MINNEAPOLIS — The Vikings scored a pair of touchdowns in the second half and kept the Seahawks offense out of the end zone in a 25-19 victory on Sunday night in the second preseason contest for both teams.
Kirk Cousins was a crisp 6-of-8 passing for 68 yards and a passer rating of 100.0. He was replaced by Sean Mannion, who bounced back from a pick-six to lead a touchdown drive in the 2-minute drill.
Mannion connected with rookie Irv Smith, Jr., on a 3-yard touchdown to tie the game at 10 just before halftime. He finished 11-of-14 passing for 88 yards and a passer rating of 86.9.
Kyle Sloter opened the second half for the Vikings and played the entire second half. He led a 12-play, 84-yard drive that lasted more than seven minutes of the fourth quarter. Khari Blasingame capped the possession with a 1-yard touchdown plunge.
Sloter was 11-of-13 passing for 116 yards with a 4-yard touchdown to Brandon Zylstra, who had five receptions for 37 yards.
Laquon Treadwell added 47 yards on four receptions, and Mike Boone turned his lone reception into a 45-yard gain. Boone led Minnesota with 66 yards on 21 rushes.
The Vikings had 27 first downs and 409 net yards of offense and limited the Seahawks to 13 first downs and 221 net yards.
Minnesota converted 11 of 18 third downs and possessed the football for a whopping 38:10.
Dan Bailey opened the scoring with a 24-yard field goal and added an extra point. Kaare Vedvick handled kickoff and punting duties and was good on an extra point. Matt Wile handled the Vikings final punt of the night.
Devante Downs, a Washington native, picked off J.T. Barrett on the final play of the game.
Head Coach Mike Zimmer improved to 19-4 in preseason games with the Vikings.
Minnesota (2-0) will host Arizona (1-1) at noon Saturday.
Scoring summary
Q1, 2:03 remaining
Vikings 3, Seahawks 0
Dan Bailey kicks a 24-yard field goal [7 plays, 84 yards, 4:15 time of possession]
Thielen's double whammy: Thielen pulled in an impressive 34-yard reception along the sidelines on a third-and-5. Under a new rule, Seattle challenged the ruling to allege he committed offensive pass interference. It was reviewed, and officials confirmed he did not.
The officiating crew, who visited Twin Cities Orthopedics Performance Center to talk about the new rules, were ready the following play when Thielen drew an obvious pass interference against Tre Flowers for a 45-yard mark-off.
The drive, however, stalled when Kyle Rudolph was flagged for clipping on the ensuing play, a first-and-goal from the 6.
Q2, 11:34 remaining
Vikings 3, Seahawks 3
Jason Myers kicks a 33-yard field goal [12 plays, 60 yards, 5:29]
One third, but not two: Seattle converted a third-and-10 from its 48-yard line with a 33-yard pass from Russell Wilson to Jaron Brown. The Seahawks almost had another third-down conversion (third-and-6) on a pass from Wilson to open running back Chris Carson, but the ball fell incomplete.
Q2, 7:05 remaining
Seahawks 10, Vikings 3
DeShawn Shead returns an interception 88 yards for a touchdown (Myers PAT)
The other way: Shead corralled a pass by Sean Mannion that was ahead of Chad Beebe. Mannion was pressured as he threw the pass.
Q2, 1:05 remaining
Vikings 10, Seahawks 10
Irv Smith, Jr., catches a 3-yard pass from Mannion (Bailey PAT) [7 plays, 63 yards, 0:43]
Boost from Boone: Mannion stayed in the pocket and delivered a strike to Mike Boone, who showed nice hands and then quickly changed directions on a 45-yard gain that moved the ball to the Seattle 6. Mannion found Smith wide open in the end zone three plays later.
Q3, 8:58 remaining
Seahawks 13, Vikings 10
Myers kicks a 52-yard field goal [5 plays, 38 yards, 1:02]
Bouncing back: After a 37-yard pass interference penalty on Holton Hill, the Vikings forced a pair of incompletions by Paxton Lynch. Karter Schult also stuffed Rashaad Penny after a gain of 1 during the sequence that forced the long field goal.
Q3, 2:29 remaining
Vikings 17, Seahawks 13
Brandon Zylstra catches a 4-yard touchdown pass from Kyle Sloter (Kaare Vedvik PAT) [11 plays, 73 yards, 6:29]
Drive starter: The Vikings longest play of the possession was the first, a 20-yard completion from Sloter to fullback Khari Blasingame.
Q4, 12:16 remaining
Vikings 17, Seahawks 16
Myers kicks a 27-yard field goal [11 plays, 61 yards, 5:13]
Almost a pick: The drive nearly ended a play before Myers' kick when Kentrell Brothers had a beat on a pass over the middle. Brothers bobbled it twice, before the pigskin fell to the turf.
The Vikings also nearly had a turnover earlier in the drive. Duke Thomas forced a fumble but celebrated before the ball was recovered by teammate Marcus Epps. The ball squirted away and was recovered by Seattle.
Q4, 5:10 remaining
Vikings 25, Seahawks 16
Blasingame rushes for a 1-yard touchdown (Boone conversion run) [12 plays, 84 yards, 7:06]
Half the distance: Laquon Treadwell had three receptions for 42 yards on the drive.
Q4, 3:12 remaining
Vikings 25, Seahawks 19
Myers kicks a 20-yard field goal [10 plays, 57 yards, 1:58]
