VIKINGS 34, PACKERS 31 (FINAL)
GAMENOTES
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Vikings Captains: T Brian O’Neill, FB C.J. Ham, RB Dalvin Cook
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Coin Toss: Packers call tails, the call is heads. Vikings win the toss and will defer to the second half.
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Attendance: 66,959
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66,959 is the second-largest in U.S. Bank Stadium history. 67,157 is the largest attendance on 12/22/19 against Green Bay.
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Weather: 31, Sunny with winds NW at 17 MPH
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With the win over the Packers, the Minnesota Vikings won their 500th regular season game, becoming the 15th franchise in NFL history to do so.
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Today marked the 122nd meeting vs. Green Bay.
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The Vikings are now 56-63-3 vs. Packers in the series history. At home, their record is 30-30.
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QB Kirk Cousins has thrown 20 touchdown passes in seven straight seasons, trailing only Tom Brady (13) for the longest active streak in the NFL.
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Cousins now has 25 career games with 300+ passing yards and three touchdown passes, surpassing Aaron Rodgers for the second-most all-time by a quarterback in their first 10 seasons. Only Dan Marino (26 games) has more.
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Today marked the fourth time this season Cousins has thrown for more than 300 yards, at least three touchdowns and zero interceptions, which ties Rams QB Matthew Stafford for the league lead.
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Cousins tied a team record for most consecutive games with a touchdown pass:
24 Daunte Culpepper, 9/10/00 – 11/19/2001
24 Kirk Cousins, 9/27/20 – 11/21/2021
21 Daunte Culpepper, 11/30/03 – 1/2/2005
19 Kirk Cousins, 9/9/18 – 9/22/2019
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Dalvin Cook moved into sixth place all-time for career rushing yards:
11,747 Adrian Peterson, 2007-16
6,818 Robert Smith, 1993-2000
5,879 Chuck Foreman, 1973-79
5,757 Bill Brown, 1962-74
4,546 Ted Brown, 1979-86
4,395 Dalvin Cook, 2017-21
4,320 Dave Osborn, 1965-75
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WR Justin Jefferson recorded his 11th career 100-yard receiving game, tying Randy Moss and Juju Smith-Schuster for the second most all-time for players within their first two seasons in the NFL. Only Odell Beckham Jr. (15 games) has more.
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Jefferson posted the second-most receiving yards (169) of his career. His highest receiving output came against the Tennessee Titans (175) in Week 3 of last season.
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Jefferson’s 169 receiving yards are the fourth-most against Green Bay in team history:
202 Adam Thielen, 12/24/2016
190 Randy Moss, 10/5/1998
182 Stefon Diggs, 9/18/16
169 Justin Jefferson, 11/21/21
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Jefferson’s 56-yard reception is the second-longest of his career.
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Jefferson’s 104 yards receiving in the first quarter is the fourth-best in team history, the top 3:
118 Hassan Jones vs. Pittsburgh, 9/21/1986
109 Randy Moss vs. Tampa Bay, 10/3/1999
107 Randy Moss at Dallas, 11/26/1998
104 Justin Jefferson vs. Green Bay, 11/21/2021
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Jefferson has recorded 312 receiving yards in his last two games, ranking tied for the fifth-most across any two-game stretch in team history.
331 Randy Moss, 1999
330 Paul Flatley, 1963
324 Gene Washington, 1969
316 Randy Moss, 1998
312 Sidney Rice, 2009
312 Justin Jefferson, 2021
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WR Adam Thielen (454) passed TE Kyle Rudolph (453) for sixth all-time in Vikings career receptions.
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Thielen moved into second place all-time for career receptions vs. Green Bay:
105 Cris Carter vs. Green Bay, 1990-2001
74 Adam Thielen vs. Green Bay, 2014-21
69 Randy Moss vs. Green Bay, 1998-2004, 2010
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DT Armon Watts recorded his third career sack, bringing down Aaron Rodgers and forcing a fumble in the first quarter.
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S Harrison Smith recorded a sack, bringing his career total to 15.5 and extending his franchise record by a DB.
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K Greg Joseph owns career-highs in points (85) and field goals made in a season (21) in 2021. His previous highs were 76 and 17 respectively in 2018 with Cleveland.
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Joseph has made six field goals of 50+ yards on the year, the most by a Vikings kicker through the team’s first 10 games in franchise history.
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Joseph nailed his third career game-winning kick. His last came earlier this season against the Detroit Lions, a time-expiring 54-yard kick.
player notes
(info and photo courtesy of Vikings)