Of the three teams that are undefeated a month into the NFL season, the least likely is the one that can’t score a touchdown.
Since scoring 39 points in the season opener, the Minnesota Vikings offense has scored just one offensive touchdown in the past three games. Has not reached the end zone for 18 consecutive possessions. No other team in the NFL has allowed fewer passing yards through four games, and only six teams are averaging fewer yards per carry.
Offensive numbers like this can often destroy a team. However, the Vikings found a solution during a 4-0 start: Who needs a touchdown when your defense doesn’t allow one?
Using the most popular blitz strategy in the NFL, the Vikings have scored just four touchdowns all season, including just two on their past 40 drives, and are giving up a league-low 12.8 points per game. At this rate, the NFL’s most consistent kicker only needs a few throws to stay undefeated.
“We’re very excited about being a 4-0 team,” coach Kevin O’Connell said Monday. “But at the same time, we know there’s still a lot of work to be done.”
“The defense helped us again. Again they came out and did it,” quarterback Kyler Murray said after Sunday’s 15-10 victory over the Miami Dolphins.
Since Flores became Minnesota’s defensive coordinator in 2023, the team has earned a reputation for being hyper-aggressive. The Vikings have blitzed 57% of their opponents’ dropbacks this season — nearly twice as many as the next-best team (Chicago, 33%). The Vikings also lead in pressure rate, they’re tied for the league lead in hurries, and they’re within striking distance of the league lead in quarterback knockdowns.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach Todd Bowles, a defensive player himself, called Minnesota’s scheme “very good at controlling chaos.” In preparation for Week 2 against the Vikings, Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams said his coach Ben Johnson likened the game to “psychological warfare.”
“I tell our guys all the time, if we’re going to go down, we’re going to go down a certain way,” Flores said before Week 3. “We’re going to go down blitzing.”
This pressure confuses Minnesota’s opponents, who provide cover for its offense. According to ESPN, the Vikings join the Chicago Cardinals in 1922 and 1923 as the only team to start 4-0 but fail to score an offensive touchdown in two games.
The Vikings were held to eight sacks on offense against the Dolphins on Sunday and also lost left tackle Christian Darrisaw and left guard Donovan Jackson to injuries. (The team said Monday that Jackson’s injury was season-ending.) Superstar receiver Justin Jefferson watched the game from the sideline in street clothes, nursing an ankle injury. The team’s most valuable offensive weapon is kicker Will Reichard, who has made 31 consecutive field goals, the longest such streak in the league.
“We definitely need to score more points and score some touchdowns,” O’Connell said.
During the offseason, the team signed former No. 1 overall pick Murray as a rebuilding project, hoping O’Connell could turn around his career like he did for Sam Darnold two years ago.
So far, Murray has had what looks like a tougher season than a renaissance. Among 35 passers who have started at least two games this season, Murray ranks 30th in passer rating and tied for last with just one passing touchdown. He still appears to be building chemistry with his offensive line. On Sunday, he received five preliminary penalty penalties for poor communication. He was also sacked 11 times, two of which were the most in the league.
“Obviously, all 11 people have to be on the same page, but it starts with me,” Murray said. “So we’re going to get better at that.”
The best thing about the offense is that while it may not have scored, it hasn’t been sloppy either, only turning the ball over twice in four games. At the same time, the defensive team had seven points and the overall turnover rate was tied for second in the league. The Vikings won the game by adhering to the NFL’s unspoken principle – they won the possession battle. They had the ball for all but one minute in Sunday’s fourth quarter.
The win against Miami included a caveat. Late in the fourth quarter, tight end TJ Hockenson caught a pass just a few yards from the end zone, but he went down instead of scoring to extend the lead. The move kept the clock running and effectively sealed the victory for the Vikings.
“It’s tough,” Hockenson said. “I saw that goal line and I wanted it, but we ended the offense for the betterment of the team.”
Even if Hockenson scores, though, it won’t cure everything that ails one of the NFL’s most woeful offenses to date.
“I told our players, ‘If we want to score, we should score early,'” O’Connell said.