The Minnesota Vikings handed the Detroit Lions their first win of the season on Sunday. It was a disappointing loss. It was an ugly loss. It was a brutal loss. It was a loss so bad that it feels wrong to hand out any superlatives. There is one player that does deserve mention.
Justin Jefferson.
The Lions had no answer for Jefferson.
His statistics:
11 catches
180 yards
1 TD
1 carry
4 yards
Jefferson even attempted a pass. The Lions were all over the play. He still nearly completed the pass to K.J. Osborn.
Jefferson was the best player on the field. His 14 targets and 11 receptions felt about half of what they needed to be. Jefferson ripped apart the Lions defense without Adam Thielen taking coverages away from him. Thielen was lost to an ankle injury on the sixth play of the game.
If I were to pick a defensive player of the game, that player might be linebacker Blake Lynch. He had a sparkling stat sheet.
9 tackles
2 sacks
1 tackle for loss
1 fumble recovery
If the Vikings defense hadn’t allowed the Lions to cruise down the field for the winning touchdown, Lynch’s strip sack and recovery would’ve been the play of the game.
If I were to pick a special teams player, that player might be returner Kene Nwangwu. Again. His 44-yard return early in the second quarter should’ve triggered something grand. Instead, the officials allowed the Lions to grab and yank Kirk Cousins’ facemask and get a fumble recovery because of it. The Nwangwu return could’ve been a game-changer. Instead, an officiating blunder was the game-changer.
I can’t believe that I live in a world in which the Lions beat the Vikings.
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