Vikings-Cardinals recap: Game balls, numbers to know, and what's ahead

LB Za'Darius Smith: The emotional leader of the Vikings defense had three sacks to increase his team-leading number to 8½. His last one squelched the Cardinals' final drive, in which he also batted down a Kyler Murray pass.

RB Dalvin Cook: He had his first 100-yard rushing game of the season and scored a touchdown. He also had five catches for 30 yards. Alexander Mattison and Kirk Cousins also had rushing TDs as the Vikings gained a season-high 173 yards on the ground.

CB Patrick Peterson: It was an eventful game for the former Cardinal. He had three pass breakups to increase his season total to a career-high 10, most importantly tipping away a pass to A.J. Green in the end zone on third down in the first quarter.

6: The Vikings' yard per carry, their best of the season.

0: Number of third-quarter touchdowns the Vikings had scored before Sunday, when they scored two.

5-for-5: The Vikings' red zone efficiency. Since going 2-for-5 in the red zone against the Saints in Week 4, the Vikings have scored touchdowns on 11 of 12 trips to the red zone.

2009: The last season the Vikings started 6-1. They finished 12-4 and went to the NFC Championship Game.

499: Career receptions for Adam Thielen after six on Sunday. He passed Steve Jordan for third place in franchise history.

3,000: Career completions for Kirk Cousins. He's the 31st quarterback in NFL history to reach that mark.

After netting 98 yards vs. Arizona, Justin Jefferson needs 396 more yards to pass Randy Moss' NFL record for most yards in a receiver's first three seasons. He needs to average 124.8 yards over the next 10 games to reach his goal of a 2,000-yard season.

at Washington, Sunday, noon

Let's get this out of the way: This will be Cousins' first game in Washington since signing with the Vikings after the 2017 season. It is also a return to the place where Cousins and Kevin O'Connell first worked together. The Commanders are 4-4 after rallying for a 17-16 win over the Colts. Former Viking Taylor Heinicke, 2-0 as a starting quarterback since Carson Wentz was sidelined because of a finger injury, scored the winning TD with 22 seconds left.

Sept 11: vs. Green Bay, W, 23-7

Sept. 19: at Philadelphia, L, 24-7

Sept. 25: vs. Detroit, W, 28-24

Oct. 2: at New Orleans in London, W, 28-25

Oct. 9: vs. Chicago, W, 29-22

Oct. 16: at Miami, W, 24-16

Oct. 23: BYE

Oct. 30: vs. Arizona, W, 34-26

Nov. 6: at Washington, noon

Nov. 13: at Buffalo, noon

Nov. 20: vs. Dallas, 3:25 p.m.

Nov. 24: vs. New England, 7:20 p.m.

Dec. 4: vs. N.Y. Jets, noon

Dec. 11: at Detroit, noon

Dec. 17 or 18: vs. Indianapolis, TBD

Dec. 24: vs. N.Y. Giants, noon

Jan. 1: at Green Bay, 3:25 p.m.

Jan. 7 or 8: at Chicago, TBD