LONDON — The Vikings **defeated the Browns 33-16** on Sunday at Twickenham Stadium in front of a **festive crowd*** *to improve to 6-2 heading into their bye week.
Adam Thielen was named "Man of the Match" after leading Minnesota with 98 receiving yards on five receptions, including his first touchdown of 2017, which resulted in an **epic celebration**.
Jerick McKinnon added 122 yards from scrimmage (72 receiving, 50 rushing) and scored the **go-ahead-for-good*** *touchdown on a jet sweep behind an offensive line that **overcame a pair of injuries**.
The defense overcame a couple of uncharacteristic early missteps and a touchdown set up by a Vikings turnover to lock things down in the second half. Danielle Hunter **forced a key fumble** by the Browns on the first play after halftime.
Here are three stats that stood out:
1. Mister McKinnon forces missed tackles
The Vikings continued to excel in filling in for rookie Dalvin Cook (torn ACL in Week 4) with the combination of Latavius Murray and Jerick McKinnon.
McKinnon averaged 3.6 yards per carry (50 yards on 14 rushes) against a Browns defense that entered the game ranked first in the league with 2.96 yards allowed per rush.
According to analytics site Pro Football Focus, McKinnon averaged 3.29 yards after contact per carry, squeezing out more than initially available. PFF credited McKinnon with forcing five missed tackles.
2. QB clock was ticking
The Browns tried to neutralize the Vikings pass rush by having rookie DeShone Kizer get rid of the football much quicker than he had in his first few games.
In a city known for Big Ben, PFF clocked Quick Kizer at averaging just 2.39 seconds from snap to throw. Entering the game, Kizer was averaging 3.07 seconds.
The strategy was working to reduce pressures and prevent sacks until Cleveland fell behind and tried plays that took longer to develop. Everson Griffen, Linval Joseph and Tom Johnson each recorded sacks of Kizer in the second half.
3. Not in Waynes' World
Cornerback Trae Waynes had what PFF described as an "extremely efficient day" in terms of coverage, allowing just two of the seven passes thrown his way to be caught for a total of 22 yards.
According to PFF, Kizer's passer rating when targeting Waynes was just 40.2.
Waynes was credited with three pass breakups by press box statisticians.
