Dalvin Cook, Vikings Roll Over Lions For Second Straight Victory
The Vikings might not be dead just yet.
Behind another massive day by the red-hot Dalvin Cook, an efficient outing from Kirk Cousins, and three second-half interceptions, they defeated the Lions 34-20 to win their first home game of the season. It was a dominant performance on both sides of the ball and the Vikings' second straight win over an NFC North rival. After a disappointing 1-5 start to the year, they're now 3-5 and have several more winnable games coming up.
If they keep playing like this, there's no reason the Vikings can't add to this winning streak and get back into the playoff picture. Here are three takeaways from a big win at U.S. Bank Stadium.
Dalvin keeps Cookin'
Cook's production is starting to get ridiculous at this point. Last week, he went for 226 yards from scrimmage and four touchdowns to almost single-handedly beat the Packers. This week, he somehow managed to one-up himself.
Cook racked up a career-high 252 yards from scrimmage and scored two more touchdowns against the Lions. His 203 rushing yards were also a career-high. Cook did all of that on just 24 touches.
You can't argue against the numbers. Right now, Cook is proving why he was worth every penny of the $63 million extension the Vikings gave him prior to this season, and he's also making a very convincing case that he's the best running back in the NFL. He surpassed 1,000 yards from scrimmage in 6.5 games of action and has been gashing every defense he's faced.
Cook got things going early with a five-yard touchdown run. He ripped off chunk after chunk against a Lions defense that had no answer for him, making guys miss in the open field and running through tackles. He's decisive in where he wants to go and seems to find the correct hole every time he gets the ball.
Early in the fourth quarter, the Vikings got the ball back up 27-13 with a chance to ice the game. It had already been an incredible game for Cook, but he wasn't finished. He took the handoff, burst through a tackle, and then out-ran every else on the field for a season-long 70-yard score. It was an exclamation point on a ridiculous outing.
That was Cook's league-leading 13th touchdown of the year. He gives the Vikings a chance to win every single time they play.
Credit also must go to the offensive line, which imposed its will in run-blocking for a second consecutive Sunday.
Cousins manages the game well
The Vikings' formula is simple: feed their elite running back and have their quarterback do just enough to keep defenses honest. Cousins played that game manager role to perfection on Sunday. He went 13 of 20 for 220 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions. That was good for a passer rating of 141.7.
Cousins simply wasn't asked to do all that much. He dumped the ball off to Cook for a couple big gains, found open receivers, and took care of the football. After throwing a league-leading ten interceptions during the Vikings' 1-5 start, he hasn't thrown a pick in the last two weeks.
When the Vikings needed him to make a play, Cousins did. He made a few excellent throws, including this one to rookie Justin Jefferson for 35 yards.
The Vikings will look to follow this formula every week going forward. But eventually, there will be games when Cook doesn't run all over the opposing defense. And when that happens, they'll need Cousins to elevate his game and lead them to victories.
This defense might be turning a corner
The Vikings' revamped defense went through plenty of growing pains early in this season, giving up 30-plus points in losses to the Packers, Titans, and Falcons. With so many veterans departing in free agency this offseason and a couple season-ending injuries to key players, it wasn't too surprising that it took Mike Zimmer a while to get this unit up to speed.
All of a sudden, the Vikings' defense is looking a lot better. They held Aaron Rodgers and the Packers to just eight points in the second half of last week's win in Green Bay, and mostly shut down the Lions in this one. Detroit did go over 400 yards of offense, but much of that came in garbage time and they were held to less than six yards per play.
The Vikings sacked Matthew Stafford twice and intercepted him twice in the red zone. Harrison Smith picked off Chase Daniel to add a third interception for the defense. Linebackers Eric Kendricks and Eric Wilson each had a pick and were all over the field, the cornerbacks mostly held up well in coverage, and the defensive line was able to apply fairly consistent pressure.
The Vikings have plenty of weapons on offense. If their defense continues to play like this, they might just be able to put together a lengthy winning streak.
Next week, the Vikings go to Chicago to play a struggling Bears team on Monday Night Football. The Bears have dropped three straight games and were held scoreless by the Titans in the first half this week. After that, the Vikings return home for winnable games against the Cowboys, Panthers, and Jaguars.
Don't look now, but the Vikings might be back in the wild card race before you know it.
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