Tag: NFC North

Five things to watch as Lions face Vikings with No. 1 seed on the line

Coach Dan Campbell built this Lions team for games like Sunday’s matchup against the Minnesota Vikings. It’s not just another game, it’s two 14-win teams vying for the No. 1 seed, a week off and home field advantage until the Super Bowl.

After losing the NFC Championship game at San Francisco last January, the Lions’ goal became to earn the No. 1 seed. Even though they’re perfect on the road, getting the bye and staying home until the Super Bowl is the goal. 

“You come out of that game and feel like it gives you the best odds to get to where the ultimate is, which is, as well all know what the prize is, and that’s the Super Bowl, well, you just – you try to set yourself up the best you can and that’s why you put those goals out there,’’ Campbell said. “So yeah, it’s been there for a while, so certainly this is something we want to do and we’ve had in our minds – division and one seed and all that, and it’s right here in our hands.”

The Lions beat the Vikings, 31-29, in their first meeting on Oct 20  and beat them both games in 2023. 

The Vikings have won nine straight, scoring more than 30 points just once – 42 in a win over Atlanta.

“They’re well-coached, got a lot of good players – a lot of good players and they create issues, really, in all three phases that we’re going to need to be prepared for, but it’s a challenge we’re looking forward to,’’ Campbell said. “So, like I said after the game, these are exciting times, to be able to play these types of games, so we’re looking forward to it.”

 FIVE THINGS TO WATCH:

ONE: Offense must pile on the points because the Lions defense is still the weak link due to injuries. In the last four games the Lions have averaged 37.5 points and outscored opponents 150-120 and overall they have a 533 to 333 advantage in points scored. In the first matchup against the Vikings, the Lions won 31-29. Last year the Lions beat the Vikings twice, scoring 30 points in each game. Goff was 22 of 25 for 280 yards and a pair of touchdowns in the first game. He has thrown just one interception in the last seven games. Goff has a 77-percent completion percentage and 90.9 QBR vs. the  Vikings blitz under Brian Flores, defensive coordinator. The Lions scored 30 or more points in all three games.

TWO: Contain Vikings WR Justin Jefferson. “Man, he is a special one. He’s my type of guy and you see the way he’s playing is starting to permeate to some of those other receivers,’’ Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn said. “I think he’s one of the toughest guys playing that position. He’s an old school player, in my opinion, it’s almost like he’s a defensive guy playing receiver.’’ Jefferson had 7 catches, for 81 yards and a touchdown in the first game against the Lions.

THREE: The defense must make impact plays. “I thought that our top players outwilled their top players (in San Francisco) and to me, that’s what the focus is on for us. How many impact plays we can make and how our top players are going to outwill their top players,’’ Glenn said. In the first meeting, QB Sam Darnold completed 81.5 percent of his passes with 1 touchdown and 1 interception (by Brian Branch) with 244 passing yards in the first matchup. The LIons defense also gave up139 rushing yards in that game.

FOUR: Keep the run game going. Jahmyr Gibbs has done a good job with David Montgomery sidelined for the past two games. In those contests, Gibbs has a combined 226 rushing yards with two rushing TDs and 8 catches for 91 yards. He’s getting help from Craig Reynolds, Jermar Jefferson and Vaki Stone. In the first matchup, Gibbs had 15 carries for 116 yards with two rushing touchdowns.

FIVE: Kicker Jake Bates could be the not-so secret weapon. In Monday’s win at San Francisco he kicked field goals of 57 and 42 yards, He did miss on two extra-point kicks – one was blocked. It’s something that was worked on this week. 

LIONS INJURY REPORT: CB Emmanuel Moseley (illness) and WR David Montgomery (knee) are out; LB Alex Anzalone (forearm), WR Kalif Raymond (foot) and RB Craig Reynolds (back) are questionable.

VIKINGS INJURY REPORT: OLB Patrick Jones II (knee) is out); LB  Kamu Grugier-Hill (illness) and CB Fabian Moreau (hip) are questionable.

PREDICTION: Lions 34, Vikings 31.

Lions comfortable at home or on the road for playoffs, but Vikings are the focus this week

ALLEN PARK — Owning a perfect 8-0 road record, could give Dan Campbell some comfort heading into Sunday’s huge game against the Vikings. But the Lions coach does not see the game, pitting 14-win teams, that way.

The winner earns the No. 1 seed, a bye week and home field advantage until the Super Bowl. The loser heads out on the road and has to play in a wild-card game.

“We’re very comfortable on the road, it comes with preparation, time on task, guys do it for long periods of time, the way we train, guys handle those things well,’’ Campbell said on Wednesday. “We’ll do what we’ve got to do. Our mindset is wholly on this game right now.

“You don’t see it another way, it’s about this next game and finding a way to win, no different than what we just did. We had to find a way to win that game in San Francisco against a team that gave us what they had. They played hard. We had to do it in Chicago the week before so it’s the next one in front of us. We have to find a way to win this game, period. I really don’t care what it looks like we’ve just got to win.’’

Got that?

The Vikings (14-2) have won nine straight and quarterback Sam Darnold is having a career season.

However, the Lions (14-2) defeated the Vikings, 31-29, in Week 7 and have not lost an NFC North contest. Detroit bounced back with a 40-34 win at San Francisco on Monday night after beating Chicago the previous week.

Campbell said he feels the Lions have been in playoff mode since the loss to Buffalo on Dec. 15.

“That’s what this last stretch has been – the way we’re going to have to play. It’s more about finding a way to win and that’s really the objective here is do what we have to do, put our guy in position to make plays and find a way to win no matter what it looks like and we’ve been in that mode for a few weeks now,’’ Campbell said. “Same thing this week.’’

All season the NFC North ratings have been snug.

“It seems like we’ve been playing kind of  that way all year, feeling like we have to win every game. I’m sure they felt the same way,’’ Jared Goff said. “When you’ve got two teams like we’ve been going – every three with Green Bay for most of the year where it’s been 1, 2 you have to feel like you have to keep winning.’’

The Lions’ only two losses have come at home, but it’s a place they love to play. 

“We always look forward to that, we’ve got the best fans in the League. Look, you talk about the 1 seed because you feel like you have an advantage when you play at home,’’ Campbell said. “Not everybody can say that, we can because we do. The way our fans and our stadium is set up, it’s a special environment.’

INJURY UPDATE: LB Alex Anzalone, who has been out since Week 11 with a broken forearm, returned to practice on Wednesday which was actually a walk-through. “We’ll see how he does. Tomorrow will be a big day to see where he’s at,’’ Campbell said. Anzalone could provide a huge boost to the injury-depleted defense. In the Lions win over the Vikings in Week 7, Anzalone had a team-high eight tackles. …. WR Kalif Raymond, who missed the last five games with a foot injury, also returned to practice on Wednesday.

Five reasons the Lions were able to fight back to defeat the 49ers

It did not seem like a ‘meaningless’ game

Another Lions win, more franchise records.

With the 40-34 victory at the San Francisco 49ers on Monday night, the Lions have won 14 games in a season for the first time in history and finished with an 8-0 road record, another first.

While Monday night’s game technically didn’t mean a thing for the playoff standings, coach Dan Campbell had said they were going out to win it, no holding back. Like always, he was a man of his word.

He said it was a tough decision but the right thing was to play the guys, saying he owed it to the team. “You cross your fingers and hope nobody gets hurt,’’ Campbell said. “We were fortunate.”

Sunday night’s game against the Vikings at Ford Field is for the NFC No. 1 seed and a bye. The loser will be the No. 5 seed. Huge difference. Campbell called it a “fairy tale” scenario with two 14-win teams battling it out.

On Monday night, Detroit’s defense tightened up, holding San Francisco to just 14 points (one touchdown with 43 seconds left) in the second half, after allowing three touchdowns in the first half. The 49ers were up 21-13 at the half.

Prior to the game, the Lions downplayed the revenge factor. They lost to the 49ers, 34-31, in the same location in the NFC Championship game last January.

“It was good to get this one, good to come to the scene of the crime and get it done,’’ Campbell said.

Five reasons the Lions won:

ONE: Jared Goff had the Lions offense rolling, throwing three touchdown passes – to Jameson Williams, Amon-Ra St. Brown and Sam LaPorta. “Goff played lights out,’’ Campbell said. Goff said he thinks the whole offense has been playing at an elevated level. He completed 26 of 34 attempts for 303 yards. He’s completed at least 70 percent of his passes for 11 straight games. The Lions set a single-season franchise record by producing 20-plus points in 14-straight games. He’s the only quarterback to pass for three or more touchdowns in four straight games in franchise history. 

TWO:  Safety Kerby Joseph intercepted Brock Purdy twice in the second half to give him a league-leading nine picks. The Lions took advantage of both turnovers, scoring a touchdown on a pass to Amon-Ra St. Brown and then a touchdown scamper by Jahmyr Gibbs.  “When we needed it the most, he came up in a big way,’’ Campbell said, noting it wasn’t just his picks but he also made critical tackles. The Lions defense, which is missing so many key guys, did not have its best game. They could get linebacker Alex Anzalone back either for the Vikings or first playoff game.

THREE: While the Lions defense limited Purdy in the second half, they will have to play much better to beat Sam Darnold and the Vikings on Sunday night. Too often 49ers receivers were wide open and they had no answer for the play-action. Defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn has his work cut out although the Lions did beat the Vikings 31-29 on Oct 20 in Minnesota. “For me, do you want to play a little bit better? Yeah, you do in areas. We calmed some things down in the second half, A.G. and those guys did a good job. We talked about disruption and takeaways and we got those,’’ Campbell said of the defense. “I feel good because I know the most important thing is we do complement each other.’’

FOUR: The run game flourished again without the injured David Montgomery. Jahmyr Gibbs had a stellar showing with 161 yards from scrimmage — 18 carries for 117 yards and a touchdown, along with four catches for 46 yards. Running back Craig Reynolds pitched in with seven carries for 41 yards and two catches for 35 yards.

FIVE:  Wide receiver Jameson Williams scored the Lions first two touchdowns – one rushing for 3 yards and one receiving on a 42-yarder from Goff. He became the fourth Lion with more than 1,000 scrimmage yards this season. He joins Amon-Ra St. Brown, Jahmyr Gibbs and Sam LaPorta. “We’ve got a good group, an unselfish group,’’ Goff said.

UP NEXT: Lions (14-2) host the Vikings (14-2) at 8:15 p.m. on Sunday at Ford Field for the NFC North title and the NFC No. 1 seed.