Vikings Find Offense In Second Half, Beat Redskins 29-26

The Washington Redskins are going to look back on today’s game as one they should have won. Washington had more than their share of chances to take control in the first half but were unable to separate themselves from the Vikings.

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The Redskins’ failure to take control of the game when the Vikes were in disarray offensively allowed Minnesota a chance to regroup and snatch victory from the jaws of defeat by virtue of a strong second half offensive effort.

The key play to turn the game came late in the second quarter when Robert Griffin III threw up a terrible pass that was picked off by Captain Munnerlyn. This set up the Vikings for a 20-yard TD from Teddy Bridgewater to Chase Ford to cut the Redskins’ lead to 10-7.

Trailing by just 3 going into the half, the Vikings knew they were in it. They came out in the second half with a commitment to run the ball down the Redskins’ throats and they got it done.

Norv Turner cranked up the two-headed monster of Jerick McKinnon and Matt Asiata in the second half, helping Teddy Bridgewater and the Vikings find the offensive rhythm they had been missing throughout the first half.

With the running game working, Bridgewater was able to operate much more efficiently than in the first half. Bridgewater threw some bad incompletions early in the game but never lost confidence, still taking shots when they were there.

Though the pass protection was not especially great, Teddy showed his cool under pressure by delivering most of his short passes accurately and, most importantly, not turning the ball over.

The Vikes would rattle off 22 second-half points, all three TDs and a two-point conversion coming courtesy of Matt Asiata. Chase Ford, Greg Jennings and Rhett Ellison were the big targets for Bridgewater as he game-managed the Vikings to a strong second half.

Defensively, the Vikes were able to get after RG3. Everson Griffen was a monster again, and was joined by Brian Robison, Tom Johnson and Sharrif Floyd in harassing the Redskins’ QB.

Chad Greenway also had a big sack, making up for some other bad plays during the course of the day.

The Redskins briefly took the lead in the second half after a terrible call against Harrison Smith for hitting RG3 after he slid. Smith clearly tried to avoid the contact but the refs flagged him anyway.

Overall it was not a good day for the officials. Several calls, and no-calls, in the second half could have spelled disaster for the Vikings, but they were able to keep their cool through all the nonsense.

Of course, the Vikings made some of their own problems by getting called for legit penalties and by missing tackles. But another great effort by the defensive line covered up for some of the team’s problems in other areas.

With the bye week coming up, the Vikings now move to 4-5 on the season, 2-2 at home. What will the last seven games of the season spell for Minnesota? Are they still in it?

I don’t know what the future will bring but I do know today’s game was exciting and it was great to see the Vikes come out on top after the strong effort they gave.