The Lions defeated the previously unbeaten Vikings 31:29 in the late FG and crowned the NFC North thriller

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The Detroit Lions became division champions with one at the end of last season for the first time in 30 years decisive victory in Minnesota. This time, they went home with another memorable and resilient performance – and a major boost in their pursuit of another NFC North title.

Jake Bates hit a 44-yard field goal with 15 seconds left Lions ‘ 31-29 victory on Sunday, handing over the Vikings their first loss in a back-and-forth game befitting it The strongest division in the NFL.

“We talked about patience, composure, communication and poise, and our guys did that,” coach Dan Campbell said. “We didn’t bat an eyelid when it seemed like things were going a little south.”

Jahmyr Gibbs rushed for 116 yards and two of Detroit’s three touchdowns in the second quarter. He also helped Jared Goff lead the Lions 48 yards on four plays to get within range of their rookie kicker while forcing the Vikings to burn their timeouts.

Bates, brought in from the United Football League after incumbent Michael Badgley was injured early in training camp, has a 10-for-10 field goal percentage this season.

Goff went 22 for 25 for 280 yards with touchdown passes to Amon-Ra St. Brown and Kalif Raymond and no turnovers in his third straight game with a passer rating of 140 or better, surpassing Aaron Rodgers (2011), Kurt Warner (1999) joined Roger Staubach (1971) as the only quarterback in NFL story to accomplish the feat.

“He can’t be bothered. He’s tough. He’s competitive and dependable,” Campbell said.

Gibbs totaled 150 yards to lead a commanding performance by the Lions (5-1) at the line of scrimmage against a defense that entered the week with a rushing average per play (3.6), second-best in the league achieved.

“He was so close to exploding,” Campbell said, “and we felt like this was the right thing to do.”

Ivan Pace Jr. returned David Montgomery’s fumble 36 yards for a touchdown with 5:50 left, giving the Vikings (5-1) a one-point lead after they trailed 21-10 at halftime but Sam Darnold’s game-winning 2-pointer Conversion pass sailed past Justin Jefferson.

The Vikings reached midfield on their final possession, but an illegal formation penalty on left tackle Christian Darrisaw after the rush of the set put them out of range for their perfect rookie Will Reichard to attempt a field goal. Darnold was sacked to end the game and give the Lions their fourth straight victory over the Vikings, their longest streak in the series since 1961-63.

The defending champion Lions are tied with the Vikings, with the Green Bay Packers (5-2) a half game behind and the idle Chicago Bears (4-2) a game behind. The quartet, which has produced exactly one Super Bowl champion in the last 27 seasons, had the highest combined winning percentage for a division in NFL history as of Week 7.

Aaron Jones rushed for 93 yards and a touchdown for Minnesota despite being listed as questionable with a hamstring injury. Jefferson had 81 yards receiving and a score, and Reichard made three field goals, including a 57-yarder.

Darnold went 22 for 27 for 259 yards, but he spoiled a promising second-quarter drive by ignoring a wide-open Jones in the flat after a play-action fake and forcing a throw to Jordan Addison that was intercepted by a leaping Brian Branch became .

“Of course that shouldn’t happen,” Darnold said. “But Branch did really well.”

The Lions played a second quarter for the ages. They had three scoring drives, all of which traveled at least 69 yards, thanks to clever play-calling from offensive coordinator Ben Johnson that negated Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores’ moves as Goff hit blitz after blitz.

“They want to apply pressure. For us, we go down 10% and get a little bit of a kick in the mouth,” Goff said. “Stay calm, stay relaxed.”

Darnold’s mistake

Two misfires by Darnold against Jefferson ended up being costly.

The 2-point shot was too far after Jefferson ran a short way across the goal line. Then on third and fourth play, after the Vikings forced a punt after Pace’s score – their third defensive touchdown of the season – Darnold threw too high for Jefferson near the sideline.

“I have to give them a lot of credit, but we definitely hurt each other in a lot of ways,” Jefferson said.

Injury report

Lions: Montgomery (knee) limped off the field in the first quarter but returned before halftime. … RG Kevin Zeitler (groin) was inactive and his backup, Kayode Awosika, was flagged twice for holding and once for a false start in the first quarter. A holding call was rejected because the Vikings sacked Goff during the game.

Vikings: LB Blake Cashman (toe) was inactive.

Next

Lions: Host the Tennessee Titans next Sunday afternoon.

Vikings: Play at the Los Angeles Rams on Thursday night.

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This version corrects the length of Ivan Pace Jr.’s fumble return to 36 yards instead of 35 yards.

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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL