Lions eliminated after Goff's uncharacteristic giveaways in loss that sends Packers to playoffs

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Jared Goff and the Detroit Lions formally gifted the division rival Green Bay Packers a spot in the playoffs, with six turnovers that sealed their fate in a loss to the Minnesota Vikings.

Detroit's grip on the NFC North, though, had been slipping all season.

With their 23-10 loss to the Vikings on Thursday, when Goff threw two interceptions and was charged with three lost fumbles, the Lions were eliminated from postseason contention — clinching at least a wild-card berth for the Packers.

“We’ll reflect on the whole season after next week,” Goff said, “but, yeah, it sucks.”

After taking the past two division titles, reaching the conference championship game after the first one and posting a franchise-record 15 wins for the second one, the Lions (8-8) lost their third straight game in an uncharacteristically sloppy performance unfit for the NFL's Christmas Day showcase. The Lions entered with only eight turnovers, the fewest in the league.

“Something we’ve been really good at all year,” said Goff, who had just six giveaways over the first 15 games and nearly matched that previous season total on Thursday with the five turnovers that matched the most of his career.

Two of Goff’s lost fumbles came from errant snaps by backup center Kingsley Eguakun. Jahmyr Gibbs lost one at the end of a run past midfield early in the second quarter. Goff was picked off by cornerback Byron Murphy and safety Harrison Smith in the third quarter. His only other five-turnover game in 10 seasons in the league was last year at Houston, when he had five interceptions in a 26-23 win in Week 10.

Goff, who is third in the league in passer rating and second in passing yards and passing touchdowns, went 18 for 29 for 197 yards and one touchdown to Isaac TeSlaa.

“They had a good plan and exploited some things on us and were able to get after us, adding an extra rusher a lot of time,” Goff said. “We had a plan that we thought would attack that. It didn’t work well.”

The previous time Detroit had a six-turnover game was in 2015 in a 42-17 loss to Arizona, according to Sportradar data. The minus-6 turnover margin was the worst in the NFL this season and tied with five other teams for the worst in any game in the league in the past nine years.

The Vikings had five sacks and frequently pressured Goff on plays when they didn't take him down.

“Anytime he’s not able to step in the throw, it’s going to be hard for him,” Lions coach Dan Campbell said. “That’s where he’s at his best, obviously, in the pocket. If he’s not able to at least hit that back foot and step into it, it makes it pretty difficult. That defense puts a lot on you, and it was a short week, and they really did a lot. They went all out."

The rushing attack that fueled the Lions the past two years has lagged all season, and this was the game they needed it the most, with Gibbs and David Montgomery combining for just 66 yards on 27 carries behind a struggling offensive line.

The Lions lost two starters from last year's group who haven't been adequately replaced, and left tackle Taylor Decker was out on Thursday with a shoulder injury.

After the Lions stalled out near the goal line last week in their 29-24 loss at home to Pittsburgh put them on the brink, the turnovers in Minnesota finished them off.

“The effort's there,” Campbell said. “We’re just a little off here, and it’s costing us significantly.”

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Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff speaks in a news conference after an NFL football game against the Minnesota Vikings, Thursday, Dec. 25, 2025, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Bruce Kluckhohn)

Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff walks off the field after the team's loss to the Minnesota Vikings in an NFL football game, Thursday, Dec. 25, 2025, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)

Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff, center, is sacked by Minnesota Vikings linebackers Andrew van Ginkel, second from left, and Dallas Turner, right, during the second half of an NFL football game, Thursday, Dec. 25, 2025, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)

Minnesota Vikings linebacker Andrew van Ginkel, right, recovers a fumble by Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff, left, during the first half of an NFL football game, Thursday, Dec. 25, 2025, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Bruce Kluckhohn)

Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff, left, speaks with head coach Dan Campbell during the first half of an NFL football game against the Minnesota Vikings, Thursday, Dec. 25, 2025, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — President Donald Trump said Thursday that the U.S. launched a “powerful and deadly" strike against Islamic State forces in Nigeria, after spending weeks accusing the West African country's government of failing to rein in the persecution of Christians.

In a Christmas evening post on his social media site, Trump did not provide details or mention the extent of the damage caused by the strikes.

A Defense Department official, who insisted on anonymity to discuss details not made public, said the U.S. worked with Nigeria to carry out the strikes, and that they'd been approved by that country's government.

Nigeria's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the cooperation included exchange of intelligence and strategic coordination in ways “consistent with international law, mutual respect for sovereignty and shared commitments to regional and global security."

Trump said the airstrikes were launched against Islamic State militants “who have been targeting and viciously killing, primarily, innocent Christians.” Residents and security analysts have said Nigeria's security crisis affects both Christians, predominant in the south, and Muslims, who are the majority in the north.

“Terrorist violence in any form, whether directed at Christians, Muslims or other communities, remains an affront to Nigeria's values and to international peace and security," Nigeria’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.

Nigeria is battling multiple armed groups, including at least two affiliated with the Islamic State — an offshoot of the Boko Haram extremist group known as the Islamic State West Africa Province in the northeast, and the less-known Lakurawa group prominent in the northwestern states like Sokoto where the gangs use large swathes of forests connecting states as hideouts.

Security analysts said the target of the U.S. strikes could be the Lakurawa group, which in the last year has increasingly become lethal in the region, often targeting remote communities and security forces.

“Lakurawa is a group that is actually controlling territories in Nigeria, in Sokoto state and in other states like Kebbi,” said Malik Samuel, a Nigerian security researcher at Good Governance Africa. “In the northwest, there has been the incursion of violent extremist groups that are ideologically driven," he said, blaming the incursion on the near absence of the state and security forces in hot spots.

Nigeria’s government has previously said in response to Trump’s criticisms that people of many faiths, not just Christians, have suffered attacks at the hands of extremists groups.

Trump ordered the Pentagon last month to begin planning for potential military action in Nigeria to try and curb the so-called Christian persecution. The State Department recently announced it would restrict visas for Nigerians and their family members involved in killing Christians there.

And the U.S. recently designated Nigeria a “country of particular concern” under the International Religious Freedom Act.

Trump said the U.S. defense officials had “executed numerous perfect strikes, as only the United States is capable of doing" and added that “our Country will not allow Radical Islamic Terrorism to prosper.”

Nigeria’s population of 220 million is split almost equally between Christians and Muslims. The country has long faced insecurity from various fronts including the Boko Haram extremist group, which seeks to establish its radical interpretation of Islamic law and has also targeted Muslims it deems not Muslim enough.

But attacks in Nigeria often have varying motives. There are religiously motivated ones targeting both Christians and Muslims, clashes between farmers and herders over dwindling resources, communal rivalries, secessionist groups and ethnic clashes.

The U.S. security footprint has diminished in Africa, where military partnerships have either been scaled down or canceled. U.S. forces likely would have to be drawn from other parts of the world for any larger-scale military intervention in Nigeria.

Trump has nonetheless kept up the pressure as Nigeria faced a series of attacks on schools and churches in violence that experts and residents say targets both Christians and Muslims.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth posted Thursday night on X: “The President was clear last month: the killing of innocent Christians in Nigeria (and elsewhere) must end.”

Hegseth said that U.S. military forces are “always ready, so ISIS found out tonight — on Christmas” and added, “More to come…Grateful for Nigerian government support & cooperation” before signing off, “Merry Christmas!”

Associated Press writer Konstantin Toropin contributed from Washington, and Chinedu Asadu from Abuja, Nigeria.

President Donald Trump speaks at his Mar-a-Lago club, Monday, Dec. 22, 2025, in Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)