The Vikings' surprising win at Lambeau Field a week ago showcased the brand of football the team prefers to play in elements ideally suited for it: the team's offensive line ably moved Packers defenders out of running lanes for Dalvin Cook, who scored four touchdowns on a windy day when Kirk Cousins needed to attempt just 14 passes.
It prompted the expected batch of talking points about whether the heavy-on-Cook formula would be enough to carry the Vikings back from a 1-5 start to respectability, or possibly even a bid for a wild-card spot in the NFC's expanded playoff field.
For the follow-up at U.S. Bank Stadium on Sunday, the Vikings found the perfect opponent: the Detroit Lions.
Minnesota's 34-20 win over the Lions on Sunday was striking for its simplicity as much as anything: Cook eclipsed 200 rushing yards for the first time in his career, sealing the game with a 70-yard burst for his second touchdown of the game.
Cousins needed to throw just 20 times, directing a six-play, 87-yard scoring march that took just over a minute before halftime, despite the fact he didn't attempt a pass longer than 10 yards downfield on the series.
And the Vikings could cruise to victory against a Lions team that displayed so many of the inefficiencies it's exhibited at U.S. Bank Stadium the past two years.
A Vikings secondary missing Mike Hughes, Cameron Dantzler and Holton Hill got the benefit of a curious Lions game plan, with offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell insistent on running the ball with Adrian Peterson and D'Andre Swift rather than testing the Vikings' defensive cohesion downfield.
When Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford did try to throw, Detroit simply couldn't stay out of its own way. Danny Amendola and Swift dropped passes, and Stafford threw his first of two interceptions to Vikings linebackers, when the quarterback failed to account for Eric Wilson in zone coverage.
The Lions drove into Vikings' territory on six of their first nine drives; they came away with points only three times, after Matt Prater missed a field goal and Stafford threw interceptions to Wilson and Eric Kendricks, who picked the quarterback in the end zone on the series after Wilson's interception. On the Lions' next series, Stafford left the game to be evaluated for a concussion after a sack from Wilson and Armon Watts.
Though the Vikings are only 3-5, they're now 2-1 in the division after back-to-back NFC North victories. They'll travel to Chicago a week from Monday to try to make it three straight against the Bears.
Cook, who finished with 252 yards from scrimmage a week after posting 226 against the Packers, has posted the top three single-game rushing totals of his career this season, gaining 181 yards against the Titans before running for 163 against the Packers.
Cousins finished with 220 passing yards on 13 completions in 20 attempts, throwing three touchdowns (two to Irv Smith, one to Ameer Abdullah on a screen before halftime).
The day began with former Vikings defensive end Everson Griffen — who took issue with the fact coach Mike Zimmer called him a good, not great, player this week — pacing the Lions' sideline shouting at his former teammates. Griffen, playing his first game for Detroit after a trade from Dallas, was barely a factor in a game where he only saw a handful of defensive snaps when the game was still in question.
