“A Gritty Win” - Rich Weighs In on the Lions Handing the Vikings Their 1st Loss of the Season

Rich picked the Detroit Lions to win the NFC North before the season. The Bears have done nothing but make him second-guess it. But after Detroit handed Minnesota its first loss, Rich was ready to give the Lions their due.

It wasn't long ago that Detroit's defense looked like a problem. Rich recalled defensive coordinator Kelvin Sheppard, before the Lions' trip to Arizona and fresh off a loss to Carolina on Sunday Night Football, saying the defense would "hold our third of the bargain." Rich's reaction at the time: "Uh oh, I don't know if the defense is going to be able to back his play."

Sheppard's unit has. The Lions took care of the Cardinals, hit the bye, and came out with two massive wins at home over the Packers and now the Vikings. "What you have to do in order to win your division, you have to hold serve at home in division," Rich said. "And defensively, they've done the job."

The offense had a tougher day. Rich said everyone knew Minnesota would put the screws to Detroit's offense the way it has to almost everybody, and the Lions managed only 19 points, a season low.

But Jahmyr Gibbs took care of business late. He had a career-high 78 rushing yards after first contact. "That's what you got to do to beat the Vikings," Rich said. "You know you're going to get contacted. You got to keep on ticking." The crew added that 129 of his game-high 168 scrimmage yards came in the second half.

The biggest of those came after a frightening moment. Jack Campbell went down while bringing T.J. Hockenson to the ground and was carted off after a 10-minute delay. Rich said the still photo of the hit, with Campbell's back bent the way it was, "makes you nervous." Players took a knee, and Aidan Hutchinson gathered his teammates with tears in his eyes.

Rich explained what Campbell means to that defense. Hutchinson gets a lot of the publicity, Rich said, but Campbell, the first-round pick from Iowa, is the captain in the middle and "the glue for this team defensively."

That's what made the finish so impressive to Rich. Kyler Murray led Minnesota down the field on a Detroit defense that was once again licking its wounds. Just when the Lions thought they were getting healthier, with Brian Branch back and Kerby Joseph on the way back, they lost several defenders during the game, Branch among them, and then Campbell. Rich admitted he was watching and wondering if attrition was going to cost Detroit the game.

"And the answer is no," he said. Jared Goff got it done with Gibbs and Sione Vaki. Vaki had 74 career rushing yards entering Sunday and ran for 65 in the game. Detroit put up 99 rushing yards in the fourth quarter, which Rich said was the second most in a fourth quarter for the Lions this century.

Rich borrowed Dan Campbell's favorite phrase. "The gritty win." In the locker room afterward, Campbell gave the game ball to the entire team and took a knee to pray for Jack Campbell.

From the podium, Campbell spoke about how hard it is to lock back in when a teammate goes down. "You're with him all the time," he said. "That's part of what it's about. Overcoming adversity, in any shape, any form. And that was another version of it." He credited the team for doing it, "because that's not easy to do."

Rich came armed with history. The Lions became the sixth team in NFL history to beat a 6-0 or better opponent while scoring a season-low point total. The last time Detroit beat a 6-0 or better team at all was Thanksgiving Day 1962, against the 10-0 Packers. "How's that for a nugget?"

Still, Rich wasn't ready to crown anyone. Detroit's next stretch includes a visit to Miami, a massive game in Germany against New England and a home date with Tampa that won't be easy. The Lions also have both games against Chicago, and Rich said how the division looks depends on how the Bears come out of their Monday night game against Seattle. If Chicago balls out, Rich said, the conversation turns to the Bears as Super Bowl contenders.

The Lions will get their chance to settle it. They play Chicago twice, including the Thanksgiving opener, and they close the season at Chicago and at Green Bay, both in January 2027. Rich noted the old questions about Goff in cold weather and outdoors. Those two will be Detroit's next back-to-back division games, and unlike these two, they're on the road.