LOS ANGELES (AFP) — Jahmyr Gibbs ran for three touchdowns and the Detroit Lions never trailed in a 44-30 victory over the Dallas Cowboys in a clash crucial to the National Football League (NFL) playoff hopes of both teams.

The reigning NFC North champion Lions had dropped three of their prior five games to fall to third in the division behind the Chicago Bears and Green Bay Packers, who face off on Sunday.

But they improved to 8-5 to bolster their playoff bid as the Cowboys — who arrived in Detroit off three straight victories — fell to 6-6-1 to see their post-season chances dwindle with a month remaining in the regular season.

“They’re as hot a team as there is in this league,” Lions quarterback Jared Goff said of the Cowboys.

“Maybe we can become that now.”

Goff said he’d seen an “uptick of urgency” from teammates after their loss to Green Bay last week.

“It was good,” he said. “It felt like we got back to kind of who we are.”

Goff completed 25 of 34 passes for 309 yards and a touchdown — a 12-yard scoring pass to Isaac TeSlaa that put Detroit up 27-9 in the third quarter after Dallas quarterback Dak Prescott threw an interception to open the second half.

Dallas sliced the deficit to 30-27 on Prescott’s 42-yard touchdown pass to Ryan Flournoy followed by a two-point conversion.

But Gibbs’ second touchdown pushed the lead back to 10 and his third TD, a 13-yard run, was the final dagger with 2:19 left to play.

Gibbs now has 47 career touchdowns, tying Barry Sanders for the most in NFL history for a player before his 24th birthday.

David Montgomery added a 35-yard rushing touchdown and Detroit’s defense forced three turnovers, including Derrick Barnes’ second-half interception of Prescott.

“Man, they showed up,” Lions coach Dan Campbell said.

“The work was there all week. It always is, but the intensity, the urgency... the guys don’t get panicked. They just go to work, and they did it again.”

Cowboys kicker Brandon Aubrey became the first in NFL history with at least three field goals of 55 yards or more in a single game, booting field goals of 57, 42, 55, 63 and 29 yards.

But Dallas didn’t score a touchdown in the first half.

Prescott was sacked five times and in the face of stiff pressure threw two interceptions.

“Talk about takeaways,” Campbell said.

“We got three of them, turned into 14 points.”

The Cowboys also lost receiver CeeDee Lamb to a concussion in the third quarter.

Lamb had leapt for a pass from Prescott in the end zone and came down hard on the turf, unable to make the play.

He was examined in the sideline medical tent and ruled out for the rest of the game.