/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/56889759/621513214.0.jpg)
Okay, Lions fans. It’s time to get over the past. It’s time to forget everything about what happened to the Lions in their game against the Falcons. I’m sure you don’t want to hear about it anymore. I‘m sure you don’t even care that the Lions are 0-5 in the games after horribly infamous things like this happen to them. I know you don’t, so we’re just going to move on.
We’re going to move on all the way back to November 19th, 1961, the same day Michael Rockefeller disappeared off the coast of New Guinea, and the same day Meg Ryan was born. I love you, Meg.
Anyways, this day also represented the first time the Lions and Vikings ever got together to play this crazy game called football. The Lions headed over to Bloomington, Minnesota and rocked the new NFL team, 37-10. For the most part, it was all downhill from there.
The Lions and Vikings have faced each other 111 times. The Vikings have won 71 of those games. Ouch. Of those 111 games, 55 of them have been played in Minnesota where the Lions have won just 15 times since 1961. Three of those times have been in the last six years.
We spend a lot of time talking about the Lions’ losing streak in Green Bay. It deserves the attention it gets. But we so often forget that the Lions couldn’t win in Minnesota from 1998 to 2011. Things haven’t always gone so well there.
But 2016 was fun, wasn’t it?
To the social media stuff!!
Lions overall record at the Metrodome
— 〽️ARC UofM (4-0) (@hXcMarc) September 27, 2017
We sort of just touched on this, but that’s okay. I’ll beat my head up against this wall one more time. The Lions went 7-24 against the Vikings at the Metrodome. Fun fact: When Kid Rock says “all my heroes at the methadone clinic” in :Bawitdaba,” I used to think he was saying “Metrodome Clinic.” Ah, that’s childish. Almost as childish as supporting Kid Rock in anything.
Which team is the all-time points leader on aggregate in games between each other?
— John Whitaker (@Wrath_of_John) September 27, 2017
This one is fun, and it causes me to do math. 15-year-old me would have hated John. But 15-year-old me looked like Eddie Munster. So what does that kid know?
The Vikings have outscored the Lions 2,375 to 2,055. This will be the score of football games when we all move to Pluto in the year 2052. #SpaceStatsFromTheFuture
How many birds has the new Vikings stadium killed so far
— Evan (@BigSlickMcDick) September 27, 2017
If you haven’t heard about this yet, it’s not a joke. Bank of America Stadium is said to be killing up to 500 birds per year. Check out the piece that CBS Sports did in February. As I see it, there’s only one way this can end for the people of Minnesota.
Rany Moss' numbers vs the Lions compared to Calvin's numbers against the Vikings.
— poopdongokon suh (@gameofdabs) September 27, 2017
Here’s an age old battle. Who’s the better receiver? Well we aren’t going to answer that today, but here’s your answer.
Randy Moss: 73 receptions for 1,196 yards and nine touchdowns.
Calvin Johnson: 81 receptions for 1,095 yards and nine touchdowns.
Who has the better record during Republican administrations?
— the phanTIM menace (@timedsteele) September 27, 2017
A real political feel to this piece here today. But now that sticking to sports is impossible to do, I’ll answer this bad boy. the Lions are 14-47 during Republican administrations. That’s pretty bad. They’re 24-24 against the Vikings during Democratic administrations.
How many extra gallons of Tide did the Lions training staff need for Greg Landry's jersey after playing the #Vikings?
— Ted Glover (@purplebuckeye) September 28, 2017
Let’s have a little fun with the Ted Glover from The Daily Norseman. Alright Theodore. Greg Landry was beaten like a dirty rug by the Vikings for years. The Lions never beat Minnesota with Landry at the helm. A gallon of Tide does 32 loads per container. So let’s say four gallons.
Like how many cigarettes did Fran Tarkenton smoke on the 1965 game?
— Mike Payton (@POD_Payton) September 28, 2017
I don’t know, probably a pack per game. I did find this weird website that lets random people vote on all things Fran Tarkenton related. 14 percent of voters believe Fran takes drugs regularly. So there’s that.
Serious: avg yards/game comparison against Vikes between Barry Sanders and Billy Sims. Sims seemed to kill the Vikes in his short career.
— Ted Glover (@purplebuckeye) September 28, 2017
Good question, Theodore. Let’s take a look at the stat-o-tron 5000 for our answer. Beep boop beep.
In 19 games, Barry Sanders ran for 1,858 yards and 11 touchdowns on 363 carries, for an average of 97.8 rushing yards per game.
In eight games, Billy Sims ran for 728 yards and five touchdowns on 145 carries. That’s an average of 91.0 yards per game.
So the answer is Barry. Thanks for playing, Theodore. Show him what he’s won, Johnny.