The Vikings’ season-ending loss to Detroit was the one bright spot in Minnesota’s final game of the season.
A bitter taste will remain in the mouths of the Minnesota Vikings as they enter the offseason on a four-game losing streak after falling 30-20 in Sunday’s season finale against the NFC North champion Lions in Detroit.
Had the Vikings won, it wouldn’t have mattered anyway because both the Buccaneers and Saints won and Minnesota needed one of them to lose to avoid elimination. They also would’ve needed the Packers and Seahawks to lose later Sunday. Instead, Minnesota will select 10th, 11th or 12th in the 2024 NFL Draft.
Questions now turn to the future of key players Kirk Cousins, Justin Jefferson, Harrison Smith, Danielle Hunter, Christian Darrisaw and others. Cousins and Hunter are set to become free agents in mid-March, Jefferson and Darrisaw are expected to command new contracts and Smith’s $19.2 million cap hit in 2024 may be too rich for Minnesota’s blood.
Jefferson was one of the few bright spots in the season finale. He racked up 192 receiving yards on 12 catches to finish with more than 1,000 yards for a fourth straight season – doing it despite missing eight games with an injured hamstring.
Ending the season with a 7-10 record is the franchise’s 11th season with at least 10 losses and the first since the Vikings finished 5-10-1 in 2013.
This is how the game evolved…
Following Khalif Raymond’s 42-yard punt return, the Lions drove 52 yards in five plays and scored on Jared Goff’s two-yard touchdown pass to rookie tight end Sam Laporta. Minnesota countered with a three-and-out, and the Lions drove 64 yards in eight plays, with Jahmyr Gibbs scoring from three yards out.
Minnesota kept the game within striking distance at 13-6 at halftime thanks to a pair of Greg Joseph field goals, but after Joejuan Williams was flagged for pass interference in the end zone midway through the third quarter, David Montgomery’s 13th rushing touchdown of the season two plays later put Detroit up 20-6.
After starting cornerback Akayleb Evans was benched, Williams entered the game. Evans was benched for the second game in a row after making the start.
The Vikings were then placed on their backs by Justin Jefferson, who made an amazing sideline catch on third down before hauling in a 38-yard touchdown pass on fourth-and-one to trim Detroit’s advantage to 20-13.
Jefferson finished the day with 12 catches for 192 yards and a touchdown. He finished the season with 68 receptions for 1,074 yards and five touchdowns, joining Randy Moss, A.J. Green, Mike Evans and Michael Thomas as the only receivers since 1970 to begin their career with four straight 1,000-yard seasons.
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