After a bad loss in Week 11, the Minnesota Vikings responded in Week 12 by getting a big Thanksgiving night win over the New England Patriots.
One week after suffering one of the worst losses in the history of their franchise, Kirk Cousins and the Minnesota Vikings responded by getting a win over the New England Patriots for the first time since the 2000 season.
Thursday’s game against the Patriots had the national spotlight shining down on it as the Vikings were hosting their opponent on Thanksgiving night. But even with the extra attention, Minnesota was able to walk off the field with a 33-26 win over New England.
With the victory, the Vikings are now 9-2 this season, and they still have a great chance to capture the No. 1 seed in the NFC before their 2022 schedule comes to an end.
Trio of touchdown passes from Kirk Cousins leads Minnesota Vikings over New England Patriots
Heading into the Week 12 matchup on Thanksgiving night, all we heard about was the “Primetime Kirk Cousins” narrative that has become more and more lazy over the last few years.
Well, “Primetime Kirk” managed to throw for 299 yards, three touchdowns, and one interception against the Patriots on Thursday night to help Minnesota get the win. In a Vikings uniform, Cousins is now 3-1 in games that are played on Thursday nights.
Having a target like Justin Jefferson certainly made a huge impact on Cousins‘ performance against New England. Jefferson hauled in nine passes (most of them spectacular) for 139 yards and one touchdown.
A victory felt like it was beginning to get out of reach after the Patriots found the end zone on their first offensive drive of the second half to take a 23-16 lead. But after that touchdown, the Vikings outscored New England 17-3 and eventually left U.S. Bank Stadium with a win.
There are still plenty of question marks surrounding Minnesota’s success this season, but they are currently 9-2 after their victory on Thursday, and that means that they are still one of the best teams in the NFL.