In a game that had playoff stakes as a regular season finale, the Detroit Lions stood tall behind an impressive defensive effort to defeat the Minnesota Vikings 31-9.

With the victory, the Lions earn the top-seed in the NFC and a bye for next week’s opening Wild Card round. Detroit will play the winner of the four-seed Los Angeles Rams, led by former Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford, or the fifth-seeded Vikings for the third time this season.

Detroit was led by a monstrous defensive effort, holding the Vikings offense to their lowest point (9) and yardage (262) outputs of the season. The Lions keyed their defense stops in the redzone, holding the Vikings to only six points on four trips inside the 20-yard-line. They also held the Viking offense to 3 of 13 on third-down conversions, a 23% success rate moving the sticks. 

Opposing quarterback Sam Darnold only completed 18 of 41 passes for 166 yards, including two sacks and many more pressures. Star wideout Justin Jefferson, shadowed by a stellar effort from defensive back Amir Robertson, only caught three of nine targets for 54 yards. Detroit’s leading tackler was linebacker Alex Anzalone, who added seven stops and a pass break up in his first game back from breaking his forearm against Jacksonville on Nov. 17.

The Lions didn’t play their best offensively, including two interceptions from Jared Goff, but the running game carried the load. Jahmyr Gibbs scored all four touchdowns for Detroit, three on the ground and one in the air. Those four scores tied a Lions record for most in a single game and topped the NFL statistic lead with 19. The former Crimson Tide tail back rushed for 139 yards on 23 carries and added five catches for 31 yards on the contest.

Goff finished 27 of 33 for 231 yards and one touchdown, finding Amon-Ra St. Brown six times for 77 yards as well as Sam LaPorta seven times for 63 yards. Jameson Williams also added 34 receiving yards, helping him eclipse the 1,000-yard mark on the season. Kicker Jake Bates was 4 for 4 on extra points and made his sole field goal attempt from 48 yards out.

Detroit finishes with its best regular season record ever of 15-2, including 7-2 at Ford Field, 8-0 on the road, and 6-0 against NFC North teams. For more game and radio broadcasting, visit WBRN.com.