The Detroit Lions have a short week to prepare for a pivotal matchup against Minnesota, and they will not complain about that fact.
The winner will earn the NFC North title and home-field advantage until the Super Bowl. The loser will start the playoffs on the road as a fifth-seeded wild card.
“You couldn’t write a better scenario,” Detroit coach Dan Campbell said after a 40-34 win at San Francisco on Monday night. “You couldn’t come up with this. The fact that both teams are sitting at 14-2, and it’s for the division and the top seed, it just doesn’t get any better than this.”
The Lions arrived in the Motor City at about 7 a.m. on Tuesday and had a day of rest before getting ready for a marquee matchup on Sunday night at home against the Vikings.
“These are the types of games you dream of when you are growing up," All-Pro right tackle Penei Sewell said. “These are the moments that you live for. Opportunities like this don’t come often.”
What’s working
The Jared Goff-led offense.
“He’s playing at an ultimate level right now,” Campbell said. “You find me a quarterback that’s playing better than him in this league right now.”
Goff completed 77% of his passes against his hometown 49ers and set a franchise record by throwing three touchdown passes for the fourth game in a row.
He has connected on at least three-fourths of his passes for the eighth time this season, joining Tom Brady (2007) as the two players in league history to pull off the feat.
What needs help
Detroit's defense. The banged-up unit has allowed 31 points or more in three of the past four games, setting up high-scoring matchups.
Stock up
Kerby Joseph. After going five games without an interception, the safety picked off two passes against the 49ers to give him an NFL-high nine interceptions.
“He came up in a big way, not just that the picks,” Campbell said. “He had some critical tackles and just really showed up for us.”
Joseph is the first Detroit player with nine interceptions, including a pick-6, since Hall of Famer Lem Barney did it in 1967.
Stock down
Za'Darius Smith. The veteran defensive end, acquired from Cleveland at the trade deadline, played on 52% of Detroit's defensive snaps and was the only player on the unit to not have a tackle at San Francisco. Smith has been held without a sack for three straight games after he had a total of 2 1/2 sacks in consecutive games against Green Bay and Chicago.
Injuries
Sewell went to the locker room at the end of the first half to have a thumb injury evaluated in San Francisco.
“Should be good,” Campbell said.
Key number
4 — David Montgomery, Jahmyr Gibbs along with Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams are the first pair of running backs and receivers in league history to have each player gain 1,000 yards from scrimmage.
“We’ve got a good group and a very unselfish group, which is the best part of it,” Goff said. “Those guys want to see each other succeed.”
What’s next
Rest and recover after playing on Monday night and flying across the country to prepare for perhaps the biggest game in the regular season in team history.
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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL
Larry Lage, The Associated Press
