Vikings Pull Out 28-25 Victory Over Saints in Exhilarating London Finish
It's fitting that a game played in London came down to kicks.
Greg Joseph made five field goals, Wil Lutz drilled a game-tying 60-yarder but watched his 61-yard try hit the upright and the crossbar, and the Vikings (3-1) survived a scare from the Saints (1-3) in a 28-25 victory.
A game that started out slow turned into one of the best, most exciting finishes the NFL has seen this season. After the Saints took their first lead of the afternoon (or morning, for those watching in America) in the fourth quarter, the Vikings responded with a Justin Jefferson touchdown run to retake the lead. But Joseph, who was otherwise brilliant, missed the extra point, which would've put Minnesota up by four.
That left the door open for the Saints. With less than two minutes to play, Lutz stepped up and smashed a 60-yard field goal through the uprights to tie the game. On the ensuing possession, Kirk Cousins hit Jefferson on a go route against single coverage from Marshon Lattimore, capping a 150-yard performance by the Vikings' superstar receiver. That set up a 47-yarder from Joseph to give the Vikings the lead back.
But it wasn't over yet. There was still time left on the clock.
The Saints picked up 32 yards on their first play, putting them right back in range for another long field goal try. On the final play of the game, with a chance to send it to overtime, Lutz boomed another ball from midfield. It had the distance, but it caromed off of the left upright, off of the crossbar, and fell harmlessly to the turf at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
The Vikings survived — on a double doink, no less.
With the win, the Vikings move to 3-1 on the season with a winnable home game against the Bears coming up next Sunday. They'll remain on top of the NFC North standings regardless of what the Packers and Bears do in their Week 4 games. Ultimately, that's all that matters. The Vikings will take a victory no matter how they get it.
With all of that said, the Vikings were pretty fortunate — in a number of ways — to win this game. Similar to last week's game against the Lions, the result covers up a performance that had some bright moments but was mostly uninspiring.
Facing a Saints team missing its starting quarterback, running back, and left guard, as well as a starting safety and its No. 1 wide receiver, the Vikings still let things come down to the final play. Over and over, their offense failed to capitalize on opportunities to score touchdowns. Defensively, the Vikings played well early on but completely fell apart in the second half, allowing Andy Dalton to move the ball with ease on each of the Saints' final four possessions.
Penalties were an issue for the Vikings, though they were a bigger issue for the Saints, who were flagged ten times. The Jefferson go-ahead rushing touchdown was set up by a pair of questionable calls in Minnesota's favor: a hands to the face penalty on Tyrann Mathieu and a long defensive pass interference call drawn by Adam Thielen. Those were two pretty big breaks.
The Vikings' offensive line mostly regressed in this game after a strong start to the season. Dalvin Cook had few holes to run through on the ground, and the Saints were often able to get pressure by rushing just four. Cousins came through in the clutch, but he was sacked three times and threw an interception. He was also hurt by several drops, including a blatant one by tight end Johnny Mundt in the red zone.
Special teams came up huge for the Vikings in this game. In addition to Joseph's five field goals, a fake punt pass from punter Ryan Wright to Jalen Nailor in the third quarter set up a field goal. Cornerback Kris Boyd also forced and recovered a fumble on a Saints punt return. Wright punted well, and the Vikings got a couple nice returns from Jalen Reagor and Kene Nwangwu.
Unfortunately, rookie safety Lewis Cine suffered a gruesome-looking lower leg injury on special teams and was carted off the field. He was taken to a local hospital to be evaluated.
The Vikings led 16-7 in the third quarter, but they could've been up by much more if they had scored touchdowns instead of field goals. They left the door open for the Saints, who eventually took a fourth quarter lead and came inches from sending the game to overtime.
Kevin O'Connell and the Vikings know they have a lot to clean up from this game. The offensive line needs to be better, the offense has to finish drives, and the defense hasn't put together two good halves of football since the opener.
Right now, though, none of that matters. The Vikings flew to a different continent and survived a scare from a talented football team. They're 3-1, and they'll fly home happy.
Fans in London got to witness the drama of the NFL at its finest. The Vikings would've liked to win more comfortably, but in this league, you take them however you get them.
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