The Minnesota Vikings scored a come-from-behind victory over the Green Bay Packers on Sunday afternoon, getting their 2026 off to a winning start.
While it wasn’t pretty, the Vikings will gladly take the win after a disappointing 9-8 campaign last season and are hoping to build on that success as they head into another NFC North matchup with the Chicago Bears next week.
The Bears will be a tough matchup, but there are several players who established momentum in the season opener. On the flip side, some other players will be looking to rebound from rough openers, which creates several winners and losers from Minnesota’s season-opening victory.
Minnesota Vikings winners and losers from their Week 1 win over the Green Bay Packers
Winner No. 1
Carson Wentz
There was a lot of discussion about Wentz after he was named the No. 2 quarterback over J.J. McCarthy this week, but O’Connell made the move because he believed that he would give the Vikings the best chance to win if something happened to Murray during a game.
As it turned out, that doomsday scenario played out in the opening quarter of the season, and Wentz answered the bell.
Wentz didn’t win any fantasy leagues, completing 12-of-19 passes for 133 yards and three touchdowns. But he did organize the offense after it looked poised to self-destruct with Murray on the field.
Showing the veteran presence that last year’s team lacked in the second half, Wentz made solid choices outside of an interception in the end zone that was wiped away with a defensive holding penalty.
The Vikings may not be able to rely on Wentz as their starter for the entire season, but he made a compelling case to get another start next week.
If he keeps winning, O’Connell may be tempted to ride the hot hand, as many speculated one year ago, and it could make Wentz a big winner out of Sunday’s win.
Winner No. 2
Dallas Turner
It wasn’t long ago that Vikings fans thought that Turner was a bust. After playing sparingly in his rookie season, Turner started to turn the corner with a team-leading eight sacks last season, and it was enough to convince Minnesota to trade Jonathan Greenard this offseason when the veteran looked for a “market correction” on his contract.
It’s only one week, but that decision looks even better after Sunday. According to PFF, Turner led the Vikings with seven pressures and recorded a sack on just 28 pass-rushing snaps.
You could also credit Turner with a well-timed offsides penalty that took a 40-yard field goal from Trey Smack off the board and convinced Matt LaFleur to take the penalty and go for it on fourth down. Instead of going ahead 25-18, Minnesota made the stop and set up Aaron Jones for the go-ahead touchdown on the other end of the field.
Turner probably won’t get credit for the offsides penalty, but it’s hard to imagine his season debut going any better. With Flores continuing to turn up the pressure, Turner should benefit and perhaps be on his way to a breakout campaign.
Winner No. 3
Kevin O’Connell
Coming into Sunday, there was a section of Vikings fans that had questions about O’Connell. The beginning of Sunday’s game raised even more questions as he seemed to be thoroughly out-coached over the first three quarters.
But while a built-in excuse was there after Murray’s injury, O’Connell and his staff pushed the right buttons to come away with the win.
Perhaps one of the biggest decisions O’Connell made was trusting his running game. Minnesota only averaged 3.1 yards per carry, but they still ran the ball 34 times.
Jordan Mason’s 18-yard run late in the fourth quarter and touchdown runs by Jones and Mason helped the Vikings complete the comeback, which shows the kind of adaptability that O’Connell’s detractors wanted going into the season.
There are still some concerns going into next week, but for now, O’Connell answered them on Sunday and could have learned a valuable lesson from last season’s struggles.
Loser No. 1
Kyler Murray
Murray was set to be front and center in his Vikings debut, but it lasted just 11 plays before he landed in concussion protocol after a hit from Javon Bullard.
To make matters worse, Murray never looked comfortable, tossing a meatball sandwich to Keisean Nixon on his first attempt as a Viking and never getting the offense in sync.
If Murray is healthy enough to play, he’s likely to be the starter against the Bears. But just like fans did when McCarthy was injured a year ago, fans may want to lean toward “the hot hand,” giving Wentz the edge after his opening-week performance.
Chances are, Murray will get another chance down the road. But between his performance and his injury, his “prove it” tour couldn’t have gotten off to a worse start.
Loser No. 2
Theo Jackson
It wasn’t long ago that Jackson was considered the heir apparent to Harrison Smith, but that take only led to him being outplayed by the 37-year-old in the season opener.
According to PFF, Jackson was on the field for 43 snaps on Sunday but had the second-lowest grade on the team at 37.0. Only Josh Metellus (29.7) had a lower grade, and Jackson’s biggest blunder, whiffing on a Love pass to Christian Watson, resulted in an 81-yard touchdown in the second quarter.
Smith’s presence will draw headlines, but Jackson could begin to get phased out if he played as he did on Sunday. With Jacob Thomas, Jakobe Thomas, and Jay Ward competing for playing time, Jackson will need to patch things up or risk sitting on the sideline as the season progresses.
Loser No. 3
Will Fries
Being a highly paid guard isn’t a great spot to be in Vikings history, as there will be instant comparisons to Steve Hutchinson. But if being compared to a Hall of Famer isn’t enough pressure, Fries is heaping more of it upon himself with Sunday’s performance.
Fries earned the second-lowest grade among Minnesota offensive linemen on Sunday at 59.9. While Blake Brandel was behind him at 51.5, Fries made things worse in pass protection, allowing three pressures and a sack on 30 pass-blocking snaps.
For one of the few holdovers from the notorious 2025 free-agent class, Fries is already under a microscope. But his struggles could also be a hindrance to an offensive line trying to find success after being one of the Vikings’ biggest failures last season.
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