SEATTLE — Not long after the Vikings received the opening kickoff Sunday afternoon at Lumen Field, on the other side of the country, the Washington Commanders scored a thrilling win over the Philadelphia Eagles.
That result meant the Vikings suddenly controlled their own destiny in their pursuit of the No. 1 seed in the NFC playoffs — no more need for tiebreakers. Suddenly, if the Vikings were to win every game left on their schedule, they would earn a bye and home field advantage throughout the playoffs.
A few hours later, the Vikings polished off a 27-24 win over the Seattle Seahawks, to keep that possibility alive and prove once again that they are a legitimate Super Bowl contender.
In crunch time, quarterback Sam Darnold got the ball back with 4 minutes, 21 seconds left, trailing 24-20 and needing to go the length of the field. It’s something he has done for the Vikings a number of times this season.
This time was no different.
After getting a facemask call at a pivotal moment, Darnold uncorked a deep touchdown pass to star receiver Justin Jefferson to put the Vikings in front for good.
On the following possession, the Vikings came up with a big stop on defense to force a 60-yard field goal that fell short. After the offense stalled out in the final minute, the defense came up with another big stop, as safety Theo Jackson intercepted a pass to put the game on ice.
It was an impressive start for the Vikings as Darnold led a march downfield. In total, Darnold completed 7 of 8 passes on the opening possession, finding receiver Jordan Addison for a touchdown that put the Vikings in front 7-0.
After a punt by the Vikings on their next drive, the Seahawks responded when quarterback Geno Smith dropped a dime to receiver DK Metcalf in the corner of the end zone to level the score at 7-7. Not long after that, Darnold dropped a dime of his own to Jefferson, pushing the Vikings back in front 14-7.
A costly blunder by Smith on the next possession resulted in rookie edge rusher Dallas Turner coming up with the first interception of his career. That set up a 52-yard field goal from rookie kicker Will Reichard to stretch the Vikings’ lead to 17-7.
Though it looked as if the Vikings were in position to pull away, the Seahawks responded with an 88-yard drive right before halftime, capped by Smith finding receiver Jaxson Smith-Njigba to cut the deficit to it 17-14.
Both teams traded field goals coming out of the locker room at halftime to push the score to 20-17. There was tension the rest of the way, with neither the Vikings nor the Seahawks able to gain the upper hand.
That changed in the home stretch as the Seahawks put together a clutch drive when they absolutely had to have it. It featured a number of good throws from Smith before he found tight end AJ Barner in the back of the end zone to put the Seahawks in front 24-20.
That set the stage for Darnold to play hero once again as he climbed the pocket and delivered a perfect pass to Jefferson that finalized the score at 27-24.
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