It didn’t seem possible but the Minnesota Vikings season dropped even deeper in the dumpster with a 26-0 loss to the Seattle Seahawks. The Vikings hadn’t been shut out since 2007. With the way the offense is playing, it feels like the next one could come before this season is finally done.
There was some optimism built through the week for the first start of undrafted rookie quarterback Max Brosmer. With starter J.J. McCarthy out with a concussion and Carson Wentz done for the year, the rookie was next. Despite having one fewer year in the league than McCarthy, Brosmer is two years older. Since being signed after going undrafted, Brosmer has shown to be a quick study of the Vikings offense and looked advanced in preseason work. Perhaps the pre-game optimism was simply hope, desperate hope. Any young quarterback, especially an undrafted, rookie quarterback, needs everything around him to be right. With left guard Donovan Jackson ruled out for the game on Friday and left tackle Christian Darrisaw declared inactive on Sunday, things weren’t right around Brosmer against the Seahawks. It showed early and it showed throughout the game.
Vikings first five possessions:
5 plays, 7 yards - punt
4 plays, 21 yards - punt
3 plays, 2 yards - punt
4 plays, 18 yards - punt
The only good thing about the start of the game was the play of the Vikings defense. Sam Darnold and the Seahawks offense did little throughout the game. They managed a field goal on their first possession of the second quarter. It turned out that was the only score the Seahawks would need. That wasn’t known early in the second quarter. The Vikings offense followed the big field goal with another punt. Then the defense forced their first turnover in nearly a month. Dallas Turner sacked Darnold and forced a fumble. Jalen Redmond recovered at the Seahawks 13-yard line. Just when the game looked like it was about to turn the Vikings way, it turned the other way.
Last week, the Vikings were in a tight, tense, defensive-heavy game against the Green Bay Packers. Just when that game felt like it might flip the Vikings way, a mind-numbing mistake handed the Packers a gift touchdown. The game sadly drifted away after that moment. Yesterday, the Vikings had a glorious scoring opportunity on the Seahawks 13-yard line. On 4th-and-1 from the four-yard line, head coach Kevin O’Connell opted to put the ball in Max Brosmer’s hands. Pressured by DeMarcus Lawrence, Brosmer underhanded the ball right to linebacker Ernest Jones IV. What followed was an easy 85-yard stroll to the end zone and a 10-0 lead.
10-0 with about three minutes to play in the first half and this game felt like it was done. An excellent effort by the Vikings defense couldn’t cover for another four turnovers by the offense.
The Vikings offense was terrible. One might even say that they were worse than terrible. The defense was terrific. Of course, everyone wants to point the finger at a single person to blame for a loss like this, a shut out loss like this. The offense was clearly the problem in this game and in recent games. When the offense isn’t working, it’s always the quarterback or the coach/play-caller. I wish that Kevin O’Connell had called a run on that fourth-and-one. I believed at the time, and certain now, that Jordan Mason up the middle had a much better chance of success than Max Brosmer passing for a yard. If Mason is stuffed, the Seahawks get the ball at their own five and the game is still 3-0. That “bad” call wasn’t the biggest of the offense’s problems in this game, and recent games. In my opinion, the biggest problem throughout this fast-becoming really sad season has been the merry-go-round offensive line. Every game has been a different group. Hell, sometimes it feels like every play is a different group. One of the biggest reasons for optimism this season was the rebuilt offensive line. The group of five put together in the offseason started their first game together last week against the Packers. The Vikings starting offensive line didn’t start a game together until Week 12. Week 12! That group lasted just over a half. There has been zero consistency on the offensive line. Zero consistency in who’s out there. Zero consistency in play. Yesterday, with an undrafted rookie quarterback under center, the Vikings could not run the ball. With Brosmer often running for his life, they could not pass the ball. Game announcers Joe Davis and Greg Olson proclaimed that the offense probably wouldn’t look any better if J.J. McCarthy was playing. I have my doubts about that but also question whether any quarterback would be proficient behind a line that can’t run block or protect.
Because it’s the only good thing about this game, the Vikings defense deserves praise. More praise than they’re certainly going to get after a shutout loss. Perhaps reaching for talking-points in a game mostly over in the third quarter, Joe Davis and Greg Olson talked of the Seahawks place among the best in the league. The duo said the team had no weakness. I was a little surprised by this as the Seahawks offense really did nothing against the Vikings defense. Sam Darnold was running for his life throughout the game. He completed under 54% of his 26 passes for 128 yards. If you can ignore the interceptions, Max Brosmer had as many yards and a much better completion percentage. Jaxon Smith-Njigba came into the game seriously challenging the 2,000-yard barrier. He finished this game with two catches for 23 yards. 17 of those yards came on a late screen probably called just to get him off of a one-catch for six yards game. For the game, the Seahawks averaged only 3.5 yards per play. That was just a bit better the 3.2 yards per play of the Vikings offense. Which offense was broken yesterday? The Vikings defense had quite the hold on the Seahawks offense.
I seriously hoped that I’d never again face a Vikings season as frustrating as the 1984 and 2010 seasons. The 2025 Vikings are very much heading in that direction. After the past four weeks, it’s a little shocking that a winning season is still mathematically possible. With five games to play, there’s an opportunity to flip this shit. The Washington Commanders are next.
