Old-school head coach Dan Campbell appears ready to punish Kevin O’Connell and the Vikings once again. (Photo by Nic Antaya/Getty Images)
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The NFL was able to grow into the most powerful sports organization in North America years ago because of the belief that upsets can happen on an every-week basis. A struggling team could defeat one with championship aspirations because a significant turnaround can happen on “Any Given Sunday.”
The most recent examples of poor teams coming up with significant upsets came in Week 8 as the winless New York Jets defeated the Cincinnati Bengals and the one-win Miami Dolphins hammered the Atlanta Falcons. Both the Jets and Dolphins had been lifeless teams before they were able to come up with those victories.
Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell needs to take heart from the performance of both of those teams and the leadership of head coaches Aaron Glenn and Mike McDaniel. O’Connell and the Vikings face an even greater task than either of those teams when the Vikings (3-4) go to Ford Field Sunday to take on the surging and dangerous Detroit Lions (5-2).
The Lions have arguably been the best team in the NFC since the start of last season. Their Super Bowl aspirations were short-circuited a year ago because of a series of defensive injuries that saw their season come to a painful conclusion in the divisional playoffs. Head coach Dan Campbell is as close to an old-school leader as there is in the NFL. He demands maximum anger and motivation from his players and the Lions always come onto the field with a full head of steam and ready to blow out their opponents.
Campbell may not bring back memories of disciplinarians like Don Shula and Tom Landry, but he is the closest thing in the league to those coaches of yesteryear. Despite his demanding ways, Lions players like Jared Goff, Amon-Ra St. Brown and Aidan Hutchinson love playing for Campbell and he is one of the NFL’s elite head coaches.
McCarthy replacing Wentz at QB
J.J. McCarthy returns to the lineup against the motivated and dangerous Detroit Lions. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
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The Vikings are reeling after suffering back-to-back losses to the Eagles and Chargers. Quarterback Carson Wentz tried to fill in, but he was forced to play through a fractured shoulder and a torn labrum. He is done for the season, and J.J. McCarthy finally gets to play again for the first time since Week 2.
He will be thrown into the fray against one of the angriest and nastiest teams in the league. McCarthy has suffered significant injuries in each of his first two seasons – Achilles in 2024 and high ankle sprain in 2025 – and the Lions will come after him with every bit of strength and power they have.
In addition to their shaky situation at quarterback, the Vikings have a slew of weaknesses that have sent them reeling this season.
The Vikings can’t protect their signal callers because they allow too many sacks. This problems was supposed to have been solved in the offseason with the addition of center Ryan Kelly and guard Will Fries, but injuries to offensive tackles Christian Darrisaw and Brian O’Neill have prevented the offensive line from asserting itself and protecting their beleaguered quarterbacks.
The run defense has fallen apart. The Vikings get pushed backwards when opponents use an extra tight end to overpower the front seven. The Brian Flores defense is supposed to be a difference maker for the Vikings, but it has become a liability.
The running game has been a major disappointment. Aaron Jones suffered a hamstring injury in Week 2 and the onus was on backup Jordan Mason after that. The former 49er has been moderately respectable as he has gained 383 yards on 88 carries and is averaging 4.35 yards per carry, but he can’t do it alone. Mason’s yards seem to come on his own as the offensive line (see above) has been overwhelmed throughout the majority of the season.
The Vikings are hurting badly and loaded with question marks. They are facing a divisional opponent that is peaking and has major advantages all over the field. The Lions are heavy favorites in this game and a blowout loss seems to be at hand.
The only thing that O’Connell has going for himself and his players is the NFL mantra exemplified by the Jets and Dolphins last week. “On any given Sunday” a major upset is possible. That may be true, but the Vikings have little else to turn to at this point.