Vikings wide receiver Jordan Addison (3) catches a 20-yard pass from Minnesota Vikings quarterback … [+]
The story arc of the Vikings 2024 season has changed dramatically with a 22-17 win over the San Francisco 49ers. The season looked bleak after the first four weeks when they were only 1-3 and the one victory had come against the Carolina Panthers.
However, the Vikings have won 2-of-3 games, and they are back within a game of .500 — and they have a road game against the Packers coming up. The Packers just lost to the Denver Broncos and their offense is fairly pitiful, so the opportunity is there. Win that game and get back to the .500 mark with the fat part of the schedule coming up.
The reason the Vikings have a shot at turning their season around is that they played their best and most courageous game of the season. It was their best game since their memorable victory at Buffalo last year.
The 49ers are a more talented and better team than the Vikings but head coach Kevin O’Connell inspired his team and they came up with a sensational effort. Start with Kirk Cousins, who delivered on Monday Night Football against an elite level team.
In addition to completing 35 of 45 passes for 378 yards with 2 touchdowns along with a first-quarter interception, he was brilliant on his third-down passing. Instead of dinking and dunking the ball for 3, 4 or 5 yards, Cousins was firing the ball downfield. He threw for 183 yards on third-down plays, as the Vikings converted 7 of 11 drive-extending opportunities.
He was delivering the ball to rookie Jordan Addison, T.J. Hockenson, Brandon Powell and Kareem Osborn.
Cousins became the fifth quarterback in NFL history with 50 career 300-yard games in his first 12 seasons.
Addison led the way for the Vikings, coming through with Justin Jefferson on Injured Reserve. H caught 7 passes for 123 yards and 2 touchdowns, including a 60-yarder with seconds to go in the first half in which he ripped the ball away from Niners defensive back Charvarius Ward and waltzed into the endzone.
“That was the big play we need,” said Addison. “This is a big one for us and it’s a long schedule. We have a mindset to go 1-0 ever week after the slow start we got off to.
The Vikings one the turnover battle, and nobody was more instrumental than defensive back Cam Bynum. He intercepted Brock Purdy twice, including the game-clinching takeaway with 34 seconds left when the Niners had an opportunity to score the go-ahead touchdown.
The defense, which had been so awful for the last 3 years, is much better this season. The Vikings are a middle of the pack defense under defensive coordinator Brian Flores. He is clearly leaning on the blitz, as the Vikings send linebackers and defensive backs at the quarterback far more than any other team in the league.
While that strategy doesn’t always result in a sack or a batted pass, it weighs on opposing offenses and leads to mistakes like the ones that Purdy made in the loss. While the 49er quarterback had good numbers in completing 21 of 30 passes for 272 yards, the two interceptions kept his team from taking a game that most expected San Francisco to win.
When the Vikings began the second quarter of their season, the schedule read Kansas City, Chicago, San Francisco and Green Bay. The belief was that 3 wins in those 4 games would give O’Connell and his players a chance to rescue the season.
The win over Chicago was required and the same holds for the upcoming game against Green Bay. It looked like the Vikings would have a better chance against the Chiefs than the 49ers because the Chiefs were not off to a great start, while the Niners were playing pristine football.
They lost to the Chiefs but played a brilliant game against the Niners and there is hope for the first time this season.
They can’t fall short against a Packers team that has lost three games in a row..
If the Vikings can sustain against the Packers, the next four games are against the Falcons, Saints, Broncos and Bears. They can get to 8-4 when they hit their bye in Week 13. That could be good enough to challenge the Detroit Lions for the NFC North, and definitely good enough to make a Wild Card playoff run.
The Vikings have been in the doldrums since losing to the Giants in last year’s playoffs. They are no longer singing the blues, and a real opportunity is within their grasp.