Vikings win edge rusher swap, too, as Jonathan Greenard outshines Texans’ Danielle Hunter

It was bad enough for Greenard that Houston let him leave in free agency. Then during Sunday's opening snap, Greenard drew a holding penalty when the Texans had rookie tight end Cade Stover try to block him.

"First play of the game you're going to put a tight end on him?" Vikings right tackle Brian O'Neill said. "One of our best edge rushers? You don't do that if you respect an edge rusher. And they let him walk in free agency. That was pretty telling to us."

"I'm glad I'm here in Minnesota because obviously they respect me," Greenard said. "If anyone else want to do that, they can try."

Houston tried it again later in the first quarter. Greenard put Stover on his back before wrapping quarterback C.J. Stroud in his arms. Greenard's second sack came with a quick speed rush around right guard Shaq Mason.

Before Greenard's third sack, defensive tackle Harrison Phillips told him on the sideline that he needed to get the hat trick. In the fourth quarter, Phillips set up Greenard for the third takedown when he let Stroud slip away from his grasp; Greenard was there to clean it up and take down his former teammate.

"They were like, 'This is going to be a big game [for you],'" Greenard said. "I didn't want to make it more than what it was because it's obviously my former team. I didn't want to get too high in the game, I just wanted to play my [style] and when my number is called make plays."

"You'll have to check the tape," Phillips said. "I told him I needed a hat trick and he had it. One of these days I'm going to call my own number, but I'm a team player."

"He did a lot of special stuff here for a lot of years," O'Neill said, "and I'm not sure he gets the credit he deserves."

"He's just like, 'Hey, I just want you to know: whoever was blocking me trapped his arms," O'Neill recalled. "He fell into [Darnold]. He wasn't going for his knee. He's like, 'You know me, bro, we've played together for six years I just want you to know and you can tell him I apologize, I wasn't trying to go for his knee.' I just felt like that needed to be said."

Saquon Barkley and the Eagles emerged from a flood of Philadelphia-style scrutiny and delivered a masterclass on grinding out — and closing out — a physical, defensive struggle in which a lot went wrong before it ended just right.