“People ask ‘what are y’all doing?’ Even I don’t know sometimes.”
Linebacker Jonathan Greenard may make light of the Minnesota Vikings’ superb start to the NFL season.
But a lot of thought and effort has gone into helping the Vikings defy the odds and become one of just two teams to remain unbeaten after five games – along with last season’s Super Bowl winners Kansas City.
According to the pre-season odds, 22 teams were deemed to have a better chance of reaching the Super Bowl than 100-1 Minnesota.
So after holding on for a 23-17 win over the New York Jets in London on Sunday, many are wondering how and why the Vikings have become the feel-good story of the season so far.
Having fun and ‘taking nothing for granted’
The Vikings’ organisation was rocked by the death of rookie Khyree Jackson in the off-season before they lost rookie quarterback JJ McCarthy to a season-ending knee injury, but Kevin O’Connell’s team have used that adversity as inspiration.
Speaking to BBC Sport before Sunday’s win, O’Connell explained that Jackson’s loss has “allowed us to focus and have a reality check of nothing is given. We understand how blessed and fortunate we are to do this on a daily basis”.
When he became the Vikings’ head coach in February 2022, O’Connell aimed to build an environment where players would “come to work every day excited”.
Speaking after Sunday’s win, both linebacker Andrew van Ginkel and safety Camryn Bynum said how they are playing “a kid’s game” and having fun.
For the third week running, Bynum had a pre-planned celebration ready, and when he intercepted Aaron Rodgers in the first quarter, he and Josh Metellus replicated the handshake from The Parent Trap movie, which is set in London.
Then when fellow safety Harrison Smith sacked Rodgers in the second quarter, he copied Rodgers’ championship belt celebration.
“We have a special job and never take that for granted,” said Bynum, 26.
“It’s crazy. We’re just a bunch of kids that made it to the NFL and we still feel like kids, so we’re like, we’ve got to capture this moment.”
‘Controlled chaos’ on defence
After five games, only five teams average more points than Minnesota and star receiver Justin Jefferson is third in the league for receiving yards (450).
But O’Connell acknowledged their offence had to lean on their defence on Sunday as the Vikings failed to score a touchdown in the second half.
They restricted the Jets to just 36 rushing yards, hit Rodgers 11 times, and for just the sixth time in his career, the veteran quarterback was intercepted three times in a game – by Van Ginkel, Bynum and Stephon Gilmore.
Minnesota’s defence is the second-best in the NFL for both turnovers (13) and average rushing yards conceded (67.2).
Van Ginkel said that defensive coordinator Brian Flores “keeps talking about this thing called joy. We’re ultimately playing a kid’s game and if you’re not enjoying this then you’re not in the right job.”
The man known simply as ‘Flo’ has created a selfless defence which, according to Greenard, Flores likes to call “controlled chaos”.
He added: “Four or five players made game-changing plays, and everybody’s just as excited as if they made the play.
“That’s what [Flores] has instilled in all of us. ‘Hey, your time is coming. Don’t panic, don’t be selfish, don’t play hero-ball’. We never know who can make the play.”
A ‘hungry’ roster with ‘something to prove’
McCarthy’s injury meant that Sam Darnold would begin a season as the starting quarterback for the first time in three years.
The Jets selected Darnold with the third overall draft pick in 2018 but traded him in 2020, and he was then discarded by Carolina before being San Francisco’s back-up last season.
“There’s a lot of guys that are still hungry, that have faced a lot of adversity,” said Greenard. “They’re still in that mode of proving themselves. This whole team is filled with that mindset.”
During pre-season training, the Vikings’ worth ethic was such that Greenard realised “Oh, y’all are for real about this. You’re not just trying to win the division or prove something, you’re trying to go out there and dominate. I can get down with that.”
He added: “We’ve got so much more to go, we still haven’t played our best ball. We’re putting something together that’s really good. Our foot’s barely in the water.”
On his turnaround, Darnold said: “The biggest thing is to lean on the people that you trust. When you have those relationships, you know who you are as a person, and I’m very confident in who I am. I feel like we have a lot of guys with that same mindset.”
Vikings ‘won’t start listening’ to Super Bowl speculation
O’Connell told BBC Sport that he’s “learnt to worry about one game at a time” after a turbulent 2023. Minnesota had four starting quarterbacks and twice lost Jefferson to injury yet remained in play-off contention until late in the season.
His players are very much on the same page so although they have a 5-0 record heading into their bye week, they won’t be distracted by talk of a potential Super Bowl run.
“We weren’t listening to anything people were saying before the season, so why would we start now?” said Darnold.
The 27-year-old, who is enjoying the best winning run of his career, added: “I feel good, we’ve got things rolling, but there’s so much room for improvement.
“The biggest things are consistency and resiliency, that’s kind of our MO. Staying consistent and having that resiliency to just take it one play at a time, that’s kind of our mindset as an offence, and as a whole team as well.”
