Biggest Takeaways from Minnesota Vikings' Week 7 Win

The Minnesota Vikings used the first 300-yard passing game of the season from quarterback Teddy Bridgewater and a defense that sacked Matthew Stafford seven times to beat the Detroit Lions in Week 7. 

A game dominated by the Lions in the first quarter turned on its head over the final three, as Minnesota took control and never looked back. Bridgewater's deep touchdown pass to Stefon Diggs gave the Vikings their first lead early in the third quarter, and Minnesota didn't trail again. 

The Vikings are now 4-2 after seven weeks. The Lions, who won 11 games last season, dropped to 1-6, with two of the five losses coming at the hands of Minnesota. 

In the following slides, we'll take a look at the biggest takeaways from the Vikings' 28-19 win over the Lions on Sunday. 

Another Slow Start on the Road

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It looked early on like the Vikings' road blues would continue in Detroit. The Lions marched rather effortlessly to touchdowns on each of their first two possessions, taking a 14-3 lead through Matthew Stafford touchdown passes to Calvin Johnson and Eric Ebron.

Detroit needed just 11 plays to traverse 155 yards on the two drives. The Lions were marching on their third possession before Chad Greenway sacked Stafford and forced a punt. 

The slow starts on the road are now an obvious problem. Minnesota has fallen behind in all three of its games away from TCF Bank Stadium this season. The Vikings can't count on coming back to win on every road trip, especially with away games in Oakland, Atlanta, Arizona and Green Bay left on the schedule. 

An Otherwise Dominant Final Three Quarters

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Take away the first quarter, and the Vikings might have played their most dominant game of the season. Minnesota scored 25 of the game's final 30 points, including nine points in the final two minutes before halftime and the go-ahead score on the first drive of the third quarter.

The Lions scored two early touchdowns but could do next to nothing in the final three quarters. Detroit punted on six of its seven drives after going up 14-3, and it ended the game with back-to-back turnovers on downs.   

The Vikings harassed quarterback Matthew Stafford, sacking him seven times. Detroit had three drives in the second half with negative yardage. What looked like a potential upset early on suddenly turned into the kind of dominant performance we've seen from the Vikings at home in 2015. 

Starting slow means little when you can finish as well as the Vikings did on Sunday. It was men versus boys for most of the final three quarters at Ford Field. 

Stefon Diggs, the Next OBJ?

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A year ago, New York Giants receiver Odell Beckham Jr. missed the first four games of his rookie season. He returned for the final 12, caught 91 passes for 1,305 yards and 12 touchdowns and won the NFL's Offensive Rookie of the Year award. 

Vikings rookie receiver Stefon Diggs seems to be blazing a similar path. 

The fifth-round pick caught six passes for 108 yards and a touchdown against the Lions. He now has 19 catches for 324 yards over his first three NFL games. At his current per-game totals, Diggs is on pace to catch 82 passes for more than 1,400 yards over 13 games. 

He probably won't reach those numbers. But it sure looks like Diggs is going to be a mainstay for the Vikings offense, and his skill set figures to keep producing. He knows how to get open, and making big plays seems like second nature to the former Maryland star. 

His touchdown against the Lions was a perfect example. He put a double move on veteran cornerback Rashean Mathis, broke into the clear with speed and then laid out in the end zone to complete the touchdown catch. 

Diggs is an emerging star. Can he shine as bright as OBJ's rookie season? We're only three games in, but he's producing at similar levels. 

Matthew Stafford Probably Dislikes Mike Zimmer

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Mike Zimmer's relentless defense made life a living hell for Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford in 2015. Over two games against Minnesota, Stafford took eight sacks and absorbed 21 hits. The Vikings had Stafford grimacing with pain for a second consecutive meeting.

Zimmer attacked the Lions offense over and over, and for good reason: His blitzes kept producing hits on the quarterback. Stafford was sacked seven times, and on more than a few, he was taken to the ground before he was even able to finish his dropback. 

Six different Vikings had at least half of a sack on Sunday. Seven hit Stafford at least once. Zimmer brought pressure from everywhere, and rarely did the Lions have it blocked for their quarterback.  

Stafford won't face a Minnesota defense again until some point next season. He may need the time to heal up from the beatings provided by the Vikings in 2015. 

Vikings' Running Game Is Still Broken

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The Vikings rushed for 140 yards and averaged four yards per carry against the Lions, but those numbers were mostly a product of Adrian Peterson's 75-yard run in the second half. Minnesota otherwise struggled for a third straight game to produce any kind of consistency on the ground. 

Peterson had 75 yards on one carry but just 23 on his 18 others. He rushed for just 60 yards on 26 carries during last week's win over the Kansas City Chiefs. For a second straight week, a defense was hitting the Vikings running backs in the backfield. 

Minnesota also had a turnover when Teddy Bridgewater and Peterson fumbled away a handoff in the first half. 

Luckily, Bridgewater was able to carry the offense with big plays in the passing game. Still, the Vikings remain a team based upon winning at the line of scrimmage in the running game. The numbers looked good on Sunday, but Minnesota is still having big problems when trying to run the football. 

Red-Zone Struggles Prevented the Blowout

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The Vikings likely would have left Detroit with close to 40 points and a convincing win on the scoreboard had the offense been better inside the red zone. 

Minnesota finished 1-of-4 scoring touchdowns inside the 20-yard line, including two missed chances in the second half. The Vikings had to settle for field goals of 35 and 22 yards after driving deep into Detroit territory, which kept a game dominated by Minnesota within reach late in the contest.

Adrian Peterson's 75-yard run was mostly wasted. From the 3-yard line, the Vikings had two negative plays (minus run from Peterson and a sack of Bridgewater) and an incomplete pass before settling for the field goal. A drive later, the Vikings had 1st-and-goal at the 2-yard line but still couldn't punch in the score.

Touchdowns in each of those scenarios and a 22-17 lead could have swelled into a three-score game. 

The Vikings made stops late in the game to preserve the win, but the missed opportunities took away Minnesota's chance to blow out its division rival on the road.