Top Five Lions Defensive Plays Against Vikings

Between the six turnovers and four sacks the Lions had on Sunday, there were plenty of plays to choose from for this week's post. I ultimately went with five of the turnovers for this week's top five plays, and you can check them out below.

No. 5 - Eric Wright's interception of Christian Ponder in third quarter

I thought about not including this play simply because it is what resulted in Ponder getting benched and Joe Webb being inserted into the game. Then again, at the time this play looked like this could be the final nail in the Vikings' coffin. The Lions just didn't capitalize on it.

No. 4 - Alphonso Smith's interception of Christian Ponder in first quarter

Smith had an outstanding game and has two plays on this list. The first -- his first quarter interception -- came on the Vikes' second drive of the game and put the Lions in position to extend their lead. They did, thanks to a 57-yard touchdown pass from Matthew Stafford to Titus Young.

No. 3 - Alphonso Smith's 30-yard interception return for a touchdown in second quarter

Smith's second pick of the game and his second play of this list resulted in a Lions touchdown. He jumped his receiver's route perfectly and was gone as soon as he made the interception. There was no catching him, and the touchdown gave the Lions a 28-7 lead.

No. 2 - Cliff Avril's sack/Stephen Tulloch's fumble recovery for a touchdown in first quarter

On Minnesota's first offensive play of the game, Avril beat his man and got to Ponder. The ball came loose, and Tulloch quickly dove on it in the end zone for a touchdown. It was a great way to start the game for the Lions, especially after the offense failed to do much on the opening drive of the game.

No. 1 - DeAndre Levy's sack/Cliff Avril's fumble recovery on final play of game.

I considered not having this No. 1 because of the facemask, but since it wasn't called, I made Levy's sack-strip of Webb the top defensive play from the Vikings game. Had the defense actually contained Webb they wouldn't have needed a stop at the one-yard line in the first place, but the defense did step it up when it mattered most. Levy forced a fumble, and after the ball was batted down the field, fumbled again and deflected into Vikings territory, Avril fell on it to end the game.