10 quick thoughts on the Vikings loss to the Rams in Week 16

The up and down season for the Minnesota Vikings continued as their two-game winning streak came to an end with a loss to the Los Angeles Rams.

We’ve reached the must-win part of the season for the Minnesota Vikings, and in the first of the final three games on their schedule, they failed to leave U.S. Bank Stadium with a win over the Los Angeles Rams.

Instead, the Vikings are back to having a record under .500 at 7-8 following a 30-23 loss to the Rams. Time is running out for Minnesota to earn a spot in this season’s playoffs and Sunday’s loss isn’t going to do them any favors.

What are some of the initial takeaways we can draw from the Vikings’ performance against Los Angeles this weekend?

Quick thoughts on the Vikings loss to the Rams

Jefferson gets the record: Obviously, he would have liked to get a win on Sunday, but Justin Jefferson‘s 116 receiving yards this week gave him 2,851 receiving yards in the last two seasons, which is the NFL record for the most by a player in his first two years in the league.

Jefferson is a special player, and moving forward, the Vikings have to figure out how to be better at taking more advantage of his impressive performances out on the field every week.

What was the point of signing Tomlinson and Pierce?: Last season, the Vikings struggled mightily to stop their opponent’s rushing attack. So they went out and signed big defensive tackle Dalvin Tomlinson in the offseason to combine with Michael Pierce and create a massive wall of human in the middle of their front-four.

Well, Minnesota’s run defense is either worse or just as bad as it was in 2020 because it certainly hasn’t improved this year. The Rams had zero trouble running the ball on Sunday as they finished with 33 carries for 159 yards (4.8 average).