MINNEAPOLIS — Most of the reporters had left. The locker room was mostly empty. And yet here they were, two veterans of the game, looking at each other and smiling.
Harrison Smith stood at his locker. Stephon Gilmore sat next to him, still wearing his purple jersey. They entered the league together in 2012 and respected each other from afar. Now they were together, laughing about how badly their legs ached from all the running they’d just done. But also embracing a moment late in a season they both have described as special.
Their Minnesota Vikings had just defeated an exceptional Green Bay Packers team 27-25 to improve to 14-2 on the season. The 14 wins mattered, but Sunday’s victory was bigger than that. Minnesota has one regular-season game remaining on the road against the Detroit Lions. If the Vikings win, they will secure the NFC North and the No. 1 seed.
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That would be massive for a couple of reasons. The Vikings are 7-1 at home this season, and their roster is one of the oldest in the NFL. Secure a bye, and not only would they have a week to rest and prepare for their next opponent, but they would also get an opportunity to play inside this 66,000-seat boom box.
It was here inside U.S. Bank Stadium on Sunday that the Vikings made it clear they are a force to be reckoned with.
For weeks, if not months, people on the outside have refused to take this team seriously. It’s not that NFL analysts and pundits haven’t been impressed by what head coach Kevin O’Connell has done or quarterback Sam Darnold’s marvelous season. On the contrary. It’s more that Minnesota, which began the season with a projected Vegas win total of 6 1/2 games, has mostly been categorized as an exceptional story, a wholesome team composed of likable players capable of elite celebrations.
Some cited the Vikings’ record in one-score games (9-1), even though about 77 percent of NFL games are decided by one score or less. Others compared this Vikings season to the 2022 campaign in which the Vikings flamed out in the wild-card round, even though that Vikings team did not have a budding superstar in Jordan Addison or Brian Flores working wonders as the defensive coordinator.
But these Vikings are still fun. The story remains phenomenal. While Minnesota certainly has weaknesses, Sunday stamped this team with a sense of undeniability.
“We’re laying it on the line every single week with everything we absolutely have,” O’Connell said, “and the best part of it is all we need is all of what we are.”
Buried within those words are so many of O’Connell’s messages to the players from the spring. That they were talented enough. That they didn’t need external validation. That they would maximize everything they had because he wouldn’t allow anything less. The players trusted those words and watched them come to life. The 5-0 start verified O’Connell’s conviction, and their response to two midseason losses to the Lions and Los Angeles Rams only deepened the credibility of O’Connell’s position.
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One of the primary reasons for the Vikings’ strength is the relationship between the coach and his players. O’Connell reiterated his belief by calling five passes in the Vikings’ final six plays Sunday when some coaches might have run the ball into a loaded box to eat up time and force the opposing coach to use his timeouts. O’Connell viewed that approach as a game-losing proposition. He believed Darnold would take care of the ball, properly delineating between prosperity and disaster. So, with his defense reeling late in the fourth quarter, he dialed up three rollouts.
Darnold dumped the first to fullback C.J. Ham, who galloped for a first down. Darnold threaded a pass to superstar receiver Justin Jefferson on the sideline, which set up the finale. Darnold then arced the ball above Packers edge rusher Kingsley Enagbare, and backup running back Cam Akers contorted his body to snag it inches from hitting the ground. The Vikings players were not surprised by O’Connell’s aggression so much as they were stoked.
“You want a coach who has all the confidence in the world in his football team,” linebacker Blake Cashman said.
CLUTCH catch by Cam Akers for the first down to seal it! 🔥
📺: #GBvsMIN on FOX
📱: https://t.co/waVpO909ge pic.twitter.com/tqo6bSZaSp— NFL (@NFL) December 30, 2024
Minnesota is also a window into what happens when you pair an elite play-calling head coach with a defensive coordinator who has the gall to do whatever it takes to win, even if whatever it takes sometimes backfires remarkably. Before Sunday, the Vikings had played man coverage on just 15.7 percent of their defensive snaps this season, according to TruMedia. Minnesota has mostly thrived by spinning the dial with different zone coverages and blitzes.
But early in the week, Flores told his charges Sunday’s approach would be different. He termed it a “mano a mano” affair. Prepare your hamstrings, Flores told the defensive backs.
As for the edge rushers, Jonathan Greenard and Andrew Van Ginkel knew that sacks were secondary. Keeping Packers quarterback Jordan Love in the pocket and not letting him roll to his right were the priorities. Sunday would depend on whether the Vikings could handle those two objectives. The Minnesota defenders did not question Flores’ plan.
“He watches the tape,” Gilmore said. “He knows what position to put us in. We’ve just got to make it work.”
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According to Next Gen Stats, the Vikings used man coverage on 47.1 percent of the Packers’ dropbacks Sunday, including 11 of 13 on third and fourth downs.
Packers head coach Matt LaFleur admitted after the game that he did not expect man coverage early in the game and shouldered the blame for not adapting quickly enough. Green Bay had scored 30 points in five straight games, but on Sunday, the team’s wideouts failed to make plays and Love pogo-sticked anxiously in the pocket.
But it’s not just the defense that makes Minnesota a formidable opponent. The Vikings are talented and consistent on offense, too. Selling out against Jefferson (who had eight catches for 92 yards) has become a trendy strategy, yet it is regularly rendered fruitless because of how dynamic Addison has become. On Sunday, the second-year man executed a hitch route, then twirled into a wheel route and beat Packers safety Javon Bullard for a touchdown.
Darnold and Addison making it look easy 😮💨 TD @Vikings!
📺: #GBvsMIN on FOX
📱: https://t.co/waVpO909ge pic.twitter.com/T2NQ7GQV0d— NFL (@NFL) December 29, 2024
And when the Packers’ coverage floated with Addison, receiver Jalen Nailor sprung free, easily separating from defenders to haul in vital passes. Tight end T.J. Hockenson’s presence matters when the Vikings must convert the sticks, and running backs Aaron Jones and Akers are no slouches, either.
Those weapons are paired with a gritty offensive line and, maybe most importantly, a quarterback who’s operating the controls as well as anyone in the NFL. You would think the 33-of-43, 377-yard, three-touchdown stat line would tell the story, but not even that does justice to the degree of difficulty of some of Darnold’s anticipatory throws Sunday over the middle.
His teammates’ postgame reaction exemplifies Darnold’s role in all of this. While the former journeyman QB completed his media duties on the field, Greenard schemed up a plan: Everyone would grab a water bottle, and when Darnold walked in, they would douse him aggressively. At that moment, the players took the scene further, hoisting Darnold on their shoulders and chanting 50 Cent’s “Many Men.” Standing in the corner of the locker room, O’Connell watched and shook his head like a proud father.
The Sam Darnold experience continues. pic.twitter.com/k5db9DYdtp
— Alec Lewis (@alec_lewis) December 30, 2024
It was an amazing snapshot, the perfect image of a team that enjoys being together as much as it enjoys its accomplishments. Smith and Gilmore shared that this is the secret sauce. It’s a chemistry and camaraderie that has garnered plenty of positive attention — but now demands respect.
(Photo of Sam Darnold and Cam Akers: Jeffrey Becker / Imagn Images)
