Over the past four games, Darnold completed 68% of his passes for 1,158 yards, 11 touchdowns and no interceptions.
EAGAN, Minn. — Just moments after leading the Minnesota Vikings on a seven-play, 98-yard drive to cap a dominating performance on Sunday against the Atlanta Falcons, the cameras inside U.S. Bank Stadium found Sam Darnold on the sidelines.
Darnold is not one to show many emotions — positive or negative — but the energy inside the stadium at that moment was electric. Not even the typically reserved quarterback could contain his excitement.
Darnold quickly hopped up and swung a towel above his head while the crowd chanted M-V-P.
“I envisioned a moment like that, maybe not to that extent, but you envision that when your goal is set,” said Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell. “You set out to achieve a goal together, working side-by-side with players, and when you start to see them truly realize that, it’s a cool moment. That’s why we do this.”
That moment was warranted. Darnold had just put the finishing touches on a masterpiece that included career highs in touchdowns (5) and yards (347).
“Obviously a lot of emotion there on the sidelines, but it is what it is,” said Darnold, following the Vikings’ sixth consecutive win. “The MVP chants are great, but at the end of the day, we’ve just gotta continue to grow and get better.”
If Darnold continues to perform like he did on Sunday, those chants will only get louder. The former No. 3 overall pick has elevated his game over the past month and it’s helped transform the Vikings (11-2) into legitimate contenders.
But the season hasn’t been all blowouts and MVP chants. After throwing three interceptions in a game against Jacksonville, it appeared the “Cinderella” story had run its course.
Darnold opened the season as the “feel-good” story across the league, emerging as one of the top throwers in the NFL despite being relegated to a backup role the previous season. Darnold was named to NFC Offensive Player of the Month in September and Minnesota was one of the just two teams in the league to open the season 5-0.
The Vikings eventually came back down to Earth, losing back-to-back games against Detroit and Los Angeles, before stringing together a pair of underwhelming victories against Indianapolis and Jacksonville.
Surely, this was the beginning of the end for Darnold and the Vikings. Not quite.
Darnold rattled off four consecutive victories, including a nearly perfect performance Sunday against the Falcons. In that four-game span, Darnold completed 68% of his passes for 1,158 yards, 11 touchdowns and a quarterback rating of 126.7. However, the most impressive stat over those four games could be his zero interceptions.
“I just can’t say enough about how Sam’s handled himself,” said Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell. “Thinking back to the different kinds of moments throughout his journey this year, and how he’s maximized every single (opportunity) coming out of what’s been a very successful season, chasing improvement, and I think we saw it on full display (Sunday).”
Darnold will look to continue “chasing improvement” on Monday night when the Vikings host division rival Chicago before a national audience.
Here are some storylines entering Monday night’s matchup at U.S. Bank Stadium:
Playoff scenarios
The Vikings are knocking on the door of their second playoff appearance in three years, and it could happen before Monday night’s kickoff.
Since the Los Angeles Rams defeated the San Francisco 49ers on Thursday night, the Vikings will have to wait until at least Sunday before they can officially clinch a spot in the postseason. The Green Bay Packers will have a chance to send Minnesota to the postseason with a win or tie against Seattle on Sunday night.
The other scenario for the Vikings to punch their ticket to the postseason is to win Monday night. Minnesota defeated the Bears three weeks ago at Soldier Field, but Chicago will be looking for revenge after nearly shocking the Vikings with a late comeback. Chicago scored 11 points in 22 seconds to send the game into overtime, but the Vikings eeked out a victory with a field goal in overtime.
Getting Jets off the ground
It’s rare to see star receiver Justin Jefferson contained throughout a game, but that’s exactly what the Bears were able to do three weeks ago at Soldier Field. Jefferson was held to just two catches for 27 yards. He did draw three pass interference penalties to help move the chains and ultimately opened up the field for receiver Jordan Addison to have a massive game — eight catches for 162 yards and a touchdown — but it’s safe to say the Vikings will look to get the ball in Jefferson’s hands more often on Monday night.
Both Jefferson and Addison are coming off a monster game against the Falcons where the two combined for 15 catches, 265 yards and five touchdowns. Jefferson contributed seven grabs for 132 yards and a pair of scores, marking the first time he got into the end zone multiple times this season. His 12-yard touchdown catch late in the second quarter snapped a six-game scoreless streak after scoring five times in the first six games to open the season.
Feeding Hockenson
Vikings tight end T.J. Hockenson could be sitting on another big game after hauling in seven catches for 114 yards the last time he went up against the Bears. It was a season-high in yards for the two-time Pro Bowler after he missed the first half of the season because of a knee injury he suffered last December. Hockenson has 27 catches since returning to the field, and has caught 75% of the balls thrown his way, higher than both Jefferson (72.3%) and Addison (66.7%) in that span.
Last weekend, the Bears struggled to contain 49ers tight end George Kittle, who caught all six targets for a game-high 151 yards, so there could be opportunities for Hockenson on Monday night, especially if the secondary keys in on Jefferson and Addison.
Stopping the run
The Vikings entered their game against the Falcons as the top run defense in the league, holding opponents to just 81.3 yards per game and five total rushing touchdowns, but Atlanta got its ground game going at U.S. Bank Stadium. The Falcons rushed for 158 yards on 32 carries (4.9 yards per carry) and two touchdowns. It was the second straight week the Vikings allowed a team to rush for more than 150 yards, and the second time an opponent scored multiple rushing touchdowns in a single game.
A major reason for the Vikings’ recent struggles is the loss of Ivan Pace, Jr., who was placed on Injured Reserve just prior to Arizona rushing for 154 yards two weeks ago. Before injuring his hamstring, Pace played a vital role in Minnesota’s defense, especially against the run, so the Vikings will need someone to fill that void while the second-year linebacker continues to recover. Pace will be eligible to return just ahead of the Vikings’ showdown with the Packers on Dec. 29.
Winter Warrior
The Vikings will debut their new “Winter Warrior” uniforms before a national audience on Monday night at U.S. Bank Stadium. The new threads will be all white and capped off by a white helmet. The Vikings wore all white jerseys and pants two seasons ago for a “Winter Whiteout” game against the New York Giants, but this will be the first time in franchise history the team will don non-purple headgear.
“We went into the first Winter Whiteout game two years ago anxious to see how Vikings fans would embrace wearing all white,” said Vikings Director of Brand & Design Alicia Dreyer when the uniforms were unveiled back in June. “They loved it, and that reaction allowed us to really lean into this as the direction for our second alternate uniform. Some of the greatest feedback we received from that game was the fans’ desire to see an all-white helmet.”