Vikings Beat Packers After 4th Quarter Collapse

On September 13th, the Vikings hosted the Packers for the season opener of the 2026 NFL season. Jordan Love was the quarterback for the Green Bay Packers, and Kyler Murray was the quarterback for the Minnesota Vikings. The game started off in disaster for Murray when, two plays into his Vikings debut, he threw an interception on Green Bay's 36-yard line; then it was returned to the Packers' own 47-yard line.

Then, with 6:16 left in the first quarter, Murray was injured with a concussion after scrambling for 2 yards, then getting a helmet-to-helmet tackle by No. 7 Javon Bullard, which resulted in a 15-yard penalty for unnecessary roughness. After Murray was pulled from the game, Carson Wentz came into the game to lead a drive for a field goal, making it 3-9 Packers.

At the beginning of the second quarter, the Packers led another drive for a 43-yard field goal by kicker Trey Smack, making it his second for the game and 12-3 Packers. The two teams then punted a total of four times before the Vikings finally ended that pattern with a 39-yard pass from Wentz to Justin Jefferson for a touchdown, making it 12-10 Packers. The Packers then responded quickly with a 2-yard pass from Love to Christian Watson for a touchdown, making it 19-10 Packers at halftime.

Nothing much happened in the third quarter until the 5:09 mark when the Packers scored a 26-yard field goal, making it 22-10 Packers. The Vikings responded quickly at 2:08 when Wentz threw a 16-yard touchdown to T.J. Hockenson, making the score 22-17 Packers. 

In the fourth quarter, the Packers turned the ball over on downs at Minnesota's 17-yard line, setting Wentz up to lead an 83-yard drive that resulted in a 3-yard touchdown run from Aaron Jones to make it 25-22 Vikings. The Packers tried to start a scoring drive to tie up the game, but they fumbled and recovered the ball to set up a third-and-17 when the Vikings forced a sack-fumble, which was returned for 7 yards and down at Green Bay’s 1-yard line. 

The Vikings quickly ran the ball for a 1-yard touchdown by Jordan Mason to make the score 32-22 Vikings. Love then threw an interception to James Pierre, and it was returned for 28 yards and set down at Green Bay’s 14-yard line. Wentz then threw a 9-yard touchdown pass to Jefferson to make the score 39-22 Vikings. The Packers, desperate for a miracle, tried to convert on downs at Minnesota’s 12-yard line but failed. The Vikings completed the comeback by kneeling out the clock and winning the season opener 39-22 after a disastrous fourth-quarter collapse by the Packers.

Image Courtesy of Joe Bielawa on Wikimedia Commons.