MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The Minnesota Vikings started the season 5-0 in relatively comfortable fashion before losing two tight games in a five-day span.
The five-game winning streak they've responded with has been filled with setbacks, comebacks and more down-to-the-wire finishes. These situations have only been stressful on the outside, though. The sign of a well-built and high-caliber team is winning the games that don't go so smoothly, like most of the first three quarters of Minnesota's 23-22 win over Arizona on Sunday.
“I think we continue to learn things about our team that will pay a lot of dividends moving forward,” coach Kevin O'Connell said.
After falling behind 19-6 to the Cardinals, the defense continued to stiffen near and in the red zone and the offense kicked into high gear as the Vikings (10-2) moved another step closer to clinching a spot in the playoffs and stayed in stride between Detroit (11-1) and Green Bay (9-3) in this historically strong NFC North.
The precision, aggression and confidence quarterback Sam Darnold has displayed for the majority of this season, belying his career performance to date, have been major reasons why the Vikings keep winning.
“Just got to continue to protect the ball, which I felt like I did a good job all day when something wasn’t there,” Darnold said.
As the sample size continues to increase, more of the late-game success can be traced back to O'Connell and his leadership. He has helped instill a sense of harmony and resiliency in the players by staying calm, being consistent and building them up so they can effectively weather the in-game slumps.
“If you’ve got true belief and authentic belief with all the time we’ve spent together preparing to try to win these football games, just because it doesn't go our way doesn’t mean we get to stomp our feet and be different in those moments,” O'Connell said.
What's working
Darnold has continued to deliver clutch throws when the Vikings have needed them. NFL coaches typically call this the four-minute offense, the late-half or late-game situations with enough time to use most of the playbook but still carrying an urgent need to score. After going 6 for 6 for 90 yards in overtime on the winning drive at Chicago the week before, Darnold went 12 for 17 for 156 yards and two touchdowns over Minnesota's last three drives, which also included a field goal.
“My confidence level in him is sky-high to play the game however we need to play it,” O'Connell said.
What needs help
The pass protection leaked a lot against the Cardinals, with five sacks allowed for 30 yards lost. Darnold has been sacked 37 times this season, and the Vikings are 26th in the league in sacks allowed per pass attempt.
Stock up
Cornerback Byron Murphy Jr. snagged his team-leading fifth interception, which is tied for third in the NFL. He's also tied for eighth in the league with 11 pass deflections. Murphy, who has played the second-most snaps (93.6%) on defense for Minnesota behind safety Harrison Smith, got a game ball from O'Connell during his postgame speech to the team.
Stock down
Running back Aaron Jones fumbled twice in Vikings territory, leading to what O'Connell called a “non-scheduled” usage reduction. Jones, who had a season-low five carries, has four of his five fumbles in the last three games since suffering a rib injury at Jacksonville on Nov. 10. The Vikings lost two of those fumbles, plus a dropped toss sweep at Tennessee that was charged to Darnold. Still, the Vikings went out of their way to express trust in Jones. O'Connell called the play for the go-ahead touchdown pass to make Jones the primary read.
“It was a roller coaster for me,” Jones said. “I’m thankful for these guys in this locker room for keeping my head up.”
Injury report
Cornerback Stephon Gilmore suffered a low-grade strain of his left hamstring in the second quarter and was sidelined for the rest of the game, but O'Connell said he's optimistic the 13-year veteran won't miss much time and wasn't ready to even rule him out this week. O'Connell said Gilmore considered trying to return and that he's hopeful the 13-year veteran won't miss much time. Tight end Josh Oliver (ankle) missed his second straight game, but O'Connell sounded optimistic about getting him back this week. Long snapper Andrew DePaola (hand) and kicker Will Reichard (quadriceps) are both now eligible to return from injured reserve, and their 21-day practice windows will open this week in advance of their pending return.
Key number
1,038 — Jefferson hit the 1,000-yard mark to become the fourth wide receiver in NFL history to reach that milestone in each of his first five seasons behind Randy Moss, A.J. Green and Mike Evans.
Jefferson finished with seven receptions for 99 yards against the Cardinals to fall just short of his 33rd career 100-yard game — “I hate those games, actually,” he said — but had five catches for 67 yards over the final three drives, which produced 17 points.
Up next
The Vikings host Atlanta this week in the return of quarterback Kirk Cousins. The Falcons (6-6) are tied for the NFC South lead, but they've lost three straight games. Cousins threw four interceptions, including one that was returned for a touchdown, in a 17-13 loss on Sunday to the Los Angeles Chargers.
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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL
Dave Campbell, The Associated Press
