Trailing by nine and facing third-and-1 deep in their own end early in the fourth quarter, the Vikings put their trust in quarterback J.J. McCarthy. However, his deep pass down the left sideline sailed five yards beyond an open Jalen Nailor’s grasp and the Vikings were forced to punt.
It was one miscue on a night filled with them for McCarthy and the Vikings, who in two games have ridden the highs and lows of having a first-year starter at quarterback.
One week after leading a fourth quarter comeback in Chicago that earned him NFC Offensive Player of the Week honors, McCarthy struggled mightily in his first game in front of Vikings fans. McCarthy completed 11 of 21 passes for 158 yards, was sacked six times and committed three turnovers in the Vikings’ 22-6 loss to the Falcons on Sunday night.
“This is unfortunate, but I know we have a great ... culture (in the) locker room and that we’re going to respond from this,” McCarthy said. “We’re going to learn and get better and bounce back next week.”
Playing most of the game without two of their starting offensive linemen, the Vikings' offense looked disjointed all night. They rushed for just 78 yards, allowed regular pressure on McCarthy and couldn’t make a big play when it mattered most.
For instance, the only time they got the ball into the red zone came early in the second quarter. McCarthy and Nailor hooked up for 17 yards to get the ball down to the Atlanta 2-yard line. But then a fumble, a delay of game penalty and a sack derailed any hopes of finding the end zone.
"You know, we just need to figure out just ways of moving the ball down field and converting on those third downs," says WR Justin Jefferson, who was held to three catches for 81 yards. "So, it just all leads back to executing and just all 11 doing their jobs at the same time."
O'Connell was also quick to point out that the Vikings were manhandled up front, and it is not all on McCarthy. A number of the six sacks McCarthy took came when an Atlanta defender - or multiple Atlanta defenders - came through the line nearly unblocked.
“That right there in a nutshell is what the night kind of was,” Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell said. “And there’s nobody that’s going to fix those things besides our coaches and players.”
Atlanta led 12-6 through three quarters, but Vikings fans had to be hoping for more fourth-quarter magic from McCarthy when Minnesota took over at midfield with 15 minutes left. But on the first play of the quarter, McCarthy was sacked by Zach Harrison and fumbled the ball. The Falcons recovered, added a field goal to make it a two-score game and never looked back.
"Gotta coach better, specifically me," O'Connell said postgame. "Our team will handle the adversity that is now right at our feet. And we've got to go back to work and improve immediately."
McCarthy also threw two interceptions and missed a handful of open receivers in big moments, including the deep shot to Nailor on third-and-1 on the first possession after his fumble. But O’Connell saw more good than bad in McCarthy’s performance.
“It’s going to be easy to try to put the microscope on J.J., and there’s certainly some plays, some throws, some things that I’m sure he would love to (have back),” O’Connell said. “But when we did move it, I thought he made some throws and I thought he showed his athleticism.”
According to NFL Next Gen Stats, the Falcons defense pressured J.J. McCarthy 16 times, including 6 sacks. They generated pressure on 53.3% of dropbacks, the highest rate by Atlanta in a game since Week 15 of 2018. Six different pass rushers recorded at least 3 pressures. Those numbers are not just bad, they're shockingly bad.
Injuries are not helping. The Vikings are already waiting for stalwart left tackle Christian Darrisaw to return from his torn ACL and they're slow-rolling his return to the field. Rightfully so, as the team takes the long view with one of their most important players. But Justin Skule continued to struggle in Darrisaw's absence, and he then went out with a concussion. Walter Rouse came in and also struggled, including a huge holding penalty that wiped out a big Jordan Mason run.
Starting center Ryan Kelly, a four-time Pro Bowler signed as a free agent, also left the game with a concussion. Michael Jurgens came in, and played his first NFL snaps. Young QB, young center, revolving door protecting the backside? Not ideal, and so much for an offseason dedicated to improving the offensive line.
Just 22 years old, McCarthy has been lauded for his maturity, which showed up after three rough quarters in his debut against the Bears. Now he’s got another chance to demonstrate how he responds to adversity, both as a quarterback and as a team leader.
“It’s an all-11 thing, and it starts with me first,” McCarthy said. “This is a long season. Everyone’s telling me this is a journey and I believe them wholeheartedly.”
One veteran teammate said he’s got full confidence that McCarthy will learn and improve quickly.
“He’s built for that,” wide receiver Adam Thielen said. “I think that’s why they fell in love with him in the draft process and why we all are so confident in him — because he’s legitimately built for that. So it’s going to be a process as a team, like it is every year.”
Defense holds strong in the red zone but was gashed by the run
The good: Minnesota held Atlanta to only 108 yards passing and didn't allow a touchdown until late in the game when the game was settled, for the most part. Atlanta had numerous short fields after turnovers, and the Vikings kept the game close.
The bad: Minnesota was completely manhandled by the Falcons running game. Yes, they kept them out of the end zone, but there's no such thing as "good defense" giving up over 200 yards on the ground. Bijan Robinson was a wrecking crew, constantly running through open holes and breaking tackles, finishing with 143 yards on the ground and 168 yards from scrimmage.
Safety Josh Metellus said there was plenty of blame to go around for a defense that knew it had to stay solid to slow down Robinson.
"Defensively unacceptable, got to stop the run," said Metellus. "First and foremost, too many, too many free accesses, too many yards, 200 yards on the ground is unacceptable in our room. I don't care how many times we holding them to field goals, how many times we can get them to not score a touchdown. Like, that just puts us behind the eight ball as a whole team."
Metellus added they knew the Falcons were going to be a challenge, and if there's good news, they laid an egg early in the season and are ready to move on.
"So that was a good team, credit to them, but it was unacceptable from the team," he added. "But the good thing is it's week two, and you guys know it's rare you go undefeated in this league. So I'm happy to get that out of the way now while it's still early."
Pioneer Press Viking beat writer Dane Mizutani told Vineeta Sawkar on the WCCO Morning News the game was actually there for the taking. But the offense was just too leaky, too sloppy, and too bad to get it done.
"If the offense could have put together even one drive, this whole thing could have gone differently," Mizutani added. "But at the end of the day, the only points they score are on a pair of field goals from Will Reichard. So all around, the offense just needs to be better."
Pioneer Press Viking beat writer Dane Mizutani told Vineeta Sawkar on the WCCO Morning News the game was actually there for the taking. But the offense was just too leaky, too sloppy, and too bad to get it done.
"If the offense could have put together even one drive, this whole thing could have gone differently," Mizutani added. "But at the end of the day, the only points they score are on a pair of field goals from Will Reichard. So all around, the offense just needs to be better."
Next Up
The Vikings are home for one more week before spending two weeks overseas playing international games in Ireland and the U.K.
Before that, the Cincinnati Bengals come to U.S. Bank Stadium (12:00 p.m. kickoff) and what looked like a very, very difficult matchup against one of the league's best QB's is now a different type of game. The Bengals lost Joe Burrow to a serious injury on Sunday.
There are multiple reports Burrow needs toe surgery and could miss a large chunk of the season. Mizutani says this is a gift from the football Gods the Vikings can't mess up after losing to Atlanta.
"Joe Burrow might not play for a few months," Mizutani explained. "So I think the Vikings are gonna get lucky, or fortunate on from their standpoint. They're going to play probably, former quarterback for them, Jake Browning, the guy who's beat them in the past. But a guy who absolutely is there to be had. The Vikings need to respond with a win next week. It's no excuses if Joe Burrow is not on the field."