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The Minnesota Vikings had an opportunity to enhance their standing in the NFC playoff race after the Philadelphia Eagles lost 20-10 to the New Orleans Saints on Sunday afternoon. Instead, they blew a huge opportunity, and did so in embarrassing fashion, with a 41-10 loss to the division-rival Green Bay Packers.
This game was called by CBS’ top pairing of Jim Nantz and Tony Romo, an assignment that didn’t bode well for the Vikings. Minnesota is 0-4 with a minus-96 point differential in games called by Nantz and Romo this season.
The game at Green Bay started off rather promising as safety Josh Metellus blocked a punt after just six total offensive plays, but center Austin Schlottmann left the game on their fifth offensive snap with an ankle injury and right tackle Brian O’Neill did as well with a calf injury. I fear that it could be an Achilles injury, as they are often labeled as calf injuries initially.
In this game, every bounce went poorly for the Vikings. Cousins was not great, but it’s hard to pin the loss solely on him. He threw three interceptions in the game, but the first two came on tipped balls with one of those going for a touchdown. He finished the game 18-31 for 205 yards, one touchdown and those three interceptions.
The biggest factor was that wide receiver Justin Jefferson was held completely in check. Packers cornerback Jaire Alexander talked a lot of trash leading into the game and ended up backing it up. Yes, he had plenty of bracket coverage but holding Jefferson to one catch for 15 yards did plenty to help the Packers control this game. It also gave Alexander a reason to disrespect him by hitting the Griddy right in front of him.
The defense is the one unit that doesn’t deserve blame. They held the Packers to 315 yards on the day and only allowed 27 total points despite being put in difficult situations by the four turnovers the offense committed.
The Vikings have one more opportunity to redeem themselves with a final game against the Chicago Bears next weekend. With a San Francisco 49ers win over the Las Vegas Raiders, the Vikings will need a win and a 49ers loss to the Arizona Cardinals to clinch the No. 2 seed.