MINNEAPOLIS — Minnesota Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold appears to living up to the hype that surrounded him entering the 2018 NFL Draft.
The former No. 3 overall pick out of USC had a rough go of things in his first six seasons — a 21-35 record in 56 starts — but he seems to have found new life in head coach Kevin O'Connell's quarterback-friendly system.
Darnold continued to dazzle on Sunday, matching a career-high with four touchdown passes on 17 of 28 passing as the Vikings remained unbeaten by defeating the Texans 34-7 at U.S. Bank Stadium.
Darnold is 53 of 78 (67.9%) for 657 yards eight touchdowns and two interceptions this season. He's been able to stretch the field and extend plays with his poise in and out of the pocket. Through three games, Darnold looks comfortable, collected and, perhaps most importantly, confident in the new scheme.
"I love those guys in the locker room. The way that we've been able to prepare throughout the week, the looks that we're getting from the scout team, everything is high-level football right now," said Darnold. "I think we've just got to continue to push each other on Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays to be able to go out there on Sunday and perform at a high level, because there's still room for improvement."
The Vikings defense helped set the tone, once again, and it happened right out of the gates when linebacker Kamu Grugier-Hill intercepted the first pass of the game. The Vikings took over on Houston's 21-yard line and needed less than three minutes to get on the board.
Darnold connected with receiver Justin Jefferson on a 6-yard pass, after extending the play by rolling out to his left. He found Aaron Jones for a touchdown on their next possession after connecting with Jefferson for a 28-yard completion earlier in the drive.
Darnold later found Jalen Nailor for a touchdown on the first drive of the second half, and then threw a dart to tight end Johnny Mundt to round out his game.
The Vikings are 3-0 for the first time since 2016, and are quickly becoming one of the early surprises in the league. Here are three takeaways from Sunday's dominating victory:
Stroud's streak snapped
The Vikings needed little time to end Houston quarterback C.J. Stroud's streak of passes without a pick.
The second-year quarterback threw an interception on his first throw of the afternoon, a tipped ball that fell into the hands of former Texans linebacker and current Viking Kamu Grugier-Hill. The pick ended a streak of 266 consecutive passes without an interception, dating back to last season.
The turnover allowed the Vikings to score the first points of the game — a 6-yard pass and catch from Sam Darnold to Justin Jefferson. Jefferson also caught a pass on third down earlier in the drive against his former LSU teammate Derek Stingley Jr.
Vikings safety Cam Bynum added another pick in the fourth to help Minnesota preserve the victory. The Vikings scored 14 points off turnovers, the latest coming on a 2-yard strike from Darnold to tight end Johnny Mundt — his first touchdown of the season.
On top of the two turnovers, the Vikings were able to sack Stroud four times, including three by former Texans edge rusher Jonathan Greenard.
"Our guys are answering the challenge," said O'Connell. "It's a collective group effort with total scheme ownership. (Defensive coordinator Brian Flores) has been calling really, really good games — keeping us balanced while keeping our opponents off-balance is the best way I can describe it."
Stroud finished just 20 of 31 for 215 yards one touchdown and two interceptions. The defense also held the Texans to just 38 yards rushing on 14 attempts, and 4 of 14 on third downs.
Scary moment in third quarter
Darnold left Sunday's game against the Houston Texans after getting hit low while making a throw in the third quarter.
Darnold dropped to the turf after completing a pass to running back Aaron Jones for nine yards. Texans edge rusher Danielle Hunter, who spent nine seasons with the Vikings, was penalized 15 yards on the play for roughing the passer, but Darnold was forced to leave the game.
Fortunately for the Vikings, Darnold only missed one play, and stepped back in to lead Minnesota to another scoring drive — a 35-yard field goal to extend the lead to 24-7.
"He'll go through (a medical) evaluation just to kind of rule anything out, but was proud to see him coming back into the game helping take us down the field," O'Connell said.
Jones' big game
Running back Aaron Jones became the first 100-yard rusher of the season for the Vikings by rushing for 102 yards on 19 carries. He also found the end zone on a swing pass from Darnold in the first quarter.
Jones nearly found the end zone again, but was taken down at the 1-yard line following a 39-yard scamper. Jones also caught five passes for 46 yards and the score, to once again prove his versatility in O'Connell's offense.
Extra points
Nailor finds the end zone... again: Third-year receiver Jalen Nailor scored for the third time in three games while filling in for receiver Jordan Addison, who continues to recover from an ankle injury. Nailor has seven catches for 106 yards and three scores.
Will "The Thrill" shows off his leg: The rookie kicker connected on a 58-yard field goal late in the fourth quarter to remain perfect on the season. The kick had plenty of distance, but he used the right upright to bounce the ball through to extend the lead to 34-7.
