Ninety-nine yards stood between the Vikings and the end zone.
Sam Darnold and Company offered a proverbial shrug and said, "Let's go."
That mindset helped Minnesota start its season off strong with a 28-6 defeat of the Giants – the sixth-largest point margin in a Week 1 victory in franchise history.
Early in the second quarter, a trio of Giants special teamers had downed a punt at the Minnesota 1-yard line. Darnold worked with Ty Chandler to create some breathing room, then turned downfield. He heaved the ball deep on second-and-12 from the 10, dropping the ball in to Justin Jefferson for a 44-yard gain against double coverage.
"We've been working on that," Jefferson said postgame. "We literally worked on that in practice a few days ago. Just communicating with each other, making sure we're on the same page – I'm in the right spot and he's throwing it to the right spot – and everything we talked about happened exactly [how it should] out there on that play.
"It was a beautiful ball," he added.
Darnold offered kudos to Jets' "great route" and execution, emphasizing his confidence in not only Jefferson but all the Vikings pass catchers.
"It's huge to play efficient football, play on time," he said. "That's always going to be a recipe for success."
Darnold continued pushing the Vikings down the field, connecting again with Chandler and with Jordan Addison for 16, 13 and 6 yards. But after marching all the way to the New York 3, Minnesota faced fourth down.
Vikings Head Coach Kevin O'Connell said, "Let's go."
Darnold tossed it to Jefferson for one of the easier touchdowns in the receiver's career and one that extended the Vikings lead to 14-3.
"Getting 'Jets' 1-on-1 is always a good matchup," Darnold said.
The Vikings 99-yard touchdown drive was the team's longest since November 2008, when Gus Frerotte connected with Bernard Berrian for a 99-yard score; Jefferson's 31st career TD moved him into third place in franchise history (behind Randy Moss and Sammy White) for touchdowns through a player's first five seasons.
Truthfully, it really didn't matter how much field the Vikings were given Sunday in their Week 1 roadie – they simply made things happen.
Minnesota's offense averaged 6.1 yards per play in the season opener, compared to New York's 3.5.
The Vikings did overcome a first series cut short when Giants cornerback Dru Phillips planted his hat squarely on the ball and forced a fumble by C.J. Ham. Minnesota's defense responded by holding the Giants, who took over at the Minnesota 20, to a field goal.
"I'm proud of our team. There was some early adversity – a lot of self-inflicted [hurt], some football we've gotta clean up from a penalty standpoint. I hated putting the ball on the ground early with how much we emphasize it," O'Connell said. "But of all [people], I can promise you, Vikings fans, C.J. Ham is – there's nobody I trust more on this football team than him. And didn't even think twice about that moving forward; I knew we would respond defensively."
Finding a rhythm from that point on enabled Minnesota to establish the run-pass balance O'Connell hoped for, setting the stage for impressive regular-season debuts by Darnold and running back Aaron Jones, Sr.
Darnold became the third player in Vikings history to complete 12 or more consecutive passes to open a season. Kirk Cousins went 17-for-17 against Chicago in October 2022, and Fran Tarkenton was 12-for-12 against Cincinnati in November 1977.
"Sam Darnold, for a guy to start 12-for-12 and be incredibly poised throughout the day, huge performance for us to be able to build off of with Sam," O'Connell said.
Darnold finished the afternoon 19-of-24 passing for 208 yards, two touchdowns and an interception with a 113.2 passer rating. His lone blemish occurred in the third quarter when Dexter Lawrence disrupted a play, hit Darnold's throwing arm and stopped the QB from following through on a pass. Receiver Trent Sherfield, Sr., tried to knock the ball down, but it was intercepted by rookie Darius Muasau.
Despite his impressive overall outing, Darnold pointed back at himself and said there's "lots" of room to get better.
"It's always great to get a win. That's the biggest thing," he said. "It's always great to get a win, whether it's Week 1 or Week 12. We're happy with it, but we're not satisfied."
The same goes for Jones, who of course arrived at MetLife Stadium wearing his signature sombrero – but this year in purple-and-gold. Jones nearly reached the 100-yard mark but was taken out of the game just shy after the Vikings had established total control.
"Really felt the impact that Aaron Jones had," O'Connell said. "Tried to get him over a hundred there late, but wanted to smart with him, as well."
Jones racked up 94 yards and a touchdown on 14 carries, while also adding two catches for 15 receiving yards.
"I'm feeling great. This is a great way to start my journey with the Vikings, and as a team, we came and accomplished what we wanted to do," he said.
Jones' touchdown marked Minnesota's first of the 2024 season. After Graham Gano's 23-yard field goal put the Giants on the board, Darnold led a drive downfield and completed a 22-yard pass to Josh Oliver to set up the Vikings at the New York 5. Jones took a handoff and carried for 2 yards, then took the rock again and sped into the end zone.
After the score, Jones leapt into the stands … perhaps old habit for the former Packer.
"The Hennepin Leap, maybe," he quipped with media members. "I dunno, I'm gonna have to think of something."
Jones credited the defense for coming up with big plays and pointed to complementary football across the board.
That of course included Jefferson, who led the Vikings in receiving with 59 yards and the score on four catches. His numbers may not have been flashy, but they didn't need to be. The star wideout had referenced this exact scenario earlier in the week during a media session:
"If it's my time to get over 125 [yards] and I get that record, that's wonderful. But if I don't get it, and we win the game, that's something that I'm also excited about."
Jefferson was just as thrilled for teammate Jalen Nailor, who returned from an ankle injury to play Sunday and scored his second career touchdown – his first being New Year's Day 2023 at Green Bay.
Nailor's moment was yet another example Sunday of the offense clicking on all cylinders.
On the play-action pass early in the third quarter, Jefferson went in motion to help draw attention from the younger receiver, and Darnold floated the ball to Nailor for a smooth 21-yard touchdown.
"We knew we were gonna get that type of look on that play," Jefferson explained. "For Speedy to sell the screen to go out, and then it was a great ball by Sam – that's just another play that we've gotta execute. That goes for all 11, for the line to give Sam enough time to throw that ball to Speedy.
"It's gonna happen time and time again," Jefferson added. "We've just gotta go out there and execute our plays."
The Vikings are 1-0 as they head home and prepare to host the 49ers at U.S. Bank Stadium next week. Though by the end of Sunday's East Coast contest, MetLife felt a little like a home game for Minnesota.
Darnold appreciated the celebration from Vikings fans as he looks to build off a positive first game in Purple.
"I think for me it was coming out here and just playing my game. Playing one play at a time. Just playing with confidence," he said. "I think that's the biggest thing. We've got a great offense, a great system. If I just play all the time and do all the things I need to do to execute, we'll be all right."
