Ten days after the Vikings lost back-to-back regular-season games for the first time under Kevin O’Connell, they fell to 0-3 when they were denied two chances for the go-ahead score on the Chargers’ goal line in a 28-24 loss Sunday at U.S. Bank Stadium.
Kirk Cousins threw incomplete for Justin Jefferson on a fourth down with 2:53 to go, and after the Vikings stopped a Chargers fourth down to get the ball back at the Los Angeles 24, Cousins’ final pass for T.J. Hockenson was tipped and intercepted in the end zone with six seconds left.
The game turned into the arial showdown it was expected to be, with the Chargers posting seven pass plays of 20 yards or more and the Vikings responding with six of their own. The two teams combined for 98 passes; the Chargers built much of their offense on quick throws to Keenan Allen, and turned one into a backward pass that set Allen up for a 49-yard touchdown strike to a wide-open Mike Williams.
Herbert finished 40 of 47 for 405 yards, while Allen had 18 catches for 215 yards.
Why it happened: With Austin Ekeler out, the Chargers made little attempt to run the ball, instead relying on Herbert to keep the offense moving with short throws against the Vikings’ blitzes. The Vikings’ final three trips inside the Chargers’ 10-yard line resulted in a total of three points. Los Angeles also forced the Vikings’ seventh fumble of the year, when Hockenson lost the ball at the Chargers’ 26 in the first quarter.
What it means: The Vikings are 0-3, and two games behind a pair of teams in the NFC North after the Lions and Packers won on Sunday. And a year after they won 11 one-score games, the Vikings have lost by three, four and four points. They’ll have a chance to win at Carolina next week, but then they’ll face Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs at home. With chances to win close games slipping through their fingers, they’ll have to turn things around quickly.
Play of the game: The Vikings were out of timeouts on their final drive, and opted not to spike the ball after Cousins hit Hockenson over the middle to the Chargers’ 6. The decision didn’t give the Chargers time to substitute, and Cousins fired over the middle from a clean pocket. But linebacker Nick Niemann reached in for Cousins’ throw after battling with Hockenson at the top of the route, meaning Cousins would have to put the ball in a tight window. Hockenson couldn’t grasp it cleanly, and Kenneth Murray Jr. corralled JT Woods’ deflection of the ball after it bounced off Hockenson’s hands.
Turning point: After Cousins hit Jefferson for a 52-yard touchdown that gave the Vikings their first lead of the day, Herbert directed a 75-yard scoring drive with three passes of at least 20 yards. His final throw, a 30-yard score to Joshua Palmer, should have been intercepted after Akayleb Evans undercut the route. But the pass went through Evans’ hands and bounced off his helmet into Palmer’s hands, for a 30-yard score that put the Chargers up for good.
Next up: at Panthers, Oct. 1, noon