INGLEWOOD, CALIF. – The Vikings have never won a Thursday night game on the West Coast. It’s tough to remember many of them that were more unsightly than their loss to the Chargers on this Thursday night.
The Vikings lost 37-10 at SoFi Stadium in a game where Los Angeles held the ball for 39 minutes, gained 419 yards, converted nine of its 13 third downs and outgained the Vikings 207-34 on the ground. Carson Wentz, who played with a harness on his left shoulder and came off the field in obvious pain several times, was sacked five times and hit eight times. He went 15 of 27 for 144 yards, a touchdown and an interception, before being pulled for Max Brosmer on the Vikings’ final drive.
Justin Herbert, by contrast, was 18 of 25 for 227 yards, throwing three touchdown passes against one interception while being sacked just twice. The Chargers led 21-3 at halftime, and the Vikings never got closer than 14 points in the second half.
Why it happened
Take your pick: turnovers on offense, costly penalties, a defense that gave Herbert time to hit receivers in wide swaths of open grass, a feeble run game or a leaky run defense. Even Will Reichard was short on a 53-yard field goal before halftime. Thursday games on the West Coast have been historically cruel to the Vikings, but this one was a rout.
“We got outplayed, we got outcoached,” head coach Kevin O’Connell said. “There are no excuses. Injuries, short week, whatever it is, that is not in any way shape or form our standard of what we want to put on the field.”
What it means
The Vikings are 3-4, having lost three of their last four, and are last in the NFC North heading into a game at Ford Field in Detroit, where they haven’t won since 2020. They’ll likely turn back to quarterback J.J. McCarthy for next Sunday’s game against the Lions, and they’ll need the first-year starter to inject some life into their offense. But their defensive issues have metastasized in the last week; getting outside linebacker Andrew Van Ginkel back could help, but the Vikings’ lack of depth in the secondary has become a major issue.
“If J.J.’s healthy, J.J. will play,” O’Connell said Thursday night.
Play of the game
With the Chargers up 14-3 in the second quarter, Justin Herbert targeted Jeff Okudah in single coverage on Ladd McConkey. Okudah was already a step behind the receiver, and could only dive at his ankles as McConkey hauled in a 27-yard touchdown pass from Herbert to make it 21-3 Chargers.
