Minnesota Vikings Defense Makes History in Dominant Win over Colts

It might have been ugly and the offense wasn't great, but the Minnesota Vikings (6-0) secured yet another win on Sunday. The Vikings went on the road and defeated the Indianapolis Colts, 16-10.

The performance from the offense left something to be desired, but the defense made history in the game per Next Gen Stats. They gave the following description of the performance.

"The Vikings defense blitzed on 85.2% of Daniel Jones' dropbacks, the highest blitz rate by a defense in a game in the Next Gen Stats era (since 2016).

Minnesota generated pressure on 60.9% of those blitzes, with all four its sacks coming when blitzing."

Field Level Media recorded the description of the Vikings' win. It wasn't the performance you would think would net historic accolades.

"Jonathan Taylor rushed for 95 yards and a touchdown to lead Indianapolis (2-5). Daniel Jones completed 13 of 22 yards for 108 yards and an interception. Smith picked off Jones with 1:08 remaining to spoil the Colts' final comeback attempt.

The Vikings trailed for most of the game, only taking the lead early in the fourth quarter. ... The Colts opened the scoring on their first possession. Taylor took a pitch left, weaved through the line of scrimmage and outraced the Vikings' secondary for a 38-yard rushing touchdown with 9:13 to go in the first quarter. The play marked Taylor's eighth touchdown in seven games this season."

So, in short, the Vikings found themselves down 10-6 due to an almost 40-yard touchdown run from Colts running back Jonathan Taylor. So how was the performance so historic? The Vikings' innovation made it that way.

Blitzing 85% of the time is unprecedented since that metric began being monitored. The Vikings sent five rushers or more on 85% of Jones' passes.

Making such a move is inherently risky given what could go wrong when you blitz. A timely slant or screen or a run that hits right could spell trouble against a blitz caught out of alignment.

The Colts managed to get a touchdown and a field goal before half, but that was all the offense for the team. The Vikings' radical approach paid off big time as Minnesota held Indianapolis scoreless in the second half.

There were negatives to focus on if you're a Minnesota fan. Certainly, the lack of offense and the breakout performance of now New York Giants quarterback J.J. McCarthy certainly delivered those negatives. But the Vikings are 6-0 and still control their own destiny.

Minnesota will look to continue its hold on the NFC North as we move to Week 8.