Winners and losers: 4 takeaways from Vikings comeback win over Cardinals in Week 13

Two seasons ago, the Minnesota Vikings made a habit of winning close games en route to securing a spot in the NFL Playoffs. And they're riding that same wave in 2024.

One week after blowing a big lead against the Chicago Bears before securing a three-point victory in overtime, the Vikings were on the other side of things on Sunday, overcoming a 13-point deficit in the second half to take a wild 23-22 win over the Arizona Cardinals.

With the win, Minnesota improved to 10-2 for the season and is now 7-1 in one-score games, the only loss being a two-point defeat to the Detroit Lions in Week 7. Kevin O'Connell & Co. won 11 such contests in 2022, the most in a single season in NFL history.

Let's have a look at some of the winners and losers from the Vikings' Week 13 win over the Cardinals.

Winner: Sam Darnold

Last week against Chicago, Sam Darnold played the hero in overtime, completing six of six pass attempts for 90 yards to set up John Parker Romo's game-winning field goal.

And on Sunday against Arizona, the seventh-year signal-caller stepped up and played the hero role once again.

With the Vikings trailing 19-6, Darnold led a six-play, 70-yard drive that culminated with a 4-yard touchdown pass to tight end Johnny Mundt with 1:17 remaining in the third quarter.

He then notched 104 of his 235 passing yards in the fourth quarter, leading a nine-play, 55-yard drive that resulted in a John Parker Romo field goal and then leading the eight-play, 70-yard drive that ultimately gave the Vikings the lead as he connected with Aaron Jones for a 5-yard touchdown pass.

It's also worth noting that Darnold was turnover-free for the second straight game and was interception-free for the third consecutive game. He also tied for the team lead in rushing with 22 yards on the ground.

Winner: Justin Jefferson

Coming off his worst game of the season against the Bears, one in which he caught just two passes for a season-low 27 yards, Justin Jefferson had a solid bounce-back effort against the Cardinals.

Playing in front of his home fans for the first time in nearly a month, Jefferson was targeted a team-high nine times and hauled in seven passes for 99 yards, none bigger than his 12-yard grab on fourth down that extended what turned out to be the game-winning drive.

With his effort on Sunday, Jefferson now has 1,036 receiving yards on the year, making him just the fourth player in NFL history with 1,000 yards in each of his first five seasons.

Winner: Vikings' red-zone and 4th-quarter defense

While Darnold will get a lot of the credit for this victory with his fourth-quarter performance, the efforts of the Minnesota defense in the final frame certainly shouldn't go unnoticed. But we'll get to that momentarily.

Throughout the afternoon, the Vikings' defensive unit had a tough time stopping Kyler Murray and the Cardinals' offense from marching down the field, as evidenced by the fact that Arizona racked up 406 total yards, the second-highest total Minnesota has allowed all season.

In the first half alone, the Cardinals amassed 228 yards but could only muster a trio of chip-shot field goals as the Vikings shut them down in the red zone.

After a rough third quarter in which Brian Flores' unit allowed 10 points, the Vikings stepped up with some big plays in the fourth.

On just the second play of the period, Murray was forced into a terrible throw that was picked off by Byron Murphy, which ultimately led to the Romo field goal that brought the Vikings within three at 19-16.

Then, on the Cards' final drive of the day following Jones' go-ahead touchdown, Jonathan Greenard picked up the Vikings' first sack of the day with just 48 seconds remaining, forcing Arizona into a third-and-long situation. And just two plays later, Shaquill Griffin secured the victory with his second interception of the season, as Murray targeted Marvin Harrison Jr. on fourth down.

The yardage issues undoubtedly need to be cleaned up, but the Vikings continue to make big plays when absolutely necessary.

Winner/Loser: Aaron Jones

We'll go with the dual designation here for Aaron Jones.

On the one hand, he scored the game-winning touchdown with just 1:13 remaining, so it's hard not to give him credit for that. On the other hand, however, he's struggling to hang onto the football, and it's becoming a genuine concern.

After fumbling just once in the Vikings' first nine games, Jones now has four in the last three weeks and should've been credited with a fifth (Darnold took the hit on that one against the Titans).

The former Packer coughed up the ball on Minnesota's first play from scrimmage on Sunday against Arizona, but it was recovered by Vikings' offensive tackle Brian O'Neill.

Jones fumbled again on the first play of the Vikes' second offensive possession, which could have been disastrous as the Cardinals recovered it on the Minnesota 19-yard line. Luckily for him, the Vikings' defense held, and Arizona kicker Chad Ryland missed a 45-yard field goal.

So, while neither fumble ended up costing his team, it's still an issue Jones needs to get a handle on moving forward.