The 2010 season was the Detroit Lions' 81st in the National Football League (NFL) and their second under head coach Jim Schwartz.
They were eliminated from playoff contention after their Thanksgiving Day loss, extending their postseason drought to 11 seasons, tied with the Buffalo Bills for the longest active streak in the NFL.
The Lions also sent two players to the 2011 Pro Bowl: wide receiver Calvin Johnson and rookie defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh.
[6] The Lions traded LB Ernie Sims to Philadelphia, the Broncos received a fifth-round pick from Philadelphia, and the Lions received TE Tony Scheffler and a 2010 seventh-round pick 220 from Denver in a three team trade.
The Lions opened the season at Soldier Field against their NFC North foe the Chicago Bears.
The Bears responded with an 89-yard catch and run touchdown by Matt Forté and later with a 31-yard field goal from Gould just before halftime.
The only score of the second half was a 28-yard touchdown catch by Forté (with a failed 2-point conversion), giving the Bears a late lead.
Late in the game, quarterback Shaun Hill completed what would have been the game-winning 25-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Calvin Johnson.
In week 3, the Lions traveled to Minneapolis to take on division rivals the Minnesota Vikings.
The Packers started the scoring in the first quarter with a 29-yard TD catch by Donald Driver from Aaron Rodgers.
To start the second quarter, the Lions took the lead with a 105-yard kickoff return by Stefan Logan, the longest touchdown run in the NFL this season.
The Lions took an early lead midway through the first quarter with a 14-yard TD catch by Nate Burleson.
The Redskins responded with a 96-yard kickoff return for a TD by Brandon Banks; they again failed to complete a 2-point conversion.
The Lions sealed their win with a fumble recovery by Ndamukong Suh which he ran back 17 yards for a touchdown, but the 2-point conversion failed.
With the win, not only did the Lions improve to 2–5, but it was the first time since 2007 that the team has won back-to-back home games.
The Jets responded in the second quarter with a 31-yard field goal by Nick Folk and later a 74-yard TD catch by Braylon Edwards just before halftime.
The only score of the third quarter was a 1-yard quarterback sneak TD by Matt Stafford of the Lions; however the extra point attempt by defensive lineman Ndamukong Suh (an emergency fill-in for injured kicker Jason Hanson, who got run into on the previous field goal attempt which gave them a fresh set of downs) was no good.
Early in the fourth quarter, the Lions added to their lead with a Nate Burleson 2-yard TD catch.
In week 10, the Lions traveled east to rainy Orchard Park, New York to take on the Buffalo Bills.
The Lions responded just before halftime with a 25-yard field goal by newly signed kicker Dave Rayner.
In the second quarter the Lions got on the board with a 47-yard field goal, and took the lead with a 9-yard TD catch by Nate Burleson.
After halftime, Leonard Davis of the Cowboys committed an offensive holding penalty in his own end zone, giving the Lions a safety.
The Cowboys took the lead though with a 97-yard punt return by Bryan McCann, and added to it with a 3-yard catch by Miles Austin.
With the loss, not only did the Lions fall to 2–8, but they added to their already record setting 26 game road losing streak.
The Bears took the lead midway through the 4th quarter with a 7-yard TD catch by Brandon Manumaleuna and held off the Lions offense for the remainder of the game for the win.
In week 14, the Lions hosted a rematch with division rivals the Green Bay Packers.
With the win, not only did the Lions improve to 3–10, but it was the first time the team beat the Packers since 2005, snapping a 10-game losing streak.
They sealed their win when DeAndre Levy intercepted a Chad Henne pass and ran it back 30 yards for a touchdown.
The Vikings finally got on the board midway through the third quarter when Jared Allen intercepted a Shaun Hill pass and ran it back 36 yards for a touchdown.
Early in the fourth quarter, Minnesota added more points with a 27-yard field goal by Ryan Longwell.