It was a strange feeling inside the visitors’ locker room Sunday at Lambeau Field. As excited as the Vikings were to be celebrating a 31-29 win over the Green Bay Packers, there was an underlying tone of frustration that the score was even that close.

No player embodied it more than cornerback Byron Murphy Jr. He wasn’t all that interested in talking about his interception or his forced fumble that earned him a game ball from head coach Kevin O’Connell. He was hung up on the feelings shared by pretty much everybody on the defense.

“That wasn’t the standard,” Murphy said. “We all know that.”

After the Vikings managed to rattle quarterback Jordan Love and the Packers throughout the game, a disastrous final 15 minutes spoiled what would have, could have, should have been the latest coronation for defensive coordinator Brian Flores and his players.

“We found out that it’s hard to win in this league,” Flores said. “Everything can change on a dime. That happened. There was a lot to learn from that standpoint.”

Maybe it was for the best considering the way the Vikings had dominated the New York Giants, San Francisco 49ers and Houston Texans in their first three games.

Eventually, the Vikings were going to have to prove they can win a close game, and while it looked like they were well on their way to blowing out their biggest rivals, the Packers provided a teachable moment by scoring 22 points in the final period.

“It’s human nature to kind of take that foot off the gas a little bit,” Flores said. “We can’t do that against an opponent like that.”

A seemingly insurmountable lead for the Vikings had disappeared in the blink of an eye.

The comeback for the Packers started when receiver Dontayvion Wicks caught a touchdown pass to cut the deficit to 28-14. After a turnover by the Vikings on the next possession, the Packers immediately made them pay with tight end Tucker Kraft catching a touchdown pass to cut the deficit to 28-22.

Though the Vikings increased the lead to 31-22 after veteran quarterback Sam Darnold led a drive that ended in a field goal, the Packers made it 31-29 in the final minute when Love hooked up with Wicks for another touchdown pass.

“We got tested there late in the game,” edge rusher Andrew Van Ginkel said. “We’ve got to come together and figure out how to not let it snowball.”

Truthfully, the Vikings might have been lamenting a loss if Murphy hadn’t intercepted a pass in the end zone, then forced a fumble with a perfectly placed punch along the sideline. Those turnovers helped the Vikings stop the bleeding when the Packers were making their push.

“Thankfully we were able to come out of there with a win,” Flores said. “We talked about the ebbs and flows in the game and the momentum shifts. The power of that momentum almost got us. We were able to take it back with some big plays.”

As he reflected on the struggles for the defense, Flores briefly got into the psychology of playing from ahead. He has been around long enough to understand how hard it can be to stay aggressive when the game starts to get out of hand.

“It’s good to be able to talk about it, because it’s not really something we talk about that often,” Flores said. “It’s good to go through it and know that we have the strength to push through it. I think our guys felt that. They did a good job from that standpoint.”

To his credit, Flores also took accountability for the role he played in the Vikings letting their guard down.

“I’ve looked at myself and said, ‘Hey I could’ve done a better job putting them in better positions,’ ” Flores said. “Nobody is harder on themselves than I am. I’ve got to do a better job from that standpoint. I think I could’ve called it a little bit better and put them in some better positions.”

Meanwhile, his players were equally as hard on themselves, vowing to be better for Flores moving forward.

“The standard is the standard,” safety Cam Bynum said. “We have to come back next week and be ready to play.”

Minnesota Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores watches his players prior to an NFL preseason football game against the Arizona Cardinals, Saturday, Aug. 26, 2023, in Minneapolis. Flores has exceeded even head coach Kevin O’Connell’s expectations for what he could accomplish in his first season as defensive coordinator of the Minnesota Vikings. (AP Photo/Bruce Kluckhohn, File)

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