The Vikings defeated the Jaguars 25-16 on Sunday with help from big plays on offense, an impressive defensive performance and strong effort on special teams.
The victory helped Minnesota keep stride with **teams ahead** of the Vikings in the postseason race entering Week 15. It also gave the team a little bit of positivity after two gut-punch losses at Detroit and against Dallas.
Here are three stats that stood out:
0 sacks on Sam Bradford
The Vikings offensive line gave Bradford plenty of time on the opening snap, and he was able to improvise with a throw to Kyle Rudolph that gained 44 out of the gate.
A combination of protecting the pocket and moving Bradford in and out of the pocket helped him complete 24 of 34 passes for 292 yards with one touchdown for a passer rating of 106.5 and make key throws late.
The Vikings also benefitted from a fortunate bounce on one play when Bradford collected a fumble forced by Yannick Ngakoue. Instead of suffering a sack fumble and loss or turnover deep in Vikings territory, Bradford got the ball to Jerick McKinnon behind the line of scrimmage and he gained 15 yards to the Minnesota 40-yard line.
Bradford found Stefon Diggs deep down the middle for a gain of 45 two plays later.
3 combined first downs allowed in the first and fourth quarters
Starting fast and finishing strong are important aspects of winning road games. The Vikings were able to win their first game away from home since Sept. 25 at Carolina by allowing one first down in the first quarter and two in the fourth quarter.
Minnesota limited Jacksonville to 10 plays for a net of 15 yards (20 gained, 5 lost in penalty) in the first quarter to force two punts, and 32 net yards (47 gained, 15 lost via penalty).
That effectiveness stems from all 11 players working together, handling their roles to make the collective defense better.
36-yard line vs. 22-yard line for average drive start
In a game with two solid defenses, field position proved important, and Minnesota won that battle throughout the day.
The Vikings had an average drive start of their own 36-yard line and had five of 11 possessions start at the 41 or beyond. This stemmed from forcing deep punt attempts, getting a 53-yard kickoff return from Cordarrelle Patterson, a punt block by Jayron Kearse and a field goal block by Linval Joseph.
Kicker Kai Forbath and Minnesota's coverage team also worked well together. Forbath recorded four touchbacks, to go along with four field goals, and Marqise Lee averaged 22 yards on three other returns.
