–Wide receiver Adam Thielen has 18 receptions through the first two weeks of the season, tied with Percy Harvin for the most in team history through two games. Thielen is also joined by Tampa Bay receiver DeSean Jackson and Pittsburgh receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster as the only players with at least 100 yards receiving in each of the first two games this season. Thielen’s dramatic touchdown catch in the fourth quarter helped Minnesota push last week’s game at Green Bay to overtime as he hauled in a pass that found its way through two defenders.
“Adam made not only that catch, which was a great catch, but also a great throw by Kirk,” head coach Mike Zimmer said. “The guy, he was getting hit around the knees at the time and he made a great throw. Adam is a great competitor. Great catch in the overtime on the over route, so we’re glad we have him.”
–Defensive tackle Sheldon Richardson is fitting in well as the only new defensive starter this season for Minnesota. Richardson has six quarterback hits and a half-sack in each game. Richardson and end Everson Griffen combine to tie Philadelphia’s Fletcher Cox and Chris Long for the most quarterback hits of any duo in the league this season. “He’s been doing really well,” Zimmer said of Richardson. “It’s a position we were looking for more rush there, and he’s helped us quite a bit. It’s helped with the ends. I think that’s helped Linval (Joseph) and those guys.”
–Tight end Kyle Rudolph caught a touchdown pass in last week’s game and now has 16 touchdown catches since the start of the 2016 season, tied with Green Bay’s Jimmy Graham for the most among NFL tight ends.
–Safety Harrison Smith, who won defensive player of the week after Week 1, is the only player in the NFL with at least six interceptions and two sacks since the start of the 2017 season.
–Quarterback Kirk Cousins passed for 319 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions against Buffalo on Dec. 20, 2015. Cousins also ran for a touchdown in the game and was 22-of-28 passing. Cousins is coming off a game in which he had 425 passing yards at Green Bay last week, tied for the fourth-most yards on the road in Vikings history.
–Former head coach Dennis Green will be inducted into the Vikings Ring of Honor during a halftime ceremony on Sunday. Green’s teams went 101-70-0 overall during his tenure, the second-most wins of any coach behind Hall of Famer Bud Grant. Green led Minnesota to four Central Division titles and two NFC championship games. “I know he was a great coach here,” Zimmer said. “Seemed like every time we played him when I was a defensive coordinator, he kicked my butt. It’s well-deserving, great for his family and I’m sure everybody wishes he was still here to be here for that.”
BY THE NUMBERS: 5 – Consecutive games in which Stefon Diggs has a touchdown reception. He trails only Hall of Famers Cris Carter and Randy Moss for the longest streaks in team history. Carter had a six-game streak that spanned the 1996-97 seasons and a seven-game run in 1999. Moss had a seven-game streak in 1998 and a team-best, 10-game stretch from 2003-04.
