DUBLIN — A lengthy trip across the Atlantic represented a chance for the Vikings to get rolling with a pair of games that looked winnable on paper. Instead, the Vikings stumbled out of the gates on Sunday afternoon at Croke Park, feeling like they had left something on the table.
A furious comeback by the Vikings died its final death when veteran Carson Wentz threw incomplete to receiver Jalen Nailor in the final seconds, pulling the curtain on a 24-21 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers.
On the final drive, though, Wentz was called for intentional grounding, and the team was penalized for a clock violation, which proved costly as the Vikings were trying to get into field goal range
It was an up-and-down performance from Wentz, who completed 30 of 46 pass attempts for 350 yards a pair of touchdowns and a pair of interceptions. Some of the struggles were due to pressure. He was sacked a half dozen times while playing behind a tattered offensive line that lost center Ryan Kelly to a concussion and right tackle Brian O’Neill knee injury.
On the other end, future Hall of Fame quarterback Aaron Rodgers was efficient, completing 18 of 22 passes for 200 yards and a touchdown. He did most of his damage early while helping the Steelers build a lead they wouldn’t relinquish.
Some of highlights from the legendary stadium in Dublin had nothing to do with the game itself.
The rendition of the country’s national anthem by Irish singer Lyra brought the house down before kickoff. The crowd later provided a memorable moment with a rousing singalong to “Zombie” by the Irish rock band The Cranberries during a break in the action.
As for the Vikings, they couldn’t get into a rhythm for most of the game, looking like a shell of themselves on offense while also getting got carved up on defense.
The game started pretty well for the Vikings as they forced a punt defense, then parlayed that into an effective drive on offense. It stalled out short of the red zone however, and Reichard nailed a field goal to make it 3-0.
On the next drive, Rodgers shredded the Vikings with his arm, marching the Steelers down the field before running back Kenneth Gainwell plunged into the end zone to make it 7-3.
After methodically working the ball down the field, Rodgers took a different approach on the next drive, this time throwing a slant to receiver DK Metcalf, who took it 80 yards for touchdown to help the Steelers stretch their lead to 14-3.
It looked like the Steelers were about to take a commanding lead before halftime when the Vikings got a boost from a couple of their breakout stars on defense. There was a sack from defensive tackle Jalen Redmond followed by a blocked field goal from cornerback Isaiah Rodgers that kept points off the board.
That gave the Vikings the ball back before halftime and after a solid drive by Wentz they got another field goal from Reichard to make it 14-6 at halftime. The deficit felt like it could’ve been much worse given how everything was going for the Vikings at that point.
After the Steelers pushed their lead to 24-6 following another touchdown from Gainwell and a field goal from kicker Chris Boswell, the Vikings finally showed some fight, battling back with a pair of scoring drives to keep the game interesting.
The comeback attempt started with a touchdown pass from Wentz to running back Zavier Scott to cut the deficit to 24-14. It continued when Wentz found receiver Jordan Addison for a long gain that set up a touchdown pass to receiver Jalen Nailor to make it 24-21.
It was too little too late for the Vikings.
Though they got the ball back with a chance to tie the game, Wentz couldn’t get the Vikings in field goal range.
Now the Vikings must travel from Dublin to London for a game against the Cleveland Browns next weekend that they can’t afford to lose.
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