Vikings fall just short in Thursday night shootout with Rams

The Minnesota Vikings hung in there with the Los Angeles Rams in Week 4 of the 2018 NFL season but fell short of victory during the Thursday night game.

The Minnesota Vikings entered Week 4 of the 2018 NFL season in a bit of a slump. They failed to put away the Green Bay Packers two weeks ago and suffered a massive collapse against the Buffalo Bills last week.

Their opponents for the Thursday Night Football matchup on Sept. 27 were the Los Angeles Rams, an undefeated team who have put the Raiders, Cardinals, and Chargers each away with double-digit victory margins.

Experts didn’t give the Vikings much of a chance to beat the Rams based on their performance the last two weeks. Instead, Minnesota hung in there with the explosive Los Angeles offense in a game that went down to the wire.

Minnesota Vikings

Sadly, the Vikings fell short against the Rams during the contest on Sept. 27 by a final score of 38-31. However, it was still nice to see Minnesota being competitive after what happened against Buffalo.

For two teams known for suffocating defense, not a lot of it was on display in this game. Instead, Thursday Night Football fans were treated to a shootout with some massive plays and a higher score than many viewers and experts were anticipating.

The Rams and Vikings came out and put on an offensive showcase in the first half, scoring a combined 48 points and 540 yards through the air and 6 passing touchdowns. Jared Goff looked on his game, making some great throws to Cooper Kupp, Todd Gurley, and Brandin Cooks while Kirk Cousins connected with “Lord” Aldrick Robinson twice for scores!

A little bit of defense showed up in the second half, with there actually being some sacks and hold the offenses to a field goal each. However, it was still a big-play day in L.A. with Robert Woods getting a 31-yard touchdown and Adam Thielen scoring from 45 yards out in the third and fourth quarter.

With two minutes to go, it was a one-possession game, with Minnesota trailing 31-38 in hopes of tying the game up. However, it was left tackle Riley Reiff who couldn’t stop Rams defensive end John Franklin-Myers, resulting in a strip sack recovered by Los Angeles.

The two teams ended up combining for 1,002 yards and 69 total points in a highly entertaining game that should have fans feeling like Minnesota is headed in the right direction.

The Minnesota Vikings will face another tough challenge in Week 5 when they hit the road again to take on the Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday, Sept 30. But for now, fans should feel pretty good about the performance of the purple and gold, even if they came up short against the Rams.