GREEN BAY, Wis. — A disastrous start, a game-changing offensive pass interference call, a bone-headed penalty by a star wide receiver and self-inflicted wounds on offense cost Minnesota its first road victory of the season, as they lost 21-16 to NFC North rival Green Bay Packers in Week 2.
Vikings running back Dalvin Cook was tremendous, carrying 20 times for 154 yards and a touchdown (along with 37 yards receiving), but his breakout day was spoiled on an afternoon when the rest of the Vikings offense couldn’t come through to support its star running back.
Minnesota’s defense certainly shares in some of the blame for starting things off on the wrong foot, giving up 21 unanswered points early on scoring drives of 75, 68 and 33 yards. While the adjustments this unit made allowed them to not allow a drive longer than 22 yards (minus the final drive of the game) from there on out, the offense couldn’t make the same fix.
Pivotal play: This game will be remembered for three questionable offensive pass interference calls against the Vikings, none more controversial than the penalty enforced at the end of the first half that reversed Stefon Diggs’ 3-yard touchdown. Officials believed Cook blocked Packers safety Darnell Savage in the end zone, allowing Diggs to be wide open on a crossing route while receiving a short pass from Cousins. “In Green Bay, the ruling on the field of a touchdown was overturned due to the fact that No. 33 (Cook), clear and obvious visual evidence that he blocks down field prior to the ball being touched,” NFL vice president of officiating Al Riveron said in an explanation put out on Twitter. It’s one thing if OPI had been called during the play, but the fact that it was reversed on replay – which requires clear and obvious evidence of a mistake — puts the NFL’s new PI rule under fire. Minnesota was forced to settle for a 31-yard field goal after play resumed and went into halftime trailing 21-10 instead of possibly cutting the Packers lead to seven.
QB breakdown: Kirk Cousins looked abysmal for most of Sunday’s game, completing 14 of 32 passes for 230 yards, a touchdown and a 52.9 passer rating. By the second quarter, the QB had two fumbles (one lost) and an interception (he would finish with two). These big moment games where Cousins has failed to come through in critical moments is the criticism that has followed him throughout his career and the trend Minnesota is hoping he’ll be able to buck this season. The instances where Cousins made miracle plays such as completing a 61-yard pass to Chad Beebe while getting tackled from behind (on the drive where Diggs’ 3-yard TD got waived off) and dropping a 45-yard bomb into Diggs’ bread basket for a touchdown in the third quarter (Diggs received an unsportsmanlike penalty for ripping his helmet off after the score, pushing back the PAT 15 yards, leading to a miss) were spoiled by moments where the quarterback failed to deliver game-changing drives. Diggs stretched out on an overthrown ball on third-and-7 early in the fourth quarter that would have put Minnesota within striking distance of taking the lead. But what sealed Cousins’ terrible outing was on the final drive for the Vikings offense. After Alexander Mattison got Minnesota down to the 8-yard line, Cousins felt pressure from Tyler Lancaster, leading him to heave a ball into double coverage in the corner of the end zone instead of throw it away. The ball was picked off by Packers cornerback Kevin King, and the Vikings would never have another chance to score. The decision making on that throw alone (along with the play calling on first down) comes into question.
Silver lining: Minnesota is in a precarious spot with its cornerback depth after injuries forced Mike Zimmer to turn to his reserves. The Vikings secondary was exposed most noticeably in the first half when Devante Adams was left matched up with Jayron Kearse in the slot (Adams finished with seven catches for 106 yards) while cornerback Xavier Rhodes allowed a handful of big gains while shadowing the Packers’ No. 1 receiver. Both CB Mackensie Alexander (elbow) and CB Mike Hughes missed Sunday’s game, but Hughes appears to be inching even closer to returning after completing his first full practice on Friday and going through warm-ups in Green Bay. The Vikings really need to be at full strength on the backend against elite quarterbacks such as Rodgers, who they’ll face again in late December.