Just like after they took their first loss of the season to the Lions on Oct. 20, the Vikings must travel to Los Angeles. They lost to the Rams 30-20 in Week 8. This time, they have twice as many days to recover and prepare with their wild-card round game next Monday night.

The Minnesota Vikings met the Detroit Lions on Sunday night for a chance to win the NFC North. Instead, they got handled on

Although the Los Angeles Rams would've liked to end the season with a win over the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday afternoon, th

Detroit Lions running back Jahmyr Gibbs (26) celebrates with wide receivers Amon-Ra St. Brown (14), Tim Patrick (17) and Jameson Williams (9) and tight end Sam LaPorta (87) in the end zone after running for a touchdown against the Minnesota Vikings in the first quarter at Ford Field. / Lon Horwedel-Imagn Images

Detroit defeated Minnesota 31-9 to win the NFC North division title and secure a first-round bye and home-field advantage in the playoffs

It's hard to put much of a spin on the beatdown the Detroit Lions handed the Minnesota Vikings on "Sunday Night Football" in the final game of the NFL regular season on Sunday night, but there are reasons for optimism in Minneapolis.