Sunday’s Best: Week 10 Vikings at Bills

I apologize it has been a long time since I have written an article. I went on vacation, came back with COVID, had a pipe break in my house and am not living in a hotel while everything is being done. It has been a hectic 6 weeks since I have written an article. If you are superstitious, you probably hope I stay away since we haven’t lost a game since the last time I wrote.

Let’s get to the fun part and look at Sunday’s best performers.

Justin Jefferson

Jefferson had the best catch I have ever seen in my life. However, it wasn’t just that one catch. He was nothing but tough catches all game. 9 of his 10 receptions came with a completion probability of less than 50% according to Next Gen Stats. Everyone looked at this matchup as Diggs vs Jefferson and Jefferson won going away. It was a Randy Moss type performance, and the Vikes needed every catch. The stat line, 10 receptions for 193 yards and a TD, doesn’t even do him justice. He tied the NFL record for fewest games (42) to get to 4,000 career yards. He was amazing from start to finish in this one. Justin Jefferson is the career leader in yards per game with 97.0 yards per game. Julio Jones is 2^nd ever with 90.1 (Jim Brim is technically 2^nd, but he played 3 games). That is staggering. I know that might come down some as he ages, but he is off to the best start ever for a WR.

Patrick Peterson

P2 wasn’t his finest in the first half, but most of the team wasn’t that great either. He really showed up in the 2^nd half and OT. The first interception was in the endzone in the 4^th quarter with 10:27 left and the Bills up by 10. If he doesn’t get that, the game might be over. He also was aware enough to see some space and return it to the 39 to help setup a TD drive by the Vikings to pull within 4. His 2^nd interception ended the game when it looked like the Bills were driving for a sure TD. P2 has stepped up big a few times, but none were bigger than this past Sunday. He got the chains on the plane as a reward for his efforts.

Dalvin Cook

14 carriers for 119 yards and a TD, 3 receptions for 27 yards. Cook brought the team back to life with an explosive 81 yard run (thanks to a nice block by JJ). He didn’t get a ton of opportunities this game, but he took advantage of most of them. He likely won’t be the player of the game because of his dropped potential winning TD when the Bills jumped offsides. He turned before he got the ball. I’ll take his spectacular catch last week and a bad drop this week. It all worked out for the best.

Kevin O’Connell

KOC has led this team from the worst finishing team to the best in 1 year. He knows how to manage a clock as well as anyone in the NFL. He doesn’t panic and neither does the team. He also isn’t afraid to go for it and push the gas when needed. I didn’t love the series at the end of the 1^st half where it was 3^rd and 1 and he called back-to-back low percentage pass plays. He assumed the defense would be overly aggressive and they weren’t. However, not everything has to work. He has a short memory and doesn’t let them one failure lead to him making poor decisions later in the game.

Kirk Cousins

Kirk wasn’t great for most of the game on Sunday. He had two bad interceptions. He’s part of the reason the team was down by 17 to begin with. However, just like KOC, you must give him credit for having short memory and coming back. In the past we’ve seen Kirk crumble once things start going South. This year is different, and he is a large reason this team is 8-1. I was not a Kirk fan heading into the season, but it is hard to watch this and not love it.