Missed Opportunities Cost Minnesota Vikings Chance at Statement Win in Arizona

The Minnesota Vikings missed their chance to nail down a statement win over the Arizona Cardinals on Thursday night by carelessly throwing away too many opportunities.

Three lost fumbles in Arizona territory, including a strip-sack of Teddy Bridgewater with the Vikings in position to tie the game late in the fourth quarter, represented the ultimate difference in Minnesota's 23-20 loss to the playoff-bound Cardinals.  

This one will sting for Mike Zimmer's club. 

Down four defensive starters and just days after last Sunday's 31-point home defeat to the Seattle Seahawks, few gave the Vikings a chance to go into Arizona and beat the surging Cardinals. But instead of a blowout, Minnesota matched the NFC West leaders punch-for-punch—coming back from a 10-point deficit in the fourth quarter and later setting up a chance to force overtime. 

The final missed opportunity of the night ended the game. The NFL provided highlights:

On 3rd-and-10 with 13 seconds left, the Vikings attempted to move the football closer for kicker Blair Walsh with a passing play to the sideline. But veteran Dwight Freeney blew up the play, using his patented spin move to beat left tackle Matt Kalil and strip the ball from Bridgewater just as he was attempting to get rid of it. The Cardinals recovered, eliminating any chance for the Vikings to tie the game with a field goal.

But the final mistake wasn't Minnesota's only point-eliminating blunder on Thursday night. 

Vikings receiver Jarius Wright fumbled away possession on Arizona's 15-yard line in the first quarter. The turnover ended the Vikings' nine-play, 74-yard drive and took away at least three points. 

Later, a bungled trick play cost the Vikings another chance to score points. After marching 28 yards into Cardinals territory to begin the second half, offensive coordinator Norv Turner dialed up a reverse to receiver Mike Wallace. Arizona destroyed the play, hitting running back Adrian Peterson as he attempted to pitch the ball to Wallace. The Cardinals recovered the resulting fumble on the 43-yard line. 

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Cornerback Xavier Rhodes also dropped a surefire pick-six in the second half. Arizona eventually scored three points on the drive, theoretically creating a 10-point swing. 

The mistakes were too much for the Vikings to overcome against one of the NFL's best teams. Thursday night's loss dropped Minnesota to 1-4 against teams with at least seven wins this season, including defeats to the Denver Broncos, Green Bay Packers and Seahawks. 

The elusive statement win will have to wait for Zimmer. 

If there's any consolation prize, the Vikings can fly back from Arizona knowing they're capable of playing with one of the conference's powerhouses. Had Minnesota played a cleaner game void of costly unforced errors, it's possible the flight home would have been a celebratory one. 

Bridgewater was dynamite for most of the game, throwing for a career-high 335 yards on 25-of-36 passing. He completed passes to 11 different receivers and created 17 first downs through the air. Taken to task after several unproductive games, Bridgewater put together one of his finest performances of 2015. 

Peterson carried 23 times and gained a hard-earned 69 yards, grinding away against a defensive front geared to stop him. He also scored his 100th career touchdown on a classic Peterson run, using a pair of incredible jump cuts to find a seam and steamroll his way into the end zone. 

Even the Vikings' depleted defense played well at times. Despite giving up almost 400 total yards, Minnesota allowed only 23 points to the NFL's top-ranked scoring offense. The Cardinals hit some big plays—John Brown scampered 65 yards for a score, and Michael Floyd had a 42-yard catch-and-run for a touchdown—but Arizona was also 0-of-2 scoring touchdowns in the red zone. 

Per the team's official Twitter account, Zimmer discussed the lesson he hoped his players learned from this matchup: 

For 60 or so plays, the Vikings were good enough to win the game. It was the handful of outliers that killed the opportunity. 

It's difficult to win any game when you fumble away the ball in the red zone, mishandle a trick play, drop a potential interception for a touchdown and completely unravel on the contest's biggest snap. Throw in a long road trip on a short week and an elite opponent and the Vikings brewed up the right recipe for blowing their chance at one of the best wins of the 2015 NFL season. 

The last seven days have been rough for Minnesota. In the week following the Packers' miracle win on a miracle Hail Mary in Detroit, the Vikings have lost two games—including a home beatdown and a gut-punch road loss.

With three games left, Minnesota is 8-5 and still only a half-game back of the Packers in the NFC North. Regardless of what happens during the rest of Week 14, the Vikings will still be in full control of their postseason destiny.

There's no time for looking back now. Throwing away a golden opportunity for a statement win will sting, but the Vikings still have everything they want in front of them. 

Zach Kruse covers the Vikings for Bleacher Report. 

Follow @zachkruse2