Detroit – In the Detroit Lions’ biggest home game in December since 2017, and in front of a sold-out crowd at Ford Field, the team denied the Minnesota Vikings a chance to win the NFC North crown, while bolstering their own playoff hopes.
The Lions received critical contributions in all three phases to eliminate the division-leading Vikings, avenging a loss earlier in the season. Quarterback Jared Goff threw a pair of long touchdown passes, the defense forced a turnover in the red zone and a successful fake punt fueled Sunday’s 34-23 victory, which was sealed with a pass to the offensive tackle Penei Sewell in the final minutes. .
BOX SCORE: Lions 34, Vikings 23
The win was Detroit’s fifth in the last six games, taking the team to 6-7 on the year. In the race for the NFC playoffs, they won a game against the New York Giants (7-5-1), who were eliminated by the Philadelphia Eagles. It was the seventh time the Lions had scored at least 30 points in a game this season.
The game was a back-and-forth struggle until Detroit slammed the door in the second half with a pair of long touchdowns.
After coming away with points each of their first eight possessions last week, the Lions went to three to open this contest, but still managed to open the scoring when the defense forced a turnover on the lows near the middle of pitch and the offense quickly capitalized on the favorable position on the pitch.
On the second snap of the second set, Jameson Williams opened wide on a false run and Goff put the ball on the rookie wide receiver for the first reception of his career, a 41-yard touchdown.
The Vikings responded behind consistent contributions from their star players. Wide receiver Justin Jefferson and running back Dalvin Cook combined for 51 yards and four first downs on the ensuing drive, with Cook hitting him across the goal line from one yard for the tying score.
After an offensive lull, where the Lions failed a fourth attempt and the two teams traded punts, Detroit offered another quick strike to regain the lead.
Returning man Kalif Raymond kicked things off by returning a 35-yard punt into Vikings territory before Goff delivered a perfect deep ball to DJ Chark on the first play of possession for a 48-yard touchdown . It was the first time since 2018 that Goff had thrown two 40-yard or longer touchdown passes in a game.
Again, Minnesota looked set to counter, pushing deep into Lions territory thanks to a pair of third passes converted by Kirk Cousins to tight end TJ Hockenson and Jefferson. The cousins found Jefferson for another 20 yards in the red zone, but on first and goal from the 3-yard line, Cook knocked the ball down by defensive lineman Isaiah Buggs, and safety Rookie Kerby Joseph recovered the fumble with less than a minute remaining in the first half.
The Lions had a chance to extend the lead to 10 before the break, but kicker Michael Badgley, the reigning NFC Special Teams Player of the Week, missed a field goal from 47 yards left. It was only his second defeat since joining the Lions in October.
The Vikings couldn’t do anything to open the third quarter and the Lions also looked set to throw their first down, but safety CJ Moore took a direct hit on a fake, running for 42 yards for the conversion.
With new life, Goff completed his next four passes, including a key third and 12 throws to Raymond in the red zone, setting up a 5-yard touchdown to Reynolds on the next snap. That put the Lions up 21-7.
Goff finished the game 27 of 39 for 330 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions. Six different Lions caught multiple passes with Chark pacing the team with six catches for 94 yards and the long touchdown.
Yet the Vikings refused to leave quietly. Despite eating a sack on the first play of practice, Cousins recovered with a 21-yard dart to Hockenson down the middle, followed by a 42-yard to Jefferson. The Lions defense calmed down after the big win, forcing the Vikings to a fourth down, but needing touchdowns not field goals, the opposition got in on the action.
Picking up the Detroit blitz, Cousins found Adam Thielen on the left sideline. From there, the receiver dodged Mike Hughes’ attempted tackle, heading into the end zone for a score of 23 yards. A failed two-point conversion attempt left the deficit at eight, 21-13, going into the fourth quarter.
But even as the pressure mounted, Goff remained calm and collected, completing early passes to four different receivers, bringing the Lions back into the red zone. Then, on the second and 10, running back Justin Jackson picked up a huge block from tight end Brock Wright and won a run to the left edge of the formation before diving into the pylon, fending off the Lions two scores after the extra point, 28-13, with 13:28 remaining.
Cousins and Jefferson came back with a 47-yard connection to open Minnesota’s next possession, but the threat was stopped by rookie defensive end Aidan Hutchinson, who sacked Cousins on first down and struck again the quarterback on third down, forcing an incompleteness. That left the Vikings with no choice but to settle for a 41-yard field goal from Greg Joseph, which cut the lead to 12.
The Lions failed to score a third straight touchdown, but did the next best thing, draining nearly seven minutes down before Badgley slammed home a 41-yard field goal, making it 31-16 with 4:06 to go.
Minnesota did what it took to stay alive after Badgley’s kick, going for 75 yards in 76 seconds. A 39-yard pass to Jefferson was the key play, leading to a 15-yard touchdown pass from Cousins to KJ Osborn (Ypsilanti). But hopes faded when Lions linebacker Josh Woods recovered the ensuing inbound kick.
From there, the Lions were able to run time with a little dazzle. With the Vikings in position to get another chance to tie the game, Sewell declared himself eligible and caught a third pass for a first down.
Badgley added a 49-yard field goal with 17 seconds left to score the win.
After the victory, the Lions hit the road for the first time in a month to face the New York Jets, who fell to 7-6 this season with a 20-12 loss to Buffalo on Sunday.
jdrogers@detroitnews.com
Twitter: @Justin_Rogers
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