MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Kyler Murray and the Minnesota Vikings ‘ offense would’ve appreciated a touchdown for their progress down the stretch, but there was only one way to truly secure this victory.
T.J. Hockenson fittingly took the winning slide.
The Vikings stayed undefeated with more dominance by their defense and five field goals from Will Reichard, sidestepping their early passing game problems to beat the winless Miami Dolphins 15-10 on Sunday.
Hockenson tied a career high with 13 receptions for 119 yards on 13 targets from Murray, including the game-sealing 8-yard catch on third-and-5 from the 10. The eighth-year tight end was wide open and could’ve coasted into the end zone, but he wisely slid in front of the goal line to drain the clock to the two-minute warning.
“Once you get the first down, you’ve got to get down,” said Hockenson, who had his highest yardage total since Week 10 of the 2023 season. “It was tough. I saw that goal line and I wanted it, but it’s for the betterment of the team that we ended on offense.”
With the Dolphins out of timeouts, the Vikings had Murray take three straight kneel-downs to move to 4-0 for the second time in three years — despite going without a touchdown in two games.
“If we want to score, we should do it earlier,” Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell said.
Murray finished 27 for 37 for 247 yards without a turnover, but he took four sacks for 34 yards against a Dolphins defense that had none in the first three games and was often tentative and unsteady in the pocket until Hockenson helped him open up the field with a handful of clutch and difficult catches.
The Dolphins, who are 0-4 for the first time since starting 0-7 in 2019 in their first season under then-coach Brian Flores, were crushed by a combination of unforced mistakes — including nine penalties for 55 yards.
New Dolphins quarterback Malik Willis went just 9 for 17 for 85 yards, losing a fumble during one of the two sacks by Dallas Turner. The four teams the Dolphins have faced in coach Jeff Hafley’s first year are 15-1.
“You hate the feeling of continuing to get better without actually gaining wins on the win column, but as we see, we’re going out there and competing,” Willis said.
Willis thought he had escaped the relentless Vikings pass rush to float a 68-yard touchdown pass to Chris Bell early in the second quarter, but Bell was flagged for illegal touching after stepping out of bounds as he moved to get open.
The Vikings had 11 penalties for 85 yards, but they dodged one when Ivan Pace Jr. had a call for roughing the kicker waved off by the video replay assist system’s determination that he tipped Bradley Pinion’s punt and therefore didn’t commit a penalty.
After netting just 76 yards on 21 plays in the first half and failing to finish any possession across midfield, the Dolphins finally found a couple of creases in Minnesota’s suffocating defense directed by Flores.
Ollie Gordon, in an elevated role following the season-ending knee injury to star running back De’Vone Achane, ripped off a career-best 53-yard run on third-and-5 to set up Riley Patterson’s 27-yard field goal. Gordon had a 12-yard touchdown run on the next drive to pull the Dolphins within 12-10.
Vikings offense builds some momentum
Reichard, who stretched the NFL ‘s longest active streak to 31 consecutive made field goals, drew a loud roar when he was shown on the videoboard during the two-minute warning. Murray, on the other hand, heard some mild rounds of boos as the unproductive possessions began to pile up.
But the Vikings had the ball for 14 of 15 minutes in the fourth quarter, accumulating eight first downs.
Aaron Jones also carried another heavy load with 20 carries for 94 yards and four receptions for 34 yards, with the Vikings missing star wide receiver Justin Jefferson (ankle) for the first time since Week 12 of the 2023 season and running back Jordan Mason (thumb) for the third game in a row.
“That door will get kicked down soon,” Murray said.
Injury report
The Vikings played most of the second half without two of their best blockers. Left guard Donovan Jackson (knee) was sidelined in the first quarter and left tackle Christian Darrisaw (neck) was hurt in the second after going head-first into the pile at the end of a run. Darrisaw returned after halftime, only to be pulled again as a precaution for a concussion evaluation following a second hit.
Up next
Dolphins: Host Cincinnati next Sunday.
Vikings: Play at New Orleans next Sunday.
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By DAVE CAMPBELL
AP Pro Football Writer
