Vikings’ TD Drought Isn’t Keeping Them From Winning
Vikings’ touchdown drought isn’t keeping them from winning
The 4-0 Vikings have turned the page back to the days of the Purple People Eaters. And the stout defense isn’t getting a ton of help from the offense.
The Vikings have had 18 straight drives without a touchdown. The last one happened in the second quarter of a Week 3 win over the Buccaneers. The Week 4 victory over the Dolphins happened with five field goals.
Yes, tight end T.J. Hockenson could have scored just before the two-minute warning, but he wisely took a knee and allowed the Vikings to ensure the Dolphins wouldn’t be able to score twice and steal the game. Either way, the Vikings did not register a touchdown against the Dolphins.
As noted last Sunday, the win made the Vikings the first team in more than 100 years to start 4-0 despite not scoring a touchdown in multiple games. The 1922 and 1923 Chicago Cardinals were the only other teams to accomplish that feat.
If the Vikings do it again at any point this year, they’ll become only the fourth team in NFL history to win three or more games without scoring a touchdown. The others were the 1922 Chicago Cardinals, the 1923 Chicago Bears, and the 1993 Indianapolis Colts, per NBC Sports research.
The all-time record, held by the 1922 Cardinals, is four.
Still, there’s reason to believe the Vikings could snap out of their early-season funk. After the Dolphins scored a touchdown late in the third quarter to cut Minnesota’s lead to 12-10, the Vikings offense seemed to wake up. A 15-play, 60-yard drive consumed more than eight minutes of clock time and extended the lead to 15-10. Then, after a three-and-out effort from the Dolphins, the Vikings burned the remaining 5:41 by moving the ball 79 yards from their own 19 to the Miami two.
The next test comes today, in New Orleans. The 1-3 Saints are desperate for a win after losing their first two home games of the season — capped by Monday night’s embarrassing loss to the Falcons. New Orleans hasn’t lost its first three games at home since 1995.
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