Byron Murphy, Jr., created his first two turnovers of the season Sunday, and they both occurred at critical moments of the Vikings 31-29 victory.

With just over 6 minutes remaining and with the Vikings leading by 9, Packers QB Jordan Love launched a deep pass to Jayden Reed in the end zone. The ball was instead snagged by Murphy, who sent it spinning like a top in the grass as Camryn Bynum joined him to celebrate.

"Making the turnover in that moment, it just felt special," Murphy said.

His takeaway gave the Vikings some breathing room, but all eyes went back to the defense after a three-and-out on the ensuing drive.

Two plays in, Murphy struck again.

Love completed a pass to Tucker Kraft, and the Vikings corner got in his path and laid a fist directly on the football, knocking it out of the tight end's grasp for a recovery by Bynum.

The Packers threw at Murphy multiple times Sunday afternoon, and although there were a couple plays given up, he never backed down and made plays of his own throughout the afternoon. In addition to the pick and forced fumble, Murphy recorded seven tackles and two passes defensed – including breaking up a fourth-down deep ball from Love to Bo Melton in the second quarter.

Vikings Head Coach Kevin O'Connell told media members following the game he'd given Murphy a game ball.

"I've always looked at Murph' as, he's got that closer's mentality. He's tough, physical, smart, loves football," O'Connell said. "Great scheme fit for us, plays a variety of different spots. And the smarts come into play, too, knowing the call, knowing the possibility that that ball is going to come out one way or the other, staying visual to be able to track it, finish it. You know, those aren't easy catches by any stretch.

"And then comes right back, and you're talking about the physicality of a punch-out," O'Connell continued. "We've worked a lot on ball security. We've worked a lot on our defense, taking the football away by any means necessary, within the confines of the rules. And it was an example of multiple aspects of our team coming together and helping overcome the adversity."

The cornerback's pick was one of four Vikings turnovers in a hard-fought Border Battle that saw Minnesota hang on for a win at Lambeau Field.

"I think it's just an emphasis by the coaches, and by us in general," said Kamu Grugier-Hill, who got his second interception in as many weeks. "Knowing that if we win the turnover battle, historically if you win the turnover battle, you're going to win games. We're putting that on us."

The Vikings needed each takeaway on a late September afternoon in which they led 28-7 going into halftime but suffered self-inflicted wounds and also faced a relentless Packers squad that scored 22 points in the fourth quarter.

Grugier-Hill made an early splash once again, intercepting Love in the first quarter.

One week after nabbing a pick on the Texans first offensive snap of the game, Grugier-Hill stopped Green Bay's drive and returned possession to Minnesota's offense. Sam Darnold and Company responded in kind, capping the following series with a Jordan Addison rushing touchdown.

"Flo' (Defensive Coordinator Brian Flores) puts us in great position a lot, and I'm just excited to be out there with the guys and make plays," Grugier-Hill said.

Then late in the second quarter, Love faced immense pressure by linebacker Blake Cashman and tried to get a pass off to Romeo Dobbs but was picked off by cornerback Shaq Griffin.

Though defensive backs accounted for three-fourths of the Vikings takeaways Sunday, it can't be overstated just how much Minnesota's defense was helped by others who affected Love and the Green Bay offensive attack.

Cashman showed up all over the field on his first visit to Lambeau Field, making Love uncomfortable through four quarters. Cashman led the team with 11 tackles and added a pass defensed and a pair of quarterback hits.

The Vikings defensive line continued to make an impact, as well; Harrison Phillips, Jonathan Bullard and Jihard Ward combined for six QB hits, and Jerry Tillery tackled RB Emanuel Wilson for a loss early in the second quarter.

Pat Jones II logged Minnesota's lone sack of the game, dropping Love for a loss of 10 and bringing his season sack total to five.

Love finished the day 32-of-54 passing for 389 yards, four touchdowns and the trio of interceptions with a passer rating of 83.0.

The Vikings did a lot of good things defensively, but they also acknowledged their division opponent came close to a comeback … too close for comfort.

"They definitely got a big momentum swing there, where we were throwing different things at them and they seemed to just kind of be in the right plays at the right time," Grugier-Hill said. "It was a feeling where you're like, 'Uh oh. We've really gotta get right.' "

Minnesota allowed Reed to rack up 139 yards and a touchdown on seven catches, while Kraft and Wicks combined for 11 receptions, 131 yards and three touchdowns. On the ground, the Packers only totaled 86 rushing yards.

"We got the job done, but we're already correcting ourselves," Murphy said.

"It feels great [to get the win]," Cashman added. "But I'm a competitor, the guys in this locker room are competitors, and we believe we're more than what we did out there today. We believe we can finish that game better and play cleaner."

All things considered, though? O'Connell is proud of the defense for responding in "critical moments" during a physical game that improved Minnesota to 4-0 on the season.

"The back and forth [with] a team that was very, very close to playing for all last year – we knew what we were signing up for today," he said.