Not much went right for the Minnesota Vikings in the first half of their Sunday Night Football game against the Indianapolis Colts. The interior offensive line has been getting blown up all game, leading to a ton of pressure on quarterback Sam Darnold.
Darnold has not handled that pressure well, getting sacked three times in the first half, and getting pressured several more times. One of those sacks resulted in a fumble and a scoop-and-score for the Colts defense. Darnold also threw an interception early to compound the issues the Vikings are having early.
One consistent for the Vikings this season has been rookie kicker Will Reichard. Reichard was perfect on the season coming into the game, making his first 14 field goals of the season, including four kicks of 50+ yards. Reichard was also perfect on his extra points on the season, making his first 20 in a row.
Unfortunately for the Vikings, their fans, and Reichard’s hair, “was” is the operative term in that last paragraph. Reichard missed his first field goal of the season Sunday night against the Colts, missing a 53-yard kick in the second quarter and bringing his streak to an end.
Reichard’s special teams coach, Matt Daniels, mentioned earlier this season that Reichard was not cutting his hair until he missed a kick. That means Reichard is going to have a new look when he shows up to practice next week.
To make matters worse for the rookie kicker, Reichard missed a second kick to close out the first half, this one from considerably closer, as he doinked a 31-yard field goal off the upright. Missing multiple kicks in a game is not something Reichard is used to, as he only had three games at Alabama with multiple missed kicks in his five seasons in Tuscaloosa.
If it can go wrong for the Vikings, it has in the first half.