NFC North Round-Up: Detroit Cruises Past Minnesota, Green Bay Clinches Playoff Spot in Week 18
Josh Frey
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Week 18 of the NFL season has come and gone, and the regular season has officially ended.
Now, we move onto the playoffs, and two NFC North teams will be featured in the NFC tournament, partially by way of victories in Week 18. Here is a look at how the division fared as a whole in the final weekend of the regular season.
Lions Sweep Series with Vikings
The Minnesota Vikings desperately needed a win over the Detroit Lions if they wanted to have any hope of making the playoffs this season. Unfortunately, they were unable to do that as they fell to Detroit by a score of 30-20.
Some very sloppy play from the team led to the loss as Minnesota was penalized a grand total of eight times for 77 yards. They also converted just two of their 13 third-down attempts for a putrid percentage of 15.4%.
Defensively, the Vikings sorely missed cornerbacks Mekhi Blackmon and Byron Murphy in the secondary. Amon-Ra St. Brown was able to get whatever he wanted, catching seven passes for 144 yards and a touchdown. Tight end Sam LaPorta also caught his 10th touchdown reception of the season before leaving the game with a knee bruise.
On the positive side of things for Minnesota, Justin Jefferson hit another career milestone by reaching the 1000-yard receiving mark for the fourth consecutive time to start his career. He became just the fifth player in NFL history to achieve that feat, joining Randy Moss (1998-2001), A.J. Green (2011-14), Mike Evans (2014-17), and Michael Thomas (2016-19).
Packers Clinch Spot in the Playoffs
The Green Bay Packers have a Week 18 game at home against an NFC North opponent to clinch a playoff berth. Sound familiar? It should because this is the exact position that the Packers found themselves in last season against the Detroit Lions.
This time, though, the Packers were able to close out the win and clinch a spot in the playoffs by defeating the Chicago Bears, 17-9. Jordan Love put together an outstanding game to lead the way to a Green Bay win, completing 27 of his 32 passes for 316 yards and a pair of touchdowns.
Meanwhile, Aaron Jones looks completely fresh off his early-season injury woes and earned 22 carries for 111 yards. Green Bay has won six of their past eight games and enter the playoffs red-hot.
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Josh Frey is a Class of 2020 graduate of The College of Idaho and managing editor of PurplePTSD.com. When he’s not writing about the NFL, Josh enjoys running, gaming, or rooting for the Milwaukee Brewers and Bucks. Check out his Twitter account: @Freyed_Chicken.