Vikings biggest issue from 2024 comes back to haunt them in a major way, and it cost them a win vs. Eagles

This shouldn’t be such an issue for Kevin O’Connell.

Tyler Forness — NFL & College Football News Writer
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Oct 19, 2025; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson (18) is unable to make a catch during the second half after being blocked by Philadelphia Eagles cornerback Cooper Dejean (33) at U.S. Bank Stadium.
Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images

The Minnesota Vikings are now 3-3 after a brutal 28-22 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles.

Throughout the game, the Vikings struggled on the offensive side of the football. Quarterback Carson Wentz did not have a very good day. Yes, he threw for 313 yards, but he consistently missed receivers down the field and threw two back-breaking interceptions.

It’s become obvious across the last four games that second year quarterback J.J. McCarthy has missed due to his high ankle sprain. The biggest aspect of the Vikings’ struggles on offense stood out in a huge way, and it’s something they’ve struggled with for multiple years.

Minnesota Vikings red zone issues come back to haunt them

Sunday’s game was brutal for a lot of reasons. They allowed quarterback Jalen Hurts to get back on track with a perfect 158.3 passer rating and three touchdowns, including two of them to A.J. Brown. Where the Eagles thrived was scoring before the red zone, as they were 0-1 in the red zone on the day, with a Jake Elliott missed field goal being their sole trip.

For the Vikings, it was a completely different situation. Going into the game, they were 10-15 in the red zone at 66.7%, tied for seventh in the NFL. Unfortunately, it cratered against the Eagles.

Sunday afternoon was a house of horrors for the offense in the red zone. The first drive had a touchdown taken off the board due to a holding call against Blake Brandel, which was questionable at best, since it was a snatch-and-trap move.

It wasn’t just that play that haunted them. They had multiple other touchdowns that were available to them. Wentz had a play-action pass to C.J. Ham wide open in the flat and he just didn’t throw the ball. Why he did that is beyond me. Plus, there was the underthrow to Jordan Addison, the multiple misses to Justin Jefferson, and T.J. Hockenson being wide open and Wentz couldn’t make a better throw.

You can’t expect to win football games in the NFL when you kick five field goals in the red zone. This needs to be fixed in a major way. Hopefully, facing a beat-up Los Angeles Chargers team is the cure.

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