The Minnesota Vikings’ promising season went up in smoke after a humiliating loss to the Los Angeles Rams in the Wild Card Round. While the two teams technically played on neutral territory, the Vikings generated only nine points, while Sam Darnold completed only one touchdown pass after averaging nearly two touchdowns per game in the regular season.
Worst yet, the Vikings defeated all opponents, except for two: the Rams and the Detroit Lions. Minnesota suffered their first loss this season in Week 7 against Detroit 31-29. A week later, the Vikings suffered their second consecutive loss against the Rams 30-20.
Vikings have lost only 4 games this year…
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) January 14, 2025
Week 6 vs. Lions
Week 7 vs. Rams
Week 18 vs. Lions
Wild Card Round vs. Rams
back-to-back losses, twice this season. pic.twitter.com/8yqF5ywCb2
After those losses, the Vikings went on a nine-game winning streak while Darnold showed why he was the third overall pick in 2018. However, when it mattered most, they lost again to the Lions in Week 18. That defeat relegated them to the fifth seed in the NFC playoffs and lost them the NFC North to the Lions.
Finally, the Rams closed the Vikings’ season, putting their final record at 14-4. This result puts more questions than answers in Minnesota’s offseason, especially with their quarterback situation. They could keep Darnold or let J.J. McCarthy or Daniel Jones take over the starting role.
-Lance Fernandez