Silver Linings from the Vikings’ Week 1 loss to the Bengals

The Minnesota Vikings lost their first game to the lowly Cincinnati Bengals. Here are some silver linings to take away from that disappointing defeat.

Many expected the Minnesota Vikings to go on the road and win their first game of the 2021 season against the Cincinnati Bengals. Not only did many expect to see a victory for the Purple, but a blowout one at that.

The Vikings were debuting their revamped defense led by a stacked line that was supposed to get plenty of pressure on young Joe Burrow and force him into some bad decisions. They also had a secondary with plenty of experienced new faces, but they still gave up 27 points to the Cincinnati offense.

Offensively, the Vikings also struggled. The offensive line was an embarrassment racking up plenty of penalties and not giving Kirk Cousins much time in the pocket or get much of a push for Dalvin Cook on the ground.

This game couldn’t have gone much worse for the Vikings and for the “easy” game on a rough stretch to start the season, dropping this one could prove very, very costly. While things were bad overall, there were some bright spots for the Purple in Week 1. Here are the silver linings the team can take away from the defeat.