The battle for the NFC North reaches its climax on the final day of the NFL regular season this weekend as the Minnesota Vikings and Detroit Lions square off once again.
Kevin O'Connell and Dan Campbell's teams enter Sunday at 14-2 knowing that a win would secure not only the division title, but the NFC's No. 1 seed and a crucial first-round bye in the playoffs.
The loser, meanwhile, will settle for the No. 5 seed, which means a wild-card matchup with the Los Angeles Rams or Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
At the heart of both lie new quarterbacks, Jared Goff resurrecting his career to catapult Detroit into contention after the Rams traded him in exchange for Matthew Stafford in 2021, and the written-off Sam Darnold among the stories of the 2024 campaign the frontrunner for the return player of the year after leading a surprising playoff charge following the offseason departure of Kirk Cousins in Minnesota.
“We're getting the research notes from the NFL Network and they're billing it as the most important regular season game in NFL history,” Sky Sports NFL's Neil Reynolds said. Inside the Huddle.
“These two quarterbacks in terms of passing yards and passing touchdowns since Week 11 are the most prolific in the NFL. Jared Goff is No. 1, Sam Darnold is No. 2, so I think we'll get our points here.
“I'll put this out as maybe the difference: Detroit has scored 31, 48, 17 and 34 points in its last four, the last a 40-34 win over San Francisco, but even that was a positive because they didn't I don't need that game and yet it got.
“I'm a little worried. If I'm going to trust one more defense, I'm going to trust Brian Flores and the Vikings. But I think Detroit will find a way, it doesn't matter about Dan Campbell, Jared Goff and that team, at home, if you score 40, they score 42 .”
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Justin Jefferson makes a ridiculous catch, but unfortunately it doesn't count due to an offensive foul as the Minnesota Vikings play the Green Bay Packers
The Vikings kept their hopes of securing the No. 1 seed alive last weekend with an impressive win over the Green Bay Packers, their ninth straight victory. Among their defining components was Brian Flores' blitz-heavy defense that ranked fourth in scoring, second in rushing and first in EPA/game while tied for first with 31 wins on the year.
They face a high-octane offense against Detroit that ranks second overall, first in scoring, second in passing, sixth in rushing and third in EPA/game.
“The Vikings just came off this great game against Green Bay and Matt LaFleur talked about how they weren't ready for the coverage percentage of the Vikings, they're not known for being a man defense team, but 85 percent coverage on third and fourth down in compared to Jordan Love, he was a man,” said Sky Sports NFL's Phoebe Schecter.
“Their ability to adapt to the teams they're playing, their ability to understand different positions and schemes and how they can show one thing and do another, that's going to be difficult.
“You can tempt Jared Goff into some of these pitching situations and because of who he is, he's going to let it go, you can take advantage of the turnovers.”
Darnold enters Sunday having completed 343 of 504 passes (68.1 percent) to rank fourth with 4,153 yards and 35 touchdowns to 12 interceptions in a career year.
He signed a one-year deal with the Vikings in March amid a quarterback competition with JJ McCarthy following the departure of Cousins, only to be cleared in the starting spot after a season-ending injury to a first-round pick. .
Darnold spent last season as Brock Purdy's backup in San Francisco, following two seasons with the Carolina Panthers after a three-year stint with the New York Jets after being selected third overall in the 2018 draft.
“You talk about the top quarterbacks in the NFL, Sam Darnold, Jared Goff, Baker Mayfield — you look at the young quarterbacks who haven't made it right now, but to see where they are in four or five years, it's really fascinating,” Reynolds added. .
“Goff is so far away, he's so entrenched as a successful starter in Detroit, you forget they took him off the hands of the Rams to get Draft picks, I don't think Detroit was sold on Jared Goff early on.
“There are quarterbacks who have been in bad situations, Sam Darnold spent a good couple of years on the bench, and then he came into a good situation.
“We had it a few years ago with Gene Smith, quarterbacks can be saved and they can rebuild their careers. They're a product of their environment, but they also play a big role because you have to be careful not to say they are” is not good, it's just not brought out of them. “
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Detroit Lions vs. San Francisco 49ers NFL Week 17 highlights
Goff led the Lions to the NFC Championship Game for the first time in 32 years last season after thrusting himself into the MVP conversation amid a dramatic career resurgence. He continued that form in 2024, completing 363 of 506 passes (71.7 percent) for the second-leading 4,398 yards and 36 touchdowns to 10 interceptions, his 113.6 passer rating bested only by Lamar Jackson.
“You look around the league, what Goff has done is phenomenal, he's really called himself back,” Schecter said. “It shows what he can do when you really develop a quarterback, and it makes you think there's a lot of quarterbacks that don't do much.
“It only takes one person to see what you can do, just because you might be a coach in the NFL doesn't mean you're the best educator and can relate to someone enough to understand their needs.
“That's why the Vikings and Lions are such complete teams overall.”
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Minnesota Vikings defense celebrates Theo Jackson's game-winning interception against Seattle Seahawks by imitating 'Camp Rock' dance
Detroit emerged victorious when the two sides met in a thriller earlier this year, neutralizing the Flores defense in a 31-29 win as Goff threw for two touchdowns while Jahmyr Gibbs rushed for 116 yards and two scores.
“The anticipation, nobody's going to sleep, everybody's going to call in sick on Monday, nobody can miss this game,” Schecter said.
“It's going to be awesome, you know these two teams and how they work, they're explosive, they're so fun to watch.
“With everything on the line, this is where these two teams show up the most, when the lights come on, the stars come out. It's basically your Conference Championship preview.”