Vikings top Lions 37-35 in D-Free Finale

  |  
Jan 3, 2021
Image courtesy of Vikings.com

Call it the Toper Bowl. The Minnesota Vikings came into Week 17 against the Detroit Lions with little to play for as a team, something that the Kirk Cousins era purple haven’t been accustomed to.

Last season, the Vikings rested some players going into their locked in Wild Card playoff game against the Saints. In 2018? They were a win-and-in game against the Chicago Bears away from… Losing to the Bears in the first round of the playoffs.

For much of Sunday, a game which marked the 7th-straight win for the Vikings over the Lions, it appeared the the defenses of both teams were aware of just how close the off-season was. No one told the offenses, though, as both battled back and forth all day through the air.

Saturday night, I predicted a 38-34 Lions win (mostly because I’d predicted a 6-10 Vikings 2020), and wasn’t too far off.

Minnesota Vikings vs. Detroit Lions Score Prediction Extravaganzer – Vikings Territory

The big talker from Sunday’s game will be Justin Jefferson’s big day and entrance into the Vikings and NFL history books.

Justin Jefferson joins history books

Jefferson had a big day, as did quarterback Kirk Cousins, as the Vikings were without superstar running back Dalvin Cook. Alexander Mattison had a much better day than his fill-in assignment earlier this season (with 21 touches for 95 yards and a touchdown).

Cousins had his 8th 3-touchdown game of the season, as well as his first 400 yard outing. Finishing the year with 3,860 yards, 32 touchdowns and 13 picks. That’s all the more amazing considering he had a ratio of 11:10 at the bye week. For those who refuse to give him any credit, that’s a ratio of 22:3 since the week 7 bye.

Jefferson finished the game with 9 catches for 133 yards (and the season with exactly 1,400 yards). Jefferson even got Cousins to do the Griddy, which is a feat in and of itself.

The Vikings go into the off-season looking like a team, ironically, with a lot to build on. The defense seemed to have given up late, but they’ll get a lot of their core players back this off-season as their injuries heal.

Stay tuned to Vikingterritory/purplePTSD this off-season as we have some BIG things on the docket that’ll hopefully change how people read/listen/watch/and talk about Minnesota sports!

Highlights:

Dat Cousins Griddy:

Cousins to Jefferson:

Chad Beebe has a big gain:

Harrison Smith with another INT:

The record

So close…

Hercules! Hercules! Hercules!

Bailey struggled again

Stats: