Notebook: Charcandrick West’s lost fumble had friendly help

Running back Charcandrick West, who drew his first career start, coughed up the football after a 1-yard gain and the Vikings recovered to ice the game.

“The fumble killed everything,” West said. “That stopped any momentum that we had.”

The 2-2 Minnesota Vikings are by no means one of the league’s best, but following a home loss to one of the NFL’s worst teams, the Kansas City Chiefs will settle for any win they can take.

The Chiefs’ defense looked stout against the run, giving up only 60 yards to Adrian Peterson.

The Chiefs (1-5) netted 51 yards in the first half and were penalized for 50 yards, but they found a rhythm after the break with five receptions for 88 yards by tight end Travis Kelce. Alex Smith will be throwing a lot more short passes and quick screens to keep this defense from zeroing in on him.

The yellow flags flew all afternoon, most critically against the Chiefs.

Floyd’s rush on the opening drive drew a hold that should’ve resulted in a safety, since the Chiefs were backed up to their own 2-yard line and the penalty occurred in the end zone.

Kicker Blair Walsh connected on all three field-goal attempts – one from 24 yards and two from 45 yards – as well as one extra point. It’s heartbreaking to see this happen on a non-contact play.

Diggs saved his best for when the Vikings’ lead suddenly felt far less comfortable. The Chiefs final drive ended with four consecutive incomplete passes and KC dropped their fifth straight game that plunges their record to 1-5 on the season. Here are the questions I posed to him and his answers…once he’s posted the questions he sent to me and my answers, we’ll have them on the front page here. Alex Smith is not an elite quarterback who can win games without an abundance of talent around him in the skill positions.

“That killed it. Killed it all”, West said.

“We were very confident”. But then came last week’s stunning loss to a Bears team missing two starters on the offensive line and two starting receivers.

Bridgewater did not find the same success in the second half either, ending up with 249 yards on 17 completions and not finding the end zone again after his first-half scoring pass to Rudolf. Smith and the offense finally woke up and in the third quarter alone, Smith completed 9 of 12 passes for 120 yards.

The Chiefs would not be shut out today though, as Carlos Santos scored a field goal in the fourth quarter and that sparked his team into life as rookie Marcus Peters would pick off Bridgewater as momentum began to swing. Really, when it’s all said and done, one of the best in the history of the game.

In the days after Adrian Peterson tore the ligaments in his left knee in a game against Washington, Chiefs running back Jamaal Charles reached out to him with encouragement. That penalty was costly because it likely could have been a punting situation for the Vikings without it, but instead, just five plays later, Bridgewater would throw his only touchdown of the game to Kyle Rudolph. Kansas City got the ball back late but were unable to score and the Vikings held on for the win. His long run of the day was 26 yards. But 10 tackles from rookie linebacker Eric Kendricks, getting extended playing time with the trade of Gerald Hodges during the bye week, highlighted an, at times, dominant effort on that side of the ball.

Vikings cornerback Captain Munnerlyn had a big game, breaking up several passes and making several key tackles. After debuting two weeks ago against Denver with six catches and 87 yards, Diggs went over the century mark for the first time in his career, hauling in seven passes for 129 yards.