Vikings avoid major injury scare that could’ve ended Sam Darnold-aissance

There's nothing better to build confidence in your team than a matchup against the New York Giants.

That's a lesson well learned by the Minnesota Vikings in Week 1. Those fretting over life after Kirk Cousins before the game are now floating on air. Sam Darnold tore through the Giants defense like a hot knife through butter, completing 19-of-24 passes for 208 yards and two touchdowns. He did throw an interception, but it was a tipped pass under pressure. The lows were few and far between for a very efficient Darnold.

In the end, Minnesota emerged with a comfortable 28-6 victory. As Giants fans descend into their annual state of existential panic, Vikings fans are wondering what the ceiling may be for this talented offense. Darnold put a few impressive throws on tape Sunday afternoon and there's no shortage of playmaking firepower in his orbit.

If there was a damper on the Vikings afternoon, it came when second-year wideout Jordan Addison suffered an ankle injury.

Addison dealt with a high-ankle sprain in the weeks leading up to Minnesota's season opener, which added an extra layer of concern to the situation. Thankfully, there was a swift and positive update on Addison's status after the game. The 22-year-old isn't expected to miss much time, according to head coach Kevin O'Connell.

Jordan Addison avoids serious injury in Vikings dominant Week 1 win over Giants

The talented wideout will undergo "more tests" on his ankle tomorrow, per NFL Network's Ian Rapoport, but it is not expected to be a serious injury. That is a huge boon for the Vikings, who expect Addison to wreak havoc opposite Justin Jefferson in one of the NFL's most potent WR rooms.

It's hard to overstate how comfortable Darnold looked in his first week at the reins. It's easy to give up on former top picks after a couple wayward seasons, but team context is often the No. 1 factor in quarterback success. Obviously, talent and work ethic separate the great from the good, but Darnold put in a season as Brock Purdy's understudy on a top-shelf 49ers team, and now he's tasked with calling the shots for a dynamic Vikings offense.

Surrounded by the NFL's highest-paid WR (Justin Jefferson), as well as its third-highest-paid tight end (T.J. Hockenson, who wasn't even available in Week 1), Darnold has no shortage of quality weapons around him. Aaron Jones was highly efficient on the ground in New York (6.1 YPC), which set the table for an efficient air attack. The Vikings' offensive line also deserves a ton of credit. Darnold was sitting in the pocket for what felt like ages, sacked only once all game. Even the worst QBs will pick apart a defense if there's no pressure.

Addison is an essential piece to the puzzle for Minnesota moving forward. His speed opposite Jefferson gives opposing defensive backs a headache and a half. He isn't completely out of the weeds yet — we need to see what these further tests reveal — but from the look of it, Addison won't miss too much time. With a tough upcoming schedule that includes San Francisco, Houston, and Green Bay back to back to back, that is very much a blessing. Minnesota needs all the help it can get to keep this momentum going.