“Self-inflicted things” cost the Vikings their first loss of 2024

MINNEAPOLIS – There were 15 seconds left on the clock Sunday when the Minnesota Vikings took over the final possession trailing by two points. They had the ball at the 30, and in coach Kevin O'Connell's estimation, they needed about two dozen yards and a stopped clock to give rookie kicker Will Reichard a chance to beat the Detroit Lions with a game-winning field goal.

Incredibly, the Vikings did both on the following play. Quarterback Sam Darnold found receiver Jalen Nailor over the middle for a 20-yard gain, and the rest of the offense moved downfield quickly enough to shoot the ball with one second left. But before O'Connell could summon Reichard, referee Clay Martin's crew warned the Vikings for an illegal formation. In their haste to save time, the Vikings didn't put enough players on the line of scrimmage.

The 5-yard penalty was the difference between a 68-yard field goal attempt (an NFL record well within Reichard's reach) and the desperate Hail Mary attempt that ended in a sack.

It was one of the few plays that proved the difference between two NFL heavyweights in a spectacular mid-October game, a 31-29 Lions win at US Bank Stadium that dropped the Vikings to 5-1. While the game was a confirmation that the Vikings are indeed one of the best teams in the NFL, it was also a reminder of the slim margin of error in such matchups.

“[Against] “Really good teams,” O'Connell said, “you're not just going to coast through the game and make perfect plays on every play.” But you better make sure you do [the opponents] that are actually causing some of these things to happen, rather than some self-inflicted things.”

The Vikings were cited twice for illegal formation, once for a false start and once for a rare offensive offside when receiver Jordan Addison lined up with his foot beyond the line of scrimmage. It was one of only four such penalties all NFL season, and while it didn't lose the game, it cost the Vikings a net 12 yards on a botched two-minute drill at the end of the first half.

There were other such cases. Linebacker Jonathan Greenard, for example, took responsibility for failing to cover Lions running back Jahmyr Gibbs on a wheel route with 1:25 left. Gibbs gained 16 yards on the play and put the Lions in position for their game-winning goal.

“I have to do my reading and do my job,” Greenard said. “[If I] Bring that back to the flat, they can't get the wheel route to Jahmyr and get in field goal range. It’s that simple.”

This was hardly a collapse. The Vikings' defense allowed four consecutive touchdown drives in the second and third quarters, but then tightened up, allowing the Lions to make just one field goal in their final four possessions. In between, the defense forced two punts and a fumble that linebacker Ivan Pace Jr. returned 36 yards for a touchdown to give them a short lead.

After a 3-0 preseason and 5-0 start to the regular season, it had been a long time since the Vikings had even lost a game, and perspective was important.

“Our standards are very high in this locker room,” safety Josh Metellus said. “We were able to capture this standard on tape in the first six weeks. We managed to do that today. We know what we are about. We know what kind of ball we should play. … That leaves us.” “We know what situation we're in. We just need to look in the mirror and attack instead of trying to wallow in our worries about something that just happened.”

In fact, O'Connell had something much bigger in mind when he talked about the few plays that made the difference between a win and a loss. At 5-1, the Vikings have the best record in the NFC. They battled the Lions, now the conference's other 5-1 team, for three hours and eight minutes on Sunday and lost by two points. There are a number of reasons to believe they are well-positioned for the playoffs – if these handful of games can ultimately decide the Super Bowl champion.

“At that point or when it's in the game, it might not seem like a big deal,” O'Connell said, “but that's the type of football game that I think happens in front of this team – when you're playing teams , which are very, very good, and it will be competitive, not just the ones we still have [in the regular season]but hopefully more.

“In a game like this, our players and coaches have to understand that we can't just look at the end of the game like, 'This is how we're going to win it.' Their only impact might be a second-and-8 midway through the second quarter… Can we be a little cleaner down the line? Because I have great confidence in our team and our players.”