Minneapolis — About an hour before kickoff, the Minnesota Vikings posted a single-frame comic on Twitter with the caption, "Ready to sweep the Lions." The image showed a burly, angry viking brooming away a helpless lion cub.
The illustration perfectly projected the matchup's outcome. Coming into the game, the Lions had established a reputation for putting up a good fight, but consistently coming up short. But on Sunday, the team played the role of the nail to the Vikings' hammer in a 20-7 loss at U.S. Bank Field.