Posted by ESPN.com’s Kevin Seifert
DETROIT -- Not exactly sure what to make of it, but Minnesota backup quarterback Tarvaris Jackson was on the field in punt coverage here in the second quarter at Ford Field.
Jackson lined up as one of three gunners on the left side as part of a bizarre formation from new special teams coordinator Brian Murphy. There was no fake, and no attempt at a fake from what I could tell. Punter Chris Kluwe got off a 48-yard punt that Lions punt returner Dennis Northcutt fair caught at Detroit’s 14-yard line.
I can’t think of why a quarterback would be a gunner in punt coverage if not to set up a potential fake later in this game or this season. Maybe that's what happens when you play behind the guy who just set the record for consecutive NFL starts. (Quarterback Brett Favre, now 271.) I guess we’ll find out soon enough.
As I type this, the Lions lead Minnesota 3-0 with 11:29 left in the second quarter. Adrian Peterson has lost a fumble, leading to Jason Hanson’s 30-yard field goal, and Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford has thrown an interception.
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ABOUT THIS BLOG
Kevin Seifert
Seifert joined ESPN.com in 2008 after covering the Minnesota Vikings for the Minneapolis Star Tribune for eight years. He lives in the Twin Cities with his wife and daughter.