A 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on Garrett Bradbury can be partially blamed for killing a drive when the Vikings were leading the Cardinals 7-3 on Sunday.
Why did the refs flag Bradbury for taunting? He apparently told Arizona’s Budda Baker that he’s “soft,” according to running back Dalvin Cook.
“If you would’ve heard what it was, it was just like, ‘you soft.'” Cook explained. “They was going at it and Garrett just said ‘you soft’ and the ref threw the flag up in the air. It was just like … football talk. You know what I’m saying, like taking the fun out of the game. Garrett didn’t do nothing crazy. Garrett ain’t that type of person.”
The flag was thrown after Cook gashed the Cardinals for a 30-yard run, setting the Vikings up with a first down at the Arizona 36-yard line. But the penalty brought Minnesota back to their own 49, and five plays later Kirk Cousins overthrew Adam Thielen and the Vikings turned the ball over on downs.
Had that penalty not been called, the Vikings surely would’ve moved deeper into Arizona territory and at a minimum could’ve sent Greg Joseph on for a manageable field goal.
But if you were curious about the penalty, that’s apparently what happened.
The Vikings went on to win 34-26, but not without posting two big fourth quarter stops while leading by one score. Had that penalty not been called, we might be talking about the game in an entirely different narrative.
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