Inside The Vikings

5 things that stood out in Vikings' loss to the Rams on Thursday Night Football

Minnesota made mistakes, and so did the officials, missing a clear facemask call late in the game.

Nolan O'Hara

Minnesota Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold (14) is brought down by Los Angeles Rams linebacker Jared Verse during the first half at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, Calif., on Oct. 24, 2024.
Minnesota Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold (14) is brought down by Los Angeles Rams linebacker Jared Verse during the first half at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, Calif., on Oct. 24, 2024. / Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images
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After rattling off five straight wins to start the season, the Vikings found themselves in the losing column for the second game in a row after Thursday night's 30-20 loss to the Los Angeles Rams at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, Calif.

It wasn't pretty and the Vikings will have plenty to work on after two games in a row of self-inflicted problems, though they weren't the only ones who made some big mistakes Thursday — we'll get to that later. The defense struggled, the offense flamed out, and they can certainly use the time to reflect and get healthy before their next matchup against the Indianapolis Colts on Nov. 3. But as for Thursday, here are five things that stood out from the Vikings' loss:

Fast start, slow finish for offense (and a big missed facemask call)

The Vikings offense couldn't have started Thursday night's game much better. They got the ball first and went 70 yards down the field in eight plays, capped with a 5-yard touchdown pass from Sam Darnold to Josh Oliver. Their next drive was a 10-play, 70-yard scoring drive ended with a 10-yard touchdown pass from Darnold to Trent Sherfield.

Then it was two three-and-outs and a two-play drive that went nowhere just before halftime.

The Vikings were able to move the ball in the second half, going on back-to-back 50-plus yard field-goal drives, but they never found the end zone again after the first two drives of the game. When the Rams went up 28-20 with a fourth-quarter touchdown and the Vikings needed an answer, they mustered just 14 yards in four plays and were forced to punt facing a fourth-and-21. They got a stop on the Rams' next drive and got one final chance with 1:46 remaining in the game.

They didn't make the most of it, though they should have gotten some help by the officials. Backed up to their own 5-yard line after a Rams punt, Darnold held the ball way too long in the pocket on the second play of the drive and was sacked by Byron Young for a safety. But Young grabbed Darnold's facemask during the tackle, which should have been a penalty call and given the Vikings new life. But somehow, it wasn't called, the Rams got two points and the ball and kneeled it out.

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Darrisaw injury

With just 35 seconds remaining in the second quarter, the Vikings were dealt a huge blow when left tackle Christian Darrisaw got his knee twisted during a 2-yard run by Aaron Jones and was forced to exit the game.

Darrisaw needed help leaving the field, and the Vikings quickly ruled him out during the halftime break due to a knee injury. It didn't look good, and his health moving forward will be a big question mark for Minnesota coming out of the game.

Penalty problem

For the second game in a row, the Vikings shot themselves in the foot on too many occasions with penalties being a major issue, both offensively and defensively. The Vikings had nine penalties for 50 yards overall, and many came at the worst time.

They had two defensive pass interference penalties on the Rams' second drive of the game, both of which came on third down when the Vikings otherwise would have gotten a stop. Instead, the Rams found the end zone to tie the game 14-14.

The Vikings had false start and illegal formation penalties on the ensuing drive and went three-and-out.

On a 10-play, 70-yard Rams touchdown drive that put Los Angeles up 28-20 in the fourth quarter, the Vikings had a 12-men on the field penalty and a defensive pass interference penalty.

For the second week in a row, the Vikings beat themselves with self-inflicted penalties and miscues.

Jefferson's insane catch

Justin Jefferson is never covered.

After Murphy came up with a huge interception on the Rams' opening drive of the second half, the Vikings quickly moved into Rams territory before Sam Darnold threw a pass toward Jefferson on the left sideline with Rams cornerback Darious Williams in close coverage. Jefferson reached out for the ball with his left hand, bobbled it briefly, caught it in his right hand and pinned it to his shoulder, getting two feet in bounds before being pushed out by Williams.

That was a 27-yard gain that got the Vikings to the Rams 4-yard line. While they were unable to convert on a touchdown, Will Reichard capped the 11-play, 68-yard drive with a 23-yard field goal that gave the Vikings a 17-14 lead.

Phantom call leads to Rams touchdown

The Vikings appeared to stop the Rams on their second drive of the game when Matthew Stafford's pass to Puka Nacua fell incomplete. But not so fast. Vikings cornerback Byron Murphy Jr. was called for a defensive holding penalty, which moved the Rams up five yards and provided an automatic first down. But Murphy appeared to make very minimal contact with Rams receiver Demarcus Robinson, who he was covering on the play, and the call was pretty inexplicable.

The Vikings appeared to get a stop again on third down later in the drive, but Stephon Gilmore got hit with a defensive holding penalty. Eventually, the Rams found the end zone when Stafford somehow escaped the grasp of Harrison Phillips and found Cooper Kupp for a 7-yard touchdown pass. That tied the game at 14-14, a score that stood until halftime.

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Nolan O'Hara
NOLAN O'HARA

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