The Minnesota Vikings have begun the 2023 NFL season in an 0-2 hole. In Week 3, the team has a chance to get in the win column at home against a fellow winless team, the Los Angeles Chargers. 

Today, I want to identify three players who will need to have a big game if the Vikings hope to reverse their fortunes. We will not be including Kirk Cousins or Justin Jefferson for a couple of reasons. 

For one, the two players have already been having big games and it hasn't resulted in wins. Additionally, those players are expected to perform great every week. Instead, I'll focus on players involved in key matchups that could make or break the game. 

Alexander Mattison

The Vikings have to get the ground game working if they want to win this season. The team cannot simply rely on Kirk Cousins to throw for 400+ every week. 

Through two games, Mattison has 62 yards on 19 carries with one TD and one fumble. Mattison is the lead back, by the way, and those are his numbers. Mattison is averaging 3.3 yards per carry, which is the lowest mark of his career. Granted, it's not all on Mattison, as the line has been atrocious as well. 

You can run on the LA Chargers. The team allows 105.5 rushing yards per game this season, and Mattison needs to exploit that. If Mattison has his best game of the season, the Vikes will dominate the time of possession and win this game. 

Akayleb Evans

Evans will have an extremely tough test for the third week in a row this week. The second-year corner has gone against Mike Evans, AJ Brown, and now either Mike Williams or Keenan Allen. Evans has held up decently thus far, earning a 63.1 PFF grade through two weeks. 

If the Chargers get down, Justin Herbert will start slinging it. Allen had a big game last week, collecting eight catches for 111 yards and two TDs. We know you can pass on the Chargers' defense, so if Evans locks down his man, the Vikings could run away this game. 

If Evans struggles, however, this could be the highest-scoring game of the week. 

Jordan Addison

As mentioned previously, this game could easily turn into a shootout. The Chargers have not been good against the pass, but you can guarantee that Justin Jefferson will receive plenty of attention. This means that the rookie could be set up for a massive day. 

Addison has had an impressive start to his career, catching seven passes for 133 yards and two TDs so far. The rookie has displayed the big-play potential that made him a first-round pick, but he hasn't had a dominant game yet. Expect that to change against the Chargers. With Jefferson and TJ Hockenson taking up most of the attention, don't be surprised to see Addison score his first 100-yard game. 

The Vikings have an obvious answer to their RB woes

If the Vikings want an immediate upgrade at RB, it’s available.

Featured image via © Eric Hartline | 2023 Sep 14