The Minnesota Vikings will take on the Detroit Lions in the final game of the 2024 NFL regular season at Ford Field. It’s the first time in NFL history that two teams with 14+ wins will face off in the regular season.
Regular-season matchups don’t get any bigger than this, as the NFC North title and the NFC’s No. 1 seed will be on the line in this highly anticipated showdown. The winner will earn a first-round bye and home-field advantage, while the loser will slip to the No. 5 seed.
To make the season finale even more special, the Lions announced that Quinn XCII will perform at halftime. The Michigan native won’t be the only performer at the game. Let’s examine who will sing the national anthem before the last matchup of the season.
Who Will Sing the National Anthem Before the Week 18 Vikings-Lions Game?
It’ll be a treat for football fans when two of the most successful franchises of the 2024 NFL season face off against each other on Sunday night. S.O.U.L. (Shades of United Ladies) is set to sing the national anthem at Ford Field before the Lions host the Vikings.
S.O.U.L. is a Detroit-based female R&B group that is comprised of Bianca Barber, Angela Davis, Ava Jay, and Karla Pace.
The quartet has performed at the venue in the past. They sang the national anthem when the Lions hosted the Chicago Bears for their New Year’s Day game in 2023.
In addition to performing at Lions games, S.O.U.L. has also taken center stage at multiple Detroit Pistons games as well.
Previewing the Vikings-Lions Showdown
Since the start of 2022, Minnesota has played two more games and had two more wins than any other team in games decided by a single score. Vikings QB Sam Darnold has 12 multi-pass touchdown games this season, the second-most in the NFL behind only Cincinnati Bengals QB Joe Burrow (13).
Last week was the third time this season that Minnesota has averaged over 40 yards per drive (they are 8-0 when averaging 32+ yards per drive). The Green Bay Packers picked up 57.1% of their third downs against Minnesota last weekend, the highest rate the Vikings have allowed this season.
Among receivers with at least 75 targets this season, Vikings WR Jordan Addison ranks sixth in production over expectation (+28.9%), just ahead of Los Angeles Chargers WR Ladd McConkey and Cincinnati Bengals WR Ja’Marr Chase.
Meanwhile, the Lions currently have a +200 point differential. Nine teams in the 2000s finished a regular season with such a mark — none of them won the Super Bowl.
Lions QB Jared Goff has an NFL-best six games with at least three touchdown passes and zero interceptions. Burrow and Baltimore Ravens QB Lamar Jackson are the only other quarterbacks with more than three.
Lions RB Jahmyr Gibbs is now one touchdown away from tying the franchise record (Jamaal Williams and Barry Sanders currently hold the mark with 17). Gibbs has 13 rushing touchdowns and three receiving scores.
Lions TE Sam LaPorta has three straight games with 100 yards or a touchdown catch — he had three such games all season prior to this run.
Detroit allowed 55.4 yards per drive on Monday night against the San Francisco 49ers, their worst defensive showing of the season.