Nordo's Numbers: Week 14 vs. Washington

The Minnesota Vikings returned to US Bank Stadium, looking to rectify their disastrous road trip, where they finished without a single touchdown in both games. With their playoff hopes all but ended, the Vikings needed to get the team back in rhythm and see progress from J.J. McCarthy. Their opponents, the Washington Commanders, were similarly getting their second-year quarterback back from injury.

Minnesota’s offense started on the field, looking to make amends for past performances. They started much better than they’ve played recently. J.J. McCarthy completed all four passes, capping it off by finding Josh Oliver from 18 yards out. It was a definitive statement from the first-year starter, and one that would prove to be a harbinger for the rest of the day.

The defense didn’t start so well, allowing multiple third-and-long conversions to Washington’s offense. The Commanders found their way to Minnesota’s one-yard line, where they had three straight incompletions on their way to a turnover on downs, testing the Vikings’ bend-but-don’t-break defense. That would be another running theme for the afternoon, as the Commanders occasionally worked their way into scoring territory but found themselves consistently stymied by the Minnesota D.

The Vikings responded with a 98-yard drive, capped off with a Jordan Mason eight-yard rushing touchdown to make it 14-0. That’s how it would remain going to the half. And though the Vikings would continue to stack points, thanks to both sharp, mostly mistake-free play from their young quarterback and the defense finally generating turnovers, the Commanders would end the game with the same score they had going into the locker room. The final score was 31-0.

It was a calamitous day for Washington, who also saw star quarterback Jayden Daniels re-injure his non-throwing arm. But for the Vikings, it was a thrilling bounce-back effort that shows the team still has fight and McCarthy still has promise. It’s also the first time since the 1992 Denver Broncos that a team followed up being shut out by pitching a shutout of their own.

Here are five numbers to break down the Vikings’ shutout victory over the Commanders.

23

The Vikings got their first touchdown in 23 possessions on the first drive of the game, ending their longest drought without a touchdown since 2006. Minnesota’s past two games have been nothing short of woeful, at least for the offense, and many fans were tuned in to see how McCarthy and O’Connell would respond on the opening drive of the game.

They responded with a hyper-efficient opening drive, with McCarthy looking as good as he ever has. He hit all four of his passes, finding three different tight ends on their way to their first score in 125:47 of game time.

Minnesota’s opening-drive touchdown also marked one of the few games in which the Vikings have been able to score before halftime. Even in games McCarthy or Carson Wentz won, they largely have been in come-from-behind situations where they have had to make up ground in the second half following a poor start.

This season hasn’t been what fans hoped for. Still, these are the sort of drives that fans and coaches can look to for the future and see what a fully realized offense under McCarthy could look like.

19

The Vikings offense had its longest drive of the season, spanning 19 plays, 98 yards, and 12:01 on their way to a score. Minnesota started their second drive of the game from the two-yard line and managed to overcome their poor starting field position and multiple third downs on the drive, with McCarthy going three for three on third down for 46 yards and also rushing for a first down as well.

Jordan Mason and the run game would help control the clock and give the Minnesota defense some rest. He would take a bulk of the snaps and grind down Washington’s defense with his physical style of football, as McCarthy and the receivers backed them up in the air.

Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison, and Jalen Nailor all had important grabs on third down to extend the drive. Putting into context just how historic this drive was from an NFL and Vikings perspective, it was:

18:48

The Vikings possessed the ball for 18:48 in the first half. While almost two-thirds of this came during their 12-minute drive, the offense showed much more poise when in possession of the ball, repeatedly extending the drive.

The Minnesota offense possessed the ball just four times in the first half, and, in some ways, you could see exactly what they had planned come to fruition. They leaned on the run game to shorten the game and maximize importance on every possession.

Minnesota’s ability to create positive plays on first down was crucial, keeping the offense in second- and third-and-manageable situations that were much more navigable for McCarthy. While McCarthy has gotten a fair bit of blame this offseason for his play, O’Connell and the offensive play-calling committee have also been criticized for not leaning on the run game and for giving his young quarterback too much responsibility.

In some ways, this first half felt like a coming-of-age for both O’Connell and McCarthy. At least for this week, they figured out how to make this offense work in a way that satisfied both of them.

2

The Vikings had just their second game this season where they generated multiple turnovers. Though much criticism of the team has focused on Minnesota’s lack of offensive production, the defense has had its own issues, struggling to force turnovers after recording at least one in every game last season.

This week, Minnesota’s defense fed on the offense's momentum, forcing two turnovers in the third quarter. The first interception came on a sight that Vikings fans this season have been waiting to see. Andrew Van Ginkel perfectly read a fourth-and-three screen pass, tipped it up in the air to himself, and returned it 41 yards into the Commanders' territory. This would be the end of Jayden Daniels’ day when he re-injured his elbow after absorbing a block during the runback.

Marcus Mariota replaced Daniels and didn’t start off much better. He threw an interception to Harrison Smith, who is the NFL’s interception leader among active players, although this was his first pick of the 2025 season. That turnover led to a score that would all but eradicate any chance for the Commanders to win.

Later in the fourth, the Vikings’ defense would record another turnover when Javon Hargrave recovered a Mariota fumble.

The lead the defense held in this game allowed them to make plays against an offense that needed to take risks to get back in the game. It put the defense in a much better position to get takeaways, which largely accounted for the shutout.

3

McCarthy had his first career game with three passing touchdowns. Coming into this week, \almost all the big questions about the team revolved around how McCarthy would bounce back from his dismal last performance.

Though we don’t yet have all the answers to all of those questions, McCarthy showed a lot of progress in this game. While he didn’t put up especially gaudy numbers, his efficiency really impressed. McCarthy recorded 163 yards on 16 completions and, most importantly, had zero turnovers.

Early on, the plan looked simple: Lean on the running game and take the first read when the defense gives it to you. This led McCarthy to get the ball out much quicker and hit open receivers.

The Commanders played zone coverage throughout the game, taking away Justin Jefferson. Instead of looking to force the ball to 18, McCarthy instead just took what the defense was willing to give him, making some impressive throws to Addison and the tight ends.

While, admittedly, the Commanders’ defense was one of the easier tests this offense could have faced, McCarthy and the offense answered in dominant fashion, executing a balanced game plan to perfection.