The Minnesota Vikings are no longer perfect after losing 19-15 to their division rivals, the Detroit Lions. It was a hard-fought match between two of the NFC’s better teams. Now Detroit is just behind Minnesota in the pursuit of a division title.
The Lions got on the board with a Jake Bates 25-yard field goal to take a 3-0 lead in the first quarter. In the second quarter, Kyler Murray found Justin Jefferson for a 1-yard score to take the lead. Just before halftime, Bates hit his second field goal of the day, this time a 37-yarder to cut the lead to 7-6.
The Lions took the lead in the third quarter on a Jahmyr Gibbs 30-yard rushing touchdown; the two-point conversion attempt failed, so the score was only 12-7. In the fourth quarter, Kyler Murray found tight end T.J. Hockenson for an 8-yard score. Murray then found Jordan Addison for a two-point conversion, pushing the lead to 15-12. The Lions would score a go-ahead touchdown with 4:35 left on a Jared Goff pass to Jameson Williams. With the extra point, the Lions took a 19-15 lead. They stopped Minnesota from scoring and came away with a huge victory.
Jared Goff went 18 of 25 for 176 yards, 1 touchdown, and his first interception of the season. Jahmyr Gibbs continued his great season, rushing 23 times for 153 yards and 1 touchdown while adding two receptions for 15 yards. Jameson William led all Lions’ receivers with 70 yards on 4 receptions and that touchdown, while Amon-Ra St. Brown hauled in 7 receptions for 46 yards.
As for the Vikings, Kyler Murray went 17 of 29 for 210 yards, 2 touchdowns, and one interception. He also led the team in rushing with 35 yards on 4 carries. Aaron Jones was the team’s next leading rusher with 22 yards on 5 carries. Jordan Addison led the receiving corps with 3 receptions for 66 yards, while T.J. Hockenson caught 4 receptions for 28 yards and a touchdown.
The Vikings are the final team to suffer a loss this season, so the 1972 Dolphins can safely pop that bottle of champagne. They drop to 6-1, still in first place in the NFC North, but the rest of the division isn’t very far behind. The Lions improve to 5-2 with this win; at the time of writing, the Chicago Bears are also 5-2, and the Green Bay Packers are 5-3. So at this point it is still anyone’s division to win.
