Cordarrelle Patterson had a late opportunity to make an impact on both special teams and at wide receiver in the 16-14 loss to the Lions at Ford Field on Sunday. The Vikings kickoff returner broke off his longest return this season, 51 yards, with 3:20 left in the game then caught two passes for 16 yards on three targets.

Right before the Vikings wide receiver Cordarrelle Patterson's final kick return against this Lions, his blockers called him into the huddle to give a pep talk.

"I never come in the huddle, but they told me, 'Trust me. Do what you do best,'" Patterson said. "They blocked it up so good, there was no way I couldn't find no holes. I've been in [the huddle] before, but I feel comfortable outside the huddle. They told me come in. Maybe I need to start coming into the huddle with them more often."

Patterson, used sparingly on offense as a backup, filled in for wide receiver Jarius Wright after he was on injured on the first play of that drive. The only target Patterson didn't catch was on fourth when rookie quarterback Teddy Bridgewater threw a ball over his head. A Lions defender made contact with Patterson on his route, but there wasn't a penalty thrown with 1:56 remaining.

"I felt like it was a penalty, but they didn't call it," Patterson said. "It was probably a good call by the official. The ball was probably out of reach of me getting, so it's a 50-50 call."