A third down and one facing Minnesota and they decide to give it to Sam Darnold on the quarterback sneak - it's quite a long yard it seems but they get it with ease to move the sticks.

Very good from Minnesota as they stop Los Angeles in their tracks and force a punt - even here though the Rams excel as punter Ethan Evans booms a 54-yarder that flies out of bounds at the Minnesota four-yard line.

Special teams can make such a difference in the play-offs - but at least the Vikings get the ball back quickly.

Matthew Stafford goes for a huge bomb downfield to tight end Hunter Long, who does get two hands on the ball, but it slips down through his grasp as he falls backwards and it drops incomplete.

Stafford is getting on in years a bit but he still throws a beautiful deep ball.

That's a bit more like it from Sam Darnold, who hasn't been on the move too much tonight when getting sacked all over the place, but he rolls out to the left now to evade the pass rush then flips a short pass to Jalen Nailor for a first down.

Are we clutching at straws here to think Minnesota can launch a comeback? Sam Darnold isn't giving in as he airs it out for Justin Jefferson who can't take it in when under all sorts of coverage - maybe a bit too much?

Darnold then throws a strike to Jalen Nailor to move the chains as Minnesota look to end a run of 21 straight drives without a touchdown.

Field goal - Ramspublished at 03:15 Greenwich Mean Time 14 January

03:15 GMT 14 January

Minnesota Vikings 3-27 Los Angeles Rams

Rams kicker Joshua Karty slots home the field goal from 34 yards as the lead increases to 24 points midway through the third quarter.

There's no third down conversion this time for LA as Matthew Stafford is slammed down to the turf by Andrew Van Ginkel - with more than a hint of frustration in the way he dealt with the Rams quarterback there.

That's athe good news for Minnesota - the bad news being the Rams are still in field goal range.

On a crucial third down and nine, Matthew Stafford decides this is the time for Cooper Kupp to have his first target of the game, which he turns into a fine 29-yard catch and a huge first down.

Image source, Getty Images

Puka Nacua - again! It's just a short pass from Matthew Stafford but again the star wideout is just impossible to bring down before he rolls over right at the marker to make the first down.

Should be Puka YACua given his yards after catch brilliance.

Ryan Clark on ESPN/NBC: "Every one of these plays feels like a referendum on Sam Darnold and where he'll be next season.

"You're trying to evaluate what he looks like in the biggest moments and in the biggest two games of the season, he wasn't protected and he folded under the pressure."

Pure panic and frustration for Sam Darnold and the Vikings most of the time tonight.

Image source, Getty Images

Sam Darnold is spooked back there! He's eyes are wide and he looks on edge on almost every play - with Jared Verse in particular causing him all sorts of problems with the pass rush pressure he's bringing.

On third down Darnold has Jalen Nailor wide open on a cross route but throws the ball well behind him and Minnesota have to punt - again!

The Vikings get the ball from the kick-off and Sam Darnold hits Jordan Addison for 15 yards before Aaron Jones runs them to midfield - for the fifth time in the game which has so far resulted in just three points.

Jason Kelce on ESPN/NBC: "Matthew Stafford struggled the last few weeks but he is having a helluva game out there. I thought it was going to be Kyren Williams getting some carries but he's had just five. It's been the Matthew Stafford show."

Troy Aikman
Three-time Super Bowl winner on ESPN/ABC

It's been terrible for the Vikings really, on both sides of the ball. The offence hasn't done their part; defence has given up a lot of big plays as well. It hasn't really mattered what the Vikings have tried to do, the Rams have had an answer for it, and it's hard.

Coming off such an emotional game last week and being devastated, the way that the Vikings were, it's hard to come back the very next week and get up for a game like this, and they haven't been able to.

It's not long the half-time break in NFL games, so although we hear a lot about "half-time adjustments" all the time, there's not actually that much time to get plans across to players.

It wouldn't take long for Kevin O'Connell to just tell his side to stop making mistakes - and to protect Sam Darnold a bit more!

Let's see how they get on.

Troy Aikman
Three-time Super Bowl winner on ESPN/ABC

One of the knocks on Sam Darnold is that he will hold the ball and try to create the big play. This is an offence that has been a big-play offence but when you've got pressure, you've got a blitzer coming off the edge, you just cannot sit back there in the pocket and hold onto the football. You have to get it out, especially in play-off football.

[Former Cowboys coach] Jimmy Johnson would always say that in the big games, it's not who makes the most big plays, it's who makes the fewest bad plays. That's a great example of it right there. You just have to live to fight another day.

Image source, Getty Images

It's been a horror show for the Minnesota Vikings so far, with Sam Darnold sacked six times and forcing two turnovers, and Matthew Stafford has thrown two touchdown passes.

Even the one main contentious decidion went against them when Minnesota thought they'd scored on their own fumble recovery - and the way the offence has played a defensive touchdown may be their best route to the end zone.

There's a lot of work to do for Kevin O'Connell's side to do in the second half.

Troy Aikman
Three-time Super Bowl winner on ESPN/ABC

The Vikings had two players on Puka Nacua so nobody then goes with Davis Allen.

When no-one's covering you down there in the red zone and you catch the ball, there's nobody there to tackle you either.