Inside The Vikings

Five things that stood out from Vikings' victory over Jets in London

It wasn't always pretty, but the Vikings have started the season 5-0 for the first time since 2016.

Nolan O'Hara

Minnesota Vikings safety Camryn Bynum (24) celebrates an interception in the first quarter against New York Jets at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London on Oct. 6, 2024.
Minnesota Vikings safety Camryn Bynum (24) celebrates an interception in the first quarter against New York Jets at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London on Oct. 6, 2024. / Shaun Brooks / Imagn Images
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The Minnesota Vikings improved to 5-0 on the season in Sunday’s 23-17 victory over the New York Jets at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London. It wasn’t always pretty, but for the first time since 2016, the Vikings have opened the season with five straight wins, and they'll enter the bye week with a perfect record and plenty of momentum.

For really the first time this season, the Vikings had some obvious struggles and miscues, though ultimately, they got the job done once again, getting the best of Aaron Rodgers and the Jets in an early-morning contest across the pond.

Here are five things that stood out from the Vikings’ victory over the Jets: 

Offense struggles without Jones

Running back Aaron Jones exited the game in the second quarter due to a hip injury and did not return, and the Vikings offense essentially stagnated once he left the field. Jones, who had seven carries for 29 yards and one reception for 24 yards, was still the team's second-leading rusher despite not seeing any action following his second-quarter exit.

Ty Chandler and Myles Gaskin were not able to pick up the run game in his absence. Chandler ran the ball 14 times for just 30 yards, and Gaskin had two carries for two yards. C.J. Ham had a second-quarter touchdown run but carried the ball just twice.

That left quarterback Sam Darnold to try and spark the offense in the pass game, but not much was happening there, either. Darnold played his worst game as a Viking and struggled with accuracy, completing just 14 of 31 passes for 179 yards and an interception. The pick came with 9:54 to play in the fourth quarter, and the Jets answered with an eight-play, 42-yard touchdown drive that Rodgers capped with a 1-yard touchdown pass to Garrett Wilson, making it a 20-17 game.

The Vikings had just 253 yards of total offense overall.

Special teams miscues

The Jets were able to take advantage of some sloppy play from the Vikings on special teams.

After falling behind 17-0 in the first half, Xavier Gipson set up the Jets' first touchdown drive with a 31-yard punt return. Five plays and 31 yards later, the Jets were able to make it a 17-7 game with just 36 seconds remaining in the first half following a 14-yard touchdown pass from Rodgers to Allen Lazard. That momentum carried into the second half.

And it wasn't the only sloppy special teams play from the Vikings. They had a 15-yard fair-catch interference penalty in the third quarter. A roughing the kicker penalty on Ivan Pace Jr. for running into Jets punter Thomas Morestead kept a New York drive alive and eventually resulted in a 32-yard field goal from Greg Zuerlein that made it 17-10 late in the third. Dallas Turner had a holding penalty on a Jets punt that backed the Vikings up 10 yards on a fourth-quarter possession.

The Vikings set up the Jets, and hurt themselves, with a number of avoidable special teams errors.

Superstar whistle

Justin Jefferson has established himself as one of the best wide receivers in football, and he's getting the star whistle.

The Jets were whistled for penalty after penalty trying to cover Jefferson on Sunday. He drew an illegal contact penalty on one second-quarter drive, two defensive pass interference penalties on another second-quarter drive and another defensive pass interference on a third-quarter drive. The downside is the Vikings were only able to convert on on of those drives.

Jefferson was the Vikings' leading receiver, too, with six receptions for 92 yards on 14 targets.

Van Ginkel's pick-6 highlights another strong day from the defense

Linebacker Andrew Van Ginkel had his second pick-6 of the season when he jumped a pass from Rodgers and took it 63 yards to the house for a 10-0 Vikings lead. That was just the beginning of another strong game from the Vikings defense.

The Vikings intercepted Rodgers three times in all and held the Jets to just 254 total yards of offense. They also sacked Rodgers three times, and the Jets' QB had an injury scare, though he returned for the rest of the game.

The Vikings defense also sealed the game with the Jets threatening a game-winning drive in the waning minutes of the fourth quarter. Stephon Gilmore intercepted a pass from Rodgers with 49 seconds remaining to salt the game away.

Will is a thrill

In good special teams news, rookie kicker Will Reichard continues to impress through his first five games.

Reichard got the Vikings on the board first with a 54-yard field goal in the first quarter. He hit a crucial 53-yarder that put the Vikings up 20-10 early in the fourth quarter. And his 41-yarder in the waning minutes made it 23-17 with 3:07 to play.

All in all, Reichard was 3 for 3 on his field goals and 2 for 2 on extra points. He's yet to miss a kick this season.

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Nolan O'Hara
NOLAN O'HARA

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