On Thanksgiving, the Lions hosted the defending Super Bowl champion Green Bay Packers. The Packers won 27–15. Ndamukong Suh was ejected from the game after stomping on the arm of Packers offensive lineman Evan Dietrich-Smith, which enhanced his reputation as a dirty player. This earned him a two-game suspension as the Lions headed to New Orleans to take on the New Orleans Saints in Week 13. The game against the Saints was flexed into "Sunday Night Football". The Saints defeated the Lions 31–17. Heading back home, the Lions edged past the struggling Vikings 34–28. The next week, the Lions went to Oakland to take on the Oakland Raiders. At the end of a close game, Matthew Stafford drove the team downfield and threw a go-ahead touchdown pass to Calvin Johnson. After the Raiders got the ball back, they attempted to kick a game-winning field goal, but Suh blocked the attempt to secure a 28–27 win for the Lions. In Week 16, the Lions defeated the San Diego Chargers at home 38–10. With the win, the Lions clinched a playoff berth for the first time since 1999. With only seeding still in question, they went to Green Bay to take on the Packers. Matt Flynn threw six touchdown passes, which was good enough to help the Packers defeat the Lions 45–41. As such, the Lions were relegated to facing the Saints on the road as the #6 seed with a 10–6 record. In the Wild Card Round, the Saints defeated the Lions 45–28.