GREEN BAY, Wis. — Though it wasn’t necessarily the blowout it looked to be early, the Vikings held on down the stretch and earned a hard fought win over the Green Bay Packers on Sunday afternoon at Lambeau Field.

There were a number of standouts on offense and defense as the Vikings built a big lead in the opening 30 minutes of play. There were also a number of big plays that allowed them to hold on for the win when the Packers came charging late.

Here are five takeaways from Vikings’ 31-29 win over Packers

1. The rise of Sam Darnold continues

It’s time to stop waiting for the other shoe to drop with veteran quarterback Sam Darnold. He’s continues to put up impressive performance after impressive performance and it looks completely sustainable given the support system around him. In the win over the Packers, Darnold completed 20 of 28 passes for 275 yards and 3 touchdowns. He helped the Vikings jump the Packers with some excellent play before halftime, then showed incredible poise when things got hairy after halftime. The most pivotal moment of the game came when the Vikings walked into the huddle after the Packers cut the deficit to 28-22 with about 10 minutes to play. On that drive, Darnold completed a pair of passes to star receiver Justin Jefferson to take the edge off, leading the Vikings to a field goal that proved to be the difference.

2. More ridiculousness from Justin Jefferson

Speaking of Jefferson, he made a ridiculous play in the final minutes, contorting his body along the sideline, then getting his feet down like legendary receiver Cris Carter in his prime. That catch helped the Vikings milk the clock, which played a key role in them holding on for the win. Asked about that catch postgame, Darnold put it up there among the best he’s ever seen. There was another brilliant play from Jefferson early in the game, as well, as he hauled in a touchdown while being blanketed by a defender, displaying ball skills like legendary Randy Moss in his prime. It’s fitting that Jefferson paid homage to both legendary receivers in the game. He’s a legendary receiver himself after all.

3. Welcome back Jordan Addison

Let’s just say receiver Jordan Addison made his presence felt in his return. After missing the past two games with an ankle injury, Addison suited up against the Packers and scored a pair of touchdowns. He hauled in a 29-yard touchdown pass from Darnold on the first drive of the game after cooking cornerback Corey Ballentine with a stutter and go. He then took a jet sweep for a touchdown later in the game after making cornerback Keisean Nixon miss with a nasty move in the open field.

4.  The defense stepped up amid some struggles

After intercepting a pass last weekend, veteran linebacker Kamu Grugier-Hill provided an encore this weekend intercepting star quarterback Jordan Love in the early stages. It’ll be interesting to see if Grugier-Hill sees the field more even after injured linebacker Ivan Pace Jr. is back to full strength. Aside from that, the Vikings also got an interception from veteran cornerback Shaq Griffin, and an interception and a forced fumble from veteran cornerback Byron Murphy Jr. Those takeaways were very important for the defense after it gave up way too many points after halftime. Though some of the credit goes to the Packers for making it a game, the Vikings know they can play better on defense moving forward.

5. Jalen Nailor showed value of Brandon Powell

After getting dinged up shortly before halftime, receiver Brandon Powell left the game, which thrust fellow receiver Jalen Nailor into the role of punt returner. It went poorly for Nailor as he muffed a punt with the Vikings in complete control. After recovering the fumble near the goal line, the Packers scored a touchdown to give themselves some life. Notably, Powell returned to the game and immediately resumed his role as punt returner.

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