MINNEAPOLIS — Minutes after receiving a surprise embrace from his mom, Aaron Jones, Sr., was pulled into the arms of Vikings fans.

Jones scored his first rushing TD of the season Sunday when he took a handoff from J.J. McCarthy at the 4 and deftly dashed into the paint. He executed his "Bank Vault" celebration, leaping into the waiting arms of fans' seated behind the end zone.

The score put Minnesota on the board early, giving the Vikings a 7-0 lead over the Ravens just over five minutes into the Week 10 contest they eventually lost 27-19.

Jones' TD felt especially fitting during the Vikings Salute to Service game, as the running back is Minnesota’s nominee for the NFL-wide award this year.

He led the Vikings out of the tunnel during pregame introductions, proudly carrying an American flag that furled behind him as he sprinted past teammates. And then he saw his mother, Vurgess Jones, waiting to meet her son at the end of the line.

Jones wrapped his mother in his arms and lifted her in a bear hug, taking off his helmet to connect over a deeply special moment.

Vurgess Jones and her late husband, Alvin Jones, Sr., served a combined 56 years in the U.S. Army, both retiring as sergeant majors.

Later in the first quarter, the Vikings recognized Vurgess during the Miller Military Spotlite; she and her family were welcomed onto the field during a TV timeout and received a warm welcome from the U.S. Bank Stadium crowd.

Then, one more surprise as Jones jogged quickly from the sideline to join his family for the moment.

"It was truly an honor. I told her I wouldn't be where I am without her or my dad," Jones said postgame. "Even just running out with the flag, it was a lot of gratitude. But then to see my mom at the end and give her flag … just to have that moment, it was super special."

Jones will forever treasure those moments with his family, but it doesn't relieve the disappointment of Minnesota's game strewn with self-sabotage.

"We've gotta lock in, especially when we're playing at home and the crowd noise isn't too bad," said Jones, who had nine carries for 47 rushing yards, in addition to three catches for 22 yards through the air. "All 11 have to be on the same page so we can come off the ball and show them. In that first drive, we were all coming off the ball and locked in on the cadence, we moved the ball at will."

The Vikings were penalized 13 times to the Ravens five, and a whopping eight of those flags were false starts — the most by a team since 2011. Blake Brandel, Brian O'Neill (three times), Ben Yurosek, J.J. McCarthy, Christian Darrisaw and Justin Jefferson each were flagged with at least one of those pre-snap penalties.

"You can't have those negative plays. It hurts today, and I'll take it upon myself to make sure we get it fixed as a unit," O'Neill said.

Vikings Head Coach Kevin O'Connell admired the way his team fought but acknowledged the hurdles oftentimes placed in their own way.

"In many cases it was things we did to ourselves," O'Connell said. "Lose the turnover battle 3-0 and then the penalty situation, which we've gotta get fixed immediately. Whatever was goin' on with the cadence or whatever it may be, it's just not acceptable in any way. We've gotta get it fixed, and we will.

"When you average 6 yards a play on offense, it's all for naught if you're going to be giving back so many of those yards in different capacities," O'Connell added.

Jefferson also commented on so consistently setting themselves behind the sticks.

"It's really no excuse. We've just got to lock in more and execute better," Jefferson said. "Going backwards is definitely the last thing we want to do — especially before the play is even called. We've got to, like I said, lock in a little bit more, understand the play call, understand the cadence and just go out there and play. Relax and just do what we normally do."

Jefferson was targeted 12 times Sunday but had just four catches for 37 yards. There were a number of plays he'd like back, he noted, including an incompletion on fourth-and-3 midway through the fourth quarter.

On an earlier play, the Vikings faced third-and-inches and McCarthy threw deep for Jefferson, who fell after getting tangled up with the defender, and the ball was picked off by Baltimore's Marlon Humphrey.

"[Cover 0 defense], 1-on-1, and I have the greatest receiver in the world," McCarthy said. "So I don't care who it is out there, I'm going to give him a chance. And I didn't see him fall. It's just one of those things where he catches it and it's great; he doesn't, it's an incomplete or it's an interception. There's different things where it can lead to that outcome. But 10 times out of 10, I'm gonna give him a shot."

The pick was McCarthy's second of the afternoon and second on a third-down play. Midway through the second quarter on a third-and-6, he again targeted Jefferson downfield but was intercepted by Malaki Starks.

McCarthy finished the day 20-of-42 passing for 248 yards, one touchdown and the two interceptions. His passer rating was 54.5. He was sacked just one time, but of the Ravens 13 passes defensed, multiple were batted down at the line of scrimmage.

"It's just absolutely killer," McCarthy said. "It's a credit to them up front. You know, they played a tremendous game. They had a tremendous game plan, threw the kitchen sink at us in terms of coverage, pressures, new looks. But yeah, it's the little things like that. I think it's the worst play in football, a tipped ball at the line of scrimmage."

The 22-year-old is looking at every mistake as a learning experience coming out of just his fourth NFL start.

"I feel like the greatest learning tool for anybody, regardless of position, regardless of profession, is experience," he said.

McCarthy completed passes to seven teammates, Jalen Nailor leading the way with five catches for a career-high 124 receiving yards.

Nailor continued giving the Vikings chances, starting with a monster third down from the Vikings 34. McCarthy hit "Speedy" in-stride on Minnesota's first series, and the receiver put his nickname on display, somehow pulling away and getting all the way to the 4 before being dragged down.

In addition to the 62-yard, highlight-reel play, Nailor hauled in catches for 28 and 18 yards, plus caught a fourth-down pass in the end zone for a 10-yard touchdown to give Minnesota it's final glimmer of hope.

"We always say, 'Speedy's open somewhere.' He's that kind of player," Jones said. "You've never heard him complain about not getting the ball. I think last week, his only catch came to seal the game. He's just a hard-working guy.

"He's a great route-runner, a great teammate, and he sacrifices himself," Jones added. "He was due for a big one, and I think you're going to continue to see him have big games."

Nailor humbly shrugged off accolades, particularly considering the game's ultimate result.

"That's just how football is," he said. "Sometimes they're gonna take away our best guy and another guy's got to step up, and today that was me, and I made the most of those opportunities.

"It would have felt better with a W, but I'm happy with the way I played," Nailor added. "Just gotta go back to the drawing board and get back to our offense."

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