Vikings put their unbeaten record on the line as they visit the NFC North-rival Packers
GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) — The Minnesota Vikings already have emerged as one of the NFL’s biggest surprises by winning their first three games after being a consensus pick to finish last in the NFC North.
They can make their biggest statement of the young season Sunday by winning at Green Bay in a divisional showdown.
“My challenge to the team is, once again, last Sunday means absolutely nothing,” Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell said. “The first three games of the season mean absolutely nothing if we don’t start continuing to maintain our play style.
“Hopefully soon enough, we can start talking about it being the standard of how we play every week.”
The Vikings (3-0) have trailed for less than 3½ minutes so far this season while beating the New York Giants, defending NFC champion San Francisco 49ers and Houston Texans.
Now the Vikings open their NFC North schedule against the Packers (2-1), who have won two straight games without quarterback Jordan Love as he recovers from a knee injury. Love is practicing on a limited basis for a second straight week as he attempts to return for the Vikings game.
Whether Love plays or Malik Willis fills in for a third consecutive week, the Packers understand the challenge they’ll face from a Minnesota defense that has an NFL-leading 16 sacks.
“They’re coached up very well, and they all have a great idea of where they need to be,” Love said. “I think at the end of the day, it just comes down to being able to decipher what they’re doing and then at the snap of the ball, trying to figure out, ‘Are they bluffing? Are they coming?’ Things like that. They do so much stuff that it is hard to have an idea what they’re doing pre-snap, so a lot of that stuff, you’ve just got to feel it out.”
Jones’ return to Lambeau
Aaron Jones spent his first seven seasons with the Green Bay Packers and became one of the team’s most popular players while rushing for 5,940 yards and 45 touchdowns.
After running for over 100 yards in each of his last five games with the Packers, Jones was asked to take a pay cut for a second straight year. Jones instead left Green Bay and signed with Minnesota.
Sunday marks his first game at Lambeau Field as a visiting player. Jones says he’s “definitely” taking a “Lambeau leap” into the stands if he scores a touchdown.
“Hopefully there’s a Vikings fan … so I can jump up to them,” Jones said.
Winning big
The Vikings have outscored their first three opponents 85-30. That represents the second-highest point margin through their first three games in franchise history, behind the 1975 team that outscored its first three opponents by 67 points.
That 1975 team went on to win its first 10 games and finished the regular season at 12-2 before losing to Dallas in the NFC divisional playoffs.
Ready rookies
With Green Bay’s Brayden Narveson and Minnesota’s Will Reichard, the game could be decided by a rookie kicker.
Reichard, a sixth-round draft pick who became the all-time leading scorer in college football history over his career at Alabama, is perfect so far for the Vikings: 5 for 5 on field goals and 10 for 10 on extra points. He made a 58-yarder, the second-longest in Vikings history, last week against the Texans.
Narveson has 11 field-goal attempts already to tie Pittsburgh’s Chris Boswell for the NFL lead. He has made nine of them, with the misses coming from 43 and 45 yards away.
Feasting on turnovers
The Packers have intercepted seven passes and have nine total takeaways to lead the NFL in both categories. They now face Minnesota’s Sam Darnold, who has rejuvenated his career by throwing eight touchdown passes with only two interceptions in Minnesota’s first two games.
“He’s been a really good quarterback,” said Packers safety Xavier McKinney, who has intercepted a pass in each of Green Bay’s three games. “He’s not making a lot of mistakes. He’s putting the ball on point for his guys to be able to make plays after the catch. He’s doing a lot of good things for his team, for that offense, and we’ve got to find ways to create opportunities for us to be successful and be able to get the ball back.”
Strength vs. strength
The Packers have an NFL-leading 204 yards rushing per game. Minnesota is allowing just 71.3 yards per game and is tied for second in the league in run defense.
Green Bay averages 5.5 yards per carry to rank second in the NFL, behind only the Baltimore Ravens. Minnesota allows just 3.6 yards per rush to rank third in the league.
TOP PHOTO: Minnesota Vikings running back Aaron Jones (33) scores on an 8-yard touchdown reception over Houston Texans linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair (0) during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 22, 2024, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Bruce Kluckhohn)