EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — Megatron he is not, but wide receiver Golden Tate came up huge for the Detroit Lions.

Tate compensated for ailing wide receiver Calvin Johnson with eight catches and quarterback Matt Stafford accounted for three touchdowns as the Lions captured a 24-17 victory over the New York Jets on Sunday.

Tate was targeted 10 times and playing on the same field where he helped the Seattle Seahawks win the Super Bowl seven months earlier, he had 116 receiving yards. It was his fourth career 100-yard game, 13 shy of his career best. Johnson was targeted twice and caught both passes but was not his dominant self.

“That’s the mentality we have as a whole,” Tate said. “Injuries are a part of this game and I think coach did a great job way back in camp when we were doing double downs, we had guys working on two different fields. We knew that Calvin was going to be limited today and we were hoping not to have to use him unless it was an emergency and I think we responded well.”

Half of those catches were on Detroit’s final scoring drive, which culminated in Stafford’s 1-yard touchdown run six seconds into the fourth. Stafford was 7 for 8 on Detroit’s 90-yard drive that gave them a 24-10 lead and he found Tate for 48 yards.

“That says a lot about any team that can drive 90 yards late in the game like that,” Tate said. “It was a pretty warm day. That says a lot about us. We were just clicking.”

Tate also helped that drive with an 11-yard catch on 3-and-10 from Detroit’s own 10-yard line and had consecutive catches on first downs. His final catch on the drive was a 16-yard reception on second-and-one at the Jets’ 18 and two plays later Stafford ran in for the score.

“He’s a tough guy to cover even in short areas I would imagine,” Stafford said of Tate. “He’s a quick guy, he’s got great hands and then he’s effective down the field. We didn’t throw a bunch of big balls to him today but he’s catching and running it as good as anybody and we’re happy to have him.”

Stafford was 24-for-34 for 293 yards, and the gameplan was built with the expectation that Johnson, who didn’t practice Wednesday or Thursday, might be hobbled.

What the Lions said:

“He’s a tough guy to cover even in short areas I would imagine. He’s a quick guy, he’s got great hands and then he’s effective down the field. We didn’t throw a bunch of big balls to him today but he’s catching and running it as good as anybody and we’re happy to have him.” — Quarterback Matthew Stafford on wide receiver Golden Tate stepping up with Calvin Johnson limited.

What the Jets said:

“I feel good about Geno. I think he will get it turned around. He’s a tough, resilient young man. I think we’re going to win. We’ll win soon.” — Coach Rex Ryan on quarterback Geno Smith and if he will start next week.

What we learned about the Lions

1. Even when Calvin Johnson is limited, the Lions have good options at the wideout position, especially when Golden Tate gets the ball. Tate tied a career-high with eight catches and had 116 yards. Tate led the Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks with 64 receptions and 898 yards. He parlayed that into a five-year deal and so far that has turned out to be a good investment. Tate has 24 catches for 317 yards. He is averaging 13.5 yards per catch and has 11 catches for 168 yards on third down. “He’s a playmaker,” rookie tight end Eric Ebron said. “That’s what he was brought in here for.”

2. It was a mostly quiet day for defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh except for an ESPN report that stated he would be interested in going to New York when he hits free agency. Suh had one tackle and did not assist on any. Instead, other defenders stepped up. Middle linebacker Tashir Whitehead had four tackles and assisted on seven others. He came into the game with a combined nine tackles. Outside linebacker DeAndre Levy had a combined 11 tackles as well and that marked the third time this year he had at least 10 combined tackles, which is one more than last season.

–QB Matthew Stafford was 24-for-34 for 293 yards and a one-yard touchdown run. He nearly had his 25th 300-yard game and through four games has completed 64.2 percent of passes for a 91.5 quarterback rating.

–WR Calvin Johnson was limited with the ankle injury and had just two catches and 12 yards. After the game, coach Jim Caldwell addressed Johnson’s limitations by saying, “He might not have done all of the things that we normally do with him. We were trying to just make certain that he stayed within the framework of what he could do physically.”

–TE Eric Ebron caught his first touchdown pass and so far has six catches for 72 yards. He was listed third on Detroit’s depth chart but saw more time due to TE Joseph Fauria’s ankle injury. “It’s a blessing,” Ebron said. “Obviously it was meant to happen, it was meant to be. I couldn’t ask for anything more. I couldn’t ask for a better throw or a better play call.”

What we learned about the Jets:

1. The calls by fans for backup quarterback Michael Vick to replace starter Geno Smith will continue, especially as the schedule gets tougher. Smith has completed 60.2 percent (82-for-136) of his passes for 746 yards but has five interceptions. He finished Sunday 17-of-33 and has a quarterback rating of 75.1. When the Jets trailed 17-3 at halftime, Smith was 4-for-12 for 32 yards and following a promising opening drive, he was 2-for-9 the rest of the first half. New York’s next three games are against San Diego, Denver and New England, but for now coach Rex Ryan is sticking with Smith.

2. The Jets’ lack of secondary depth will get tested even more after allowing nine different players to catch at least one pass. Opposing quarterbacks are 92-for-146 with 1,015 yards with nine touchdowns and no interceptions and a rating of 104.1. The next three quarterbacks to face the Jets are Philip Rivers, Peyton Manning and Tom Brady. The Jets were missing second-year cornerback Dee Milliner (quadriceps), lost rookie safety Calvin Pryor to a thigh injury.

–WR David Nelson left the game in the first half with a leg injury and had his left ankle taped up. The Jets did not have a further update on Nelson, who had one catch.

–S Calvin Pryor assisted on one of the Jets’ four sacks and assisted on three tackles. He also left the game with a thigh injury and the Jets did not have an immediate update afterward.

–TE Jace Amaro had four yards in his first NFL game against the Oakland Raiders but in the last games, he has eight receptions for 99 yards.

–CB Dee Milliner missed his second game of the season and this time it was a quadriceps injury. He also sat out the season opener against Oakland with an ankle injury.