Dan Campbell: ‘I’m going to be looking at a lot of things because I don’t like being home for the playoffs.’
Dan Campbell: ‘I’m going to be looking at a lot of things because I don’t like being home for the playoffs.’
Minneapolis — It’s over.
Nearly two years to the day after the Detroit Lions snapped a 30-year drought for the division title with a win at Minnesota on Christmas Eve, Detroit’s 2025 playoff hopes were officially laid to rest at U.S. Bank Stadium on Christmas.
The Lions, who had a league-best eight giveaways all season entering Thursday, turned it over six times. Quarterback Jared Goff, who was under duress all game because of Minnesota’s hellacious blitz, threw two interceptions, fumbled three times, all recovered by the Vikings, and was sacked five times in a 23-10 loss that officially eliminated the Lions (8-8) from the playoffs and moved Detroit to last place in the NFC North.
“No,” Goff said plainly when asked if he ever could have envisioned missing the playoffs after a 15-2 campaign. “It sucks. We’ll reflect on the whole season after next week, but it sucks.”
With their season fully on the line, the Lions’ only touchdown drive was a 19-play, 80-yard slog that ended with Isaac TeSlaa hauling in a miraculous catch on fourth-and-goal at the 4. The Vikings (8-8) weren’t much better offensively, but they did make fewer mistakes.
With one game remaining, the Lions are on a three-game losing streak.
“Losing is very disappointing. Losing — I hate losing. They hate losing, we do,” Lions coach Dan Campbell said. “Look, I mean, some of these things that come up, it’s — the effort’s there, it’s just, we’re just a little off here, and it’s costing us significantly. There again, too many turnovers, that’s what really got us, man. Just couldn’t overcome it.”
Asked if there are any big-picture things he’s going to look into after missing the playoffs, Campbell said, “I’m gonna be looking at a lot of things, because I do not like being home for the playoffs, and I know our guys don’t either.”
BOX SCORE: Vikings 23, Lions 10
If you wanted a stat emblematic of the Lions’ season: The Vikings won despite gaining 3 net passing yards. The 3 net yards passing were the second-fewest for any winning team in the last 42 seasons, according to Josh Dubow of the Associated Press. The Texans beat the Raiders 23-14 in 2006 with minus-5 net passing yards.
The Lions sacked third-string Vikings quarterback Max Brosmer, making just his second career start, six times on 22 dropbacks. He threw the ball 16 times for 51 passing yards.
And Detroit still found a way to lose the football game.
“I’m probably more frustrated,” Lions linebacker Jack Campbell said, regarding whether he was confused by how this season turned out. “Just because I know how much talent is on this team. But at the same time, we’ve just got to do it, and we’re not doing it. That’s the frustrating part.”
After the Lions got back in the fight with a 48-yard field goal that drew them within 3 points at 4:39 in the fourth quarter, the Vikings provided a fitting end for a Lions defense that hasn’t been able to limit the explosive plays during this six-game collapse.
Wide receiver Jordan Addison took an end-around on second-and-10 and raced up the sideline for a 65-yard touchdown that effectively finished the Lions’ season.
“Guys came out with some juice,” Lions defensive tackle D.J. Reader said. “I don’t know what happened.”
A Lions offensive line that was without starting left tackle Taylor Decker (illness/shoulder), center Graham Glasgow, and key reserve Trystan Colon failed to protect its quarterback from whistle to whistle, leaving Goff under immediate pressure the second he went into his dropback. Campbell said after the game that Glasgow’s knee, which kept him out of last week’s game, was “good enough to help us as a reserve.”
But really, we probably shouldn’t have expected much to be different, even if the unit had been fully healthy. The Vikings’ pass rush abused Detroit’s protection in the first meeting on Nov. 2. Thursday’s game was merely an encore, the cherry on top of a season in which the Lions simply never solved their offensive line’s inconsistencies.
Bob Wojnowski asks Penei Sewell about missing the playoffs for the first time in three years.
Bob Wojnowski asks Penei Sewell about missing the playoffs for the first time in three years.
In a season that’s had plenty of blame to go around, the Lions’ offensive line can be pointed at as the primary reason they lost this game. Outside of the dagger from Addison, all of the Vikings’ points came after turnovers. On those four scoring drives after a takeaway, they traveled an average of 16 yards.
“We had aspirations of doing a lot. Here we are, going to Cancun the first week of January. It sucks,” said offensive tackle Dan Skipper, who started in place of Decker.
Skipper added, “Part of my job is pulling some of these young guys along, and I didn’t do a good enough job with that, clearly. If I can get these guys a little bit better every day, if I can do a little bit more — clearly, I did not do enough, right? Being on this roster — we didn’t get it done.
“I don’t know how else (to say it). I think we all need to take a good, long look in the mirror after this, reflect, figure out how we can improve and give the city a team that they’re proud of again, because this year was bulls—.”
The Vikings’ first touchdown came after Goff fumbled the snap from Eguakun inside his own red zone. Aaron Jones punched it in from a yard out to close the five-play drive with a 7-0 Vikings lead at 1:35 in the first quarter.
The Vikings’ field goal with 3:03 left in the third quarter came after Goff was intercepted by safety Byron Murphy Jr. while trying to uncork a ball downfield on third-and-long. Their next field goal came just 1:06 later, as safety Harrison Smith intercepted Goff. The Vikings moved 4 yards and Will Reichard kicked a 56-yard field goal.
And then, on the first play of the fourth quarter, a third straight Detroit series ended via turnover. Goff was hammered from both sides by Vikings defenders Dallas Turner and Andrew Van Ginkel, resulting in a fumble recovered by Minnesota.
Goff, who was hit eight times, said the turnovers were “something we’ve been really good at all year, and it sucks that it reared its head today. Really bad by us in that area.”
The Lions didn’t add to the scoreboard until their fifth possession, right before half, on the TeSlaa touchdown. After that, it was even tougher sledding than in the first half. Detroit’s eight second-half drives lasted an average of 4.3 plays, in part because of the turnovers, but also because Detroit couldn’t move the ball even when it wasn’t being taken away.
“Any time [Goff] isn’t able to step into the throw, it’s gonna be hard for him,” Campbell said. “That’s where he’s at his best, obviously, in the pocket. If he’s not able to at least hit that back foot and step into it, it makes it pretty difficult.”
Before they can put the pieces back together, the 2025 Lions will finish their season at Chicago next weekend (date and time to be determined) for a season-ending battle with Ben Johnson’s first-place Bears.
nbianchi@detroitnews.com
@nolanbianchi
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