Vikings Beat the Lions 34-20

Although the Lions had about double the time of possession in the first half than the Vikings, and finished the game with five minutes more, the Vikings were able to beat the Lions fairly handedly. The longest drive the Vikings had was ten plays for five minutes, and that was the final drive of the game for them. They worked quickly and efficiently and came out of the game with the win.

Dalvin Cook dominated once more, ending the game with 22 carried for 206 yards and 2 touchdowns, as well as 2 catches for 46 yards, capitalized with a 70 yard touchdown run to put the game out of reach. He touched the ball on 44% of offensive plays, dictating the pace of the game and setting up Kirk Cousins to have another good game. In the second straight week with Cook having more than 200 yards total, I just want to say I'm very thankful for him and I pray he doesn't get hurt because without him we suck more than we already do.

Cousins did what he needed to again to come away with the win. He took a lot of easy plays, and his 3 touchdowns were throws I could make. The play action pass benefitted him again, as he was able to use his slow and methodical approach to avoid pressure and find receivers for good gains. He finished the game with 220 yards on only 13 completions, finding six different receivers. It was another game where he didn't need to be fantastic and it worked out for him to take things slower behind the dominant run game. He did miss some throws I thought he should have made, like the fourth down thrown to Thielen in the end zone where he over threw him just a bit too much. But all together I'm happy again that the Vikings didn't give Cousins control of the game.

No receivers really stood out today, as Justin Jefferson led the team with 64 yards. It seems to be the Vikings identity now to run all over opponents, and as long as it works I can't complain. At the end of the day the only thing getting hurt is the stats of the receivers. I like the new approach, I just hope no receivers get upset about the lack of targets like Diggs did last year.

The defense played really well again with the "bend don't break" style. They made stops when they needed to again, and held the Lions to field goals instead of touchdowns on some drives. Although it gives up a lot of yards to opposing teams, yards isn't what wins games. I think the defense is buying into the system and it has led to the defense allowing their fewest points of the year today. It was impressive to see more turnovers with interceptions from Eric Wilson, Eric Kendricks, and Harrison Smith. We haven't taken the ball away a whole lot this year, and it was good to see them jump some more routes. The coverage seemed to be a lot better too, as we limited the big play and forced the Lions to take all of the underneath stuff, reinforcing the "bend don't break" style.

I thought the Vikings played just how they needed to against the Lions, they beat a team that is worse than them how they were supposed to. Although it's hard to say the Vikings have turned their entire season around, these last two games have been exciting to watch. In a year with the expanded playoff format, the second half of this season is even more important. With two games against the Bears, and then games against the Bucs and the Saints, the Vikings are in a position to make a run at the six or seven seed. They need to win those games against the other wild card contenders, but it's still very possible.

I was surprised to see the Vikings quiet at the deadline last Tuesday, but I suppose the front office wasn't quite sure what to do. We're in an interesting spot that we don't know if to build for a playoff push or sell and tank for a draft pick. I think it wasn't a bad thing to do nothing, it was just boring. I expect them to make more moves this offseason, such as trading Anthony Barr or Anthony Harris.

Next week is a huge game for the Vikings, as they face the Bears on Monday Night Football. They need this game to stay relevant in the wild card hunt, and make up a game on the Bears. Cousins could also use this game to reset his terrible prime time narrative. However, everything points against Cousins. The Vikings are 0-4 against the Bears since Cousins took over the reins, although Cousins only played in three of those games. He still struggles against teams with winning records and especially in prime time, but I guess we'll see what happens. Hopefully the narrative changes.

As always, with cautious optimism, Skol Vikings.