Was it the prettiest win? Not by any stretch of the imagination.

It was probably among the ugliest wins the Vikings will have this season.

That said, the Vikings traveled across the pond and secured a 23-17 win over the New York Jets on Sunday at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London. In doing so, the Vikings will enter their bye week with a perfect 5-0 record, sitting comfortably atop the NFC North division.

That’s not insignificant.

As for the game itself, the Vikings left a lot to be desired against the Jets, jumping out to a 17-point lead before having to once again hang on for dear life in the final minutes.

Here are five takeaways from the Vikings’ victory:

1. The defense once again stepped up

As good as the group led by defensive coordinator Brian Flores has been, this might have been its best work yet. In a matchup against future Hall of Fame quarterback Aaron Rodgers, not only did the defense hold its own, it actually carried the Vikings to victory. Whether it was the early interception return for a touchdown by edge rusher Andrew Van Ginkel, or the late interception by veteran cornerback Stephon Gilmore, the Vikings got everything they needed from that side of the ball and then some. It was an incredible performance from the defense that was necessary with how much the offense struggled throughout the game.

2. Andrew Van Ginkel for DPOY

Are we sure Van Ginkel isn’t the best player on the defense? He had an interception for a touchdown for the second time this season to give the Vikings a major boost in the early stages. On the play, Van Ginkel dropped into coverage, read the eyes of Rodgers, and hauled in the interception in the middle of the field. As soon as Van Ginkel gained possession, he raced the other way like a runaway train, trotting into the end zone for what went down as a 63-yard touchdown. As crazy as it might sound, if Van Ginkel can keep it up, he’s going to be in the conversation for Defensive Player of the Year when everything is said and done.

3. The importance of Aaron Jones was palpable

As sloppy as the Vikings offense looked for prolonged stretches even with running back Aaron Jones in the game, it was noticeably more sloppy when he left the game. He was ruled out with a hip injury after testing it out of the sideline, and fellow running back Ty Chandler became the primary ball carrier  There wasn’t much running room for Chandler, who finished with 14 carries for 30 yards. Everything became so much more difficult for the offense from there as Darnold was unable to get anything going. Some of that falls on the shoulders of  head coach Kevin O’Connell. There wasn’t much rhythm to his play-calling, and while he gets a little bit of grace because Jones is such a big part of the offense, O’Connell needs to be better moving forward regardless of who’s in the backfield.

4. Harrison Smith reached a milestone

After going unblocked off the edge and sacking Rodgers in the backfield, safety Harrison Smith joined rare company with 30-plus interceptions and 20-plus sacks in his NFL career. The only other players in NFL history with those numbers are hall of famer defenders Ronde Barber, Leroy Butler, Brian Dawkins, Rodney Harrison, Larry Wilson and Charles Woodson. Let’s just say Smith continues to put together a good case for himself as he hunts down a gold jacket.

5. More struggles on specials teams

In complete control with a couple of minutes to go before halftime, the Vikings gave the Jets some much-needed life with some sloppy play on special teams. It started with a senseless illegal block in the back by safety Jay Ward after punt returner Brandon Powell had already turned the corner. That put the Vikings into the shadow of their own goal post, where the offense failed to record a first down. To make matters worse, the Vikings went on to allow a long punt return, which set the Jets up for a touchdown to cut into the deficit. It got worse after halftime as cornerback Akayleb Evans got called for kick catch interference and linebacker Ivan Pace Jr. got called for roughing the kicker.