GLENDALE, Ariz. — It’s hard to believe that the Vikings had so much to play for as recently as last weekend. After getting worked by the Detroit Lions, they had a chance to bounce back against the Los Angeles Rams in the first round of the playoffs
Instead, the Vikings fell flat on their faces on Monday night at State Farm Stadium in a game that was pretty much over by halftime.
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Here are five takeaways from the Vikings’ 27-9 loss to the Rams:
Sam Darnold imploded again
It’s impossible to overstate how disappointing quarterback Sam Darnold has been over the past couple of weeks.
After falling apart last weekend against the Lions, Darnold was even worse Monday against the Rams. Though he ended up completing 25 of 40 passes for 245 yards and a touchdown, that doesn’t indicate how ineffective he was for prolonged stretches.
The interior pressure clearly rattled Darnold as he started to look incapable of playing the position. In total, Darnold was sacked nine times, which included a fumble that rookie edge rusher Jared Verse returned for a touchdown.
As good as Darnold was at times this season, he didn’t perform when the chips were on the table, and as a result, his future with the Vikings is unclear.
The offensive line struggled mightily
As much as Darnold deserves a large chunk of the blame for holding onto the ball too long, the Vikings’ offensive line struggled to contain the pressure from the Rams at most every turn.
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This has been a common theme this season, especially on the interior, with left guard Blake Brandel, center Garrett Bradbury, and right guard Dalton Risner often getting overpowered at the point of attack.
It wouldn’t be surprising to see the Vikings make offseason changes there. It’s long been a weakness for the Vikings, and it might be time to invest in that part of the roster.
Kevin O’Connell took accountability
Though the play from Darnold left something to be desired, head coach Kevin O’Connell said afterward that he could have been better, as well.
There weren’t many times that O’Connell made life easier on Darnold. He simply kept calling plays designed to push the ball downfield with hopes that at some point everything was going to start clicking.
That never happened, and the Vikings were run off the field by the Rams.
This is the second time that O’Connell has led the Vikings to double-digit wins only to get bounced in the first round of the playoffs. He needs to look himself in the mirror and figure out why.
Brian Flores didn’t have answers, either
On the first play of the game, Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford dropped back to pass and found receiver Puka Nacua over the middle for a gain of 27 yards. The fact that the Vikings weren’t ready for something like that reflected poorly on defensive coordinator Brian Flores.
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It got worse before it got better as the Rams scored a touchdown on their opening drive to take control early. Though the defense started to settle in as the game progressed, some of that was because the Rams had built such a big lead that they didn’t need to force the ball downfield.
Stafford’s performance was even more dominant than his stat line would suggest. He completed 19 of 27 passes for 209 yards and a pair of touchdowns before putting it in cruise control.
Blake Cashman had a touchdown taken away
A pivotal play occurred when edge rusher Jonathan Greenard appeared to force a fumble and linebacker Blake Cashman scooped it up and returned it for a touchdown. It looked like the boost the Vikings needed at a crucial moment.
The only issue? The officials ruled that it was an incomplete pass, and the points were taken off the board.
That changed the landscape of the game. If that touchdown from Cashman ended up counting, there’s a good chance the Vikings would have been competitive all game.
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