Patriots vs. Vikings Final Score: Pats Dominate, Win 30-7

The Patriots bounced back in a big way against the Vikings, as they went out and dominated Minnesota on their way to an easy 23 point victory. Matt Cassel got his team off to a good start, leading the Vikings right down the field on their opening drive, but that was the high point of this game for them, as the Pats took over from there.

Cassel was sacked six times in this game, and was picked off three times as well. New England’s defense played awesome all game long, in both the run game, and passing game. Minnesota amassed a mere 217 total yards in this one, with most of them coming in the first half. Led by Chandler Jones, the Patriots absolutely smothered the Vikes, which is a great sign for the future. The Vikings were held to 54 rushing yards on 2.8 yards a carry, and the biggest reason for that was the great tackling and defensive line play of the Pats. A much improved area from their disastrous week one performance.

Tom Brady‘s offense wasn’t great, but it was passable. They did what they had to do to win, which was control the clock, run the football, and not turn the football over. Stevan Ridley had a great game, running for over 100 yards on 25 carries, and getting his first touchdown of the year. The Pats’ offensive line wasn’t that great in the running game, which makes Ridley’s performance even more impressive.

Brady was only sacked once in this one, which speaks to how the offensive line really bounced back in pass protection. Now, the Pats relied heavily on the run game, and play-action to give Brady time, but the point is they gave Brady time to work. Brady finished the game 15 for 22 for 149 yards, and one impressive touchdown to Julian Edelman.

And of course, we have to mention Chandler Jones’ amazing special-teams play at the end of the first half. Jones not only blocked the field goal, but he picked the ball up, and returned it for the touchdown. Jones is one of, if not the most athletic defensive lineman in the league, and I have a feeling he is going to have a monster year.

Stay here on Musket Fire all day long for more analysis on the game.