Lions will try to close gap against surging Vikings.
DETROIT — In many ways, the Thanksgiving games mark the beginning of the NFL’s stretch drive.
For the Detroit Lions, this may be the final chance to stay in the race for a division title.
The Lions host the Minnesota Vikings on Thursday in a game that should drastically alter the NFC North race.
If Minnesota wins, the Vikings would have a three-game lead atop the division, but if Detroit prevails, the Lions would be within one game and would have a head-to-head tiebreaker over Minnesota. Plus, Detroit has a favorable schedule after this week.
“November football and December football — everything turns up a notch. And right around Thanksgiving, it really turns up,” said Detroit receiver Golden Tate. “It’s no secret that the Vikings are playing tremendous football right now. They’re making it happen.”
Minnesota (8-2) has won six games in a row since a 14-7 loss to Detroit on Oct. 1. The Vikings enter a stretch of three straight road games against Detroit, Atlanta and Carolina, so there’s some pressure on Minnesota to open up a comfortable division lead and earn some margin for error.
“For me, teams are judged after you finish the season,” Vikings cornerback Terence Newman said. “A lot of guys want to talk about how we have strung a couple wins together. We got eight. For me, I have been doing this way too long. I know things can go south just as quick as they can go the other way.”
Last season, Minnesota started 5-0 before plummeting to an 8-8 finish.
Detroit (6-4) is coming off victories over Chicago and Cleveland that were underwhelming at times, while the Vikings handled the NFC West-leading Rams 24-7 last weekend.
“They do everything well,” Lions coach Jim Caldwell said. “They’re moving the ball up and down the field. They’re making big plays. They’ve always played great defense, and their special teams are very good.”
Here are a few more things to
know about Detroit’s matchup with Minnesota:
Thanksgiving history: The Lions and Vikings are playing on Thanksgiving for a second straight year after Detroit won last season’s matchup 16-13. The Lions have won four Thanksgiving games in a row after dropping nine straight from 2004-12.
The case for Keenum: Vikings quarterback Case Keenum will make his ninth start on Thursday, having taken over after Sam Bradford’s knee trouble.
Keenum has started seven and finished eight of the team’s eight victories, but coach Mike Zimmer has so far gone week to week in confirming Keenum’s status as the starter — with Teddy Bridgewater recovered from his knee injury and looming in the background.
Keenum has taken only one sack in the past 5½ games since Lions defensive end Anthony Zettel took him down behind the line of scrimmage twice in the game at Minnesota. He has clearly grown more comfortable with his receivers and their tendencies. And vice versa.
Closing strong: The Lions are 18-8 under Caldwell in the second half of the regular season, and their current three-game winning streak has given them a chance to chase down Minnesota for the division.
However, if Detroit falls out of the division race, a wild card looks dicey. The Lions already lost head to head against New Orleans (8-2), Carolina (7-3) and Atlanta (6-4).
GIANTS AT REDSKINS
With their losing records and their shaky defenses and their injury-depleted rosters, the Washington Redskins and New York Giants are not exactly ready for prime time, let alone for a national audience tuning in Thanksgiving night.
The teams are a combined 6-14, including 0-5 in the NFC East. Dynamic players such as New York wideout Odell Beckham Jr. and Washington running back Chris Thompson are done for the season.
Not only did Washington fall apart last weekend, letting a 15-point lead disappear in the final three minutes of what became an overtime loss, but its list of players on injured reserve has risen to 15.
Asked how that affects his ability to game plan, Redskins coach Jay Gruden joked Wednesday: “Well, does it look like I’ve slept a lot?”
The Redskins (4-6), hosting a Thanksgiving Day game for the first time, are technically still able to make the playoffs — they are, after all, entering the easy-as-can-be portion of their schedule after playing division leaders a half-dozen times — but they also have lost four of their past five games.
The main question facing the Giants (2-8) at this point, meanwhile, is whether there is any way coach Ben McAdoo can hold onto his job.
A year after getting to the postseason, Eli Manning and New York have been among the league’s dregs, even losing to the otherwise winless San Francisco 49ers.
Somehow, though, the Giants pulled off a surprise last weekend, defeating AFC West leader Kansas City, so maybe they won’t just be easy pickings on Turkey Day.