Everything looks rosy for the Minnesota Vikings in 2024. Justin Jefferson got a good injury update, and defensive coordinator Brian Flores made Brock Purdy’s head spin. But folks, the Vikings are not the real deal after their upset victory over the 49ers.
But before we go down the real road, let’s take the imaginary road of Sports Illustrated. The claim is: It's time for the world to take the 2024 Minnesota Vikings seriously.
Too fast. Just too fast. Yes, they beat the 49ers. But the other win came over a New York Giants that is apparently even worse than the Washington Commanders. Yuck.
Vikings QB Sam Darnold still lacking what it takes
Yes, head coach Kevin O’Connell has bought the program. He believes in his team. Good for him. O’Connell is a good coach, and he’s doing what good coaches do in these times, according to Sports Illustrated.
“I love this team,” O'Connell said after the win over San Francisco. “It takes a result sometimes for people to see it, and I understand that. I'm most proud of what led into this football game. (There are) a lot of individual performances we could talk about, but this was the epitome of building a football team with a mindset through many, many months ago of what we wanted to play like, how we want to battle, and ultimately how we want to come together and find a way to win a football game.”
But we still have to focus on Darnold. Sure, there’s every reason for O’Connell to believe in Darnold. The Vikings made the tough decision to decline matching the Falcons’ bid for quarterback Kirk Cousins. So they signed Darnold as a stopgap player until rookie J.J. McCarthy could take over.
In the preseason it looked McCarthy could do it. But McCarthy went down with a season-ending injury and Darnold had to be the guy. Through two games, Darnold’s completion percentage is 11 points higher (72%) than his previous career best for a season. Market correction is coming, folks.
NFL defensive coordinators are smart and a little ornry. They’re going to start putting Darnold in spots where he’s not comfortable. And the old Darnold — the dude with the career record of 23-35, ven after these two wins this year — will return.
This will happen no matter how much praise O’Connell throws Darnold’s way. O’Connell spoke of Darnold’s effort in a post on X by Will Ragatz.
“The amount of work that goes into that position, on your quarterback journey, when everybody decides that you cannot play — we always believed in him,” an emotional O'Connell said. “Awesome to go watch him go do that thing. Really proud of Sam Darnold.”
WR Justin Jefferson helps the situation
No matter who is playing quarterback, Jefferson will make him better. Sports Illustrated’s Ragatz pointed out, “It helps that Darnold gets to play with Jefferson, who continues to demonstrate why he's the best wide receiver in football,” Ragatz wrote. “The Vikings always thought that this offense — with O'Connell calling the plays, Jefferson and others catching passes, and a quality offensive line up front — provided the perfect environment for Darnold to succeed.”
This is an excellent point. Jefferson not only gets open, he provides a big-enough target and plenty of catch radius. Balls don’t have to be perfect. Jefferson will catch most of them anyway.
But it has been proven time and time again in the NFL. Great receivers can be quarterback-proof, so to speak, and still get their numbers. But that’s where it ends. The receivers’ numbers look OK, but the quarterback doesn’t make enough plays to lead to enough wins.
Plus, another problem is injuries. Jefferson got hurt against the 49ers. But the hope is he avoided a serious problem, according to Sports Illustrated.
“Justin did come in today feeling pretty good, which was a positive based upon the initial quad contusion that happened on that run play,” O'Connell said. “We'll be day-to-day with Justin and we'll keep you guys posted throughout the week on his workload and what it looks like for Sunday, but pretty positive in the early returns there.”
Jefferson said he’s going to be fine, according to nfl.com.
“Just a little thigh bruise, contusion, whatever you want to call it,” Jefferson said. “Something that happens a lot during football. I’ve just got to get it feeling well and be ready to go next week.
“I'm feeling good. We played tremendous ball all-in-all. At the end of the day, all that matters is winning, and I'm not seriously injured. That's the main, important thing, so it's all about getting to the training room, making sure my body is right for next week.”
Jefferson is an NFL star. His numbers back it up as he surpassed 6,000 yards receiving (6,091 now for his career) and hit 400 receptions. Also, he tied Hall of Famer Randy Moss for the most games with 100 or more receiving yards in a player's first five NFL seasons (30).
However, Addison missed the game against the 49ers, and may be at risk of missing another game.
“He's consistently been pushing through that process,” O'Connell said. “Didn't quite get to a place last week where he could try to go out and even work (in practice) from a limited perspective. We'll see if we can maybe get him involved in the week as we push forward, but very much questionable. Hoping to have him, but also want to make sure we're smart with him, knowing it's a long season.”
It’s hard to imagine what kind of a game Darnold would have if both Jefferson and Addison missed Week 3. Then we’d see what this Darnold hype is really all about.
The defense could be the real deal
One thing that looks good is the way the Vikings play on the defensive side of the ball. And they have a defensive coordinator in Brian Flores, who could be one of the NFL’s best in that role.
The Vikings defense came away with two takeaways and recorded five sacks while holding a powerful offense — potentially one of the NFL’s best — to just 17 points. Also, the Vikings held the 49ers to a 2-of-10 mark on third-down situations.
There’s depth on the defense, and the veterans are good. They aren’t just hanging on at the end of their careers. And the young guys look good in the early going.
If the Vikings make a run at the playoffs, it will be the defense that makes the difference Linebacker Blake Cashman said the proof has already been provided.
“This game demonstrated who we can be,” Cashman said. “We've been playing good ball, good team ball. If we keep playing consistent like that, I don't see what can stop us.”
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