Detroit Lions vs. Minnesota Vikings: Breaking Down Detroit's Game Plan

The Detroit Lions hit the road for a critical NFC North divisional matchup with the Minnesota Vikings.

What: Detroit Lions (3-2) at Minnesota Vikings (2-3)

When: Sunday, October 12, 1 p.m. ET

Watch: FOX, Mike Goldberg and Brendon Ayanbadejo with the call

Both teams are coming off tough losses. Detroit fell at home, 17-14, to the Buffalo Bills courtesy of three missed field goals and several key injuries on offense. Minnesota played last Thursday night against the Green Bay Packers and got waxed, 42-10, with third-string quarterback Christian Ponder at the controls. 

The Lions will likely head to the great outdoors without star receiver Calvin Johnson: 

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VIDEO: Lions could sit Calvin Johnson multiple games, reports @JasonPhilCole http://t.co/jVceLo7dFk pic.twitter.com/zoEh0nV0ZY

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) October 5, 2014"

This is probably a good week to sit Megatron and let him rest his injured ankle. Minnesota's pass defense ranks 28th over the last three weeks in QB Rating allowed at a very generous 106.2. 

As noted a couple of weeks ago, these Lions are capable of handling business without Johnson. Golden Tate has put up outstanding numbers the last two weeks with a very limited Johnson:

	Catches	Targets	Yards	1st Downs
Jets	8	11	116	5
Bills	7	9	134	4

They key against Minnesota is to get other receiving talents more involved. While that might seem like an issue with the players catching, it's the man throwing the ball who needs to step up.

Matthew Stafford must read the Minnesota defense better than he has recently. His poor decisions have stymied the Detroit offense, as in this play against Buffalo:

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I believe @Justin_Rogers pointed this out already, but man...3 defenders focused on Bush and Stafford dumps it off pic.twitter.com/Mwofz7cLs5

— king milker (@alex_reno) October 8, 2014"

Game tapes reveal many instances where the Detroit quarterback missed opportunities. Here's another from the New York game.

This play comes on 2nd-and-1, which is the optimal down and distance to take a shot down the field. 

NFL Game Rewind

Stafford has two receivers running on opposite seams, both of whom are in the clear. The Jets have one safety (circled in blue) responsible for both. Instead of taking the shot, Stafford quickly unloads to Golden Tate on a shallow crossing route. Both Jets in underneath coverage were keying on Tate and not the deeper route options. The protection up front was fine, no need to hurry. 

The play did indeed achieve the goal of picking up a first down, but this was not a time to be conservative. Stafford needs to get back to reading long-to-short, not automatically defaulting to the safer pass. The football gods blessed him with a thunderbolt of a right arm, to paraphrase Bull Durham, and he's insulting those gods by not using it. 

Minnesota has some quarterbacking issues of its own, though, help is on the way. After missing last week's horrible blowout, rookie Teddy Bridgewater is expected to take back the starting reins from woefully overmatched Christian Ponder.

Ben Goessling from ESPN noted on Tuesday that Bridgewater is a good bet to start:

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Bridgewater was back at practice on Tuesday, as the Vikings came back from a long weekend following their 42-10 loss to the Green Bay Packers on Thursday night. The rookie missed that game with a sprained ankle, but coach Mike Zimmer said after the game the Vikings planned to start Bridgewater on Oct. 12 against the Detroit Lions. 

"

Bridgewater presents a different challenge than the mistake-plagued Ponder. If he's not throwing interceptions on consecutive drives, as Ponder did in Green Bay, he's an important rudder to a Vikings ship that has real talent but often loses its way in the waves of a game.

His presence will force the Lions to pay more attention to Cordarrelle Patterson. Detroit fans know all too well what the talented and versatile Patterson can do. In the 2013 finale, Patterson:

• Caught two passes for 31 yards and a touchdown
• Ran twice for 54 yards and a spectacular touchdown
• Drew two penalties

For some reason, the Vikings have not been utilizing the dynamic Patterson as much as expected. Darren Page broke down this frustrating (for Minnesota fans) development with his excellent piece for Bleacher Report earlier this week. 

The Detroit defense needs to be prepared for the Vikings offense to lean on its most talented player. Given how badly he torched the Lions when last these two teams met, it's a safe bet Patterson will be an integral part of Minnesota's game plan. 

If Bridgewater and Patterson do go off, the Lions need to do a better job converting drives into points. 

Obviously, the kicking has to improve. It cannot get any worse; Detroit kickers are 4-of-12 on the season, including a current string of 1-of-7. To that end, the Lions signed veteran Matt Prater fresh off his suspension from an alcohol violation of the NFL's substance abuse policy, as noted by Mike Klis of the Denver Post. 

Further down in Kils' article, he reveals why Prater was the Lions' choice despite some personal issues: 

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His kicking resume can trump any workout. He was a league-best 25-of-26 in field goals for the Broncos last season, including an NFL record-breaking 64-yard strike in 18 degree weather Dec. 8 against Tennessee at Sports Authority Field at Mile High.

"

Minnesota now plays outdoors, though, temperatures are projected to be in the 50s for Sundays and not the frigid conditions under which Prater booted his record kick. 

It would be even better if the Lions didn't need Prater to attempt so many field goals. Getting the ball into the end zone eliminates any further kicking woes. 

Here's a play the New Orleans Saints used to cash in a long drive against the Minnesota defense for six points. Remember, Detroit's offensive coordinator, Joe Lombardi, came over from the Saints and has installed a very similar offense. 

NFL Game Rewind

With tight end Jimmy Graham split wide to the left and three wideouts flanking the right, the Vikings defense is spread out. This creates space for the offense to operate despite the shorter field. 

Graham runs a fade, while the outside receiver on the opposite side runs a straight vertical route to the corner of the end zone. With the running back on a circle route to occupy the linebacker, Brees knows he has his two interior options to his right on single coverage.

NFL Game Rewind

The Vikings defense is in remarkably good shape as the play unfolds. Look at that coverage—every receiver appears well-covered. This is where chemistry and synchronicity between a quarterback and his receivers trumps good defense.

NFL Game Rewind

Marques Colston loses the linebacker covering him with a shake move, stepping and juking outside before bending inside. With the receiver flanking him and simultaneously curling outside, no help can come.

Brees lets it fly the second he sees Colston get an advantage. The big wideout reels in the catch and then lunges between four converging defenders for a touchdown. 

Even without Johnson, Stafford can make that throw, and guys like Eric Ebron, Golden Tate and even Ryan Broyles can run those routes and make that kind of catch. It takes confidence and trust, but without risk, there is no reward. 

The Lions need to put last week's abysmal loss behind them. Good teams have that ability. We'll find out if these Lions are a good team if they can handle this business trip to Minnesota.