Minnesota Vikings @ Jacksonville Jaguars
Final Score: MIN 12 – JAX 7
Writer: Raymi Chavez
In a 60-minute football game, the Minnesota Vikings controlled the ball for 42 minutes and 19 seconds. They ran 39 plays in the Jaguars’ territory, while the Jaguars managed to run only 39 plays throughout the entire game. The Vikings achieved 28 first downs, compared to just 10 for the Jaguars. Additionally, the Vikings amassed 402 yards, whereas the Jaguars only gained 143 yards. If you read that without checking the score you’d think the Vikings committed an act of football terror against the Jaguars, you’d be shocked to find out that it took a fourth quarter comeback and a boneheaded unsportsmanlike conduct penalty by the Jaguars to eke out a victory.
Two Up
- T.J.Hockenson – Hockenson is fully back. Was an integral part of the offense, especially on high-leverage plays.
- Evan Engram – Engram didn’t have an incredible game, but it was very promising to see him continue to be a top target without Trevor Lawrence.
Three Down
- Brian Thomas – Thomas was only targeted once until the fourth quarter and was not on the same page with Mac Jones all game.
- Travis Etienne – Etienne seemed to regain sole possession of the lead-back role and did a whole lot of nothing with it.
- Mac Jones – Mac Jones looks a lot like how Mac Jones looked in New England. Not good.
Minnesota Vikings
Quarterback
Sam Darnold: 24/38, 241 Yards, 3 Interceptions | 7 Carries, 28 Yards
Sam Darnold’s performance was better than the stat line suggests. All three of his interceptions came while targeting Justin Jefferson, with one bouncing off his hands. He and Jefferson were maybe a little bit out of sync, but the Jaguars were making a point to take Jefferson out of the game. More often than not those interceptions are either incompletions or incredible Jefferson catches. I wouldn’t be too concerned about this performance, Darnold still looks a different person under center for the Vikings than he’s looked in seasons past.
Running Back
Aaron Jones: 17 Carries, 88 Yards | 3 Targets, 2 Receptions, 13 Yards
Aaron Jones had a solid game and could have looked a whole lot better with some more production in the passing game or with a trip to the endzone, but he was effective with his touches regardless. He got hurt toward the end of the third quarter and was carted back to the locker room for most of the fourth quarter before coming back in for the last two Vikings possessions to seal the game.
Cam Akers: 13 Carries, 38 Yards | 1 Target, 1 Reception, 9 Yards
Cam Akers did not look great. Other than two chunk plays on the ground, it was apparent that the run game took a hit when he was in for Jones. He seemed to be in for passing plays mainly and to spell Jones for a handful of snaps to keep him fresh.
Ty Chandler: 4 Carries, 8 Yards
Ty Chandler only saw snaps while Jones was in the locker room, and is still on the outside looking in with this Vikings running back room.
Wide Receiver/Tight End
Justin Jefferson: 9 Targets, 5 Receptions, 48 Yards
Jefferson was completely smothered by the Jaguars secondary in an intentional attempt to take him out of the game that nearly worked. Three of Jefferson’s targets were intercepted in the process leading to a bad game by Jefferson’s lofty standards. Obviously, it’s nothing to worry about here, and it just means he’ll be due a 200-yard game to make up for it.
T.J. Hockenson: 9 Targets, 8 Receptions, 72 Yards
T.J. Hockenson was Darnold’s most reliable target on the day, converting third downs over and over again, and taking some punishment in the process. The Vikings’ offense could see another leap with Hockenson’s return as Darnold loved finding him over the middle.
Jordan Addison: 5 Targets, 2 Receptions, 25 Yards | 1 Carry, 4 Yards
A standard down game for Jordan Addison who is a picture-perfect example of a boom or bust player. Without touchdowns, this is the type of game you get from him.
Josh Oliver: 6 Targets, 4 Receptions, 52 Yards
Josh Oliver made a couple of great catches and has built a ton of trust with Darnold during Hockenson’s time on the IR. He’ll continue to get a solid slice of shares this season even with Hockenson’s return.
Jalen Nailor: 3 Targets, 1 Reception, 11 Yards | 1 Carry, -7 Yards
Jalen Nailor didn’t have much of a chance out there, and is a reasonable bottom-end streaming option as he could always find himself in the endzone, but nothing beyond that.
Trent Sherfield: 1 Target, 1 Reception, 11 Yards
Jacksonville Jaguars
Quarterback
Mac Jones: 14/22, 111 Yards, 2 Interceptions | 5 Carries, 8 Yards, TD, 1 Fumble (Lost)
Jones performance made Lawrence look a whole lot better. I will give him some grace as coming in to play this Brian Flores-coached Vikings’ defense is no easy task, but he did not look good at any points throughout the game. He was not on the same page with any receivers not named Evan Engram and as soon as the Jaguars had to push the ball downfield he couldn’t give the ball away fast enough. Life won’t get much easier against the Lions next week.
Running Back
Travis Etienne: 11 Carries, 44 Yards | 1 Target, 1 Reception, -1 Yards
I’m not sure where Clemson star Travis Etienne has gone, but he was not here tonight. A listless performance was almost made worse by the fact that there wasn’t a better option all game. This season seems to be a throwaway for a lot of Jags.
Tank Bigsby: 2 Carries, 4 Yards
Maybe still nursing his ankle injury, Tank Bigsby was hardly given any opportunity and did nothing with the touches he got. He can still get some opportunities to take advantage of as the season progresses.
Wide Receiver/Tight End
Evan Engram: 8 Targets, 6 Receptions, 40 Yards
This could be the only piece of Jacksonville’s offense worth rostering at this point of the season. I expected his stock, as well as everyone else’s, to go down with the quarterback change, but he maintains a solid floor being a valuable safety valve for Jones. He’s a big reliable target who should see this game as a floor moving forward.
Brian Thomas: 3 Targets, 2 Receptions, 12 Yards
Brian Thomas had one of the worst games of his young career, which we hope is an outlier. He is the only other piece of this offense I would consider rostering and the leash is very short. Jones and Thomas seemed to have a go at each other after a handful of bad incompletions.
Gabe Davis: 4 Targets, 1 Reception, 19 Yards
Gabe Davis will remain the over-the-top option on this team, and Jones seemed eager to get him involved but struggled to. He’s a bottom-of-the-barrel streaming option in emergency spots even with a good matchup.
Brenton Strange: 3 Targets, 2 Receptions, 25 Yards
Brenton Strange got involved early, as Jones loves throwing to tight ends. However, he won’t have any good fantasy weeks without touchdowns to bolster his numbers.
Luke Farrell: 2 Targets, 2 Receptions, 16 Yards