Vikings Beat Lions for Playoff Spot
M I N N E A P O L I S, Dec. 1 -- Cris Carter took his place in NFL history.
The Minnesota Vikings gained a playoff spot.
The two go hand-in-hand, because the Vikings ultimately neededthe 1,000th catch of Carter’s career, a 4-yard touchdown reception,to beat the Detroit Lions 24-17 on Thursday night.
“As I watched the sign hit 990 ... 1,000, it was almost like Iwas watching someone else’s life,” Carter said. “It’s hard tobelieve it was me.”
Central Division Title
The Vikings also needed Robert Smith’s 43-yard touchdown runwith 3:04 remaining that gave them a 24-10 lead. Smith’s second TDof the game came on the first play after the Vikings stopped theLions on fourth-and-10 at the 50.
Smith rushed for more than 100 yards for the fifth consecutivegame, finishing with 117 yards on 17 carries.
The Vikings (11-2) will wrap up the Central Division titleSunday if Dallas beats Tampa Bay.
“It’s the greatest accomplishment I have ever had, and the mosthumbling thing I’ve ever experienced,” Carter said. “It’sunbelievable ... unbelievable. It’s a tremendous honor, but topolish it off would be a Super Bowl championship.”
Carter, who finished with seven receptions for 45 yards, neededfive receptions to become the second player in NFL history with1,000 catches. Jerry Rice has 1,259. Carter’s 121 TD catches alsoranks second to Rice.
Carter caught his fourth pass at the Lions’ 4 on the final playof the first quarter. On the first play of the second quarter, hebeat safety Kywin Supernaw in the end zone and caught a 4-yard passfrom Daunte Culpepper to make it 14-0.
“He knows the game of football and understands coverages,”Supernaw said of Carter. “He’s out there calling our coverageswhen we’re lining up. It was a perfectly thrown ball and perfecttiming. He outjumped me for it and caught it.”
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