MINNEAPOLIS — At breakfast, Carson Wentz pulled up an old photo on his phone.

The QB showed Brian O'Neill a childhood snapshot of himself wearing a Daunte Culpepper jersey hours before donning his own No. 11 Vikings jersey and huddling up with his wife and three daughters for a quick pregame prayer.

Wentz acknowledged navigating a flurry of emotions before helping lead Minnesota to a 48-10 walloping of Cincinnati.

"Running out there, it's been a while since getting a chance to do this, but then obviously being in the Purple and Gold means a little extra something to me personally," Wentz said. "So yeah, I definitely had a lot of emotions, but I was able to channel them to the best of my ability, go out there and have a lot of fun with those guys.

"That's what it was; it was a ton of fun," he added. "I had a blast out there."

O'Neill said he'd noticed Wentz's excitement while dining with him and Adam Thielen ("both of the homers," O'Neill quipped) Sunday morning.

And despite signing with the Vikings less than a month ago, Wentz played with a calm confidence admired by his teammates.

"I thought he was great. He's incredibly poised. He's played a lot of football, so there aren't many defenses or looks that he hasn't seen," O'Neill said. "He was great all week in practice. He said, last night, 'I'm gonna be a kid in a candy store out there tomorrow. And you could tell he was having fun."

Christian Darrisaw, who played in a game for the first time in 332 days, appreciated the way Wentz jumped in the huddle, ready to lead it.

"I've been a fan of his since he was playing in Philly. And just being able to protect him and seeing what he did out there today was fun," Darrisaw said.

Wentz made smart decisions and moved the ball for the team he grew up watching at the Metrodome. He weathered pressure early on and was sacked three times but took care of the football all afternoon.

Wentz helped the Vikings get off to a fast start, as well. Minnesota's offense capitalized on two Bengals penalties on the game's first drive and balanced the run and pass game, with Wentz completing a pair of passes to Justin Jefferson and then finding Josh Oliver for a 12-yard touchdown.

"That was big for me personally, but it was also big for this team. I think that's something that we've been maybe lacking a little bit," he said. "It's something we've talked about, starting fast, and finding our identity in a game quickly.

"I thought the guys — really, the o-line — kind of set that tone right away," Wentz added.

The unit anchored by Darrisaw helped Jordan Mason pop a 10-yard run on the very first play, then gain another 5 yards just before the TD pass to Oliver.

Mason ran physically all afternoon, racking up 116 yards on just 16 carries for an impressive 7.3-yard average. The 26-year-old started in place of an injured Aaron Jones, Sr., and got into the end zone twice on 5- and 4-yard runs, respectively.

Zavier Scott also put some nice plays on tape, including converting a third-and-1 on a second-quarter drive that eventually was capped by a 35-yard field goal, as well as notching an 11-yard run in the third quarter. That series ended with Mason's second TD.

"It was amazing to see Jordan and 'Zay' hit those holes, break those 10-plus-yard runs," Darrisaw said. "Man, that's how we draw 'em up. To see it actually show out on the field, it's a great feeling, and we've just gotta continue that."

Minnesota's offense fed off an incredible defensive showing (featuring Isaiah Rodgers becoming the first player in NFL history to record two defensive touchdowns and two forced fumbles in a game) and enabled two Reichard field goals, including a franchise-record 62-yarder heading into halftime.

The Vikings truly played complementary football Sunday, a point Jefferson emphasized.

"When you have all three phases really working and putting up points and doing everything we needed to do, it's going to look like that," he said.

Jefferson led Minnesota in receiving yards with five catches for 75 yards, followed by T.J. Hockenson's five grabs for 49 yards and a touchdown.

"He's pretty good," Wentz quipped when asked about Jefferson. "That's the obvious statement. But … teams are, without a doubt, aware of him, and you get some unique coverages that, quite frankly, I've probably never seen in my 10 years, just because of who he is and the attention he draws."

Jefferson again showed just who he is, making plays even while heavily defended.

One play especially stood out inside a 2-minute window in which Minnesota scored 17 points. With just over a minute before halftime, Wentz threw a slant over the middle and hit Jefferson in-stride.

"Jets" pivoted to run downfield, faced Geno Stone and simply ran him over. He stiff-armed the safety and stayed on his feet, then broke two more tackles before finally being taken down by linebacker Demetrius Knight, Jr.

Jefferson pushed his fists toward the turf, tipped his head back and let out a yell after willing the 36-yard gain.

"Look at Justin Jefferson!" CBS' Jim Nantz said on the broadcast. "We saw how fired up he was on the sideline, and now he brought a little bit of that to the field."

The wideout's pure want-to was simply undeniable on a drive closed by a Mason score.

"When people look at me, they don't really expect me to be as physical as I am, but that's the type of game I like playing — that physicality," Jefferson said. "Showing people, 'I might look this way, but I'm way bigger than what I look.' It's just about setting that tone, setting that momentum."

Wentz said the play demonstrated not only Jefferson's talent but also his leadership.

"He wants to not only make the catches, but he wants to win," Wentz said. "He's gonna do everything he can to help this team win. I see that in practice. I see it with how hard he practices. I've been around some really good players in my career, and he works as hard as any of them, so I respect that about him."

Darrisaw said "you know something big is gonna happen" when Jefferson gets the ball in his hands.

"He's special," Darrisaw said, grinning.

The Vikings put an emphasis on run-after-catch leading into the game, O'Neill noted, and Jefferson exemplified the work.

"It was, 'You know we're getting the ball, [Wentz is] dishing it around, playing point guard, and there's gonna be ops to run after you catch,' " O'Neill said. "That was really fun to see."

Wentz is happy to play point guard for as long as the Vikings need him.

"That's what I want to do when I get out there," he said. "I mean, I don't want to be the one making plays. I just want to get it to those playmakers. That's always been my philosophy. We've got some good ones here, and that's been fun, seeing them work and practice.

"It's only been a [few] weeks, obviously, but seeing it live in a game like today … it's fun for me to see that because my job is just 1-2-3, throw it and let them do the hard work," Wentz added. "It's fun to see that and see those guys come to life like that."

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