The Vikings and the lions are both good teams, but they are not quite as the Packers. These two teams will meet up this weekend to let us know who is actually better. The Vikings are playing well with or without Sam Bradford, and the Lions should have beaten the Falcons last week. Who is the better team? Well, we do not know yet, but there are some clues that will help us make a determination. We need to see these two teams settle it on the field because they are so evenly matched.

Coaching matters

Mike Zimmer and Jim Caldwell are both good coaches.

They are solid men, and they will keep their teams in a good frame of mind for the game. There is no way that one of them will outcoach the other. They will stand on the opposing sidelines and think, "I see what you did there." Taking coaching out the equation brings us to quarterback and system play. This is where Matthew Stafford has an edge or does he?

The Vikings offense

The Vikings offense looks so good right now that I could start for them and have some kind of success. It appears that Mike Zimmer has created an offense that will work no matter what happens, and that will give The Vikings a steady number of points for the game. For the big plays, they will have to rely on Dalvin Cook because Cook is the best player on the team right now.

Stafford to Tate

Stafford to Tate is the most reliable way for the Lions to score. Stafford came pass to Marvin Jones, but Golden Tate is the breadwinner on this offense. The Vikings can spend the whole game trying to stop Tate, and they might be able to isolate Jones. There is no other way to keep this offense from scoring, and that is why the Vikings could have a lot of success this weekend.

We have to wait to see how much the Vikings can score, but it is possible that the Lions will have a bad day on offense.

The late game heroics

The late game heroics that come from someone like Matthew Stafford might break this game open late. We have to remember that Stafford is very good at the comeback. He should have done it to the Falcons last week, and he could do it to the Vikings again this week.

However, I do not think that is likely because Mike Zimmer is too smart for that. The Vikings are not the Falcons. The Vikings are a little bit more reserved, and that shows in how they play. They are much better off putting the ball in Dalvin Cook's hands and hoping for the best. Letting Detroit come back on them with just enough time left on the clock will probably not happen.