JJ McCarthy’s first pass against the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday Night Football was just about the worst. Fortunately for the Minnesota Vikings, the rest of his night was significantly better.
McCarthy had his second consecutive three-touchdown performance, throwing two touchdown passes to Jalen Naylor and adding a rushing touchdown, and the Vikings beat the Cowboys by a final score of 34-26 on Sunday Night Football in Dallas for their second straight game.
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The Vikings got the ball first and turned it over almost immediately, with McCarthy’s first pass thrown into the air by Donovan Wilson and intercepted by Quinnen Williams. The Cowboys then faked a field goal, with star kicker Brandon Aubrey throwing the field goal attempt and running into first base. Midway through the first quarter, Javonte Williams scored on a breakaway from one yard out to give the home team a 7-0 lead.
Minnesota’s offense got going late in the first quarter, as McCarthy made amends for his interception when he found Jalen Nailor for a 20-yard touchdown to tie the game at 7-7 with just over two minutes left in the first quarter. The score was set up by an Aaron Jones pass that went out of bounds and was hit with a penalty in the final seconds, which put the Vikings into the red zone and gave them a chance to tie the game.
Dallas regained the lead on its second play of the second quarter when Malik Davis provided the Cowboys with their second 1-yard touchdown run of the night. Less than 10 seconds into the second game, the home team led 14-7.
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The Vikings then caught a big pass from McCarthy to Jordan Addison, the longest pass of McCarthy’s career. It was a 58-yard field goal that set up the Vikings’ first-and-goal score at the Dallas 4-yard line.
The game came down to fourth-and-goal inside the 1-yard line, and the Vikings went all out. They brought in heavy personnel and looked like they were giving the job to Jordan Mason. . But in the end, McCarthy fooled everyone, and he rushed for a touchdown himself, chasing the score to 14-14.
The Vikings got a break on the Cowboys’ next possession when Aubrey drove a 51-yard field goal to the right side, giving the Vikings good field position with less than six minutes left before halftime. They turned it into a field goal of their own, with a 29-yard catch by Will Reichard to take their first lead at 17-14 after the two-minute warning. Before halftime, Aubrey hit a 37-yard field goal, and the Cowboys tied the score at 17-17 and entered the locker room.
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After the first possession of the second half, Dallas regained the lead on Aubrey’s 26-yard field goal, leading 20-17. After Minnesota went three-and-out on Minnesota’s first possession of the half, Dallas scored three more points as Aubrey scored 41 straight points to make it 23-17 with less than five minutes left in the third quarter.
Minnesota then regained the lead and the Vikings got a huge conversion on fourth down when McCarthy found Naylor for a 23-yard gain to get the Vikings into the red zone. A few plays later, C.J. Ham carried the ball into the end zone from a yard out to put the Vikings back in front 24-23 with just over a minute left in the third quarter.
The Cowboys gave Aubrey another chance from deep, but his push to the right from the 59 missed early in the fourth quarter, giving the Vikings the ball near midfield. Aubrey only missed twice in the game, so missing two in the same game is significant.
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The Vikings capitalized on the missed field goal opportunity, as McCarthy threw his second touchdown pass of the night to the man who scored his first. He connected with Jalen Nailor again, this time from 4 yards out, to make it 31-23 with just over nine minutes left in regulation.
On the ensuing possession, Dallas faced a fourth-and-7 from the Minnesota 45-yard line with about five and a half minutes left in the game and elected to go on the offense. Prescott’s pass was completed, but Eric Wilson brought the ball carrier near the goal line and Minnesota forced a turnover in the low post with a chance to put the game away.
They did just that with just over a minute left in the game when Reichard hit his second field goal of the night, this time a 53-yarder to give his team an 11-point lead at 34-23. The Cowboys then gave Aubrey a 41-yard field goal opportunity. Aubrey caught the ball and tied the score to 8 points, leading 34-26 with 19 seconds left in the game.
That means the Cowboys need to rely on onside kick recovery to give themselves a chance to win the game. Aubrey’s onside kick was recovered by Josh Oliver to give the Vikings the upset victory.
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Minnesota is 6-8 on the season, and even though they’ve fallen out of playoff contention this season, they did see some more positive things from their young quarterback, and I think that’s something we’re all hoping to build on this season.
The Vikings will play their final road game of the 2025 NFL season next week when they travel to MetLife Stadium to take on the New York Giants.
The Vikings traveled to Dallas and defeated the Cowboys by a score of 34-26. Thanks to everyone at The Daily Norwegian who covered this week’s games!