Matthew Coller: Studs and duds from Vikings' victory over Chicago

The Vikings survived. Let's take a look under the microscope that the game.

Nov 24, 2024; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Minnesota Vikings linebacker Jonathan Greenard (58) sacks Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams (18) during the second quarter at Soldier Field. Mandatory Credit: Daniel Bartel-Imagn Images / Daniel Bartel-Imagn Images

As per usual, it was a journey for the Minnesota Vikings at Soldier Field but they came out with a 30-27 victory that included a number of impressive performances and some concerns. Let’s take a look at everything that went right and wrong…

What went right

Sam Darnold, in every way possible

The Vikings QB produced the third game of his season that graded by PFF over 80 (84.7), raising his overall grade on the year to 81.9, which ranks 7th in the NFL. He ranks 8th in traditional quarterback rating and continues to increase the sample size of strong performance. Going back to 2022, he has a QB rating of 97.7 and 30:14 touchdown-to-interception ratio. The Vikings also rank as the 7th best passing game in the NFL by Expected Points Added.

The bottom line: Darnold has been really, really good.

Against the Bears he excelled in every area. He hit two deep shots, went 5-for-10 with 116 yards on intermediate passes and 15-for-18 with 100 yards on throws under 10 yards. When Darnold was under pressure he completed 8-of-13 throws for 121 yards and zero turnover-worthy plays. When the Bears blitzed him, he was 6-for-9 with 91 yards.

He was especially fantastic when using play-action. With a play-fake included, Darnold went 7-for-10 with 181 yards. He now has the second most yards with play-action in the league and a 137.0 rating on the year. It’s pretty hard to argue with the play calling with a stat like that.

Anyway, the biggest plus for Darnold was clearly that he came through in the clutch moments. He converted key third downs in the drives where they needed to score, including when they went up by 11 points late in the fourth quarter and in OT.

Jordan Addison’s career day

Addison didn’t just catch passes, he ripped footballs from the jaws of Bears defenders and stole souls on his routes. He finished with eight catches on nine targets for 162 yards and one touchdown. And just like that, the 2023 first-rounder is averaging more yards per game than he was last year.

His increase in production the last few weeks may be due to more of an emphasis on getting the ball his way or him getting back to full health after ankle injuries early in the year or it might just be the nature of the beast when playing alongside Justin Jefferson. Whatever the case may be, PFF graded Sunday’s game as the best of Addison’s career.

Hockenson in clutch moments

The box score is kind to Hockenson — 7 catches for 114 yards — but the timing of those receptions is even more telling. A few highlights:

— A 34-yard gain on third-and-12 after Jefferson’s touchdown was nullified

— A 7-yard reception on second-and-17 to set up a manageable third down that Jefferson eventually converted.

— A 29-yard catch in overtime to put the Vikings in field goal position to win the game.

This year when Darnold targets Hockenson, he’s 20-for-25 with 226 yards and the tight end has brought in seven of eight contested catches.

Justin Jefferson doing everything else

This was an ultimate box score vs. actual performance game for Jefferson. If you add up pass interference yards and the 40-yard TD that he had taken off the board by an illegal pick from Brandon Powell, he would have gained over 100 yards. The Vikings rank No. 2 in the NFL in pass interference yards gained — which is a Justin Jefferson stat.

Jefferson was also the fourth highest graded run blocker on 27 run blocking snaps. Not to mention that the Bears sent 2-3 players at him on every play, which undoubtedly gave Addison and Hockenson space to work.

When the Vikings needed a game-winning play, Jefferson found enough open space to make a 20-yard reception on third down in overtime.

Of course, Jefferson still came out of the game wanting to have more of an imprint on the result.

“As many times as I tell him, hey, you had 60, 70 yards in penalties that they had to hold and grab and do all the things to try to limit your impact, even within their coverage plan, he still wants to have an impact,” O’Connell said. “It's my job to try to find ways to create as many footballs on any given Sunday as I possibly can to get everybody touches. It's easier said than done sometimes. The way we moved it and I think we were pretty explosive yesterday. Definitely something that I want to make sure he always feels like he's a major priority because anytime he steps on the field, I think he's the best player on the field.”

Pass pro, particularly Garrett Bradbury

The Vikings center had his best game of the year in pass protection — a clear sign that Akiem Hicks no longer plays for the Bears. Bradbury received an 80.8 grade and gave up just one QB pressure on the day. This season his pass blocking is hovering around mid-pack but his run blocking has been well above average and he’s grading as the ninth best center in the NFL.

Since Kevin O’Connell took over in 2022, Bradbury has solidified himself as a solid center. Add his improved grades to the fact he’s handled an increased mental and leadership role with Sam Darnold under center and he’s been a valuable piece to an O-line that ranks 5th in pass blocking and 10th in run blocking.

While Dalton Risner, playing in his second game as the starter taking over for Ed Ingram, did not score high marks from the PFF system (49.9 run blocking, 58.1 pass blocking), O’Connell said that he’s making progress since returning from injury.

“I thought he was absolutely part of the play style that I saw out of that interior in this game,” the head coach said. “I thought from Tennessee [Titans] to yesterday…there was some improvement there for sure. Also, just some more comfort. The guy didn't get any preseason time. We've been ramping him up, up until we decided to make the move. I thought he did a lot of good things against Tennessee and then improved on that so excited about where Dalton is and I think you're feeling that veteran presence in there.”

CJ Ham and the return of the running game

In total the Vikings gained 107 yards on 22 carries by Aaron Jones and 19 on three rushes from Cam Akers, good for 5.0 yards per carry. A key member of the running game was fullback CJ Ham. He graded as the team’s best run blocker (73.1) with 15 run blocking snaps. He’s averaged around 15 per game over the last three weeks after only reaching double digits once earlier this year.

Jonathan Greenard, superstar

The highest graded player (87.2) by a country mile on defense was Greenard. He picked up two sacks and four QB pressures, putting him in the No. 1 spot (tied) in the entire NFL in pressures for the season. He is also sixth in sacks with 9.0.

At a position that’s often boom or bust, he’s been remarkably consistent, picking up at least four pressures in nine of 11 games.

In overtime, he sacked Caleb Williams to give the Vikings offense a shot to win the game.

“That was just a perfect clip of play style being effort, strain, finish,” O’Connell said. “Regardless, if he was double-teamed on the play, he's working like crazy. They were trying to maybe get the ball down the field a little bit there.”

Jonathan Bullard anchoring the D-line vs. run

A player who doesn’t often get highlighted but might be on the do-your-job wall of fame for this year is Bullard. He produced the highest grade against the run of any Vikings defender and they allowed just 30 yards on 13 carries to D’Andre Swift.

Bullard now ranks 11th in the NFL in PFF run defense. In recent weeks the Vikings defense has emerged as the best against the run in the NFL and he’s at the center of the operation.

Some of the special teams

On the plus side of a very special teams-involved contest, the Vikings blocked a field goal, recovered a fumble on a punt and Parker Romo kicked the game-winning field goal. Brandon Powell also was a little more active as a punt returner with five for 43 yards.

What went wrong

Cam Robinson and Ivan Pace Jr.’s injuries

O’Connell did not have an update on Ivan Pace Jr. or Cam Robinson’s status for this week but indicated Robinson’s issue was the reaggravation of a foot injury.

“I'm pretty confident that It's very similar, and he was able to work through it,” O’Connell said. “So we'll see how he responds.”

Both injuries could be difficult to overcome if they are long term. Kamu Grugier-Hill did come up with two pressures in six pass rushes but isn’t known for the same type of blitzing presence as Pace Jr. and David Quessenberry allowed four QB pressures including a sack in Robinson’s absence. They might have to consider using rookie Walter Rouse if Robinson is gone over multiple weeks.

Linebackers in coverage

When Caleb Williams targeted either Grugier-Hill or Blake Cashman, it worked out in his favor. In total, he completed 8-of-10 passes for 104 yards when attacking the LBs. Andrew Van Ginkel also tried to dive in front of a pass that was caught for a 40-yard gain.

The luck wasn’t a lot better for the safeties. Cam Bynum and Harrison Smith both got hands on footballs that they couldn’t bring in and were in coverage on nine targets, six completions for 71 yards. Williams had three turnover-worthy plays and zero actual turnovers in the game.

Tackling, blitzing Caleb Williams

To Williams’s credit, most of his passing was either throwing laser beams in between tight coverage or scrambling to the point where his receiving options got open. The Vikings missed a total of eight tackles in the game and he scrambled for three first downs, including one on fourth down.

PFF only credited the Vikings with pressures on 22% of his drop-backs and he ripped apart Flores’s blitzes with 15-for-20 passing for 192 yards and two touchdowns. In total Williams had five big-time throws.

Also some of the special teams

Ryan Wright only netted 40.5 yards per punt against the Bears. They allowed a 55-yard kick return to set up a late touchdown and allowed Chicago to recover the onside kick.