DETROIT – A few weeks ago, it felt like the Detroit Lions had pretty much already locked up the NFC North Division.
The Chicago Bears and Green Bay Packers were playing poorly. The Minnesota Vikings were losing close games. At one point, the Lions led the division by three games in the loss column.
Most of us started to turn some attention to potential playoff seeding. But over the past few weeks, the Vikings have made a serious charge, and this race is starting to heat up.
It really felt like the Vikings deserved a much better start early in the season. They lost to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers by a field goal in the opener, nearly beat the mighty Philadelphia Eagles on the road, and then coughed up a fourth-quarter lead against the Los Angeles Chargers.
After beating the Carolina Panthers in a closer-than-expected road test, the Vikings returned home and nearly took down the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs.
When the dust settled, even though it felt like the Vikings had played well against many of the top teams in the league, their record sat at 1-4. Meanwhile, the 4-1 Lions held a comfortable three-game lead.
The ball has started to bounce Minnesota’s way lately, though. The Vikings have ripped off four straight victories, and they’ve done it without one of the top players on the planet, wide receiver Justin Jefferson.
That winning streak included an upset of the San Francisco 49ers and a road win over the playoff contending Atlanta Falcons. Again, without their best player on the field.
Sure, Kirk Cousins is out for the season, but Jefferson is going to return, and this Minnesota team has proven it can find ways to win. People forget the Vikings went 13-4 and won the division easily a year ago. They might not be that good, but they’re more than capable of making the playoffs.
One person who hasn’t forgotten about the Vikings is Lions head coach Dan Campbell. He went out of his way to acknowledge them during his Monday press conference.
“We need to be playing our best football, because those are the teams that are going to make a push,” Campbell said. “You see what Minnesota (is doing)? I’m not surprised by that. They just keep winning, right? They’re playing good football. We’ve got to keep playing good football for us.”
As the Lions come out of the bye week, their lead in the division had shrunk to just a game and a half. They face a virtual toss-up game against the Chargers this weekend, while the Vikings host the Saints in another contest that could go either way.
Could we be talking about a half-game lead at this time next week? Or will it remain 1.5, or even grow to 2.5?
Either way, it’s clear that an NFC North title is not a given for the Lions, even though it sure felt that way a few weeks ago. Those head-to-head matchups at the end of the season (Week 16 in Minneapolis and Week 18 in Detroit) are starting to look a whole lot more important.
