This game was remarkable. Other than a late, singular play, the Vikings offense was terrible. With second-year quarterback J.J. McCarthy out with a hairline fracture somewhere in his passing hand, undrafted rookie Max Brosmer got the start. Much like his start against the Seattle Seahawks, Brosmer looked overwhelmed by the complexity of NFL defenses. Factoring in the yards lost on seven sacks, the Vikings netted three passing yards for the game. Three! Against the Seahawks, Brosmer threw four interceptions. Against the Lions, he threw zero. That was key. If the Vikings gave the ball back to the Lions on their terms, they should be fine. That’s because the defense had their back.
The Lions entered this Week 17 game with only eight turnovers on the season. They left the game with 14. The Vikings defense took the ball away from the Lions six times. Max Brosmer had a rough game for a variety of reasons. His own inexperience was a big one. So was missing his starting left tackle, starting right tackle, starting center, and starting tight end. Jared Goff had a rough game for one simple reason. The Vikings Brian Flores-led defense swarmed and confused Goff for 60 minutes. He lost three fumbles. He threw two interceptions. He was sacked five times. It wasn’t just the Lions explosive passing game that the Vikings throttled. They throttled the Lions run game as well. Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery are one of the league’s best running back duos. They combined for 66 rush yards on 17 carries. That’s an average of only 2.4 yards/carry. The only time the Lions offense dented the Vikings defense was a long, grueling 19-play, 80-yard touchdown drive in the second quarter. While the drive was ultimately successful for the Lions, the Vikings really made it difficult. Goff converted a third-and-16 with a 28-yard pass to Isaac TeSlaa, a third-and-nine with a 13-yard pass to Amon-Ra St. Brown, and a third-and-15 with a 23-yard pass to St. Brown. Credit Goff and the Lions for converting three third-and longs and a third-and-short. Those desperate conversions got them to the Vikings 12-yard line. From that point on the field, it took the Lions eight plays to finally get into the end zone. Eight plays to travel 12 yards. The Lions had to convert two fourth downs. It was an impressive drive by the Lions offense. The 80 yards was more than a quarter of their 231 total yards. It was also an impressive effort by the Vikings defense as none of those yards came easy.
Because the Vikings offense had such difficulty moving the ball and sustaining possession, a one-score lead was always a precarious thing. The first touchdown was set up by the first takeaway by the defense. The offense only had to move the ball 16 yards for a short Aaron Jones Sr. run. Three long field goals were also set up by takeaways. 16 points were the result of great defense. After the Lions cut the Vikings precarious lead to 13-10 with 4:39 left in the game, the offense finally made a play. It was a beauty. With Max Brosmer struggling and the Lions swarming the offensive line and crushing the pocket, Kevin O’Connell called upon a little misdirection. Jordan Addison took a jet sweep handoff, left to right. 65 yards later, he dove into the end zone. In a blink, thanks to a singular offensive play, the Vikings finally had a two-score lead at 20-10. In a game dominated by defense, an offensive play ended the slim playoff dreams of the Lions.
The Minnesota Vikings have a long, strong history of great defenses. Through those years, there have been many great performances. Perhaps it’s a recency thing, this performance of the Vikings defense against an explosive Lions on Christmas Day was one of the greatest. They took away the run game. They swarmed Jared Goff. They never let him get comfortable in the pocket. The Vikings took the ball away six times from an offense that had only given it away eight times in 15 games. The explosive Lions offense had less than a handful of chunk plays. Most of those came on that long, second quarter dive. This was a remarkable game and the Vikings defense was incredible.
This was the Vikings fourth consecutive win. It’s been a frustrating season. Little has gone as hoped. Despite that, the Vikings are ending it strong. Next up, is the final game of the season. A home against the Green Bay Packers. A win will give the Vikings a winning record at 9-8. Hopefully, J.J. McCarthy returns for that game. The Vikings must get Justin Jefferson to 1000 yards. He needs 53 yards.
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