The 4 Worst Vikings Performances from Week 1

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The Minnesota Vikings defeated the forlorn New York Giants on Sunday, befuddling Brian Daboll’s team to the tune of a 28-6 victory.

The 4 Worst Vikings Performances from Week 1

Kevin O’Connell’s men played tremendously on all sides of the ball. It’s why the franchise notched its first victory by 17 or more points in five years.

However, these four players struggled a bit, and they’re in ascending order (No. 1 = worst performance).

4. C.J. Ham (FB)

Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images.

Week 1 PFF Grade: 40.2

It feels criminal listing Ham as “worst” anything, but his first-drive fumble served as one of Minnesota’s only gaffes on Saturday afternoon.

Ham fumbled right away against the Giants, channeling early-season memories of the 2023 Vikings when out-of-the-gate fumbles were so common that they became expected. Thankfully, Minnesota’s defense quickly overcame the turnover, holding a terrible Giants offense to a field goal.

Ham’s fumble in Week 1 was just the second of his long career.

3. Ryan Wright (P)

NFL Minnesota punter Ryan Wright. © Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images. The Vikings found Wright as an undrafted free agent in 2022.

Week 1 PFF Grade: 50.3

Wright notably shanked one punt; it’s just that nobody really cared because Minnesota led the ballgame cover to cover in Week 1. When it was all said and done last weekend, Wright’s 42.0 yards per punt average ranked second to last in the NFL behind Carolina Panthers punter Johnny Hekker.

Of course, Wright’s average fell to hell because of one lousy punt.

2. Ed Ingram (RG)

vikings
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Week 1 PFF Grade: 51.9

Here’s the rub on Ingram, a third-year Viking: the man is a magnificent run blocker, but his pass protection is unfavorable. In fact, on Sunday, Ingram somehow produced a 9.3 PFF pass-blocking grade — and that’s not a typo. The Giants interior defensive linemen dominated Ingram, but much like Wright’s mistake above, fans didn’t lament the performance too loudly because Minnesota never lost control of the game.

However, Ingram’s 63.9 run-blocking mark from PFF significantly raised his overall grade.

1. Garrett Bradbury (C)

Minnesota Vikings center Garrett Bradbury (56) protects his quarterback during a play against the Detroit Lions defense at Ford Field in Detroit on Sunday, Jan. 7, 2024. © David Rodriguez Munoz / USA TODAY NETWORK.

Week 1 PFF Grade: 44.8

This should no longer be surprising: the result will never be different when Bradbury faces a dominant interior defensive lineman like Dexter Lawrence. It happens twice annually with the Green Bay Packers + Kenny Clark and occurred again Sunday when Bradbury hoped to keep Lawrence at bay.

It’s just not his modus operandi to aptly compete with the best iDLs in the sport. They habitually walk over him.

Similar to Ingram, though, Bradbury never has trouble with run-blocking, so vintage Bradbury showed through in Week 1.


Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. The show features guests, analysis, and opinion on all things related to the purple team, with 4-7 episodes per week. His Vikings obsession dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ Basset Hounds, and The Doors (the band). He follows the NBA as closely as the NFL. 

All statistics provided by Pro Football Reference / Stathead; all contractual information provided by OverTheCap.com.