MOMENT OF CLARITY

LIONS 19

VIKINGS 15

The Minnesota Vikings lost a football game Sunday, something that hadn't happened in roughly 11 months.

I expected them to. I mean, they weren't going undefeated. They weren't sweeping the division. Facing the Lions on the road is a tough game. Losing this one is hardly shameful. 

But here's the thing. The Lions have one of the worst defenses in football, and we're further depleted during this game. And the Vikings finished with 15 points. This just isn't getting any better.

The early vibes were bad when the Vikings opening drive ended with a deep shot to Jordan Addison that had pretty clear DPI that went uncalled, and then Will Reichard missed a long field goal.

But the Vikings' defense went to work and did their thing against the Lions' challenging offense. Detroit moved the ball a little bit but was not explosive. Andrew Van Ginkel got 2 ½ of the Vikings 4 1st half sacks. James Pierre nabbed the 1st interception of the year from Jared Goff. All the Lions had at halftime were a pair of field goals.

But the Vikings offense once again was anywhere on the spectrum from inconsistent to inept. They did put one in the endzone, on a terrific acrobatic grab by Justin Jefferson, but the rest of the half was ugly stuff. Kyler Murray was missing passes badly all over the place, and there were plays to be made. He threw his 1st interception since the Tampa game, which allowed Detroit to get that 2nd field goal.

Kevin O'Connell needed to bench Murray at halftime. But it didn't happen, and Murray returned following a Lions missed field goal doink. Murray took 2 sacks, and the Vikings punted.

Detroit quickly gashed the Vikings, largely on the ground, to get their 1st touchdown. Jahmyr Gibbs basically dominated the 2nd half.

The Vikings moved into scoring range the next series, which was delayed by a scary injury to Jack Campbell. After the delay, the Vikings faced a 4th down well within Reichard range, but KOC decided to go for it. The play call was bad, and the Lions got the ball back.

The defense forced a 3 and out, though, and the Vikings responded with their best drive of the day. The key play was a deep bomb to Addison, the rare Murray deep shot that didn't look like a blind man randomly threw a ball in the air. That 51-yard connection set up a TD to TJ and then a 2-point pass to Addison. And so suddenly, the Vikings led 15-12.

But those cracks in the defense became a full leak. The ensuing Lions drive was a humbling collection of missed tackles. The Lions took full advantage by retaking the lead.

I can't blame the defense that much. The Vikings offense has at least been able to do some ball control this year, but in this game, they didn't stay on the field, and the defense got exhausted. Chasing that motherfucker Gibbs around tires you out.

This did provide Murray with a shot at redemption. He hadn't had to lead a comeback drive yet this season, and a lot of ills can be forgotten if a QB plays his best ball late.

This didn't happen. Not close. Murray was way off on a 3rd down throw and the Vikings punted. Wait...we punted? With barely 3 minutes to play? And after getting clowned on the ground minutes earlier?

It was an astonishing decision by KOC to punt, bordering on forfeiture. Everybody watching the game knew we would never see the football again. Not that picking up a 4th and 4 with this mess of a QB is a given, but at least go down swinging. 

Well, what we knew would happen happened. The Lions easily picked up a couple of 1st downs and won the game. A game that was eminently winnable went in the loss column.

But it did prove once and for all that the Kyler Murray experiment just doesn't work. KOC keeps offering postgame word salad in defense of Murray, but we are into November now. The excuses have worn thin. He's had 1st team reps since early August. He's had 5 starts since the concussion. He had a bye week to sharpen up. The offense remains almost fully healthy. And facing a bad, depleted defense he had by far his worst start to finish game. His inaccuracy is maddening. His near instant panic in the pocket all the time is annoying. He doesn't use his legs as a weapon much. Justin Jefferson is a ghost out there half the time.

We all know KOC's playcalling isn't good, but Murray's play is not improving at all. One loss is not that big a deal, but it's clear that the theoretical ceiling for this team with Murray is not as high as I thought it would be. You can probably still win the north with Murray, and certainly make the playoffs, but it ends there.

The trade deadline looms in a week. I don't know if Kirk Cousins, who leads the NFL in touchdowns, is gettable. The Raiders won this week to get back to .500, but are clearly the 3rd best team in their division and the AFC may only have 1 wild card spot that isn't spoken for. 

There are also rampant Jonathan Taylor rumors, and I'd certainly take him too.

At the minimum I would start Carson Wentz next Monday against Buffalo. He can at least give you more of a capable distributor of the football. He doesn't offer you the mobility, but at least those deeper throws have a better chance. Is that enough to lift this offense enough to carry you another ten games plus playoffs?

The NFC is wide open. The whole NFL is, really. I hope Nolan Teasley is willing to make the moves necessary to give the Vikings a shot.