The Vikings had plenty to play for late Sunday afternoon against the Packers at Lambeau Field. Minnesota already had clinched the NFC North title with 12 wins, but after the Eagles lost to the Saints in an early-afternoon game, the possibility of finishing with the top seed in the NFC increased. The Vikings also had a chance to put an end to Green Bay’s playoff hopes.
What a perfect way to ring in 2023.
It looked as if the Vikings were eager to do exactly that when Josh Metellus blocked Pat O’Donnell’s punt early in the first quarter to give Minnesota the ball at the Packers’ 1-yard line. What no one could have guessed was that would be the highlight of the day for the visiting team. After losing a yard on three plays, Greg Joseph kicked a 21-yard field goal to give the Vikings a 3-0 lead.
Keisean Nixon returned Joseph’s subsequent kickoff 105 yards for a touchdown and the Vikings were never again in the game. The Packers’ 41-17 victory — which included 14 garbage-time points from the Vikings — was the second time this season the Vikings have embarrassed themselves. The first was a 40-3 loss to Dallas on Nov. 20 at U.S. Bank Stadium.
“I think it just comes down to the fact that when we’ve lost lopsided games, we’ve directly contributed to those,” Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell said when asked for his thoughts on the one-sided losses. “The score can get out of hand in a hurry when you turn it over for touchdowns the other way, you give up a 100-yard kickoff return, you don’t score when you block a punt and end up on their 1-yard line and come away with three.
This game is a momentum-based game and when you turn the football over, you do not sustain drives offensively, eventually it’s just too much for your team to overcome. That’s where we’ve got to find ways in all phases of our team to do whatever we can to limit the momentum being that avalanche that has tended to happen when a couple of these games have gotten away from us.”
The margin of defeat Sunday might not have been as bad as it was against the Cowboys, but the loss might have been worse given the timing and the opponent. For much of the season, it looked like the power in the NFC North had shifted from Green Bay to Minnesota. But Sunday will only strengthen the argument for those who think the Packers are getting hot at the right time and the Vikings were never really that good.
The Packers are 8-8 and remain in contention for the seventh and final playoff spot in the conference. The Vikings fell to 12-4, the same record as the San Francisco 49ers have after edging the Las Vegas Raiders in overtime. San Francisco, which closes its regular season against the 4-12Arizona Cardinals next Sunday, holds the tie-breaker on the Vikings and is almost certain to finish ahead of Minnesota.
The Vikings will play the 3-13 Bears next week in Chicago and could consider resting starters with the expectation it’s unlikely the 49ers will lose to the Cardinals. Resting key guys for an opening-round playoff game at U.S. Bank Stadium might make the most sense.
This will mean the final memory of these players before the postseason won’t be their 11 one-score wins, or the resilience they have shown in various games, including an NFL-record 33-point second-half comeback against the Indianapolis Colts in mid-December. Their last memory will be of a one-sided loss to their arch-rival in which the Vikings were intimidated both mentally and physically.
Justin Jefferson, who had 184 yards receiving and two touchdowns in the Vikings’ 23-7 victory over the Packers in Week 1, finished Sunday with one catch for 15 yards. He did not have a reception in the first half.
Packers cornerback Jaire Alexander called Jefferson’s success in Week 1 “a fluke” and then, as part of Green Bay’s coverage plans on the receiver, went about backing up his words. Alexander broke up a pass for Jefferson in the first quarter and then copied Jefferson’s “Griddy” dance in front of him.
If the Vikings had any confidence before that, it was gone. Jefferson’s frustration was obvious and he wasn’t the only one. Cousins threw one touchdown and three interceptions, including a pick that was returned 75 yards for a touchdown by safety Darnell Savage.
Cousins also lost a fumble before being replaced by backup Nick Mullens in the fourth quarter. Joseph, who hit a franchise-record 61-yard field goal to give the Vikings a walk-off win last week against the Giants, missed field-goal attempts of 46 and 50 yards in the first half. In other words, the Vikings might have a kicking problem at the worst time.
That’s only a start. There were plenty of other poor performances and a finger must be pointed at O’Connell for not having his team prepared. O’Connell’s concerns will go beyond Sunday’s performance. Standout right tackle Brian O’Neill suffered a calf injury in the first quarter and did not return. He is scheduled to undergo an MRI and, for now, will be replaced by Oli Udoh.
Backup center Austin Schlottmann suffered a broken fibula in the first quarter and was replaced by veteran Chris Reed, who struggled to get on the same page with Cousins. Starting center Garrett Bradbury has missed four games because of back injury and the Vikings likely will hold him out until the playoffs.
The loss of Bradbury or O’Neill in the postseason would be a significant blow to the line. If both are sidelined, it’s hard to see the Vikings winning more than one game and this once-magical season might be a one-and-done.
Of course, if the Vikings put forth a performance as they did against the Cowboys or Packers, or, for that matter, the first half of the Colts game, then their early exit from the playoffs will be richly deserved.
Judd Zulgad is co-host of the Purple Daily Podcast and Mackey & Judd podcast at www.skornorth.com
