Why did the Vikings struggle to stop the Lions? They had 18 missed tackles
Sofia, a graduate of the University of Minnesota, has 8 years of experience in sports journalism, including work with Prairie Public Broadcasting. She focuses on professional sports and their influence on the local culture and economy.
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It looked like the Minnesota Vikings had stopped the Detroit Lions in their tracks on the first play of a pivotal drive. If only it wasn t star running back Jahmyr Gibbs wasn t on the other side. Gibbs took the handoff in the backfield, shook loose from defensive tackle Jalen Redmond at the point of attack, reversed course, then outran cornerback Byron Murphy before eventually running out of bounds. The effort from Gibbs turned what would ve been a tackle for a loss for the Vikings into an explosive run for the Lions. The sequence was a microcosm of the entire game. We were in the spots, safety Josh Metellus said. We just have to finish. Finishing was a big issue for Minnesota is a 19-15 loss at Ford Field, the Vikings first of the season. They finished the game with 18 missed tackles, according to Pro Football Focus, their most in a game this season by a wide margin. It wasn t limited to a specific position group; 10 players different players recorded a m