The Minnesota Vikings had a chance to close the door on any potential late-season surge by the Detroit Lions last Sunday. Minnesota could have locked up the NFC North while maintaining a two-game lead for the second seed in the NFC playoff picture with a win at Ford Field; instead, they lost their third game of the season as Detroit continued their winning ways.
The Lions are officially on a hot streak. They have scored at least 25 points in each of their last five games and six of their last seven; they also have a +2 point differential on the season, better than that of the Vikings (minus-1) despite trailing by four games in the standings.