Home, Sweet Home

The Minnesota Vikings held off the Green Bay Packers last night. 17-14.

The Vikings had to win this game. It was the first regular season game in their spectacular new home. US Bank Stadium. A stadium that took more than a decade to become a reality. A game against their division nemesis. The Packers have been a thorn in the Vikings side since Brett Favre stumbled into a huddle. Now, the Vikings have won two straight from them. Yay! The Vikings had to win this game.

Some firsts:

First touchdown in US Bank Stadium: Jordy Nelson. Boo!

First Vikings touchdown in US Bank Stadium: Kyle Rudolph. Yay!

The Vikings defeated the Packers with defense, Stefon Diggs, and a terrific performance from Sam Bradford. When quarterback Teddy Bridgewater was lost for the season to a brutal knee injury on August 30, the Vikings season was in the balance. There was a lot of optimism in Minnesota this season. A beautiful stadium, a talented roster, and an excellent coaching staff. Losing Bridgewater was devastating. It would be devastating for any football team to lose their starting quarterback a couple of weeks before the season. The Vikings mourned their loss for a day and then got busy. Two days later, general manager Rick Spielman traded a first and conditional fourth round pick to the Philadelphia Eagles for Sam Bradford. It was a bold move. 15 days later Bradford started the home opener against the Packers. He looked like he'd been in the offense for months rather than weeks. 22 of 31 for 286 yards and two touchdowns. He benefited greatly from having Stefon Diggs on the other end of nine of those passes. The second-year receiver has only played in 15 NFL games but he's a star in the making. He may already be there, The Packers had no answers for Diggs. 182 yards on nine catches and a 25-yard touchdown.

The Vikings defense has been an emerging force since Mike Zimmer was hired as head coach in 2014. They gave Aaron Rodgers and the Packers offense fits all night. Every yard was a challenge. Every point was a struggle. The Packers generated about 60 yards of offense in the first half. That's about what they typically gain in a single possession. The Vikings forced fumbles on three occasions. Unfortunately, the Packers managed to recover two of them. The Vikings could have run away with the game if the ball had bounced more favorably for them. Many of Rodgers' throws went in the direction of second-year corner Trae Waynes. He's started the first two games of the season while Xavier Rhodes recovers from a knee injury. Waynes provided tight coverage on a variety of Packers receivers throughout the game. He just couldn't keep his hands off of those receivers. Much of the Packers offensive production was dependent on Waynes penalties. He'll get there but there will be struggles. Rhodes had similar issues early in his career. Waynes went from goat to hero when Rodgers picked on him one time too many. Waynes' interception sealed the game for the Vikings. Yay!

A win is a win no matter how it happens. Especially a division win. Especially a Packers win. Especially win #1 in this beautiful new stadium.

It wasn't all roses for the Vikings.

Running back Adrian Peterson had to be helped off of the field in the second half with what looked like a significant knee injury. It didn't look good but the Vikings might have dodged a severe blow. Zimmer said after the game that Peterson's knee had "calmed down a bit." The team was more optimistic than pessimistic regarding his health after the game. He will have an MRI this morning.

With or without Peterson, the Vikings running game has to get better. They pride themselves on being a running team but the ground production has been anemic through two games. Peterson, Jerick McKinnon, and Matt Asiata routinely meet their first opponent while still in the backfield. That has to change. The offensive line has to open holes and the backs have to get through those holes.

More offensive line. The line was solid in pass protection last week. They weren't last night. Bradford had a nice night passing but he was hit often and sacked far too often. Those sacks were drive killers and momentum flippers. Bradford had to play most of the game with a bruised left (thankfully) hand. The Vikings can't lose another quarterback.

The Vikings need to get more receiving production from pass-catchers other than Diggs, Kyle Rudolph, and Adam Thielen. Those three have been great. Especially Diggs. Charles Johnson, rookie Laquon Treadwell, tight end David Morgan, the backs. Someone has to give Bradford an additional option. Jarius Wright has been on the wrong side of the game day number game the first two weeks. He's spent most of his four years in the league getting open and making plays. Maybe he should be on the right side of the number game next Sunday but it's easy to make that call from a sofa.

Waynes will be getting a great deal of heat from the fans and the talking heads despite his game-sealing interception. His penalties were a solid chunk of the Packers offense for most of the game. The positive in his play was his coverage. It was solid. He just has to play with greater discipline and better technique. He's right there to defend the pass. He just has to play the ball rather than getting handsy with the receiver.

The Minnesota Vikings are 2-0 and on top of the NFC North. They also won game #1 at US Bank Stadium. No one can take that away from them. That's a great start for a team that was scrambling a couple of weeks ago when their quarterback went down. A visit to reigning NFC champs Carolina Panthers is next.