Vikings finish 2025 season with 2 NFC North home games: ‘Straight spoiler now’

Vikings players react after 16-13 win over Giants [FULL]

Vikings players Aaron Jones, Isaiah Rodgers, Harrison Smith, Brian O’Neill, Jay Ward, Byron Murphy Jr., Max Brosmer and Justin Jefferson spoke from the locker room after Sunday’s 16-13 win over the New York Giants at MetLife Stadium. The Vikings are on a three-game win streak and improve to 7-8 on the season.

MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - The Minnesota Vikings are 7-8 with two regular season games to play, and have won three straight after beating the New York Giants 16-13 on Sunday at MetLife Stadium.

The Vikings are eliminated from the NFC Playoffs, but there are no plans to mail in the final two games. Here’s a sample of what players in the locker room had to say after Sunday’s win.

2 rivals to end regular season

What we know:

The Vikings have a short week, hosting the Detroit Lions on Christmas Day at U.S. Bank Stadium. The Lions’ playoff hopes were delivered a major blow after Sunday’s loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers.

The Vikings host the Green Bay Packers to close out the season. The Packers are in a tail spin after losing Micah Parsons to a season-ending knee injury. They’re still in contention for a playoff spot despite a meltdown in Saturday night’s loss to the Chicago Bears in overtime. The Packers need to win out, and have the Bears lose their last two games, to win the division.

With the playoffs no longer a reality, the Vikings would love nothing more than to knockout two of their division rivals in consecutive weeks. That’s why they’ll play to win, rather than position themselves for a higher draft pick.

"Straight spoiler now. If we can’t go, you can’t go, that’s what it is," said defensive back Byron Murphy Jr., who had an interception Sunday. "We definitely know it’s a division game, we know what this team is all about. We’re going to get this dub and get the job done."

History for Vikings’ defense

Why you should care:

The Vikings’ defense dominated Jaxson Dart and the Giants Sunday. He threw for just 33 yards, was sacked five times and had an interception.

"It’s big when everybody is making plays. It adds a lot of juice, it kind of ignites things," safety Harrison Smith said.

For the sixth straight game, the Vikings’ didn’t allow a passing touchdown. That’s a span of nearly two months, since Lamar Jackson hit Mark Andrews for a score at U.S. Bank Stadium back on Nov. 9.

The quarterbacks they’ve faced over that stretch? Jordan Love, Caleb Williams, Sam Darnold, Jayden Daniels/Marcus Mariota and Dart. The Vikings are the first team since the 1988 Browns to go six straight games without allowing a passing touchdown. The Vikings can tie an NFL record if they can extend it to seven on Thursday, but Jared Goff has 21 straight games with a passing touchdown.

Season-high day for Aaron Jones

Dig deeper:

It’s been a tough season for Aaron Jones after a Week 1 hamstring injury put the talented running back on injured reserve. With Jordan Mason leaving early due to injury, Jones had 21 carries for 85 yards, two catches for eight yards Sunday. His 85 rushing yards are a season-high.

The Vikings as a team ran for 114 yards, including a 12-yard touchdown on a J.J. McCarthy scramble. Jones cares more about coming home with the 16-13 win.

"I’ll take it. Glad we got the win, that’s the most important," Jones said.

Justin Jefferson gushes over Max Brosmer throw

What they're saying:

McCarthy had to leave the game late in the first half with a right hand injury, and did not return. That meant it was Max Brosmer time in the second half, without any practice reps with the first-team offense in practice. 

Brosmer finished 7-of-9 for 52 yards. He hit Justin Jefferson on a 3rd-and-17 play at the sideline for a first down that had coaches and players, including Jefferson, raving about Brosmer postgame. If McCarthy can’t play Thursday, Brosmer will get his second career start.

"Perfect ball, perfect spot. We don’t work that play too often in practice, J.J. is the one throwing it in practice. For him to throw that type of ball in that situation on third down to continue the drive, very big. Huge throw," Jefferson said.