The Minnesota Vikings escaped Lambeau Field, beating the Green Bay Packers 31-29. The Vikings started hot, scoring on their first two drives to quickly get up to a 14-0 lead before the defense reeled in two crucial interceptions. The offense turned these picks into 14 more points, taking an insurmountable 28-0 lead.
Just as it felt like nothing could go wrong for the Purple and Gold, backup punt returner Jalen Nailor muffed a punt that the wind carried. While initially it looked like the Packers would squander another golden opportunity when Matt LaFleur got a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct flag on what can only described as a generational crash out, Green Bay’s offense got seven points on a wheel route to Jayden Reed.
In the third and early fourth quarter, the Vikings continued to allow Green Bay to get back into the game. They turned the ball over at Green Bay’s two-yard line on Xavier McKinney‘s interception and spotted the Packers seven points after a Sam Darnold fumble deep in Minnesota territory.
Despite the Packers making it a six-point game, Minnesota’s offense locked in and got three points on their next drive by getting Jefferson involved. After that, Byron Murphy Jr., who Green Bay often targeted in coverage, got an interception and forced a fumble on back-to-back drives. While Green Bay’s offense was able to get another score late, the game ended when they couldn’t recover the onside kick.
Here are some numbers to break down the Vikings win over the Packers:
38
After scoring 14 first-quarter points against the Green Bay Packers, the Vikings have scored 38 points in the first quarter so far this season. Last year, they scored 40 points in the first quarter — total, in 17 games.
Last year, the Vikings always had to chase the game because they were behind early. They have gotten off to fast starts in the first four games this year.
Each week, Minnesota’s offense has scored a touchdown in every first quarter, allowing the defense to play from ahead. The Vikings have trailed for only 3:26 this season, courtesy of C.J. Ham‘s fumble deep in Vikings territory against the Giants.
Since then, they have been almost flawless in every first quarter. We have not seen the team play from behind for a significant amount of time. However, their ability to get (and extend) leads early has made this squad so much better than any in the O’Connell era.
28
The Vikings had their largest-ever lead at Lambeau when they led 28-0 before Nailor’s muffed punt allowed the Packers to get on the board.
Minnesota has had a lot of signature moments in Lambeau. Randy Moss mooned the stands, the Vikings clinched the division in the frozen tundra with Teddy Bridgewater, and Dalvin Cook almost single-handedly won a game on his own.
However, none of them have been as dominant as Minnesota’s performance in the first half of this game.
The Vikings scored on their first drive, welcoming back Jordan Addison to the offense by getting him a 29-yard score on his first catch back from injury. They continued to pile on, scoring on the next drive with a pass to Josh Oliver.
They continued to be ruthless, turning two consecutive Jordan Love interceptions to 14 more points on an Addison jet sweep and a beautifully thrown ball into the chest of a covered Justin Jefferson. Despite this lead, they couldn’t close the game out, letting the Packers back into the game in the second half.
8
Sam Darnold hit eight different receivers on his first eight pass attempts.
Minnesota’s offense had a full-strength receiving corps for the first time since the first half of Week 1. Therefore, you would have expected Darnold and KOC to focus on Jefferson and Addison early, feeding them wherever possible. Instead, we got a game plan focused on spreading the ball around and getting other players involved.
Jefferson and Addison played key roles later on, getting the offense back into a groove after stalling out multiple times. Jefferson also has probably the most important grab to all but win the game, making an insane toe-tap catch to extend a drive and run about two more minutes off the clock. While it didn’t result in any points, the ability to run more time off the clock in a game that got closer than it should have was crucial.
3/3
Kevin O’Connell had an exceptional day with the red flag, going three for three with challenges. In the past, KOC has been somewhat reserved when it comes to throwing the challenge flag out, using it just 12 times in his first two seasons. But today, he used them well, winning all three of his challenges.
O’Connell was on one today, winning two challenges early when Green Bay passes hit the ground. However, O’Connell’s most important challenge was his third, when he again dropped the red flag on a catch initially ruled incomplete on third-and-12. Though it didn’t result in points, extending the drive allowed the Vikings to burn more valuable time and put the Packers up against the clock even more than they already were.
O’Connell’s ability to win challenges today gave the Vikings the edge.
81.7%
Even though it felt like the sky was falling in the second half, Minnesota’s win percentage never dropped below 81.7%, according to ESPN’s win predictor. The Vikings undoubtedly made things difficult on themselves early in the second half, squandering a 28-point lead and letting the Packers get back into the game. Still, ESPN’s win predictor always indicated that they’d pull it off.
Sure, 81.7% is worse than the 98.6% they were at earlier, and you could argue that ESPN doesn’t factor in momentum or other external aspects into the win predictor. Still, knowing that the game was never too much in doubt mathematically is something fans should think about. The Vikings never trailed again for the third-straight game. However, after the special teams blunder at the end of the half, this team felt much less in control than before.
