Murphy: Vikings went toe-to-toe with the best
Brian Murphy writes that he was impressed with the Vikings despite their loss to Detroit
By Brian Murphy
As heart-thumpers go, this was a beauty, with enough big plays, huge mistakes and massive momentum swings to fulfill a week’s worth of storylines much less three hours of electric entertainment.
Here were the Vikings and Lions flashing brightly on the NFL’s Week 7 marquee, longtime division foes who rarely play a game worth watching, never mind one impossible to tune out.
Calling this a rivalry is an insult to competition, with Minnesota having won 80 of 126 matchups since 1961. Consider a .635 winning percentage that sparkling in baseball requires 103 victories over a full season. Total, wedgy-bullying domination.
Welp, baby brother has finally had it because the Vikings don’t have the Lions to kick around anymore. Not with Jared Goff standing tall in the pocket and leveling defenses with knockout blows Detroit quarterbacks typically used to punch themselves.
Goff was magnificent Sunday in leading the Lions to a thrilling 31-29 win over the Vikings at U.S. Bank Stadium in the season’s first clash between NFC North heavyweights. He completed 22 of 25 passes for 280 yards, two touchdowns and zero turnovers, but it was Goff’s timely resilience that shined brightest.
He spearheaded four touchdown drives to erase a 10-0 deficit as Detroit racked up 202 yards in the second quarter and forced the Vikings to play from behind for the first time since the opening minutes of their Week 1 win against the lowly Giants.
Goff made clutch throw after clutch throw against withering pressure, daggering the Vikings on critical third downs and hitting receivers downfield or underneath coverage to preserve momentum and secure victory.
It was the third straight game Goff posted a 140-plus passer rating -- the first time that has happened since Aaron Rodgers turned the trick in 2011 with Green Bay. Only Kurt Warner (1999) and Roger Staubach (1971) have done the same in respectively leading the St. Louis Rams and Dallas Cowboys to Super Bowl titles.
Quite the velvet rope to unhook for this onetime Super Bowl champion with the L.A. Rams who improved to 6-3 all-time against the Vikings.
“He’s a stud,” gushed Lions coach Dan Campbell. “The guy’s got arm talent, no question. But it’s what he’s got here and here (pointing at his head and heart). That’s what makes him a dangerous player. He’s a winner.
“He doesn’t get frazzled. He’s tough. He’s competitive. And he’s reliable. I love the guy, man.”
Goff’s dream finish erased a nightmare start for the Lions in general and Campbell in particular.
Campbell’s insanely aggressive choice to attempt a fake punt at his own 33-yard line on the game’s first series failed spectacularly, spoon-fed Minnesota field position and, two snaps later, led to Aaron Jones’ 34-yard touchdown run.
Will Reichard’s subsequent 57-yard field goal put the Vikings up 10 with 5:39 left in the first quarter. That’s when Goff and Detroit’s high-octane offense hit the accelerator, forging a 28-17 lead and ultimately carving up a vaunted Vikings defense for 391 total yards.
But for David Montgomery’s fumble and Ivan Pace Jr.’s scoop-and-score early in the fourth quarter that gave the Vikings a fleeting 29-28 lead, Goff likely would have been kneeling down in victory formation instead of setting up Jake Bates’ game-winning field goal with 15 seconds remaining.
“We knew the whole week was about composure, composure, composure,” said Goff. “Dan kept preaching that for us. I thought the guys did a great job today keeping it. We’re built on responding.”
Since going a perfect 18-for-18 in a Week 4 win against the Seattle Seahawks, Goff has thrown seven touchdowns without an interception while averaging over 15 yards per completion. He is the money quarterback in a division chock full of talented gunslingers.
Darnold, who nearly matched Goff in accuracy and production, has resurrected his floundering career. Jordan Love is kicking down the superstar door in Green Bay. And Caleb Williams has begun stacking wins and turning heads in Chicago.
The road to the NFC championship game in January sure feels like it’s going through the indoor cauldrons in Detroit and Minneapolis or the arctic winds of Lambeau Field and Soldier Field.
Meanwhile, the chess match between Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores and Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson came as advertised, with Detroit’s signal caller earning his checkmate.
The Lions’ scoring drives were masterful as Goff beat Flores’ blitzes and exploited soft spots in Minnesota’s pass coverage while their offensive line road graded for Jahmyr Gibbs to rush for 116 yards and two of Detroit’s three second-quarter touchdowns.
Gibbs’ production, coupled with superior pass protection for Goff, tenderized a Minnesota defense that had dominated the line of scrimmage and created monster turnovers through five straight wins.
“If he's going to stand in there and make throws, you got to figure out a way to put them in (long down and distances) where they’ve got to hold (protection) a little more,” lamented Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell. “And we got to cover a little tighter.”
It all added up to a fourth straight Lions victory over Minnesota, the first time that has happened in this lopsided series since the Kennedy Administration.
Still, Vikings fans should keep their perpetual handwringing to a minimum.
Statistically and emotionally, this was as evenly played a game one could hope for between two superb teams hunting bigger game than mid-October peacocking.
The highly anticipated rematch is Jan. 5 at Ford Field, where the NFC North title may be on the line, not to mention bragging rights between alley-fighting siblings.
About damn time.
Good time of the year to get this loss out of the way. Great game. It will be tough for DTW to sweep MSP.