The Minnesota Vikings finally got their passing game going as they put together a complete effort to defeat the New York Giants in Week 5.
The Minnesota Vikings had a tough week entering their Week 5 matchup with the New York Giants. With wide receivers calling out the offense and skipping practice to voice their displeasure, it would not have been a surprise if the Vikings went out to The Meadowlands and dropped an egg in a crucial game.
However, the Vikings rallied the troops and with an improved effort from Kirk Cousins and the rest of the Minnesota passing game, they were able to take down the Giants for a 28-10 victory.
The Vikings appeared to be more aggressive from the opening whistle as they drove down the field on the strength of Cousins’ arm and a couple of key receptions from Adam Thielen and Stefon Diggs set up a 31-yard field goal from Dan Bailey to take a 3-0 lead.
After forcing a three-and-out, the Vikings would again let Cousins take over as he found Bisi Johnson for a 16-yard completion and finished it off with a 15-yard touchdown pass to Thielen to put Minnesota ahead 10-0.
It appeared to be all Vikings at that point, but Daniel Jones had other ideas. The Giants rookie finished off a five-play, 50-yard drive with a 35-yard pass to Darius Slayton to cut into the Vikings lead and make it 10-7.
The Vikings would run into a little adversity from after adding a 48-yard field goal from Bailey, but put together a great drive including a 19-yard run from Dalvin Cook. Although the run would get them down to the one-yard line, Cook would lose the handle and the Giants would recover. Fortunately, that would only put New York as an easy target as Anthony Barr would take down Jon Hilliman in the end zone for a safety for a 15-7 lead.
A 32-yard field goal from Bailey before halftime would put Minnesota ahead 18-7, but the Giants would answer to open the second half with a 32-yard field goal from Aldrick Rosas.
That would cap the scoring for the Giants, however as the Vikings took over on the ground and through the air. Thielen would catch his second touchdown of the afternoon to go with seven catches for 130 yards to put the Vikings ahead 25-10 and end an effective afternoon for Cousins, who threw for 306 yards and two touchdowns.
With Cook totaling 218 yards from scrimmage (132 on the ground), the Vikings were able to kill the clock, add a 45-yard field goal from Bailey and get out of New York with a 28-10 victory.
The win puts the Minnesota Vikings at 3-2 in the NFC North and will set them up for an important game against the Philadelphia Eagles (3-2) at U.S. Bank Stadium next week. Next Sunday’s game is scheduled for a noon kickoff in Minneapolis.