Vikings Got Eliminated In Wild-Card Game, With Lions Having Them Ruled Out In The Division…
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THE PACKERS PLAYER TO LOOK FOR IS RB. Aaron Jones hasn’t been as productive as usual due to a hamstring injury that kept him out of action for three games and a knee injury that kept him out of action for an additional three. With 21 carries for 127 yards last week against Carolina, Jones set a new season high.
Vikings player to watch: Quarterback Jaren Hall will spearhead the offense after head coach Kevin O’Connell benched starting quarterback Kirk Cousins for the fourth time in nine weeks due to an Achilles tendon injury. In the fourth quarter of the game in Green Bay, Cousins, a rookie from BYU, was hurt. The following week, he got off to a strong start against Atlanta, but a concussion forced him out in the first quarter.
ESSENTIAL MATCHUP: Vikings pass defense versus Jordan Love. Despite having an inconsistent first season as the starter, the 2020 first-round draft pick has thrown 13 touchdown passes and only one interception in his last six games. Brian Flores, the defensive coordinator for the Vikings, used a blitz-heavy scheme in the first game. Love completed 24 of 41 passes for 229 yards, one touchdown, and one interception.
ESSENTIAL INJURIES: The Packers have WR injuries. Dontayvion Wicks (ankle/chest) did not practice this week and left the previous game. Christian Watson (hamstring) hasn’t practiced this week and has missed three games in a row. Jayden Reed (chest/toe) has been a limited practice participant and did not play last week. S Packing Due to a shoulder injury, Darnell Savage has missed the last two games and only participated in light practice this week.. LB De’Vondre Campbell (neck) also didn’t play last week against the Panthers and has not practiced this week. NT T.J. Slaton (knee/foot) didn’t practice Thursday. … TE T.J. Hockenson (knee) and OLB D.J. Wonnum (quadriceps) joined Cousins on the season-ending injury list after getting hurt against the Lions. With OLB Marcus Davenport (ankle) out for the past nine games and counting, the Vikings are down two of their top three pass rushers. … RT Brian O’Neill (ankle), who has missed the past two games, is on track to return for the Vikings after practicing in full this week. … Vikings WR Jordan Addison (ankle) left the Lions game early and has been practicing on a limited basis this week. … CB Byron Murphy (knee) missed the previous game for the Vikings and did not practice Wednesday or Thursday. CB Mekhi Blackmon (shoulder), who replaced Murphy in the starting lineup, has practiced on a limited basis this week after leaving the previous game early.
SERIES NOTES: Out of the last six meetings, the Vikings have prevailed four times. Since U.S. Bank Stadium opened in 2016, the Vikings have a 5-2 record when playing the Packers at home. There have been 23 night games between the Packers and Vikings. This will be the ninth time that the Packers-Vikings game airs on NBC since the network took over the Sunday night slot in 2006. This matchup is the fifth most watched in the broadcast package.
STATS AND STUFF: If the Rams (8-7) and Seahawks (8-7) both win their afternoon games, the loser of this game would be eliminated from wild-card contention, as the Lions have already secured the NFC North. … Jones was responsible for the first 100-yard receiving or running performance of the season for the Packers. Love leads the NFL in passing yards (2,162) and touchdown passes (17) in the second half. .. With 54 catches this season, Reed is one shy of the Packers rookie record of 88 set by Sterling Sharpe. Packers DT Kenny Clark has a sack in each of his past two matchups with the Vikings. He has eight sacks against Minnesota, his most against any opponent. …. Packers CB/KR Keisean Nixon has an NFL-leading average of 26.4 yards per kickoff return. … Packers OLB Preston Smith had 1½ sacks against Carolina to increase his season total to seven. He has at least seven sacks each of the past three seasons and has totaled 40½ since joining the Packers in 2019. … Each of the past three QBs to face the Packers (Tommy DeVito of the Giants, Baker Mayfield of the Buccaneers and Bryce Young of the Panthers) either set career highs in passing yardage or were the NFC Offensive Player of the Week. … Hall went 3 for 4 for 23 yards in relief of Cousins in Green Bay. … WR Justin Jefferson had 141 receiving yards and a TD against the Lions. He has 5,648 receiving yards, the most by any NFL player in his first four seasons. … Jefferson needs 177 yards in two games to reach 2,000 for the season, despite missing seven-plus games to injury. … Addison needs 174 receiving yards and a touchdown over the final two games to become the 11th player in NFL history with 1,000 receiving yards and 10 touchdowns as a rookie. … Hockenson came up 40 yards short of becoming the second-ever Vikings tight end to record 1,000 receiving yards in a season; Joe Senser did so in 1981. With 22, forced fumbles—four more than any other team—the Vikings lead the NFL. With 15½ sacks, OLB Danielle Hunter is ranked third in the league.