Vanquishing Rodgers Was Minnesota’s True Coming-Out Party
Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
The Minnesota Vikings’ victory over the New York Jets on Sunday was perhaps the most important of this early-season run. They’ve beaten better, more talented teams than the Jets, such as the San Francisco 49ers and Houston Texans. But in Week 5, Minnesota was threatened in a different way than they have been to this point, and responded effectively, pushing its record to 5-0 for the first time since 2016.
It went into the game as the favorite on paper, as New York – which came in with its own struggles and a coach-and-quarterback relationship that appeared strained – limped into the matchup with a 2-2 record. How were they going to beat ex-QB Sam Darnold‘s explosive offense?
The game didn’t play out that way, as Darnold struggled and the rest of the Vikings’ offense didn’t play particularly well. Instead, they had to grind out a win against Aaron Rodgers, who’s been a thorn in the side of the Purple for a long time. That they were able to escape thanks to key defensive stops suggests that their streak is no fluke.
This had all the makings of a trap game for Minnesota. International contests tend to be a little wonky in the NFL, and the Jets’ defense showed why they were to be feared in London. They held Justin Jefferson to six catches and 92 yards with no scores – a result any defensive coordinator will gladly take. After losing Aaron Jones early in the game, Minnesota found themselves completely unable to put offensive pressure on New York.
The Jets didn’t just take Darnold down a peg from the elite level he played at in the first four weeks. They made him look like the Jets version of Darnold. He turned the ball over twice (one fumble, one interception) and took a season-high four sacks. Through four weeks, Darnold’s passer rating was 118.9. In today’s game, it was a paltry 50.3.
The offense needed a ton of help to get the victory today, and they knew it.
“We definitely left yards, points out there,” Jefferson told the Associated Press. “We definitely need to fix some things.”
Fortunately, Minnesota’s defense is elite. They’re the fourth-highest graded unit in the NFL, per Pro Football Focus. Linebacker Andrew Van Ginkel has been special at moments, and he had another highlight-reel play with a pick-six on Sunday. Harrison Smith has had a bit of a revitalization for 2024, and has been producing at a high level. Defensive back Camryn Bynum also showed off his ability to change the balance of the game.
BACK TO BACK PICKS FOR THE @VIKINGS.
📺: #NYJvsMIN on NFL Network
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/echwM5pXmG— NFL (@NFL) October 6, 2024
Getting that kind of production is promising in any game, but is even sweeter against Rodgers, who came in with a 17-11-1 career record against Minnesota. You rarely hear the hyper-confident quarterback as despondent he was after the London game.
“We’re playing below our potential. Too many mistakes,” Rodgers lamented to the Associated Press. “We’re slow starters. Too many mental errors. Just too many mistakes in general. That’s hard to overcome, and then you know for me, I’ve got to take care of the football. Can’t turn the ball over three times and win in this league.”
A team is never going to get fantastic offense every week. Darnold has proven he’s solid, but he might be coming back to his norm in recent weeks. Especially as the season progresses, there will be more time for opposing defenses to try and scheme their way to success against a Vikings offense that took the league by surprise. A slew of divisional games left on the schedule could also make it difficult to accumulate high point totals.
This is doubly true if Jones remains hurt for a while, and defenses see how the Jets played against Jefferson once they could stop worrying about the running game. Points may not come easily to the Vikings for much longer.
However, the defense has been consistent. That’s a unit that travels, and does so internationally. In any given game, we’ve seen several different guys players step up in crucial moments. On most third-and-long plays, just about everybody in the stadium knows that Brian Flores is throwing some sort of blitz at the opposing offense. Crazily enough, it keeps working, and it works against elite quarterbacks and offensive lines.
Once Jones returns, the Vikings should be able to put up explosive weeks again, even if it isn’t as consistent as we’ve seen in the first four weeks. But, if they don’t, the team and its fans can be secure knowing that the current state of the defense will allow the Vikings to stay in games. That’s maybe even more encouraging for the long-term outlook of the team than if Minnesota had won in a rout.
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