By Sam Ekstrom
MINNEAPOLIS — The Vikings have harped on various offensive principles for most of this topsy-turvy season that is now 10 games deep.
Third downs have been iffy. They were settling for field goals in the red zone. Too many penalties. Not enough shots downfield.
In Sunday’s 34-31 win, all the things that had caused angst for the previous two months came together.
“I thought the offensive coaches did a really good job today,” head coach Mike Zimmer said. “I thought Klint called a good game. The two receivers, obviously, were outstanding, and Conklin made a couple nice plays, as well. Cook had some tough running at times, but he ran hard and gained some extra yards after contact. But you know, basically, I talk to Kirk every week, and I told him, ‘Look, you try to score touchdowns, you let me back the game down when it’s time to do it.’ So that’s kind of our approach.”
The numbers tell the story. Minnesota went 9 of 13 on third down. It converted a touchdown on each red zone possession before kneeling to set up a field goal at the very end. The Vikings converted zero offensive penalties.
And oh, were they explosive.