The Minnesota Vikings defeated the Carolina Panthers on Sunday, 34-28. They needed overtime to do so. A glance at the statistics project a game that shouldn’t have been that close.
Vikings:
571 total yards
37:38 time of possession
1 turnover
Panthers:
306 total yards
26:34 time of possession
3 turnovers
How was this game even close?
Offensive Player of the Week
With 571 yards of offense, there are a few contenders for offensive player of the week.
Kirk Cousins
33/48
373 yards
3 touchdowns
Dalvin Cook
29 carries, 140 yards, 1 TD (16 yards)
Adam Thielen
11 catches, 126 yards, 1 TD (5 yards)
K.J.. Osborn
6 catches, 78 yards, I TD (27-yard game winner)
I want to pick K.J. Osborn for his evolution into a clutch, game-changing part of the offense. This game was a breakout but he’s been making big catches all season. The Vikings have needed a third receiver to compliment Adam Thielen and Justin Jefferson. They’ve found that third receiver. Kirk Cousins, Dalvin Cook, Adam Thielen, Osborn. I want to pick all four. That’s too easy. I have to pick one.
The pick:
Kirk Cousins
The narrative of Cousins has long had him fading in big-time situations. It isn’t a fair narrative. It definitely hasn’t been a fair narrative this season. Against the Panthers, he led two game-winning drives. With 42 seconds left in regulation, he led his team on a drive that should’ve ended in a game-winning field goal. Greg Joseph missed that field goal. In overtime, he never gave the Panthers a chance. He sliced up a very good defense and closed the game with a 27-yard touchdown strike to Osborn.
In crunch time, Cousins carved up the league’s best pass defense. Twice.
Defensive Player of the Week
Bashaud Breeland has been considered a defensive weak link all season. Receivers have toasted him. Fans and the media have roasted him. Receivers have been running past him. Runners have been going through him. It hasn’t been pretty. On the first offensive play against the Panthers, Breeland intercepted Sam Darnold. Even if it was just for a moment, Breeland was finally a hero. He played his best game of the season. Hopefully, this is sign of things to come. With Patrick Peterson out for at least a month, the Vikings need Breeland’s baseline to be Sunday’s game.
Special Teams Player of the Week
Dan Chisena has made the roster each of the past two seasons for special teams reasons. He had some NFL growing pains as a rookie last season. He started this season on injured reserve. His role on the team has been a process, an often criticized process. With just over two minutes to play in regulation, Chisena fielded a punt and pinned the Panthers at their own four-yard line. It wasn’t his fault that the Panthers drove those 96 yards to tie the game. On that punt, he did his job perfectly. Hopefully, it was the start of something great.
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