Vikings down the stretch want to continue to win while also keeping players fresh

The Vikings would love to have it both ways in their final two games. They want to wrap up at least the No. 2 seed in the NFC and keep players fresh.

Minnesota (12-3) has clinched the NFC North and has a one-game lead over San Francisco for the No. 2 seed, although the 49ers (11-4) would win a possible tiebreaker. The Vikings close the season Sunday at Green Bay and the following weekend at Chicago.

“It’s a balance between making sure we’re doing everything we can to still win football games,’’ head coach Kevin O’Connell said Monday. “There’s a lot out in front of us as a team. … There’s still a lot to be said for trying to give ourselves an opportunity for the most amount of home (playoff) games we possibly can (get) while also making sure we’re taking care of our roster … from a snap-count standpoint.”

The Vikings wrapped up the division with a 39-36 overtime win over Indianapolis on Dec. 17. In last Saturday’s 27-24 home win over the New York Giants, they looked to keep snaps down for some defensive starters.

At safety, Harrison Smith, who usually is in for every snap, played 59 of 69. Spelling him was Josh Metellus, who played 13 snaps, some as a nickel back.

“(Metellus) continues to show a real level of instinct and kind of finding a nice role in our secondary,’’ O’Connell said.

At inside linebacker, Eric Kendricks, who was nursing a hip injury and also usually plays every snap, was in for 56 snaps. And Jordan Hicks played a season-low 46 snaps. Coming in off the bench was rookie Brian Asamoah for 27 plays.

“You can feel Brian’s speed and athleticism on the field when he’s out there,’’ O’Connell said.

On the defensive line, there was plenty of rotating, although some of that had to do with injuries. One-time starter Jonathan Bullard is on injured reserve with a biceps injury. James Lynch was lost for the second half against the Giants when he aggravated a shoulder injury. O’Connell said Lynch won’t play at Green Bay, and a source said he also is expected to sit out against the Bears.

Getting a career-high 18 snaps on the line against the Giants was Esezi Otomewo, a rookie from the University of Minnesota. O’Connell said “his energy and athleticism shows up (and) he’s flying around out there.”

It remains to be seen what the Vikings might do to reduce some snaps for starters on offense in the final two games. But stay tuned.

Seeking balanced attack

The Vikings this season are attempting to pass on 65.2 percent of their plays and looking to run on 34.8 percent. O’Connell wants to see the gap close on that.

“You definitely want to be as balanced as you possibly can,’’ he said.

Kirk Cousins dropped back to pass 52 times against the Giants. The Vikings had just 19 runs, with Dalvin Cook carrying 14 times for 64 yards.

“I thought Dalvin ran the ball well and definitely probably deserved a few more opportunities,’’ O’Connell said. “It just how that game went.”

O’Connell said the Vikings “want to be more balanced” than they were against the Giants and “that’s on me as a play caller.” He said the Vikings looked to be “more aggressive throwing the football on early downs” and when they “saw a couple real opportunities for us to stay on the field as an offense.”

Overall, the Vikings have been behind in many games this season and have needed to throw. Cousins has steered an NFL-record eight fourth-quarter comebacks. The Vikings have won a league-record 11 one-score games while losing none. The previous record was 10 such wins by the Houston Oilers in 1979 and Seattle in 2019.

Briefly

O’Connell said center Garrett Bradbury, who has missed the past three games with a lower back injury, “continues to trend upward” but didn’t speculate on his chances of playing Sunday. … Indications are cornerback Akayleb Evans is recovering well from his third concussion and is expected to play again this season. He has missed three games since being placed on injured reserve Dec. 7, and must sit out at least one more before being eligible to return. … Edge rusher Danielle Hunter had seven tackles against the Giants, including two sacks. “Danielle had one of his better games,” O’Connell said.