Vikings @ Packers
Final Score: Packers 37, Vikings 10
Writer: Corey Saucier (@Deputy_Commish on Twitter, /u/Lights_Kamara_Action on Reddit)
With starting QB Kirk Cousins out on Sunday night on the Covid list, the Vikings offense struggled mightily to move the ball under the direction of backup QB Sean Mannion. Mannion wasn’t great by any stretch of the imagination, but he wasn’t awful, either. The Vikings’ defense held up for most of the first half – allowing just a field goal to QB Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay offense on the Packers’ first three possessions – even though the Packers were able to move the ball down the field at will. That being said, Mannion and the Vikings’ offense weren’t able to take advantage of their defense’s strong start and the Packers rolled to a 37-10 beatdown in Lambeau. RB Dalvin Cook had one of his worst games as a pro (12 total touches, 13 total yards) and certainly let his fantasy managers down on this championship week (for so many of us). Meanwhile, both of Green Bay’s starting backs (RB Aaron Jones, RB A.J. Dillon) had fantastic fantasy outings on the night. Did your Vikings’ players let you down? Or did your Packers’ players put you in a position to hoist your league’s trophy on Monday night? Let’s dive into what we saw:
Minnesota Vikings
Quarterbacks
Sean Mannion: 22/36, 189 yards, TD | 2 carries, 14 yards
It was a huge moment for Vikings’ backup QB Sean Mannion on Sunday night – thrown into the starting job with just a few days’ notice after QB Kirk Cousins tested positive for Covid, Mannion was tasked with beating QB Aaron Rodgers and the Packers on the road with their season’s playoff hopes on the line. We all could have guessed how this played out, but Mannion gave it his best shot and ultimately wasn’t that awful. The Packers clearly came out with the mindset that they were going to stop the run and force Mannion to beat them through the air – and he couldn’t. Mannion leaned on TE Tyler Conklin early and it felt like the Vikings’ offense might be able to do enough to hang around – but then Rodgers and the Packers got warmed up and that was that. Mannion did eventually lead the Vikings on a TD drive late in the 3rd quarter, capped with this 14-yard TD pass to WR K.J. Osborn:
LET'S GOOO K.J.!!!@KJ_Osborn
📺: @SNFonNBC pic.twitter.com/BZPFnLMaLa
— Minnesota Vikings (@Vikings) January 3, 2022
Running Backs
Dalvin Cook: 9 carries, 13 yards | 3 targets, 3 receptions
Alexander Mattison: 5 targets, 4 receptions, 13 yards
Unfortunately, there were no highlights that I could find to fill this section of the article. The Packers clearly planned to keep RB Dalvin Cook from being effective, and it worked to perfection. After Green Bay raced out to a big lead in the first half, the Vikings were forced to abandon the run for the most part – leading Cook to his worst fantasy output of the season at the worst possible time. In fact, it was Cook’s worst outing in a full game since Week 11 of the 2018 season. Backup RB Alexander Mattison didn’t fare much better – he failed to receive a carry and totaled only 13 yards on four receptions.
Wide Receivers/Tight Ends
Justin Jefferson: 11 targets, 6 receptions, 58 yards
K.J. Osborn: 5 targets, 3 receptions, 50 yards, TD
Tyler Conklin: 9 targets, 5 receptions, 47 yards
While the running game was non-existent for the Vikings on Sunday night, things weren’t much better for their pass-catching unit. WR Justin Jefferson has been a fantasy star throughout his entire young career, but if you needed a big week from him for your fantasy playoff matchup this week, you were left disappointed. Jefferson did add a couple of garbage-time catches near the end of the first half that minimally boosted his stats, but ultimately, with no Cousins and no WR Adam Thielen to pull coverage away from his side of the field, he was mostly ineffective. WR K.J. Osborn ultimately led the group in fantasy production due to his 3rd quarter TD seen above, but if you’re playing in your league’s championship this week, Osborn likely wasn’t anywhere near your starting lineup.
Green Bay Packers
Quarterback
Aaron Rodgers: 29/38, 288 yards, 2 TD | 2 carries, 8 yards
With the Packers having so much success running the ball on Sunday night, we didn’t see a huge, eye-popping entry to the stat sheet for QB Aaron Rodgers. Rodgers connected with WR Davante Adams on a number of their patented back-shoulder throws along the sidelines, but his most impressive play of the night had to be this 20-yard strike to WR Allen Lazard for a TD late in the 2nd quarter:
.@AaronRodgers12 connects with @AllenLazard! 🎯
TOUCHDOWN! 🙌#MINvsGB | #GoPackGo
📺 NBC pic.twitter.com/jGGyz5W3lA
— Green Bay Packers (@packers) January 3, 2022
Lazard made a great adjustment to the ball to make that catch, but Rodgers threw it to a spot where he knew only his guy could get it. Rodgers has been one of the steals of this year’s fantasy season, and Sunday night’s performance showed us exactly why.
Running Backs
Aaron Jones: 8 carries, 76 yards | 6 targets, 5 receptions, 30 yards
A.J. Dillon: 14 carries, 63 yards, 2 TD | 3 targets, 2 receptions, 20 yards
The Vikings didn’t really have an answer for much of what the Packers were doing offensively – this is especially true when you talk about the running game. Both RBs Aaron Jones and A.J. Dillon produced enough on Sunday night to eclipse 1,000 scrimmage yards for the season, and Dillon showed off by finding the end-zone twice:
MOVE. THE. PILE.
TOUCHDOWN @ajdillon7! 🙌#MINvsGB | #GoPackGo
📺 NBC pic.twitter.com/qxYY2RCpPO
— Green Bay Packers (@packers) January 3, 2022
And then this one late to ice the game:
ANOTHER TD FOR @ajdillon7! 😤#MINvsGB | #GoPackGo
📺 NBC pic.twitter.com/ZJ8lLtwD1d
— Green Bay Packers (@packers) January 3, 2022
Managers with Jones in their lineups may have felt a bit slighted by all the work that Dillon got in the second half, but Dillon showed exactly why he’s worth those touches – especially with Green Bay clinching the #1 seed in the NFC and a first-round bye in the playoffs. That being said, Jones had over 100 yards from scrimmage as well (on just 13 touches) and the Vikings had no answer for his outside stretch-running plays.
Wide Receivers/Tight Ends
Davante Adams: 14 targets, 11 receptions, 136 yards, TD
Allen Lazard: 6 targets, 6 receptions, 72 yards, TD
It’s hard to believe that I’ve made it this far without really touching on what a masterful performance we saw from WR Davante Adams on Sunday night – yet here we are. That being said, Adams gave the Minnesota secondary fits all night and had over 100 yards receiving and this TD before we even got to halftime:
A big first half for @tae15adams!
TOUCHDOWN! 🙌#MINvsGB | #GoPackGo
📺 NBC pic.twitter.com/IbWSuiyp2y
— Green Bay Packers (@packers) January 3, 2022
With such a commanding halftime lead, the Packers leaned on the ground game to run out the clock in the second half but Adam’s damage had already been done. Adams broke his own Packers’ record for receptions in a single season on Sunday night and it’s unlikely we’ll see many of the Packers’ offensive starters next week as their first-round bye has already been clinched.
— Corey Saucier (@Deputy_Commish on Twitter, u/Lights_Kamara_Action on Reddit)