Our five takeaways from Vikings’ 30-20 loss to Rams

INGLEWOOD, Calif. — In a span of 96 hours this week, the Vikings watched things go slightly off the rails as a 5-0 record turn into a 5-2 record. After a 31-29 loss to the Detroit Lions on Sunday afternoon at U.S. Bank Stadium, the Vikings suffered a 30-20 loss to the Los Angeles Rams on Thursday night at SoFi Stadium.

The most recent loss was filled with warning signs about the future of the Vikings if they don’t get things cleaned up. The issues have spanned both sides of the ball of the past couple of games as complementary football has gone out the window.

That was especially true in primetime as the Vikings couldn’t get anything going on offense and couldn’t stop a nosebleed on defense.

Here are our five takeaways from Vikings’ 30-20 loss to Rams:

1. No pressure generated up front

It’s inexcusable that the Vikings let veteran quarterback Matthew Stafford drop back 34 times without taking him down for a sack. It’s even more inexcusable that the Vikings only managed to pressure him 4 times in the game. Those numbers are jarring considering the Vikings were among the best teams in the NFL at generating pressure during their undefeated start. If they can’t generate pressure up front, everything else on their defense falls by the wayside. That was evident as Stafford carved them up, completing 25 of 34 passes for 279 yards and 4 touchdowns.

2. The secondary struggled mightily

This was the first time since signing with the Vikings that veteran cornerback Stephon Gilmore looked his age. He is 34 years old and struggled to keep up with a group of pass catchers for the Rams led by receiver Cooper Kupp and receiver Puka Nacua. It remains to be seen if it was simply an off game for Gilmore or a sign of things to come. The woes were confined to Gilmore as veteran cornerback Shaq Griffin also struggled in coverage. The same thing can be said about cornerback Byron Murphy Jr. even if he hauled in an interception.

3. Sam Darnold has more to give

It might not seem like the case looking at veteran quarterback Sam Darnold’s stat line. He completed 18 of 25 passes for 240 yards and 2 touchdowns. He threw the ball very well and he deserves credit for that part of his performance. That said, Darnold needs to clean up some of the operational stuff before snap, and he needs to stop holding onto the ball for so long. The worst play from Darnold came late in the game when he tried to reverse pivot out of the pocket. It resulted in a sack that went for a loss of 13 yards. A couple of plays later the Vikings were forced to punt. Those little things continue to plague Darnold despite his success.

4. Justin Jefferson is unguardable

Maybe the Vikings should throw star receiver Justin Jefferson the ball even more. He looked completely unguardable against the Rams whether he was running open over the middle or making a spectacular grab along the sideline. In total, Jefferson finished with 8 catches for 115 yards, putting the Vikings on his back for prolong stretches. There have been times this season that the offense has stagnated toward the middle of the game. That’s when the Vikings should lean heavily into Jefferson above anybody else.

5. The loss of Christian Darrisaw hurts

It’s unclear how long star left tackle Christian Darrisaw will be out. He got rolled up on and appeared to grab his left knee as he writhed on the field in pain. If Darrisaw misses an extended period of time, the Vikings could be in trouble. There’s only so much they can expect out of veteran left tackle David Quessenberry. The saving grace for the Vikings is they are approaching a softer part of the schedule, which features games against the Indianapolis Colts, Jacksonville Jaguars, and Tennessee Titans.