be thankful.
The Green Bay Packers linebacker made a meal out of Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff, registering a career-high three sacks and forcing two fumbles, one leading to a defensive touchdown, in the Packers’ 29-22 victory over the Lions.
But in the locker room after the game, head coach Matt Lafleur awarded Rashan Gary a “special game ball.” Not only did Gary have perhaps the best game of his career, but it also came one year after he suffered a season-ending injury on the same field.
“This dude – career-high three sacks. Hey, and more importantly, right. We all remember this a year ago. A year ago. You came back. You came back with a vengeance, man.”
And Lafleur gave an emotional Gary a big hug, to the applause of his Packers teammates.
“I’m tired of crying around y’all,” Gary said.
Rashan Gary makes comeback from injury
Last Nov. 6, Rashan Gary tore the ACL in his right knee during a 16-9 loss to the Packers. But the 6-foot-5, 277-pound linebacker out of Michigan worked his way back and was ready to play by the start of the season.
The Packers started him slowly, playing him only 16.2 percent of the defensive snaps in Week 1, and then increased his workload incrementally each week. In fact, in Week 3, he had a three-sack game in a 18-17 win over New Orleans.
On Thursday, however, Gary got his retribution. With 2:22 left in the first half Thursday, the Lions were driving with the Packers leading 14-6.
Gary sacked Goff and jarred the ball loose. Jonathan Owens scooped up the loose ball and ran 27 yards for a touchdown that gave Green Bay a 20-6 lead.
Early in the fourth quarter, with Green Bay up 29-14, Gary recovered his own forced fumble when he sacked Goff on a fourth-and-7 play in Packers’ territory to stall yet another Lions drive.
Being awarded a game ball in the locker room after the game capped a day Rashan Gary will most likely never forget.