Skip to main content
Advertising

News | Minnesota Vikings – vikings.com

Presented by

Early Look: Vikings at Rams

EAGAN, Minn. — We're onto Los Angeles.

The Vikings produced one of their worst games in recent memory on Sunday, falling behind early and never recovering in a 27-6 home loss to Buffalo.

Minnesota now has a tall task ahead, as the Vikings get set for a matchup against the Rams on Thursday night on the West Coast.

The Vikings have an odd record of 1-1-1 through the first three weeks of the season, and are one of three teams to hold that record, along with the Packers and Browns. The Steelers are 0-1-1 heading into tonight's matchup against the Buccaneers.

The Rams are 3-0 after they won the Battle of Los Angeles with a 35-23 victory over the Chargers on Sunday.

Here's a look at Minnesota's Week 4 road game against the Rams:

Passing: Kirk Cousins completed 40 of 55 passes on Sunday, which were the second-most attempts he's even thrown in a game.

Cousins threw for 296 yards with one touchdown and was intercepted after a deflection for the second straight week. He had a passer rating of 83.6.

Cousins has thrown for 965 yards with seven touchdowns and two interceptions this season for a passer rating of 98.8.

Rams quarterback Jared Goff completed 29 of 36 passes for 354 yards with three touchdowns and an interception against the Chargers.

Goff has thrown for 941 yards with six touchdowns and two interceptions this season.

Rushing: The Vikings ran the ball just six times on Sunday, which is the fewest amount of carries in franchise history. It also **tied an NFL record** for the fewest attempts by a team in league history.

Mike Boone saw his first NFL action had two carries for 11 yards while Latavius Murray had two attempts net one yard. Cousins had two attempts for two yards.

The Vikings had 14 total rushing yards, barely surpassing their record-low of 11 total rushing yards in a game.

Minnesota was without running back Dalvin Cook, who missed the game with a hamstring injury.

Rams running back Todd Gurley has 23 carries for 105 yards and a touchdown. Malcom Brown had five carries for 42 yards as Los Angeles rushed for 171 total yards on Sunday.

Receiving: Adam Thielen led the Vikings with a career-high 14 catches for 105 yards, and Kyle Rudolph had five catches for 48 yards and a score.

C.J. Ham and Murray each had five receptions. Stefon Diggs (17 yards) and Laquon Treadwell (33 yards) had four catches apiece.

Thielen leads Minnesota with 32 catches for 338 yards, and Diggs has a team-high three touchdown catches.

Robert Woods paced the Rams with 10 catches for 104 yards and two scores on Sunday against the Chargers.

Brandin Cooks had seven receptions for 90 yards, and Cooper Kupp had four catches for 71 yards and a score. Gurley had five receptions for 51 yards.

Cooks leads Los Angeles with 19 catches for 336 yards. Woods and Kupp have two touchdowns apiece.

Defense: The Vikings had a poor showing on Sunday against the Bills as the defense allowed 27 first-half points.

Although Minnesota allowed 292 yards of offense, 246 of those yards came in the first half. The Vikings also had three costly penalties for 33 yards on defense in the opening half.

The Vikings allowed Bills rookie quarterback Josh Allen to score twice on the ground and once through the air.

Stephen Weatherly recorded his first career sack in his first start. Danielle Hunter and Harrison Smith also got to Allen. Hunter leads the Vikings with 3.0 sacks through the first three games.

The Rams defense allowed 356 yards of offense to the Chargers.

Ndamukong Suh had the Rams only sack of the day, and Los Angeles did not record an interception. Suh was one of numerous offseason additions for the Rams, who also brought in cornerbacks Marcus Peters and Aqib Talib.

Suh is one of four Rams to have a sack on the season, while Peters is one of four players to have one interception this year.

The Rams have allowed just 41 first downs entering Week 4, the fewest in the league.

Special Teams: Vikings kicker Dan Bailey did not attempt a field goal or extra point in his Vikings debut.

Vikings punter Matt Wile averaged 51.8 yards on five punts. He had a 70-yard punt, but also had two punts that went under 40 yards. Wile also had a touchback for the second straight week when punting from his own 42-yard line.

The Vikings averaged 20.5 yards on four kickoff returns. Mike Hughes had three returns for 61 yards while Aldrick Robinson had one return for 21 yards.

Minnesota was flagged on two kickoff returns and a punt on Sunday.

Rams kicker Sam Ficken missed a 26-yard field goal on Sunday, his only attempt of the game. Punter Johnny Hekker punted just once for 49 yards.

Look back on images from past games between the Vikings and the Rams.

Over The Years

The Vikings are 27-16-2 all-time against the Rams franchise, a team that the Vikings have played in Los Angeles and St. Louis. This will be Minnesota's first game against the Rams in Los Angeles since 1992 when the Vikings won 31-17.

The Vikings have had the upper hand of late by winning the past five matchups, although the previous two meetings have been in Minnesota.

Minnesota is 5-2 in playoff games against the Rams, with the most recent meeting coming in January of 2000.

Last meeting: Vikings 24, Rams 7, Nov. 19, 2017, in Minneapolis

Both teams entered the contest at 7-2 in what was billed as a matchup of division leaders and NFC powerhouse teams.

The Rams struck first on the opening drive with a Gurley touchdown run, but Minnesota responded with 24 unanswered points.

Murray ran for a pair of touchdowns, and Thielen had a 65-yard touchdown catch. Murray finished with 95 yards on 15 carries.

Vikings safety Anthony Harris made the defensive play of the game when he stripped Kupp of the ball and recovered the fumble at the goal line.

The Vikings outgained the Rams 451 to 254 in total offensive yards.

Hunter and Tashawn Bower each had sacks for the Vikings on the day.

Both teams would go on to win their respective divisions and make the playoffs.

Advertising