Vikings-Lions preview: Can Max Brosmer lead a Christmas upset?

Brosmer starts for Vikings again after McCarthy’s latest injury: After J.J. McCarthy sustained a hairline fracture on his right hand in the first half of the Vikings’ win over the New York Giants on Dec. 21, the Vikings will play their seventh game of the season without their starting QB. They will turn to Max Brosmer, who played the second half against the Giants and directed a field-goal drive after starting the Vikings’ shutout in Seattle last month. “It’s a mental ability where you get to build from that game, because there’s going to be games throughout the rest of your career where you’re going to have a few picks. You might lose a game where you felt like maybe you could have done something better yourself,” Brosmer, a former Gophers quarterback, said Dec. 23. “But I’m going to use that to continue to build.”

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Latest round of offensive line injuries will have Vikings adjusting again: The Vikings shut left tackle Christian Darrisaw down for the season last week and will play without Ryan Kelly because of the center’s latest concussion. Right tackle Brian O’Neill could play through a heel injury (as he did against the Giants), but the Vikings will have Justin Skule at left tackle and Michael Jurgens at center, with Blake Brandel ready to step in if O’Neill can’t go or finish the game. Lions edge rusher Aidan Hutchinson, who has 11½ sacks, will line up across from the right tackle, while edge rusher Al-Quadin Muhammad (who has been limited with a knee injury this week) won NFC Defensive Player of the Week honors two weeks ago.

Vikings will try to get Jefferson going against Lions’ spotty secondary: Justin Jefferson has had plenty of big games against the Lions over the years, setting a franchise regular-season single-game record for receiving yards with 223 in a 2022 matchup. Brosmer found him for a key 21-yard completion on a third-and-17 against the Giants, throwing what Jefferson called a “perfect ball” after the game. As the Vikings try to get Jefferson the final 83 yards he needs to reach 1,000 for the season, he will work against a depleted Lions secondary that has been torched in recent weeks after the losses of Brian Branch, Kerby Joseph and Terrion Arnold to injury.

Vikings hope to contain Gibbs again: Lions running back Jahmyr Gibbs scored five touchdowns in the Detroit sweep of the Vikings that decided the 2024 NFC North race. When the teams met at Ford Field in November, the Vikings turned things around, holding him to a season-low 28 yards from scrimmage while blitzing quarterback Jared Goff enough to make Gibbs a liability in pass protection. It led to the Lions pulling Gibbs for David Montgomery when they needed more help against the blitzes, and as the Vikings got to Goff, they got the unintended benefit of not having to worry about Gibbs. The Lions use Gibbs as a receiver almost as much as a running back, so the more the Vikings can tie him to the backfield — or the bench — in passing situations, the more they can neutralize one of the NFL’s most dynamic offensive threats.

Goff comes to town on a tear: The Lions have been in shootouts just about every week, as their defense struggles to stop opponents. Goff has done his part, passing for more than 300 yards in each of Detroit’s last three games while throwing for seven touchdowns without an interception. The Vikings have given up just one passing touchdown since Nov. 9, and they will try to keep Goff (who went 25-for-37 for 284 yards and two scores against them in November) from continuing the production he has had in recent weeks. Their win in Detroit last month broke a five-game losing streak against Goff, who had ended his long-standing struggles against Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores. With injuries depleting the Lions’ formidable offensive line, the Vikings were able to get after Goff more effectively than they had in recent meetings. They will try to do so again on Christmas Day.

Vikings

Detroit’s depleted secondary should be there for the taking, and the Vikings showed they can contain Gibbs in their most recent matchup. Whether the Vikings can protect Brosmer while dealing with their own set of injuries on the offensive line could be the key question in this one. They’re also facing a Lions team that has allowed 389 rushing yards the past two weeks. With running back Jordan Mason unlikely to play and Aaron Jones fighting an ankle injury, though, it’s tough to assume the Vikings will be productive enough on the ground to keep Brosmer out of a dropback game. They will put up some points to make the Christmas Day game entertaining, but the Lions, who have the more accomplished quarterback, will make enough plays to keep their postseason hopes alive. Lions 28, Vikings 24