MINNEAPOLIS — The Vikings' effort to reach the playoffs, after a 1-5 start, is measured only in wins. They got their fifth in six games to reach .500 on Sunday at U.S. Bank Stadium, and the fact they received no style points for it, before a pivotal game in Tampa against the Buccaneers next Sunday, ultimately does not matter.
The fact of the matter is, though, that in the final two installments of their three-game homestand, the Vikings allowed defensive touchdowns to start the second half and came within two missed field goals of dropping back-to-back games to the Panthers and Jaguars. They are 6-6 after a 27-24 overtime victory Sunday, but against a Jaguars team that had won one game this season, they arrived at .500 in a manner that should inject a dose of sobriety into talk of postseason scenarios.
Kicker Dan Bailey knocked it through from 23 yards out in overtime for the Vikings win. Getting to that point wasn't pretty.
Jaguars kicker Chase McLaughlin missed an extra point; Bailey missed two. Kirk Cousins threw an interception that Jaguars linebacker Joe Schobert returned for a touchdown on the first play of the second half, on a play where Dalvin Cook (the intended target) never turned around for the ball.
With the Vikings in position to take a 10-point lead in the fourth quarter, Cook couldn't hold onto a handoff from the Jaguars' 1, on an aborted play that was ruled a fumble for Cousins; the Vikings got a safety three plays later when Ifeadi Odenigbo split a sack with Jordan Brailford (the defensive end who also forced and recovered a fumble in his first game of the season).
No Vikings cornerback had picked off a pass all season, until Cameron Dantzler ripped a pass away from tight end Eric Schobert at the Vikings' 22 in the second quarter. The Vikings and Jaguars combined for six turnovers, with Mike Glennon's overtime interception ultimately putting the Vikings in position to win it on Bailey's field goal.
Linebacker Eric Kendricks, who was limited in practice on both Thursday and Friday with a left calf injury, aggravated it in pregame warmups and was ruled out at kickoff. As the All-Pro linebacker watched from the sideline in a hoodie, the Jaguars took just five plays to drive 75 yards for a touchdown, as Laviska Shenault hauled in a touchdown pass that first bounced off Kris Boyd's arm, taking the ball 28 yards for a score.
Jacksonville led 9-6 at halftime, stretching the lead to 10 points on Schobert's pick-six of Cousins, but the Jaguars would not score again until James Robinson pulled them within two on a one-yard run with 1:08 to go. As Glennon found Collin Johnson in the back of the end zone for the game-tying two-point conversion, Vikings coach Mike Zimmer threw off his headset and slammed his play sheet to the ground.
The Vikings drove to the Jaguars' 33, but had to use their final timeout after Justin Jefferson was stopped short of a first down on a third-down completion, and Cousins tried a deep ball for Thielen on 3rd-and-1. Bailey's 51-yard attempt was short and left, and McLaughlin missed short from 62 yards out at the end of regulation.
In overtime, after the Vikings were forced to punt deep in their own territory, Dan Chisena sprinted downfield to force a holding penalty that backed Jacksonville up. Glennon's third-down overthrow landed in the arms of Harrison Smith at the Jaguars' 46. After Jefferson drew an offside penalty for lining up too far forward, Cousins hit Tyler Conklin for a 10-yard first down, and Cook picked up a first down with a cutback after the Jaguars created a pile at the line of scrimmage.
The Vikings moved the ball down to the Jaguars' 1, seeming reluctant to try Bailey again until they had to do so. They finally brought the kicker on for a 23-yard attempt, after a Dakota Dozier false start from the goal line, and Bailey put it through.
Jefferson finished with nine catches for 121 yards and a touchdown, on a 20-yard post corner route where the wide receiver became the fifth rookie in the Super Bowl era to surpass 1,000 yards in just 12 games. Jefferson joined Odell Beckham, Randy Moss, Anquan Boldin and Marques Colston as the rookies to achieve the milestone.
The positive notes were too few for the Vikings, however. A win is a win in the standings, though, and at 6-6 the Vikings are right in the NFC mix.
