MINNEAPOLIS – The Detroit Lions trailed by one with two minutes left in a hostile environment at US Bank Stadium, but veteran quarterback Jared Goff kept his composure.

He commanded the offense on Detroit’s final eight-play drive, setting up kicker Jake Bates for a game-winning 44-yard field goal as the Lions defeated the Vikings 31-29 and handed their division rivals their first loss of the season.

Lions head coach Dan Campbell expected such performances from the former No. 1 overall pick. And after Detroit’s first win over a 5-0 team or better in exactly half a century, Campbell described Goff as “a stud” and “someone to build on.” On October 20, 1974, Detroit also defeated the Vikings in Minnesota 5-0 in comeback style.

“He’s a winner. He’ll find a way to win,” Campbell said of Goff. “He will find a way to put the offense in the right position to win the game. He doesn’t let himself be upset. We’re in a division game.

The Lions got off to a rough start, trailing 10-0 in the first quarter, but Goff was a perfect 12 of 12 in the first half and helped the Lions rally.

Goff is the only quarterback this season to have a perfect completion percentage in a half, and according to ESPN Research, he has done so three times, including an NFL-record performance in Week 4 when he completed all 18 of his passes against Seattle.

His first incompletion of Sunday’s game was the result of a batted pass after he started the game with 15 successful completions against Minnesota.

Goff finished 22-for-25 with two touchdowns and zero interceptions against the Vikings while also becoming the first player since 1933 to complete 85% of his passes with two passing touchdowns against a team that was 5-0 or better, but Goff wasn’t having it consciously in real time.

“Look, the word perfect is hard,” Goff said. “It’s a perfect completion rate, but there are still decisions you can change. I felt like I thought I had another chance. When I felt like I was halfway through the third part, I couldn’t think of a single one. Of course, right.” Then the ball is hit. But other than that, we open up the guys, defend them and beat them quickly. We concentrate on every move.

In his final four games, Goff posted an 83.5% completion rate, setting the NFL record for the highest completion rate of any four games in NFL history (minimum 90 attempts). He broke the previous record set by Washington Commanders rookie Jayden Daniels earlier this season at 82.1% and joined Hall of Famer Peyton Manning (2008) as the second quarterback in NFL history to reach 1,000 yards and completed 80% of his passes in a four-game span. Manning would win MVP that season.

Goff couldn’t pinpoint anything special about his accuracy and solid passing numbers other than he just got dialed in.

“I say serenity. Mostly towards attack. “They want to apply pressure. For us it was a 10-0 deficit and we got a bit kicked in the mouth. Stay calm, stay relaxed. We have the fumble that they score on. Stay calm, stay relaxed.” It was really convenient for us.

After Detroit’s most recent win, the team had Lil Yachty’s “Minnesota” song sing as they celebrated in the visitors’ locker room.

The defense rallied for star edge rusher Aidan Hutchinson, who watched from the couch after suffering a broken tibia and fibula in Week 6 in Dallas. Lions linebacker Alex Anzalone said he received a congratulatory text message from Hutchinson during the game, but as difficult as the road remains without him, the Lions still see themselves at the top of the league.

“I always feel like we’re the most dangerous team because I feel like no one really plays like we do,” Lions safety Kerby Joseph said. “We play with violence. I feel like we’re living in deep water. I feel like a lot of teams live in shallow water, but we thrive in deep water.”