EAGAN, Minn. — The magnitude of the Week 18 regular-season finale between Minnesota (14-2) and Detroit (14-2) expands beyond the NFC North to NFL history.

Since playoff seeding began in 1975, this will be just the third time that two opponents have played in the final game of the regular season with the No. 1 seed in a conference on the line (1979 Dallas defeated Washington; 1993 the New York Giants topped the Cowboys).

This is the NFL's first regular-season game in which both teams have 13-plus wins before kickoff, and there's quite a bit on the line.

The winner will earn a first-round bye to advance to the Divisional Round and have the opportunity to host up to two NFC Playoff games (Divisional Round and NFC Championship Game] in competing for a trip to Super Bowl LIX.

The loser will be the No. 5 seed and have to go on the road in the Wild Card Round, visiting Tampa Bay, Los Angeles or Atlanta, depending on what happens.

History obviously has significantly favored No. 1 seeds over No. 5 seeds, but there's never been a No. 5 seed with 14 wins.

Since 1975, a No. 1 seed has made the Super Bowl 55.1 percent of the time, but a No. 5 seed has only made it 3.3 percent of the time.

Kickoff is 7:20 p.m. (CT), and the game will air nationally on NBC.

Vikings Uniform

The Vikings will wear a rarely used combination of white jerseys and white pants with purple helmets. This is different from the Winter Warrior look that debuted against Chicago in Week 15.

4 Storylines

1. Historic matchup

There have been two regular-season matchups in NFL history with 25 combined wins.

The 15-0 Patriots played the 10-5 Giants in Week 17 in 2007, and eventual NFC Champion Seattle (12-2) faced Indianapolis (13-1) in Week 16 in 2005. There have been 10 instances of teams with 24 combined wins meeting in the regular season, including in Week 14 of 1926, according to NFL Research when the 10-2-1 Pottsville Maroons and 14-1-1 Frankfurt Yellow Jackets played to a 0-all tie in the season finale.

Well, buckle up, folks, because this Black and Blue divisional meetup tops every previous game.

Minnesota and Detroit boast 14 wins apiece – that's 28 for the mathematically-challenged out there (there's no shame in that). That haul of wins is so rare it's been witnessed in the playoffs only five times.

Teams with 14-plus wins met in Super Bowls LVII, XXXIII and XIX, as well as the 2004 AFC Championship Game and 1998 NFC Championship Game, the latter of which featured a somber Vikings playoff exit.

The records entering Week 18 make for an astonishing tidbit of history.

Now, Minnesota will try to land on the good side of it.

2. Blake Cashman's impact

He streamlines defensive communication as the "Green Dot" player.

He takes on and defeats run blocks in the box and expertly drops into zone coverages.

He mugs gaps pre-snap or times up cadences and rushes quarterbacks with a unique ferociousness.

Minnesota is 13-0 this season in games with its fearless inside linebacker. The Lions in Week 7 caught Minnesota during the first of three games Blake Cashman missed with a toe injury – but the Minnesota native will be in the lineup on Sunday Night Football.

Cashman leads the Vikings defense with 104 tackles and 63 solo. He's fifth on the team with 10 hits on quarterbacks and eight passes defended, and fourth with 4.5 sacks and eight tackles for loss. The 28-year-old is indispensable to Vikings Defensive Coordinator Brian Flores' group functioning in top form.

Flores said this week that Cashman's natural leadership has a way of bringing people together.

When Cashman has played, Minnesota has allowed 331.1 yards of offense per game and 83.9 yards on the ground, and the unit's been extremely opportunistic, swiping 2.1 takeaways and notching 3.0 sacks per game.

Without him, the unit permitted 334.7 yards and 106.3 rushing, with 1.3 turnovers forced and 2.3 sacks per contest.

3. Fourth down juggernauts

In 2021, the Next Gen Stats Analytics Team introduced its machine-learning "Decision Guide."

Coaches were crunching numbers and deciding whether they should risk the biscuit and go for it on fourth down long before one of the industry leaders developed a series of tools that breaks down outcomes in real time, but the implementation of it acutely stressed the shift in the football world.

It helped fans understand the potential rewards of keeping the ball in the quarterback's hands and leaving punters and kickers in the warm-up zone. Ironically, the NGS Decision Guide coincided with …

… Dan Campbell being hired by Detroit.

As the leader of the Lions, Campbell has instructed the offense to stay on the field and attempt to convert on fourth down on 147 occasions since 2021. Detroit has succeeded 82 times (55.8%). Both pace the NFL in that time frame.

For comparison's sake, Vikings Head Coach Kevin O'Connell, who was hired in 2022, has gone for it on fourth down 58 times and converted 32 (55.2%). In that span, Campbell's group has tried and thrived on 61 of 106 (57.5%). In 2024, Detroit's 20 conversions on fourth ranks third; Minnesota's six is dead last.

Fortunately, the Vikings have a defense equipped to counteract Campbell's aggressiveness.

Minnesota has succumbed on 11 instances out of 31 dice rolls (35.5%). It's the stiffest fourth-down defense in the league by a fat margin – Baltimore and Detroit are tied for next at 46.2% (both 12 of 26).

4. Justin Jefferson (that's it)

In his career, Randy Moss compiled 747 receiving yards across seven games on the road at Detroit.

Minnesota's current earth-shattering WR, Justin Jefferson, has recorded 730 – in four such games!

Here's how that looks: Jefferson caught nine of 12 targets for 133 yards in Week 17 of the 2020 slate, his introduction to the Motor City. In Week 13 of 2021, he went for 11-182-1 via 14 targets, and in Week 14 one year later, Jefferson set the franchise regular-season, single-game receiving record with 223 yards, nabbing 11 of 15 targets. His encore to that was a spectacular 12-192-1 line by way of 14 passes in Week 18 last season.

The freakish production computes to 182.5 receiving yards per game on the Lions home turf.

That, plus Jefferson's recent string of dominance – he has 457 yards and five touchdowns in his past five games – and Detroit's defense being short-handed because of the injury bug, means history could repeat itself Sunday.

The more you know: Only Moss, fellow Pro Football Hall of Fame split end Raymond Berry (840 yards in 11 games) and three-time Pro Bowl receiver Carroll Dale, who spent the bulk of his 14-year career on the Packers and his final season with the Vikings (1,006 in 14 games), have more receiving yards at Detroit than Jefferson.

The next 25 entries on the list, with yards ranging from Donald Driver (726) to Stefon Diggs (404), including the likes of Adam Thielen, Cris Carter and Jerry Rice, amassed their totals in five or more games.

Oh and in roadies at Ford Field, which opened in 2002, it's basically Jefferson's building as he already has 31 more yards than the No. 2 visiting receiver, Donald Driver, who gathered his tally of 699 from 2002-12.

3 Things 'Bout the Lions

1. Top scoring offense

Ten teams in history have scored more points through 16 games than the 533 posted by the Lions.

Editor's note: The 1998 Vikings are sixth on the all-time list with 556 points scored in their 15-1 season.

Detroit's offense leads the league this year with 33.1 points per game. Buffalo (31.8) and Baltimore (30.2) are the only others averaging more than 30. Since Week 14, Detroit's average has spiked to 37.5.

It's a historically dominant campaign overall in terms of points combined with taking care of the football.

The Lions are the first team with five games in a season of 40-plus points and zero turnovers; they're undefeated in those circumstances. The only teams with four such games are the 2024 Bills (3-1) and the 2019 Ravens (4-0). Nine teams have done it thrice, dating to the Rock Island Independents in 1920.

Detroit did it most recently in its Monday Night Football win at San Francisco in Week 17.

In that escapade, the Lions scored 18 of 40 points in the third frame and had zero giveaways on 69 plays.

Furthermore, they've produced the second-most total yards in the NFL and committed the fourth-fewest turnovers this year. In Week 11 vs. Jacksonville, they garnered the ninth-most yards in a game (645) and third most in the third millennium; Miami set the record with 726 in 2023, and Houston had 653 in 2012.

2. Ravaged by injuries

The NFL season is a grind of attrition that has no qualms about sneaking up on the scariest teams.

Case in point, Detroit.

The list of Lions currently on Injured Reserve is extensive. It features 18 players total and includes defensive starters Alex Anzalone, Derrick Barnes, Carlton Davis III, Aidan Hutchinson, Alim McNeill and Malcolm Rodriguez, as well as dangerous punt returner Kalif Raymond, who has been designated for return. Stud running back David Montgomery also hasn't played since suffering an MCL sprain in Detroit's Week 15 loss against Buffalo.

Detroit did regain two key players on MNF in starting left guard Graham Glasgow and core special teams player and linebacker Jalen Reeves-Maybin. Montgomery is projected to make a return in the playoffs.

Also, Hutchinson, who had 7.5 sacks in five games this year and was hurt right before the Week 7 matchup, is reportedly working to rejoin the lineup if the Lions manage to make a deep postseason run.

3. Fantastic foursome

There were four instances in the past 30-plus seasons entering 2024 of four players on a team each surpassing 1,000 scrimmage yards. (No siree, there's never been a team with five such individuals.)

Detroit is the fifth – but the first with a tandem of running backs and wide receivers.

Jahmyr Gibbs leads the way on the Lions spread-the-wealth attack, with 1,273 rushing yards and 486 receiving for a whopping total of 1,759, which is third in the NFL. Amon-Ra St. Brown is second with 1,192 scrimmage yards while Montgomery is third (1,116) and Jameson Williams fourth (1,028).

The four other teams with 1,000-yard quartets in that span are San Francisco in 2023 (Brandon Aiyuk, George Kittle, Christian McCaffrey and Deebo Samuel), Carolina in 2020 (Robbie Chosen, Mike Davis, DJ Moore and Curtis Samuel), Indianapolis in 2004 (Marvin Harrison, Edgerrin James, Brandon Stokley and Reggie Wayne) and Atlanta in 1995 (Bert Emanuel, Craig Heyward, Terance Mathis and Eric Metcalf).

Detroit's foursome is particularly unique in that each player really is so different.

Gibbs has a speedy yet slashing running style, plays with a forward lean and can run post routes out of the backfield. He's about as hard to defend as anyone. St. Brown is a possession phenom, with 109 receptions and only a single drop according to Pro Football Focus – and strong. Montgomery is a bruising runner that has more wiggle than any player who is almost 230 pounds should. And Williams is a smell-ya-later speed threat.

Add to all that a tough-to-defend tight end in Sam LaPorta, who has 663 yards on 53 catches and seven touchdowns in Year 2, and a deep room of veteran wideouts – Tim Patrick, Raymond and Allen Robinson.

Of course, the guy distributing to the players above is amidst a special year, too.

Jared Goff ranks second among NFL passers in yards, third in completion percent and fourth in TDs. He's tracking to become the third QB all-time to conduct the No. 1 scoring offense on multiple teams (also with the Rams in 2017; 29.9 points per game), joining Pro Football Hall of Fame QBs Peyton Manning and Y.A. Tittle.

2 Vikings to Track

Justin Jefferson: Jefferson needs 21 yards for the third 1,500-yard season of his career and become the sixth player all-time with three such seasons. Jerry Rice, who played 20 seasons has the all-time record of four 1,500-yard seasons. Reminder that Jefferson is in just his fifth campaign. He also needs seven receptions to pass Steve Jordan (498) for fourth in Vikings history and eight to reach the 500-catch mark.

Sam Darnold: With one more touchdown pass, Darnold solely will rank second all-time in one season by a Vikings QB and only trail 39 by Daunte Culpepper in 2004. If he posts a passer rating of 100 or higher, he will tie the NFL record of 14 such games in a season, which was set by Aaron Rodgers in 2020. If he throws more than one touchdown, it will be his 13^th game of 2024 with two-plus scoring passes and break a team record set by Kirk Cousins in 2020 and matched in 2021.

1 Key Matchup

Cashman and Co. vs. Gibbs

Gibbs has three games this season with 100-plus rushing and 40-plus receiving yards.

He reached that many in Weeks 16-17 – and in Week 7 at U.S. Bank Stadium.

It's impossible to overstate, this week specifically, how important it is for Cashman and Minnesota's entire defense to set edges, play with great technique and patience, and collectively swarm to Gibbs in space – because he shifts gear and thus game momentum as briskly as any NFL player in recent memory.

In Week 7, the second-year running back out of Alabama rushed 15 times for 116 yards, with touchdown runs of 45 and 8. He coupled his 7.7-yard average on the ground with four receptions for 44 and a long catch of 18.

To gauge the seriousness of Gibbs' skills, here's a couple of stats from analytics site Pro Football Focus:

• Gibbs has 23 "breakaway" rushes that have gained 15-plus yards. That's No. 2 to MVP option Saquon Barkley (25), which is mind-boggling considering Gibbs has 118 fewer rush attempts.
• Similarly, Gibbs has 37 "explosive" runs of 10-plus yards, which is third behind the Eagles star (46) and Baltimore' workhorse Derrick Henry (41), who has carried 78 times more than Gibbs.

And one more from NGS:

• Gibbs is the inaugural player in the Next Gen Stats Era, dating to 2018, to average 2.5 yards per carry before contact and5 yards after contact in the same season (minimum 200 attempts).

Friday Updates …

The following content was added Jan. 3 after initial publication.

Status Report

The Vikings on Friday ruled out outside linebacker Pat Jones II because of a knee injury suffered in Week 17 against the Packers.

Minnesota listed linebacker Kamu Grugier-Hill (illness) and cornerback Fabian Moreau (hip) as questionable.

Rookie outside linebacker Dallas Turner, who has recorded seven tackles, 2.0 sacks and an interception in the past three games, could rotate in a bit more to help fill in for Jones.

Detroit ruled out RB David Montgomery (knee) and CB Emmanuel Moseley (illness) and listed LB Alex Anzalone (forearm), WR Kalif Raymond (foot) and RB Craig Reynolds (back) as questionable. Anzalone and Raymond are in their 21-day evaluation windows and can be activated, the Lions would need to make corresponding roster moves.

Memorable Week 18 Quotes

Wes Phillips on Cam Akers' game-sealing catch against Green Bay

"I saw the little clip of Kevin [O'Connell reacting], and yeah, I was feeling the same way. I told Cam, I said, 'Man, that was a great catch.' And he said, 'Coach, you know I've got pillow hands.' He does have soft hands. Catches the ball well. So, just a great, great play."

Brian Flores on being prepared for potential Detroit trick plays

"Yeah, I mean, [Lions Offensive Coordinator Ben Johnson's] got a lot in the bag, so you've got to be ready for all of it. They've got a pretty dynamic pass offense, run game, screen game. They got a bunch of trick plays, also. But to me it comes down to fundamentals and techniques — make sure you're setting edges and playing with the right leverage and coverage and getting to your landmarks — and those routine things that are kind of 'boring.' I think if you do those things over and over and over again, you put yourself in position for somebody to be ready for whatever the trick play is. […] I think more times than not, if you're consistently doing those things and letting other guys handle their responsibility, I think oftentimes what happens is, and it happens with us, too — everybody wants to make a play or get involved and run to the football, and Detroit kind of uses that to their advantage, which is smart by them."

Matt Daniels on Will Reichard's two missed field goals in Week 17

"I think the biggest thing is, the 57-yarder, he just got under it. I mean, it was a really a good hit. He just kind of got under a little bit, so it ended up kind of falling short right there. And then on the 43-yarder, he's just got to trust his line. He felt good about the hit, kind of talking to him after it happened; it just ended up kind of drawing a little bit on him. And he has a natural draw on the balls that he does hit; he's just got to trust that line right there coming off of that left hash and feel good about it. But it was a nice, good clean hit.

"He's not injured. He's perfectly fine. There's no excuses there in terms of injury being the reason why he missed [those field goals], anything like that. He's perfectly fine and healthy."

Sam Darnold on Kevin O'Connell using a team meeting to point out a mistake made by the coach

"I mean, it's just what we do here, it's just accountability. Obviously, there's – even when he takes accountability for something, I feel like I can always do something better in the moment. But that's just, that's how we do things. We always feel like we're looking in the mirror. We're not looking to blame anyone else or figuring out how other people can get better. We're just looking in the mirror figuring out what we can do better and going forward from there."

Andrew Van Ginkel on Blake Cashman

"He's the engine behind this car. He gets everything going, and it starts with his preparation and the way he takes notes in the meeting room and is asking the right questions. We go out and walk-through it, and if there's a problem, he'll bring it up. He's just always on top of things. On the sideline, he's always coming over to us to make checks, and if he sees something, he's letting us know. He's just the ultimate leader, and having a guy like that in the middle of your defense is a huge component to our success this year."

Jonathan Greenard on the magnitude of the game

"It's definitely the biggest one of my career, but we're not going to make it that. We're just going to understand that we control our destiny, and if we just get a 'dub,' it propels us to where we want to be, just like any other game. Continue to keep it level-headed but still bring that intensity because it's going to be a dogfight. I'm not expecting anything less. I feel like us doing that is going to be a key to victory."

From the Inbox

I have been a fan since 1969. I am now 62 years old. I have seen pretty much all the ups and downs a loyal fan could see.

I love this year's team.

Sports fans are in it for the passion and great times, and loyal ones stick it out in the not so fun times. We also, for the same reasons, seem to expect perfection from our teams — me included. I think so far, this team is as close to perfection that any fan can expect.

I love the concept of 1-0. No team has won any game or any title without that mentality.

We MUST stay focused, accept our faults so we can learn and do better on the next play, series or game.

I think these guys have the game we call Life figured out due to this concept, as well.

Fan for life,

— Sherrie Schaefer in Grand Forks, North Dakota

There's plenty to love about this year's squad, and I think winning helps amplify the enjoyable personalities that blend nicely with a teamwide unselfishness (note: Lindsey Young, Rob and I are working on a content item to be on the lookout for next week).

The Vikings have a nine-game winning streak, which is tied for the third longest in franchise history with the 1973 team that made it to Super Bowl VIII. Closing out the regular season with another win would match the 1975 team that may have been the best squad from 1973-76 but wound up being the only one not to make it to the big game (thanks to Dave Pearson's push-off and the debut of the "Hail Mary"). The only streak longer than that was 12 by the 1969 squad that hooked Sherrie and many others on the Vikings on the way to Super Bowl IV.

If the 2024 Vikings can match that streak, they'll earn another trip to New Orleans for Super Bowl LIX.

If Detroit is able to stop the streak this Sunday, Minnesota will still have a shot, but it will be a more difficult road.

I think this team so far has been incredibly dialed-in at focusing on the immediate and understanding everything it takes to go 1-0 in the NFL each week.

The quote included in the previous section from Darnold about O'Connell was interesting. It stemmed from O'Connell saying the following on Wednesday:

"They're not all positive; there are some clips positive. There are some clips that we do have to show for the betterment of improvement, and maybe it's situationally. A lot of times it's just me pointing out the things that I made mistakes on just so they know that this is not me standing up here at a very similar podium to this, but it's not me standing up there waving my finger telling everybody who did what well. Most of the time I like to make sure that they hear me say, 'I totally screwed this up, and you guys bailed me out,' or, 'The next time we get this situation, here's what you can expect,' or maybe it is a situation from around the league — a guy fumbling right before the ball goes out of bounds and making sure that everybody in the room knows that that clock is gonna wind on the ready for play [signal and] that it's not staying stopped. There's countless things that I'm talking to the guys about over the course of the season that I think are really important, but it is part of my philosophy to make sure if a guy does something that's really positive, you guys have seen it and more than likely made a point to compliment them, either on TV or in print, whatever it is, I sure as heck better be doing it as the head coach that's challenging them. In my opinion, it's confirmation of not only just good things, it's confirmation of clear intent, ownership from the player and then execution in the moment that I think is really important, so I try to make sure I highlight it for sure."

Having been a very faithful Vikings fan since their first game against the Bears in 1961, I just have to state that this team is the most mystifying team ever! I have finally reached the conclusion that we are, indeed, a very good team. A great assembly of talent and coaching!

My stepson presented me this woodburning picture that I feel compelled to share.

Enjoy!

— Gary H.

That is some awesome artwork. Kudos to your stepson on being such a great gift-giver.

And congrats to Darnold, Jefferson, Greenard, Van Ginkel, Byron Murphy, Jr., and Andrew DePaola on their selections to the Pro Bowl, which isn't Valhalla but is a nice honor worth celebrating. I know each appreciates the votes cast by fans, other players and coaches on their behalf.

It's been quite a view to see a team lay a foundation to believe in back in spring practices and reinforce it through training camp go on to deliver on so many game days.

Longtime fans have seen a lot and can truly appreciate what this team has accomplished so far and how legitimate the opportunity is to contend for a Super Bowl (which, I think for most football fans would be Valhalla).

Hi, back in August I asked what would you think the Vikings would do if Darnold played well and got them to the playoffs.

Would they re-sign him and forgo their plan to play J.J. McCarthy? You said that that would be a good circumstance to be in and left it at that.

Well, here we are, and this issue is now at hand. I think the Vikings should let Darnold walk and use the $63 million to get a guard, a defensive tackle and a corner for their money and move on to McCarthy. If they spend $45 million on Darnold they will leave gapping needs left unattended.

What do you think now that you have had a whole season to think about my August question?

— Steve from Arizona

I think we can all agree the Vikings are in a great position as the 2024 season winds down. Guaranteed of a playoff berth and having a shot at the No. 1 seed, which would be the first time for the Vikings to secure the NFC's top spot since 1998, is probably reaching "beyond wildest dreams" status for where most people's mindset was in August, but this team is legitimately good and has gotten consistently excellent play from Darnold.

Everyone could see the way the locker room relates with him and rallies around him, and that includes McCarthy, who has become one of the best Vikings hype men during his recovery.

I've previously covered the options that the Vikings would have with Darnold that include setting a max price for re-signing or allowing him to pursue other options, franchise tag and retain, franchise tag and trade, or adjusting elsewhere on the roster, which could impact the ability to retain some other players.

The deadline for a team to use a franchise tag is March 4, and the window for doing so doesn't open until Feb. 18. Free agency and the league's new year opens March 12, so there's plenty of time for the Vikings to enjoy the playoffs before having to make any decisions and for Darnold to continue to be where his feet are without entertaining any notions. He's openly said how much he's enjoying being a Viking and could factor his enjoyment of this environment in his decisions.

I'm not quite sure where the $ amounts mentioned are coming from, but I do know the Vikings have been skilled at navigating cap hits. O'Connell was asked about the future of the position on Wednesday and said the following:

"It would go totally against how I've coached the team to be spending any time, for me right now, focusing on the answers to those questions, because I know that the things that mean a lot to me are getting Sam [Darnold] ready to play, getting our team ready to play each and every week, whatever it's gonna take to win a game," O'Connell said. "As far as the quarterbacks room, since the addition of Daniel [Jones] with Brett [Rypien] and Nick [Mullens], we're coaching those guys up, and then you've got J.J. [McCarthy], who's doing a great job and has really put a stamp on where he's at in his rehab process, and now is so visible and a part of the meeting process and digesting game plans. So, we've got really five guys right now in our building that are constantly improving and getting better and just being comfortable as quarterbacks for the Minnesota Vikings, and I wish that number could be more than that."

My sincere advice is to focus on enjoying the present, which is one of the most significant regular-season games in NFL history and what the Vikings hope is the first of three "shirt-and-hat" games in a six-week span.

I've been a Vikings fan since they became a team and had summer practices in Bemidji. I live in Davis, Illinois. My question or suggestion: Vikings need to take the two game plans of the first half from both Packers games and execute them against Detroit Sunday. Only the first half of each game, run one first half of the Detroit game and the other in the second half. I think a sure win.

Thank you,

— Darrell F.

That's taking it way back to the beginning. I've still not made it up to Bemidji, but I really want to visit the site of the Vikings first five seasons when original Head Coach Norm Van Brocklin welcomed "cannon fodder" by the busload to see who would make the team.

Teams' approaches to conditioning players over the years have changed dramatically. O'Connell has had this part of the calendar in mind since players reported to Twin Cities Orthopedics Performance Center.

Just as advanced planning has increased for the team and the development of individual players (and viewing them as "cannon fodder"), we've seen game plans become increasingly complex over the years. Those two opening halves against the Packers this year were beyond impressive.

The first meeting between the Vikings and Lions jostled back and forth with Minnesota building an initial 10-0 lead before Detroit stormed back with 21 consecutive points that included a 45-yard run by Gibbs and a 35-yard touchdown by St. Brown, as well as the allowance of an 8-yard TD run by Gibbs with just 26 seconds remaining in the first half.

We've seen how momentum can shift within games, so taking care of the football will be incredibly important for the Vikings, who will enter the game with at least one takeaway in every game so far this season to tie a franchise record.

There had been considerable time between Week 4 and Week 17, and there's almost been as much time between Week 7 and this contest. That's more time on task for Darnold and Co. in this system.

Should be a good game.

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