Vikings WR Justin Jefferson: ‘I won’t be able to sleep Saturday’
MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - The Minnesota Vikings face the Detroit Lions at Ford Field Sunday night for the NFC North Division title, a No. 1 seed and a first round bye in the NFC Playoffs.
The importance of Sunday’s game is not lost on Minnesota’s locker room.
"I love these games, Sunday night games, for the division, No. 1 seed, in their stadium, I love that. I’m definitely not going to be able to sleep Saturday and just wait all day Sunday," Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson said. "The whole world is watching."
Vikings locker room reacts to Pro Bowl picks
Vikings players Jonathan Greenard, Byron Murphy Jr. and Garrett Bradbury reacted to the team's pro bowl selections and facing the Detroit Lions for the NFC North title and No. 1 seed Sunday night. Greenard, Murphy, Andrew Van Ginkel, Justin Jefferson, Sam Darnold and Andrew DePaola were all selected to the 2025 NFL Pro Bowl Games.
The magnitude
Why it matters: Sunday marks the first time two teams with at least 13 wins will meet to end the regular season. The winner gets the No. 1 seed in the NFC Playoffs and will have next week off during Wild Card Weekend, then have home field under the Super Bowl.
The loser drops all the way to a No. 5 seed despite a 14-3 record, and will have to travel to either L.A., Tampa Bay or Atlanta on Wild Card Weekend. The losing team will know their destination before kickoff Sunday night.
Pat Jones II out; Grugier-Hill, Moreau questionable
What we know: The Vikings are as healthy as they could be heading into the final game of the regular season, minus Christian Darrisaw’s season-ending knee injury. They’ll only be without defensive end Pat Jones II, who hasn’t practiced all week and is out with a knee injury after taking a low hit from Green Bay Packers tight end Tucker Kraft. Kamu Grugier-Hill and Fabian Moreau are questionable. Jones has 39 tackles and seven sacks on the season.
Running back Aaron Jones was not on the final injury report Friday after missing the fourth quarter against the Packers with a quad injury. Jones has 1,093 rushing yards, five rushing touchdowns and 378 receiving yards and two receiving touchdowns on the season.
Lions’ injury report
What we know: The Lions’ defense is beat up with several starters out or on injured reserve. They could get linebacker Alex Anzalone, a key piece of the defense, back. He’s questionable with a forearm injury.