Vikes wrapping things up early
Jumping out to big lead against Lions spurs team to 3-game division lead
Case Keenum stood in the pocket to take a hit, dipped his right shoulder to slip out of a sack and shuffled his feet in the pocket to give his receivers more time to get open.
Looking like a savvy winner instead of a journeyman, he picked apart the defense with his arm and made plays with his legs to help the Vikings beat the Lions 30-23 on Thursday in Detroit.
Keenum threw for two touchdowns and ran for a score in the first half to give the Vikings a double-digit lead, and they went on to win a seventh straight game.
They took a huge step toward winning the NFC North by taking a three-game lead over the second-place Lions.
Keenum, undrafted out of Houston in 2012, is suddenly 7-2 this season after going 9-15 in his career with the Texans and Rams.
“I want to be great and I have confidence in myself that I can be great,” he said.
The Vikings signed him to be a backup, and he has made the most of his opportunities with Sam Bradford injured and Teddy Bridgewater still recovering from a knee injury.
Keenum was 21 of 30 for 282 yards with both touchdown passes going to Kyle Rudolph, giving the Vikings a 20-3 lead late in the second quarter.
“Case is amazing because he does so many small things to pick up first downs and keep drives alive,” Rudolph said. “Every time he finds a way to convert another third down, it means we’ve got three more plays to attack the defense. With the number of big-play guys we’ve got now, we can do a lot of damage with those three plays.”
The Lions (6-5) made mistakes in every phase of the game. Keenum’s 1-yard pass to Rudolph was made a little easier because the Lions had just 10 defenders on the field.
And Keenum’s 9-yard run came after Matthew Stafford fumbled while trying to hand off to Ameer Abdullah.
Instead of winning to pull within a game of the Vikings and having a potential tiebreaker, the Lions’ loss hurts their chances of making a second straight postseason appearance.
Chargers 28, Cowboys 6: Philip Rivers threw for 434 yards and three touchdowns in his first Thanksgiving game in his 14th season, and the Chargers beat the fading Cowboys in Arlington, Texas.
Desmond King returned an interception 90 yards for the punctuating touchdown as the Chargers (5-6) moved within 1 1⁄2 games of the AFC West-leading Chiefs after starting 0-4 while the Chiefs won their first five.
The defending NFC East champion Cowboys (5-6) lost their third straight by at least 20 points, all without suspended running back Ezekiel Elliott. Dak Prescott threw two interceptions, giving him five in two games after throwing just four all of last season.
Redskins 20, Giants 10: Kirk Cousins threw two touchdown passes to compensate for a pick-six, and the Redskins beat the visiting Giants in a drab game between two injury-depleted teams.
The first half, in particular, was devoid of highlights: The NFC East rivals combined for nine punts and only six points.
But Cousins led the Redskins (5-6) on two touchdown drives in the second half, connecting with Jamison Crowder on a 15-yarder in the third quarter that broke a 3-3 tie and with Josh Doctson on a 14-yarder with 3 1⁄2 minutes left in the game.