While fans fume, Lions' linemen poke fun at last week's controversy on social media

Detroit — A week removed from losing a game in controversial fashion, the Detroit Lions' social media team and the players at the heart of the controversy poked fun at the situation hours before the team's season finale against the Minnesota Vikings.

To recap, the Lions had a potential game-winning, two-point conversion overturned in the closing seconds of last week's game against the Dallas Cowboys when head official Brad Allen incorrectly identified the Lions' lineman reporting as an eligible receiver on the play. The Lions intended for left tackle Taylor Decker to report as eligible, while Allen identified and announced Dan Skipper as the eligible player as he sprinted on to the field, based on how the Lions had utilized him throughout the game.

That meant Decker was an ineligible receiver when he caught a scoring pass on the trick play, negating the conversion.

On Sunday, the Lions posted a photo of Decker arriving the stadium on the social platform X, formerly known as Twitter, tagging him with the tongue-in-cheek text, "Reporting for duty."

Minutes later, Decker responded to the image, writing, "This is not me."

That opened the pathway to the punchline, with the Lions responding with a photo of Skipper stating, "Here you are." Appropriately, Skipper arrived to Ford Field in a "Detroit vs. Everybody" hoodie.

While Lions fans won't soon get over the blunder, which potentially cost their team a second home game in the upcoming postseason, the Lions have clearly embraced moving on.

jdrogers@detroitnews.com

@Justin_Rogers