Ahead of their game against Washington on Sunday, Vikings Head Coach Kevin O’Connell delivered a simple statement to his players: play for the 16-year-old version of themselves. In other words, play freely and just have fun.
Minnesota (5-8) responded with one of its best performances of 2025 and did so in historic fashion during a 31-0 rout of the Commanders (3-10).
After suffering a 26-0 loss at Seattle last week, the Vikings joined rare company with Sunday's shutout win. According to NFL Media Research, Minnesota became the first team since the 1992 Broncos – and just the fifth team in the Super Bowl era (since 1966) – to shut out an opponent after being shut out in its previous game. It's also the first time in NFL history where the margins of the shutouts were greater than 25 points.
Sunday's game marked the 17th shutout victory for Minnesota in franchise history and just the third since 2000. Each of the Vikings past four wins via a shutout have come in Week 14 or later (the previous three were 13-0 at Detroit in 1993, 16-0 at Green Bay in 2017 and 3-0 at Las Vegas in 2023). Additionally, the win was the 50th regular-season victory by Minnesota at U.S. Bank Stadium – and the first shutout in the venue's history.
J.J. McCarthy became just the 11th Vikings quarterback to have a shutout victory. He joined Joe Kapp (1969), Gary Cuozzo (1970-71), Norm Snead (1971), Fran Tarkenton (1974-75), Tommy Kramer (1980), Wade Wilson (1988), Rich Gannon (1991), Jim McMahon (1993), Case Keenum (2017) and Joshua Dobbs (2023).
Minnesota snapped its four-game losing streak and moved up in this week's Power Rankings, with the biggest jump being four spots. Here's a look at where the Vikings landed going into Week 15:
View the Vikings in Big Head Mode following their Week 14 win over the Washington Commanders at U.S. Bank Stadium.
No. 22 (up 3 spots): Eric Edholm, NFL.com
Granted, it happened against a Washington defense that has made all kinds of opposing quarterbacks sparkle this season, but while you weren't looking, J.J. McCarthy had his most efficient and encouraging performance of the season Sunday. Derailed by injuries and ineffectiveness to this point in his career, McCarthy put together a good showing on which to build. He moved around efficiently, didn't throw the ball in harm's way and generally made quicker, smarter decisions, and though Justin Jefferson was quiet again, McCarthy leaned heavily on his tight ends. That and a lights-out game defensively appeared to stun the home crowd after four straight losses. Other than the dip in draft position that resulted from this win, McCarthy playing a good game can only be viewed as a positive development.
No. 22 (up 3 spots): Maurice Moton, Bleacher Report
Let J.J. McCarthy cook – when the run game complements him. The Minnesota Vikings need to help him with an effective ground attack, so he's not the one to carry the offense.
McCarthy flourished at Michigan in a run-heavy offensive system that didn't require him to post gaudy passing numbers.
Though he plays with star wide receiver Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison, the Vikings need to gradually develop the 22-year-old signal-caller with a low-volume passing attack until he establishes consistency in the pocket.
No. 23 (no change): Pete Prisco, CBS Sports
J.J. McCarthy did some really good things against the Commanders, which should give [the Vikings] hope. They're all playing for next year now, though.
No. 24 (up 4 spots): Nate Davis, USA Today
QB J.J. McCarthy, a first-rounder a year ago, just had the best game of his career. Good vibes for 2026?
No. 22 (up 2 spots): Josh Kendall, The Athletic
The Vikings had their second-highest offensive output of the season, and [Justin] Jefferson had just two catches for 11 yards. He hasn't had a 100-yard game since Week 5, or a touchdown since Week 9.
No. 22 (up 2 spots): Vinnie Iyer, Sporting News
The Vikings needed that get-well game for J.J. McCarthy and the shutout-pitching defense against the Commanders.
No. 23 (up 2 spots): Frank Schwab, Yahoo! Sports
J.J. McCarthy had a good game. He had 163 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions. It doesn't mean that he has arrived, but it's a more promising step than we've typically seen from him this season. The Vikings season is lost, and the rest of it has to be spent figuring out if McCarthy can be a viable starter in 2026. Sunday's performance gives the team hope.
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