The Minnesota Vikings were one of the best first-quarter teams in the NFL in 2024. So it doesn’t come as a surprise that they were one of the best teams in scripted plays to begin games.

The “script” typically refers to the first 15 plays an offense calls, which are used to determine how defenses defend different plays and concepts. These plays are pre-determined before the game, leaning heavily on game-planning.

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According to PFF, the Minnesota Vikings tied with the Baltimore Ravens as the top teams in EPA on scripted plays in 2024. EPA (expected points added) measures how much a play helps (or hurts) a team’s chances of scoring. So if a team makes a big play that puts them in scoring range, EPA goes up. If they lose yards or turn it over, EPA drops. It’s a way to track how valuable each play is, not just how many yards it gained.

The Vikings averaged 0.197 EPA per play in 2024. Much of that success came with lining Sam Darnold up under center in scripted situations.

The offense lived under center on scripted plays, with 54.9% coming from under center, the second-highest rate in the NFL. That allowed O’Connell to disguise and blend run and pass concepts through similar formations and groupings, but the Vikings passed on 60.3% of their scripted plays, which was the sixth-highest rate in the NFL. When they ran the ball, the Vikings usually stuck to outside-zone plays, which they called 41% of the time, or man/duo run concepts, which they deployed at the fourth-highest rate in the league.

Getting off to a hot start was key for the Vikings to game-plan the rest of the game, and they scored a touchdown on 39.6% of their scripted-play drives — the second-highest clip in the NFL.

The success with Darnold at quarterback gives optimism that Kevin O’Connell can prop J.J. McCarthy up in his first season as a starter in 2025. If the Vikings can once again capitalize on early drives and give McCarthy leads, then Minnesota could once again be competing for the NFC’s top seed in 2025.

This article originally appeared on Vikings Wire: Vikings near the top of the NFL in unique stat for 2024 season