The Vikings Did the Thing on Sunday
It isn’t easy to win football games at the NFL level. Just ask the Chicago Bears. It’s also very difficult to beat a good team within your division twice in a single season. The Minnesota Vikings accomplished that on Sunday when they knocked off the Green Bay Packers at U.S. Bank Stadium.
The Vikings Did the Thing on Sunday
Earlier this season, the Vikings went to Lambeau Field and put a licking on Green Bay. The game finished close but was never actually in doubt. Green Bay quickly pointed out that Jordan Love was at less than 100% as he dealt with a knee injury suffered during a Week 1 game against the Philadelphia Eagles.
This time around, the Minnesota Vikings accomplished the same result in much of the same fashion. Kevin O’Connell’s team had a 20-3 lead in the third quarter and was also up 27-10 in the waning seconds of that frame. The two-point victory makes things look tight, but they virtually never were.
Jordan Love, a quarterback that Green Bay is spending $55 million annually on to win big games, went just 19-of-30 for 185 yards. He threw a touchdown pass and didn’t record an interception, but he never looked like a difference-maker. Without middling wideout Christian Watson, the wide receiver room produced just one player over 50 yards. Romeo Doubs turned 11 targets into seven receptions for 58 yards.
Meanwhile, Brian Flores had his defense ready to go. The Vikings made an impact early when forcing the ball from the clutches of running back Josh Jacobs. They sacked Love on three separate occasions. They didn’t allow Green Bay to convert on the single fourth down they attempted.
When the Vikings needed it the most, in a game they absolutely had to have, the entire team came through. It’s a process and mantra that O’Connell has consistently repeated this year. It has allowed Minnesota to focus on going 1-0 each week rather than getting too far ahead of themselves. It also sets up the biggest regular season game in franchise history next Sunday night.
The Vikings did the thing, and they did it against Green Bay. It doesn’t get much sweeter than that.
Ted Schwerzler is a blogger from the Twin Cities that is focused on all things Minnesota Twins and Minnesota Vikings. He’s active on Twitter and writes daily for Minnesota Sports Fan. As a former college athlete and avid sports fan, covering our pro teams with a passion has always seemed like such a natural outlet.
You must be logged in to post a comment.