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How Detroit Lions, OC Ben Johnson came up with 'stumblebum' trick play vs. Bears
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- How Detroit Lions, OC Ben Johnson came up with 'stumblebum' trick play vs. Bears
CHICAGO — The NFL banned the "fumblerooski" decades ago, but creative Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson put a cousin of the trick play into the Lions' bottomless playbook this week —and Jared Goff and Sam LaPorta executed it to perfection in the Lions' 34-17 victory over the Chicago Bears on Sunday.
Goff threw a 21-yard touchdown pass to LaPorta on the opening possession of the second half, when he pretended to stumble after taking a snap while faking a handoff to Jahmyr Gibbs .
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The Bears defense bit on the "stumblerooski," as Lions offensive linemen yelled "fumble" to add to the deception, leaving LaPorta wide open for an easy touchdown.
LaPorta said the play was named "Stumblebum."
"It was great," he said. "Ben's as creative as they come. It was great to go out there and execute that. All 10 of the guys executed it so cool to get that one off the call sheet and come up with a touchdown there."
Goff completed a handoff to Lions running back David Montgomery while stumbling after taking a snap — Lions guard Graham Glasgow stepped on his foot — two weeks ago on a key fourth-and-1 play in a win over the Green Bay Packers .
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ESPN reported Sunday's trick play was born out of what Johnson saw from another Packers game, last year against the Bears, when Green Bay quarterback Jordan Love threw a touchdown pass to Luke Musgrave after fumbling the snap.
"We think every play is going to work that he has," Lions receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown said. "Obviously, Ben's smart. He's watching tape, tendencies, things that work, things that can work, so almost all the plays that he draws up, there's a reason behind it and there's intent behind it, and we understand that. So any play that he draws up for us we're trying to execute so we can run it in the game."
Detroit Lions tight end Sam LaPorta (87) makes a catch against Chicago Bears cornerback Tyrique Stevenson (29) during the second half at Soldier Field in Chicago, Ill. on Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024.
Lions coach Dan Campbell said the play went through several iterations before making its way into the week's gameplan.
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Initially, Johnson wanted Goff to fumble the ball as he stepped out from under center, then pick it up and pass to LaPorta. Eventually, the Lions decided to fake the stumble – and Gibbs served as a decoy falling to the ground and rolling as if he was going for the ball.
"Ben, that was one of his brainchild's," Campbell said. "It started that way, and then we massaged it and worked it and how do we make this thing better? And then just Goff and Gibby and LaPorta, the O-line making it work. So we cooked it all week, and they did a heck of a job. They really did."
Goff said the Lions ran the play three or four times in practice last week. He play-actioned a handoff to Gibbs as part of the fake and said "it worked like a charm" Sunday.
St. Brown said the Lions had the play called earlier in the game, but Goff audibled to a run because of the Bears' defensive look.
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The Lions, 13-2 and tied for the best record in the NFC, have made a living off trick plays this year. Last week, Goff threw a tackle-eligible touchdown pass to sixth lineman Dan Skipper . In the first Lions-Bears game on Thanksgiving, they called a designed toss pass with Penei Sewell as quarterback. And in a blowout win over the Dallas Cowboys earlier this year, they ran a hook-and-lateral to Sewell and scored on a 52-yard reverse flea flicker pass from Goff to LaPorta.
"Those make you feel good, cause everybody's invested in it," Campbell said. "It's fun, it's different, it's sound. I know it sounds crazy, but it's sound. I mean, the thing gets started as like dribbling the ball on the ground. So that's the thing, you have all those elements and really everybody's involved in it. They're all kind of accountable to it, too. They want to make it work.
GRADES: Jared Goff, Jahmyr Gibbs lead Lions to convincing bounce-back win over Bears
"It was just great to see, and it was better than practice. No different than the shot to Jamo ( Jameson Williams that went for a touchdown Sunday). It looked good in practice. That was better than practice. It was a hell of a throw, excellent protection, and, man, just a great job on his landmark, hitting it with speed, trusting it, great catch. It's big time."
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Dave Birkett is the author of the new book, " Detroit Lions : An Illustrated Timeline." Order your copy here. Contact him at dbirkett@freepress.com . Follow him on Bluesky, X and Instagram at @davebirkett.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Lions OC Ben Johnson unveils trick-play 'stumblebum' for TD vs. Bears
