Jordan Addison and Justin Jefferson combine for five TDs in Vikings win
A tied game after three quarters, the Vikings erupted for three touchdowns in the final period to emerge with a 42-21 win over the Falcons Sunday afternoon at U.S. Bank Stadium. With the win, Minnesota moved to 11-2 and remained a game behind Detroit in the NFC North.
This was a game where the spotlight was on the quarterbacks, with former Vikings QB Kirk Cousins returned to Minnesota for the first time. But it was Sam Darnold who stole the show, as he threw for 347 yards with 5 TDs and 0 interceptions. Cousins threw for almost as many yards – 344 – but with 0 TDs and two picks.
After Cousins drove the Falcons 70 yards in five plays to tie the game 21-21 late in the third quarter, Darnold went to work. He, too, drove his team 70 yards for a touchdown, with the big play being a 42-yard pass to Jordan Addison. After an incompletion, Darnold hit Justin Jefferson for 11 yards and then connected with Addison on an 11-yard TD pass.
On the ensuing kickoff, the Falcons fumbled the ball, giving the Vikings a short field. Darnold went 5-for-5 on the drive, again finding Addison for a TD and a two-score lead.
Cousins drove the ball to the Vikings’ 25-yard line but the possession ended when Byron Murphy Jr. made a one-handed interception. His momentum carried into the end zone so while he took a knee, by rule the ball was spotted on the 2-yard line where he established possession.
The Vikings drove 98 yards for the final score of the game. Aaron Jones, who fumbled twice in the last game, capped things off with a 15-yard for a touchdown.
Darnold spread the ball around magnificently, throwing three touchdown passes to Addison and two to Jefferson. Five receivers caught passes, with Addison notching 133 receiving yards and Jefferson 132. After his three-interception game against Jacksonville, Darnold has thrown for 11 TDs without a pick. It’s been an incredible performance from a guy who’s been declared a turnover machine.
In the middle of the year, it was the defense carrying the offense. But now the script has been flipped. While the defense had two picks and allowed just two TDs, they gave up an alarming 496 yards. You can give lip service to “bend but don’t break,” but no one’s idea of a good defense is to allow 500 yards in a game.
The only two losses this year came with linebacker Blake Cashman sidelined. And the big yards allowed recently came with linebacker Ivan Pace on the IL. When people say that linebackers no longer matter, the Vikings are showing what a key role those defenders play in their scheme.
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