Indianapolis Colts at Minnesota Vikings: First quarter recap and second quarter discussion

We’ve finished the first quarter at U.S. Bank Stadium on this Saturday afternoon, and it’s been ugly for the Minnesota Vikings as they trail the Indianapolis Colts by a score of 17-0 at U.S. Bank Stadium.

Indianapolis got the ball first after the Vikings won the coin toss and deferred to the second half. The Colts took the kick from Greg Joseph and returned it to near midfield, and they followed that up with an end around to Michael Pittman Jr. for a big gain into Minnesota territory. The Colts got all the way down to the Minnesota 1-yard line, but had a huge loss of yards on a 3rd-and-goal play, forcing them to settle for a Chase McLaughlin field goal to make it 3-0 early.

The Vikings’ offense took over at its own 25 after a touchback. The offense generated one first down, but a couple of incompletions forced a Ryan Wright punt. . .or so we thought, as Wright’s punt was blocked by former Viking Ifeadi Odenigbo and returned for a touchdown by JoJo Doman for a 24-yard score. The extra point was good and, just like that, the Vikings were down 10-0.

The next drive for the Vikings started with a big run from Dalvin Cook, who picked up 40 yards to put the Vikings at the Indianapolis 35. And then, on the next play, Cook fumbled it away with Isaiah Rodgers recovering for a turnover.

The Colts then took the ball and marched right down the field again, with Matt Ryan finding Jelani Woods for a big gain into the Minnesota red zone. Ryan then found Deon Jackson for an easy 1-yard touchdown, and with less than four minutes left in the first quarter the Vikings found themselves down 17-0.

The Vikings then took over at the 22-yard line and faced a 4th-and-1 from their own 31-yard line. The Vikings elected to go for it and. . .they didn’t get it, giving the ball back to the Colts.

As we move to the second quarter of play, the Colts are looking at a first-and-10 from the Vikings’ 16-yard line.

It’s been, quite possibly, the worst first quarter in Minnesota Vikings’ history, as they’re down 17-0 to the Indianapolis Colts at U.S. Bank Stadium. Let’s see if the Vikings can pull their heads out in the second quarter.