The Lions have taken a second-half lead over the Vikings.
Jahmyr Gibbs put the ball in the box on an outstanding 30-yard run for a touchdown, giving Detroit a 12-7 advantage with 4:40 left in the third quarter.
Gibbs took a pitch in the backfield and ran it up the middle, evading defenders to the left sideline before powering his way past the goal line for the score.
Quarterback Jared Goff was down the field to help out Gibbs with a block just before he reached the end zone.
That run gave Gibbs 90 yards on 17 carries with a TD. He’s also caught a couple of passes for 15 yards.
The Lions went for two to potentially increase the leas to seven points, but didn’t get it on a run with Gibbs. After Gibbs had just exhausted himself on the run, it was a questionable use of personnel and play-calling.
On the injury front, Lions center Cade Mays (ankle) and Lions running back Jacob Saylors (neck) have both been downgraded to out.
Vikings Clips
The Lions will have to play the rest of Sunday’s game against the Vikings without two key defenders.
Edge rusher DJ Wonnum and defensive back Brian Branch have both been ruled out for the rest of the contest with concussions.
The two players collided in the second quarter when they were trying to tackle receiver Justin Jefferson.
It was a direct helmet-to-helmet hit for both players.
The Lions are down 7-6 to the Vikings early in the third quarter.
It’s been a heavyweight battle between NFC North foes in Detroit through 30 minutes, with the Vikings clinging to a 7-6 lead at halftime.
Detroit has gotten two field goals from Jake Bates, one from 25 yards and another from 37 yards late in the second quarter to narrow Minnesota’s lead to one point.
Justin Jefferson caught a 1-yard touchdown pass from Kyler Murray early in the second quarter for Minnesota’s only points.
The Vikings had a chance to score more, but Will Reichard missed a 57-yard field goal wide right in the first quarter.
While Jefferson leads the Vikings with eight targets, he’s only been able to catch four passes for 25 yards with a TD. Murray is 7-of-15 for 86 yards with a touchdown and a pick. He also leads the Vikings with 26 yards on three carries.
On the other side, Jared Goff tossed his first interception of the season when Jameson Williams fell down on a route. The quarterback is 11-of-16 for 110 yards against Minnesota’s vaunted defense so far on Sunday.
Jahmyr Gibbs has 37 yards on 11 carries.
Lions edge rusher DJ Wonnum and defensive back Brian Branch are both being evaluated for concussions after colliding while trying to tackle Jefferson in the second quarter.
After scoring late in the second quarter, the Lions will have a chance to double up as they will receive the second-half kickoff.
Two Lions collided late in the second quarter and both had to be taken off the field.
Edge rusher DJ Wonnum was carted off after he and defensive back Brian Branch hit each other helmet-to-helmet while trying to bring down receiver Justin Jefferson on a catch.
Branch was able to walk off the field, but went to the locker room for further examination.
The Lions have a couple of other injury issues from the game against the Vikings so far. Center Cade Mays is questionable to return with an ankle injury. Running back Jacob Saylors is also questionable to return with a neck injury.
The Vikings lead the Lions 7-3 with two minutes remaining in the second quarter.
Justin Jefferson has made it to the end zone.
Kyler Murray hit Jefferson for a 1-yard touchdown early in the second quarter, giving the Vikings a 7-3 advantage.
Jefferson was matched up one-on-one on the left side, and was able to tip the fade pass to himself, diving to secure the catch.
It was Jefferson’s fourth touchdown of the season and his first reception of the contest.
Murray has now started the game 4-of-9 for 62 yards with a TD.
The Vikings could’ve scored in the first quarter, but Will Reichard missed a 57-yard field goal wide right.
Additionally, Detroit receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown had to be checked in the locker room after going down on what was eventually ruled an incomplete pass in the end zone. But he was back on the sideline and on the field for the next possession.
When the Vikings added receiver Odell Beckham Jr. to the practice squad, it was believed to be a message to free-agent acquisition Jauan Jennings. And possibly the first step toward a trade back to the 49ers.
Via Jay Glazer of Fox Sports, it almost happened.
Glazer reports that the Vikings and 49ers had a deal in place that would have resulted in Jennings being traded to San Francisco, where he had spent his entire career before signing with the Vikings. But the deal, per Glazer, was contingent on Jennings getting on a Zoom call with coach Kyle Shanahan and G.M. John Lynch.
Jennings passed. He decided to stay in Minnesota.
It will be interesting to see whether it leads to more production from Jennings. He had two catches for 34 yards last Sunday against the Colts. Before that, he had two catches for nine yards in four total games.
In 1969, the Vikings lost their first game of the regular season, at the Giants. The Vikings later lost their last game of the regular season, at the Falcons. In between, Minnesota won 12 games in a row with Joe Kapp at the helm.
It still stands as the longest winning streak in franchise history. And they could tie it today.
The Vikings won five in a row to end the 2025 season. They’re now 6-0. A win today would be No. 12.
It won’t be easy. The Vikings return to Detroit, where two seasons ago Minnesota was one victory away from winning the No. 1 seed in the NFC. And the Lions, after being swept by the Vikings in 2025 (including an embarrassing loss on Christmas Day that ended Detroit’s playoff chances), will be looking for a measure of revenge.
Much of it comes down to whether quarterback Jared Goff can crack the code on the Brian Flores defense. Last year, the Vikings consistently got to Goff with their unpredictable pressures before Goff could find the holes in the defense. On December 25, the Vikings sacked Goff five times and forced a pair of interceptions.
The far bigger question for the Vikings will be whether they can gain yards, chew the clock, and ultimately score points. Although the Vikings rank first in the league in points allowed (12.3 per game) and second in yards allowed (252.8 per game), the Lions offense ranks second in points scored (30.7 per game) and yards per game (397.3).
Detroit will get their yards and score their points. The pressure will be on Minnesota’s offense to deliver, primarily in the passing game.
The rushing attack is on notice, too. Rumors and reports linger that the Vikings could trade for Colts running back Jonathan Taylor. That should provide an extra kick to Aaron Jones and Jordan Mason on Sunday.
Wide receiver George Pickens has touchdown catches in two of his last three games and he’ll have a chance to make it three of four against the Cardinals on Sunday.
Pickens was listed as questionable on the Cowboys’ final injury report due to shoulder and hamstring issues, but he avoided the inactive list ahead of kickoff in Dallas. Pickens has 37 catches for 485 yards overall this season.
Defensive tackle Kenny Clark was also listed as questionable for the Cowboys due to a back injury. He joins Pickens in the lineup for Week 8.
Cardinals at Cowboys
Cardinals: QB Carson Beck, CB Starling Thomas, RB Evan Hull, LB Eku Leota, OL Jon Gaines, OL Albert Reese, DL Walter Nolen
Cowboys: WR KaVontae Turpin, CB Shavon Revel, LB Dee Winters, LB Tyrus Wheat, OL Drew Shelton, TE Luke Schoonmaker
Raiders at Jets
Raiders: WR Dont’e Thornton, QB Aidan O’Connell, WR Malik Benson, S Tristin McCollum, S Dalton Johnson, OL Bryce Cabeldue, DT JJ Pegues
Jets: RB Breece Hall, WR Tim Patrick, OL Max Mitchell, OL Kohl Levao, LB David Bailey, LB Joseph Ossai, CB Nahshon Wright
Falcons at Buccaneers
Falcons: QB Andy Dalton, QB Jack Strand, LB Divine Deablo, RB Brian Robinson, DB Billy Bowman, CB Robert Longerbeam, DE Drake Jackson
Buccaneers: WR Emeka Egbuka, CB Ayden Garnes, G Luke Haggard, G Billy Schrauth, DL DeMonte Capehart
Ravens at Bills
Ravens: WR Elijah Sarratt, S Jaylinn Hawkins, CB Chandler Rivers, OL Emery Jones, G Vega Ioane, DL Aeneas Peebles, QB Joe Fagnano
Bills: OT Spencer Brown, OL Ar’maj Reed-Adams, DL Greg Gaines, WR Skyler Bell, LB Mike Danna, CB Dee Alford, S Jalon Kilgore
Browns at Steelers
Browns: QB Dillon Gabriel, QB Taylen Green, LB Justin Jefferson, CB Noah Igbinoghene, RB Audric Estime, C Parker Brailsford
Steelers: WR Ben Skowronek, QB Drew Allar, QB Will Howard, CB Brandin Echols, RB Eli Heidenreich, CB Doneiko Slaughter
Colts at Jaguars
Colts: LB Bryce Boetticher, TE Pharaoh Brown, DT Kevin Givens, WR Anthony Gould, OL Charlie Heck, QB Riley Leonard, CB Justin Walley
Jaguars: S Antonio Johnson, WR CJ Williams, CB Alijah Huzzie, LB Jamal Hill, DE Wesley Williams, DT Albert Regis
Vikings at Lions
Vikings: S Jakobe Thomas, CB Charles Demmings, RB Demond Claiborne, OL Caleb Tiernan, DL Elijah Williams, QB Max Brosmer
Lions: TE Jackson Meeks, C Seth McLaughlin, DL Mekhi Wingo, DE Ahmed Hassanein, S Bishop Fitzgerald
Titans at Bengals
Titans: RB Tyjae Spears, WR Carnell Tate, P Tommy Townsend, OL Brandon Crenshaw-Dickson, TE Kylen Granson, DL Jackie Marshall, DB Jaylon Jones
Bengals: S Kyle Dugger, C Connor Lew, OL Myles Hinton, WR Mitchell Tinsley, DT Landon Robinson
The NFL’s injury report places no obligation on teams to disclose that a player will be a healthy scratch. The world finds out if a player who is able to play otherwise won’t be playing roughly 90 minutes before kickoff, when the team supplies its list of inactive players.
For the Colts, there’s a decision to be made later this morning. Will running back Jonathan Taylor play at Jacksonville, as they continue to engage in talks aimed at trading him? (The Giants are definitely making a play to get him, and others presumably are, too.)
By all indications, Taylor will play. But if the phone rings before 11:30 a.m. ET and the Colts get an offer they choose not to refuse, the plan could quickly change. (And since the Giants don’t have a game this weekend, they can focus their efforts exclusively on trying to get it done, even if it takes a call from coach John Harbaugh to owner Carlie Irsay-Gordon.)
Three weeks ago, the Cardinals knew on Friday that they’d be trading receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. after Sunday’s game. Harrison didn’t play. It’s possible that one of the teams interested in Taylor will put the right terms on the table in order to persuade the Colts to put Taylor in bubble wrap for Sunday pending a post-game announcement that Taylor will be changing teams.
Without a deal in place imminently, the Colts will be taking a calculated risk if Taylor is active. If he gets injured, the trade market will evaporate.
Like it did on Friday for the Commanders and defensive tackle Daron Payne. There were trade talks regarding Payne, until he suffered a season-ending foot injury in practice.
So even though the trade deadline doesn’t arrive until November 10, there are various other deadlines that could drive a trade decision. For the Colts, the most immediate deadline arrives very soon, when they have to decide whether to let Taylor play and risk an injury that would necessarily close the door on a potential trade.
There are two ways to handle the trade of a cornerstone player. One, talk quietly to a minimal number of teams. Like the Titans did with defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons. Two, throw the doors open and try to get the best possible package of draft picks and/or players in return. Like the Colts are now doing with running back Jonathan Taylor.
Indianapolis has officially declared that Taylor is available, via a selective and strategic leak to ESPNFL. Trade talks are “active and ongoing,” per the report.
The teams that have “expressed at least some level of interest” are the Broncos, Packers, Vikings, Giants, and Seahawks.
Last weekend’s Sunday Splash! report that operated as the “everything must go” sign for the Colts pegged the Broncos, Packers, Vikings, and Seahawks as potentially interested teams in Taylor. The Giants (who are believed, we’re told by multiple sources, to have been pursuing Simmons) are a new arrival. Which would possibly be bad news for second-year running back Cam Skattebo, who emerged from the doghouse last week with 124 rushing yards. (It wouldn’t be a surprise if the Giants offered Skattebo to the Colts as part of the trade package, frankly.)
To the extent that tying four teams to the trade talks doesn’t get the Colts maximum compensation, the new report notes that the Colts “would prefer” that Taylor stick around for their “rebuild.”
If they really wanted Taylor, they wouldn’t be fielding trade offers fo him.
The Colts reportedly are looking for a package similar to what the 49ers sent to the Panthers in 2022 for running back Christian McCaffrey: a second-round pick, a third-round pick, and a fourth-round pick in the 2023 draft and a fifth-round pick in the 2024 draft.
The next question is whether Taylor will play on Sunday. It’s possible, in our view, the Colts will hold Taylor out of action on Sunday at Jacksonville, like the Cardinals did three weeks ago when they had a deal in place to trade receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. to the Texans. Even without a deal, keeping Taylor out of the game would ensure that he won’t get injured.
If that happens, rookie Seth McGowan would be the likely starter in Week 8. Last Sunday, the seventh-rounder who played for Kentucky last year had 11 carries for 48 yards in a 16-10 loss to the Vikings.
And the Vikings continue to make the most sense for Taylor. Especially since they had the best possible opportunity to scout him six days ago, when he had 18 carries for 95 yards and an Adrian Peterson-style 38-yard touchdown run.
If the Vikings add Taylor in the coming days, he’d likely make his debut as soon as next Monday night, when the Vikings host the Bills. And when they put Peterson in the team’s Ring of Honor.
