Commander Country

Vikings vs. Commanders: Minnesota Wins 20-17 on Late Field Goal

Kirk Cousins makes his return to FedEx Field for the first time since 2018 ... and his Vikings beat the Commanders.

Commander Country Staff

The Washington Commanders faced the stiffest test of their recent win streak when they played the Minnesota Vikings Sunday at 1 p.m. ... and the final result did not work out, the Vikings recording a 20-17 victory on a last-second field goal.

Here is how it unfolded, with Taylor Heinicke and Kirk Cousins - and accidental referee - all playing pivotal roles ...

Taylor Heinicke is largely responsible for the Commanders’ resurgence after starting the season 1-4. In his two starts, Heinicke has thrown three touchdowns and ran for one on Oct. 30, which gave Washington a 17-16 lead over the Indianapolis Colts in the game’s final seconds.

Since Heinicke became the starter, Terry McLaurin has had two of his best performances of the season. McLaurin caught five passes for 73 yards and a touchdown on Oct. 23 against the Green Bay Packers. Against the Colts, McLaurin caught six passes for 113 yards.

Across the sideline will be a familiar face. Kirk Cousins played the first six seasons of his career with Washington before signing with Minnesota in the 2018 offseason. Cousins will be making the first start of his career as an opponent at FedEx Field against the Commanders.

The Vikings are riding a five-game winning streak and are threatening to run away with the NFC North.

In their 34-26 win over the Arizona Cardinals on Oct. 30, Cousins threw for 232 yards and two touchdowns.

Za’Darius Smith has quietly been having one of the best defensive seasons in football. He leads the league with eight-and-a-half sacks and 13 tackles for loss.

Here are the inactives for both teams.

Minnesota Vikings

WR Jalen Nailor

DE Dalvin Tomlinson

LB Luiji Vilain

OLB Benton Whitley

OL Chris Reed

OT Vederian Lowe

DL Esezi Otomewo

Washington Commanders

LB Cole Holcomb

WR Jahan Dotson

RB J.D. McKissic

LB David Mayo

DE Shaka Toney

G Chris Paul

TE Cole Turner

First Quarter:

Washington wins the toss and defers to the second half. Minnesota will receive to start the game. 

Kene Nwangwu takes the opening kickoff to Minnesota's 22-yard line. Dalvin Cook gets the carry on first down and loses a yard. On second and long, Kir Cousins completes a pass to Justin Jefferson for six yards. On third and five, Cousins completes a pass over the middle of the field to T.J. Hockenson for 19 yards and a first down. 

Cook gets another handoff and he runs for four yards. Cousins hands it off to Cook again on second down and he gains five yards. Cousins drops back to pass on third and one and connects with Jefferson near the sideline for 18 yards to Washington's 28-yard line. 

Cousins drops back to pass again after a play action and finds Jefferson once more for 16 yards to Washington's 12-yard line.

Cook gets the handoff on first down and he gains three yards. On second and seven, Cousins goes to the end zone and finds a leaping Jefferson for a touchdown. 

Greg Joseph's extra point is good with 9:17 left in the first quarter.

Vikings 7, Commanders 0

Change of possession.

Joseph's kickoff goes for a touchback and Washington will begin the drive at its 25-yard line. 

Brian Robinson Jr. gets the carry on first down and gains two yards. On second and eight, Heinicke completes a pass to Cam Sims for 12 yards and a first down. 

Robinson Jr. gets another handoff and he runs for four yards. On second and eight, Heinicke's pass intended for John Bates falls incomplete. Heinicke completes a short pass to Curtis Samuel on third and six, but it only gets two yards. 

Tress Way's punt goes to Minnesota's 15-yard line where Jalen Reagor calls for a fair catch.

Change of possession.

Cousins hands it off to Cook on first down and he gains three yards. On second down, Cousins completes a pass to Hockenson and he loses four yards on the screen by Jonathan Allen. On third and 11, Daron Payne breaks through and sacks Cousins for a 10-yard loss. 

Ryan Wright's punt goes to Dax Milne and he runs it to Minnesota's 45-yard line. A holding penalty on Washington will move them back 10 yards.

Change of possession.

Samuel gets the carry on first down and he runs for 16 yards to Minnesota's 49-yard line. 

Heinicke drops back to pass on first down and he's sacked by Danielle Hunter. On second and 16, Heinicke scrambles and gains eight yards. On third and eight, Heinicke keeps it and only gets two yards. 

Way's punt goes into the end zone for a touchback with 1:57 left in the first quarter.

Change of possession.

Kirk Cousins completes a short pass to Alexander Mattison and he loses a yard. On second and 11, Cousins completes a short pass to Jefferson and he gains nine yards. On third and one, Cousins sneaks it and gets two yards for a first down on the final play of the first quarter.

Second Quarter:

Mattison gets the carry on first down and he gains two yards. On second and eight, Cousin completes a pass Johnny Mundt for just a yard. On third and seven, Cousins' pass intended for Adam Thielen falls incomplete. 

Wright's punt goes 56 yards and Milne gets 11 yards on the return to Washington's 21-yard line. 

Change of possession.

Heinicke drops back to pass and connects with Terry McLaurin for 18 yards and his first catch of the game. 

Heinicke drops back to pass again but the pass is batted down. Heinicke hands it off to Antonio Gibson on second down but he only gains two yards. On third and eight, Heinicke gets sacked by D.J. Wonnum for an eight-yard loss.

Way's punt is caught by Reagor at Minnesota's 11-yard line and he's tackled before gaining any yards. 

Change of possession.

Cook gets the handoff on first down and he gets four yards. Cook gets the ball again on second down and he runs for six yards and first down. 

Cousins runs play action and connects with Thielen for 22 yards to Minnesota's 44-yard line. 

Cousins hands it off to Cook on first down and he gains three yards. On second and seven, Cousins' pass to Thielen falls incomplete. Cousins looks for Thielen again on third down but the pass is batted down by Payne. 

Wright's punt is caught by Milne at the 11-yard line where he calls for a fair catch. 

Change of possession.

Robinson gets the carry on first down and he gains five yards. Heinicke hands it off Robinson again on second down and he runs for five yards and a first down. 

Heinicke throws a pass to Robinson on first down and he's tackled for a four-yard loss. On second and 14, Gibson gets the carry and only gains two yards. Minnesota is called for an illegal low block and Washington gets 15 yards and a first down.

Gibson gets back-to-back carries and gains seven yards. On third and three, Heinicke's pass intended for McLaurin is incomplete. 

Way's punt is downed at Minnesota's six-yard line. 

Change of possession.

Mattison gets the handoff on first down and loses a yard after being tackled by Kam Curl. Cousins' pass to Thielen falls incomplete on second down. On third and 11, Cousins completes the pass to Hockenson for eight yards. 

Wright booms a punt that's caught by Milne at Washington's 25-yard line. Milne's return goes to Washington's 37-yard line.

Change of possession. 

Heinicke completes a pass to McLaurin on first down for eight yards. On second and two, Gibson runs for seven yards to Minnesota's 48-yard line. Before another play is run, the game reaches the two-minute warning. 

Heinicke's pass intended for Sims falls incomplete. Za'Darius Smith jumps offside and Washington gets five yards. On second and five, Gibson runs for three yards. On second and two, Gibson runs for two yards and a first down at Minnesota's 38-yard line. 

Heinicke's pass to Logan Thomas falls incomplete. On second and 10, Heinicke completes a pass to McLaurin for 13 yards and a first down. Washington calls its first timeout with 57 seconds left in the half. 

Heinicke's pass intended for Gibson is incomplete. On second and 10, Heinicke throws another incompletion. Heinicke throws a third consecutive incompletion to make it fourth down. 

Joey Slye comes out to attempt a 44-yard field goal and it's good with 37 seconds left in the first half.

Vikings 7, Commanders 3

Change of possession.

Slye's kickoff goes for a touchback. 

Cousins comes out throwing and completes a pass to Hockenson for 18 yards. Minnesota calls its first timeout of the game with 30 seconds left in the half. 

Cousins' pass falls incomplete on first down. On second and 10, Cousins completes a pass to Thielen for 36 yards to Washington's 21-yard line. The Vikings call their second timeout with 18 seconds left. Garrett Bradbury is down for Minnesota. 

Cousins looks to complete a pass to Cook but it's incomplete. A delay of game moves Minnesota back five yards. On second and 15, Cousins' pass intended for Jefferson is tipped and gets intercepted by Danny Johnson in the end zone. 

Change of possession

Heinicke takes a knee and the game reaches halftime.

Halftime.

Third Quarter:

Gibson has a big return to start the second half and takes it to Washington's 47-yard line. 

Robinson runs for three yards on first down. Heinicke fakes the handoff and goes deep, throwing it into a crowd of Vikings. A Vikings player runs into a referee and Samuel comes down with the catch and he rolls into the end zone for a 47-yard touchdown. The play is under further review.

After review, the call stands and it's a touchdown for the Commanders. Slye's extra point is good with 14:01 left in the third quarter.

Commanders 10, Vikings 7

Change of possession. 

Minnesota starts the drive at its 25-yard line after the touchback.

Cousins looks for Thielen on first down and the pass is incomplete. Cook gets the carry and gains four yards. On third and six, Cousins completes a pass to Hockenson for 14 yards and a first down. 

Cousins' pass intended for K.J. Osborn is incomplete. Cook gets another carry on second down but loses a yard after being tackled by Allen. Cousins looks for Osborn again on third down but the pass is incomplete. 

Wright's punt is caught by Milne at Washington's 16-yard line and he only gets a yard on the return.

Change of possession.

Heinicke completes a short pass to Gibson for a yard. Gibson gets the carry on second down and he runs for nine yards and a first down. 

Gibson gets another handoff and runs for five yards. Heinicke completes a screen to Bates for another five-yard gain and a first down. 

Robinson gets a carry but it stopped at the line of scrimmage. Heinicke drops back to pass and completes it to McLaurin for 16 yards to Minnesota's 46-yard line. 

Heinicke completes another pass to McLaurin but only gets three yards. On second and seven, Robinson runs for five yards. On third and two, Robinson runs for a yard and is stopped short of a first down. Washington keeps its offense on the field before calling its first timeout of the game. 

Heinicke drops back to pass and it falls incomplete, intended for McLaurin. 

Change of possession.

Cousins throws a short pass to Cook but he loses three yards. Cousins throws a pass to Jefferson on second down but it's incomplete. Cousins looks to complete a pass to Cook again but it's also incomplete. 

Wright's punt goes to Milne at the six-yard line and he returns it 17 yards to Washington's 23-yard line with 4:32 left in the third quarter.

Change of possession.

Robinson runs for six yards on first down. He gets the handoff on second down and gains two yards. On third and two, Heinicke rolls to his right and completes a pass to Samuel for 15 yards and a first down. 

Heinicke looks to complete a pass after play action to McLaurin but it's incomplete. On second and 10, Heinicke keeps it and spins past a defender before falling just short of a first down. Ron Rivera throws the challenge flag and the play is under further review to see if it's a first down. After review, the call stands and Washington only has one timeout remaining. 

Heinicke hands it off to Armani Rogers on a sweep and he runs for 24 yards to Minnesota's 23-yard line. 

After running a flea flicker, Heinicke's pass to Bates is incomplete. Gibson runs out of bounds and doesn't gain any yards. On third and 10, Smith sacks Heinicke. Smith is flagged for a facemask and Washington gets a first down. 

Washington will have first and 10 at Minnesota's 11-yard line to start the fourth quarter.

Fourth Quarter:  

Robinson runs for five yards on first down. On second and six, Heinicke completes the pass to Milne for a touchdown.

The extra point by Slye is good.

Commanders 17, Vikings 7

Change of possession.

Minnesota begins the drive at its 25-yard line after the touchback.

Cook gets the handoff from Cousins and loses a yard. On second and 11, Cousins' pass intended for Jefferson is incomplete. Cousins drops back to pass and is intercepted by Benjamin St. Juste. St. Juste runs it back for a touchdown but he's flagged for pass interference, giving Minnesota a first down. 

St. Juste redeems himself on the following play, sacking Cousins for an eight-yard loss. Cousins completes a pass to Jefferson for 11 yards. On third and seven, Cousins goes deep and finds Jefferson for a 45-yard gain to Washington's 14-yard line. Cousins is down after being hit by Payne. 

Nick Mullens is in the game and completes a pass to Hockenson and he loses three yards. Cousins looks to complete a pass to Jefferson but it's incomplete. On third and 13, Cousins completes a pass to Thielen for nine yards. 

Joseph comes out to kick a 25-yard field goal and it's good with 10:46 left in the game. 

Commanders 17, Vikings 10

Change of possession.

Washington begins the drive at its 25-yard line after the return by Gibson. 

Robinson runs for three yards on first down. Heinicke dumps it off to Robinson on second down and he loses two yards. On third and nine, Heinicke completes a pass to Gibson for seven yards. Chandon Sullivan is flagged for illegal contact and that gives Washington an automatic first down. 

Gibson gets the carry on first down and loses a yard. Heinicke throws to the middle of the field and he's intercepted by Harrison Smith. Smith runs it back to Washington's 12-yard line with 7:56 left in the game.

Change of possession.

Cousins' pass to Cook is batted away on first down. Cousins throws another pass to Cook and he catches it in the end zone for a 12-yard touchdown. 

Joseph's extra point is good with 7:46 left in the game.

Commanders 17, Vikings 17

Change of possession.

Washington begins the drive at its 25-yard line after the touchback. 

Heinicke drops back to pass and he's forced to throw it away. Robinson runs for four yards on second down. On third and six, Hunter sacks Heinicke for a nine-yard loss. 

Way's punt goes to Minnesota's 36-yard line and Reagor returns it 10 yards to the 46-yard line.

Change of possession.

Cook runs for four yards on first down. On second and six, Cousins completes a pass to Hockenson for 10 yards. 

Cousins is hit as he throws by Allen and his pass to Cook is incomplete. On second and 10, Cook runs for nine yards. Before third and one, Minnesota calls a timeout with 4:17 left in the game.

Cousins hands it off to Jefferson on third and one and he runs for 10 yards to Washington's 21-yard line. 

Cook gets the carry on first down and runs for seven yards. Cousins completes the pass to Hockenson on second down but doesn't gain any yards. On third and four, Cousins goes back to Hockenson and gets nine yards for a first down at Washington's six-yard line. 

On first and goal, Cousins' pass sails through the back of the end zone. Cook gets the handoff on second down and gets two yards. Before third and goal from the four-yard line, the game reaches the two-minute warning. On third and goal, Cousins' pass intended for Jefferson is incomplete.

Joseph comes out to kick a 22-yard field goal and it's good. There was a flag on the play on Washington for unnecessary roughness, John Ridgeway made contact with the center and that gave Minnesota a first down. 

Cook is tripped up for a loss of two yards on first and goal. Washington calls its final timeout with 1:48 left in the game. Cook gets another carry and loses a yard. Minnesota calls a timeout with a minute left to play. Cousins keeps it on third and goal and loses four yards. The Vikings call their final timeout with 16 seconds left in the game. 

Joseph comes out to kick a 28-yard field goal and it's good with 13 seconds left in the game.

Vikings 20, Commanders 17

Change of possession. 

Washington starts the drive at its 25-yard line after the touchback. 

Heinicke completes a pass to Gibson and he's tackled in bounds which ends the game.

Final: Vikings 20, Commanders 17

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