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Vikings Cruise to 33-16 Win vs. Browns in London; Cleveland Skids to 0-8
October 29, 2017
The Minnesota Vikings, led by their staunch defense and ball-control offense, improved to 6-2 on the season after beating the Cleveland Browns 33-16 on Sunday at London's Twickenham Stadium.
The loss moved the Browns to 0-8. The team is now 4-36 in the past 2.5 seasons.
Case Keenum had another solid showing at quarterback for Minnesota, finishing 27-of-43 for 288 passing yards, two touchdowns and an interception, while Jerick McKinnon provided 122 yards from scrimmage and Adam Thielen caught five passes for 98 yards and a score.
DeShone Kizer put together another mediocre performance, meanwhile, going 18-of-34 for 179 yards. He also rushed for 18 yards and was sacked three times.
Isaiah Crowell was one of the bright spots for the Browns, accumulating 118 yards from scrimmage and a score, while Joe Schobert collected 11 tackles on the defensive side of the ball.
While the Browns scored the game's first touchdown just under four minutes into the first quarter—before promptly missing the extra point—and took a 16-15 lead with a little over five minutes remaining in the third quarter, the Vikings dominated from there, scoring 18 unanswered points.
Minnesota slowly wore down the Browns, dominating time of possession (37:52) and winning the turnover battle, as the Browns turned it over twice compared to just one giveaway from the Vikings. The Vikings even won the special teams battle. While Kai Forbath finished 4-for-4 on field goals and made his only extra-point attempt, Zane Gonzalez missed a field goal and extra point.
Suffice to say, there weren't many positives to be found for the Browns after the game:
And the Browns have been historically bad over the past two years:
Things won't get any easier for them, as they'll face the Detroit Lions following a Week 9 bye.
The Vikings, meanwhile, look like one of the better teams in the NFC. Certainly, Steve Wyche of the NFL Network believes they are one of the better-coached sides:
Minnesota's defense gives them a chance to win any game, while the steady play from Keenum has been a revelation. While a quarterback controversy may be brewing, with Teddy Bridgewater likely to be cleared for game action at some point after the team's Week 9 bye, the Vikings may be the only team in the NFL with three quarterbacks on the roster—once Sam Bradford returns from injury—potentially capable of leading them to a postseason berth.
The Vikings will next play Washington in Week 10.