Sunday’s Minnesota Vikings victory at Lambeau will impact the zeitgeist much more than the team’s cumulative point differential. As much as the game was a tale of two halves, that was only due to Minnesota’s demonstrative demolition of the Green Bay Packers in the first half. The distinct difference in playcalling for both teams was simply a function of the score. Green Bay’s desperation led to meaningful adjustments as Kevin O’Connell put his team on cruise control. For the competitive portion of the game, the Vikings trounced Green Bay in a hostile environment. The Packers had to contend with the clock as much as they did the score in the second half.
The final score was 31-29, which makes the game seem a lot more contentious than it really was. In addition to the team-wide throttling down, a few key plays allowed the Pack to eventually bring it back to a one-score game.
The tide may never have even turned were it not for Jalen Nailor‘s blunder as he filled in for the briefly injured Brandon Powell to field a punt. With less than a minute to go in the first half, Minnesota’s defense made another stop to force a Green Bay punt, all but ensuring that the Vikings take a 28-0 lead into halftime. The broadcast suggested that the sun may have been a factor as Nailor backpedaled and reached up to catch a punt that very well may have bounced into the end zone for a touchback anyway.
On the ensuing short-field drive, the Packers got on the scoreboard despite something of a tantrum from head coach Matt LaFleur.
When the Packers seemed to have momentum as they received the ball to start the second half, the Vikings’ defense promptly forced a three-and-out and regained possession with a 28-7 lead. The Minnesota offense drove 62 yards on seven plays until a second-and-one pass from Green Bay’s 20-yard line gave the Packers life again.
In a game full of reviews of questionable catches that resulted in the correct call, the officials threw Green Bay a bone on an impressive Xavier McKinney interception. The play was ruled an interception on the field, and the officials upheld it following a review despite … it not being an interception. McKinney did not have possession until his elbow landed out of bounds, but the Packers took possession nonetheless.
Although the Vikings forced Green Bay to punt from deep in their own territory following the turnover, Minnesota’s next three possessions combined for 15 yards on nine plays. The Vikings punted on back-to-back drives before the Packers put a second-half touchdown on the board. After the score was cut to 28-14, Sam Darnold fumbled in the pocket due to a free rusher from the slot, and Green Bay capitalized with another touchdown, after which they went for two and converted.
Just like that, it was 28-22 — close enough for Kevin O’Connell to place his foot back on the gas pedal. On seven plays, six of which were passes, the Vikings’ offense drove into field goal range, and while most Vikings diehards braced themselves for a miss, Will “The Thrill” Reichard drilled a 38-yard field goal to push it back to a two-score game. Throughout their comeback, the Packers never possessed the ball with a chance to take the lead.
With 6:50 remaining in the fourth quarter, Green Bay’s offense had to move quickly, so Jordan Love hastily threw an interception to Byron Murphy Jr. Following another Vikings three-and-out, Murphy again got the ball back with a classic Charles Tillman-esque “peanut punch” of Tucker Kraft that Cam Bynum recovered. The ensuing Vikings possession ended in a fourth-and-one punt that KOC likely would’ve opted to go for if the game weren’t firmly in hand. The Packers went on to add another touchdown to secure their moral victory.
Over the final three-quarters of the game, the lowest Minnesota’s win probability (per ESPN’s win probability tracker) was 81.7%. After the first half “avalanche,” as Kevin O’Connell put it, there was never a realistic likelihood that the Vikings would lose this game. He stressed that his team needs to “remember that feeling,” and I agree. The team must keep chasing that feeling for four quarters a game for the rest of the season if they want to remain dominant.
This was football, not horseshoes or hand grenades, so the Vikings should feel as good about this win as any other. Two plays going the other way would’ve made the final score much more convincing for national pundits and fans of both teams.
We’ll see if the Vikings can sustain their urgency across the pond this weekend as Sam Darnold faces the team that drafted him and so poorly managed his development.
