It took the better part of three quarters for the Detroit Lions to solve Todd Bowles’ defense, but when they did the floodgates opened and carried them all the way to next week’s NFC championship game.

Jahmyr Gibbs ran for 57 of his game-high 74 yards in the second half and the Lions scored touchdowns on three straight possessions in the third and fourth quarters to beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 31-23, in a divisional playoff game Sunday at Ford Field.

The Lions have won two playoff games in the same season for the first time since 1957, the last time they won an NFL championship. They play the 1-seed San Francisco 49ers in the NFC title game at 6:30 p.m. next Sunday at Levi’s Stadium for the right to go to the Super Bowl. It's the second time the Lions are one win from a Super Bowl, losing 41-10 to Washington in the 1991 season in the NFC title game.

READ MORE: Lions run to NFC championship game can't be denied by refs' non-call

The Lions went three-and-out and crossed midfield just twice on their first six full offensive possessions, not including a kneel-down snap at the end of the first half, before Gibbs sparked a second-half outburst against one of the NFL’s best defenses.

The Lions, held to 39 yards rushing on 12 carries in the first 30 minutes, leaned on their fifth-ranked ground game to pull away in the final two quarters.

Craig Reynolds scored on a 1-yard run on fourth-and-goal with 3:48 left in the third quarter to break a 10-10 halftime tie. The carry was his first since the Lions’ Week 8 win over the Las Vegas Raiders, and first ever in the postseason.

Tampa tied the game on the ensuing possession, before the Lions put the ball in Gibbs’s hands most of the next five-play possession.

The rookie running back had runs of 6 and 8 yards and a 12-yard catch before scoring on a 31-yard run.

Gibbs, who missed the Lions’ Week 6 win over the Buccaneers because of a hamstring injury, said this week he was looking forward to playing against a Tampa defense that ranked fifth in the regular season against the run (95.3 ypg).

He finished with nine carries for 74 yards and David Montgomery, who left the first Tampa game with a rib injury, had 10 carries for 33 yards as the Lions rushed for 114 yards.

TRENDING: Lions embraced their inner Eminem in 31-23 win over Buccaneers

Jared Goff threw a 9-yard touchdown pass to Amon-Ra St. Brown with 6:22 to play to put the Lions ahead, 31-17. Tampa climbed within a score on a Mike Evans touchdown, and after the Lions offense stalled around midfield, Derrick Barnes intercepted a Baker Mayfield pass intended for Cade Otton with 1:33 left to clinch the victory.

Goff was 30 of 43 passing for 287 yards and two touchdowns. He did not turn the ball over for the second straight week, and ended the game with three kneel-down snaps.

The Lions jumped to an early lead for the second straight week, opening the scoring with a short Michael Badgley field goal after Jamel Dean dropped a would-be Goff pick in the end zone.

Tampa answered with a field goal, and the Lions and Bucs traded touchdowns before the half.

Goff threw a 9-yard touchdown to Josh Reynolds early in the second quarter. The Bucs then got a big defensive stop after missing a 50-yard field goal just before halftime.

St. Brown was tackled just short of a first down after a 5-yard gain on second-and-6, after replay officials ruled his forearm hit the ground as he spun out of tackle, and Calijah Kancey beat Graham Glasgow for a sack on third-and-1 to force a Lions punt.

Tampa took over at its own 8-yard line, and after picking up a first down with an 11-yard run on its first play, started throwing aggressively downfield. Mayfield scrambled for 14 yards on a zone-read keeper on third-and-1, then Evans beat Cam Sutton for two gains of 27 and 29 yards.

On first-and-goal from the 2, Mayfield threw a short touchdown pass to Otton on a pick play to tie the game at 10.

Mayfield was 26 of 41 passing for 349 yards and three touchdowns with two interceptions, one off Evans' hands in the first quarter.

Evans led the Bucs, the NFC South champions, with eight catches for 147 yards.

Jonah Jackson, the Lions' starting left guard, exited in the first half with a knee injury. The Bucs lost Dean (lower back) in the second half.

Stay tuned to freep.com/sports for all your Detroit sports coverage.

Contact Dave Birkett at dbirkett@freepress.com. Follow him @davebirkett.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Lions one win from first Super Bowl after beating Bucs, 31-23