In Week 9 of the upcoming 2025 NFL season, the Minnesota Vikings will head out on the road for a big NFC North showdown against the Detroit Lions. The Vikings will be coming off a long trip to the West Coast for a Thursday night matchup against the Los Angeles Chargers in Week 8, while the Lions will be well-rested since their bye takes place in Week 8.
That's right, Detroit will get a full extra week to prepare for Minnesota before the two rivals meet inside Ford Field on Sunday, November 2nd.
Sure, we could look at from a more optimistic point of view and suggest that maybe the league thinks the Lions will need some extra rest in order to take on a talented team like the Vikings. But this is the Vikings. The NFL never does Minnesota any favors and now they're going to be at a disadvantage before they even take the field in Week 9 to face Detroit.
Minnesota Vikings need to solve their struggles against the Detroit Lions in 2025
Throughout their history, the Vikings have dominated their divisional matchups against the Lions. But for whatever reason, Minnesota head coach Kevin O'Connell and his team haven't been able to earn a win over Detroit since Week 3 of the 2022 season.
Heading into 2025, though, there's reason to think that things could turn back in favor of the Vikings thanks to the Lions losing offensive coordinator Ben Johnson and defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn to head coaching jobs earlier this year.
In addition to Johnson and Glenn leaving, several other members of Detroit's 2024 coaching staff are no longer with the team, and this has the potential to have a significant impact on their level of success next season.
Meanwhile, Minnesota will have the same offensive and defensive play-caller for the third-straight year in 2025, and that is something they will be counting on in their own efforts to be successful next season.