In five days, the Minnesota Vikings went from being at the top of the NFL world, along with the Kansas City Chiefs, to a two-game losing streak and questions everywhere.
The NFL moves fast. The Vikings lost in the final minute to the Detroit Lions last Sunday, then lost 30-20 to the Los Angeles Rams on Thursday night. A 5-0 start is now a 5-2 record and Minnesota is officially behind the Lions in the NFC North.
The Rams, with Cooper Kupp and Puka Nacua back, looked like a new team and have to reconsider shopping Kupp in a potential trade and wonder if they’re playoff contenders, especially in the NFC West. The Vikings have to wonder what their next step is too.
The Vikings’ defense that baffled the rest of the NFL for five weeks has struggled for two straight weeks, with the Lions and Rams moving the ball against Minnesota. The offense is fine but stalled often after a good start and losing left tackle Christian Darrisaw could be a problem.
Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores was off to a great start this season and his defense shut down some good offense. But Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson and Rams coach Sean McVay have had plenty of answers the last two weeks. The Vikings aren’t in trouble due to two losses, but the shine of their feel-good start is starting to wear off.
Both offenses start fast
The Rams played a prime-time game against the Chiefs a few years ago in which both teams scored 50 points, and for a bit on Thursday night it seemed like we might get a repeat.
The Vikings scored on the first drive, easily moving down the field. The Rams answered with a touchdown, the Vikings responded immediately with Sam Darnold’s second touchdown pass of the game and then Cooper Kupp scored to tie the game. Four possessions, four touchdowns. It was a fun showdown between two fantastic offensive coaches.
The Vikings had trouble with Puka Nacua, playing his first game since the season opener after missing time due to a knee injury. Nacua was over 100 yards receiving before the third quarter ended.
The defenses settled in after the early scoring flurry. Both sides had trouble sustaining drives before halftime. Then, with less than a minute left in the half and the Vikings backed up on their own 3-yard line, Darrisaw, Minnesota’s fantastic left tackle, had his leg rolled up on during a run play and he had to be helped to the locker room.
The Vikings didn’t look like the team that people expected would finish last in the NFC North, but they didn’t look like the team that was one of the two final undefeated teams in the NFL less than a week ago.
Rams lead into the 4th quarter
The Rams took a lead late in the third quarter on a nice deep pass from Stafford to Demarcus Robinson for a 25-yard touchdown. The Vikings were in position to get a touchdown of their own but Jalen Nailor dropped a third-down pass that was going to be a first down and maybe a touchdown. The Vikings settled for a field goal. That’s the type of huge mistake the Vikings rarely made during their 5-0 start.
There were other mistakes. The Vikings took multiple defensive penalties on third downs, keeping Rams drives alive. The defense that confused many in a hot start didn’t confuse Rams head coach Sean McVay or Stafford. Stafford was rarely pressured and wasn’t sacked once.
Another third-down penalty in the fourth quarter led to Robinson’s second touchdown with 6:17 left. Darnold took a costly sack and threw incomplete on third-and-21, leading to a punt. The Rams defense hasn’t been very good this season but the Vikings couldn’t do much against it.
To help chew up most of the rest of the clock, the Rams used the Vikings’ aggressive nature against them. On a third-and-9, they ran a play that looked like a short receiver screen to Nacua. But Stafford waited and threw deep to Kupp for a 27-yard game. The Vikings had another shot, but the Rams’ punt went out of bounds at the 3-yard line with 1:46 to go and Minnesota holding no timeouts. Darnold was sacked for a safety by Byron Young — Young got away with a facemask penalty — and that ended the Vikings’ chances.
The Vikings’ schedule eases up in upcoming weeks. But after being the talk of the NFL, they’ll have to reinvent themselves to avoid a longer losing streak.
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