The battle of unbeatens at U.S. Bank Stadium looked like it could result in an excitin battle down to the wire between the Minnesota Vikings and the Houston Texans . However, while the Vikings were prepared to play their best game on their home turf, the Texans struggled in nearly all aspects and ultimately found themselves on the wrong end of a blowout 34-7 loss. Head coach DeMeco Ryans was clearly unhappy with many aspects, including the multiple penalties that impacted his team’s performance.
The Texans were flagged 11 times for 88 yards and that indicated a lack of discipline and concentration on the part of Ryan’s players. At one point in the second quarter, the Texans were flagged for three consecutive illegal procedure or formation penalties that robbed the team of an opportunity to gain momentum. That issue irked the Houston head coach.
“Credit to the Vikings, they played a really great game today as they beat us up and down the field physically,” Ryans said. “We didn’t do anything to help ourselves as there were way too many penalties. That’s starts with me. Too many penalties in back to back games. That’s unacceptable and you negate it with penalties. That sapped the energy.”
Vikings dictate while Texans struggle badly
The Vikings were razor sharp against the Texans, as Kamu Gruger-Hill intercepted C.J. Stroud’s pass on Houston’s first play from scrimmage following an offensive holding penalty. Minnesota took advantage of the turnover when Sam Darnold hit superstar wide receiver Justin Jefferson with a 6-yard TD pass. The Vikings added another touchdown later in the first period and took a 14-0 lead when Darnold hit running back Aaron Jones with an 8-yard scoring pass.
The early momentum was too much for the Texans to overcome, and the Vikings dominated throughout the game.
Darnold continues his productive play as the Vikings starting quarterback. He completed 17 of 28 passes for 181 yards with 4 TDs and no interceptions. Jefferson caught 6 passes for 81 yards while Jones rushed for 102 yards and caught 5 passes for 46 yards.
The Vikings have pulled off back-to-back convincing wins over the San Francisco 49ers and the Texans. Both of those teams were looked at as Super Bowl contenders at the start of the season. The Vikings were considered a fourth-place team in the NFC North, but they have played relentless football on both sides of the line of scrimmage in the early going.
Stroud completed 20 of 31 passes for 215 yards with 1 TD pass and 2 interceptions for the Texans. His scoring pass to Cam Akers came late in the third period when the Texans were trailing 21-0.
