MINNEAPOLIS — The Green Bay Packers faced a third-and-8 early in the third quarter, and this muddled, anticlimactic border battle with the Minnesota Vikings was trudging along.

Then Dallas Turner came screaming off the left edge, leaving Packers tackle Jordan Morgan in his dust. Turner quickly closed on quarterback Clayton Tune, dropping him for a sack and ending Green Bay’s drive right then and there. It was exactly the kind of overpowering play the Vikings anticipated when they traded up to draft him in the first round in 2024. It was the kind of play that Turner delivered much more often down the stretch of his second NFL season.

.@UnoErra off the edge gooooooood lord.

📺: @NFLonCBS pic.twitter.com/4Pk9RIb5nD

— Minnesota Vikings (@Vikings) January 4, 2026

The Vikings wrapped up a disappointing season on Sunday with a 16-3 victory over the Packers, who rested many of their starters with their playoff position already secure. Minnesota now heads into the offseason with a plethora of questions to answer. What do they do at quarterback? Will Brian Flores return as defensive coordinator? How will they upgrade the roster with a salary cap situation that is bursting at the seams?

With the way Turner played down the stretch this season, his future with this team and in this league is not one of them. Turner had two sacks, a forced fumble and six tackles in the finale, finally looking like the player the Vikings believed so much in when they took him 17th. His big day resulted in him finishing the season with eight sacks, 6.5 of which came in the final eight games.

“I feel that I have to live up to the standard on this defense,” Turner said. “Just stuff that’s emphasized every day when we get opportunities like that.”

To understand the expectations the Vikings had for Turner when he was coming out of Alabama, one need only look at the price general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah paid to get him. He sent the Jacksonville Jaguars his 2024 first-rounder (the 23rd pick, which became receiver Brian Thomas), a 2024 fifth-rounder and third- and fourth-round picks in 2025 to move up six spots to take Turner.

He certainly looks the part. In a locker room filled with enormous bodies, Turner still stands out. He is 6 feet 3 and 247 pounds, one of the last big waves from Nick Saban’s Crimson Tide.

Turner arrived in Minnesota with all the physical tools to become a great pass rusher. But he was one of the youngest players in that draft, and his first experience with Flores’ exotic scheme and demanding coaching style was overwhelming. He had just three sacks and 20 tackles as a rookie, playing sparingly behind veterans Andrew Van Ginkel and Jonathan Greenard.

“It’s hard to play for a coach like B-Flo. He demands a lot,” said Van Ginkel, who also played for Flores in Miami. “The scheme is always changing, always evolving. You have to stay on your toes, and that’s hard for a young guy to do.”

There was so much more for Turner to absorb than simply turning the corner and putting pressure on the passer. Flores loves to play mind games with quarterbacks. That requires players being able to disguise coverages, to move around pre-snap and to understand the game at an elite level. It was a lot for Turner to digest.

There were times when it was fair to wonder if he would figure it out. But the back half of Year 2 has been promising. Not only has Turner sacked the quarterback at an elite level, but also he is much more active in the run game. He finished with 66 tackles on the season, 15 quarterback hits and four strip-sacks, which is tied with Arizona’s Josh Sweat for the league lead. It is the most by a Viking since Jared Allen had four in 2011.

.@UnoErra is a force.

📺: @NFLonCBS pic.twitter.com/GVftVY95dR

— Minnesota Vikings (@Vikings) January 4, 2026

Turner’s first sack Sunday came in a one-on-one matchup against tight end Drake Dabney, who was brought up from the practice squad for a game the Packers were not concerned with winning. The second was against backup left tackle Jordan Morgan, so it wasn’t like he was beating up on All-Pros. But the encouraging part for the Vikings was that Turner made both of them look inferior, which is exactly what a first-round pick is supposed to do.

He won’t turn 23 until next month, so the learning curve is understandably longer for him. The growing pains have been real, but they’ll ultimately be worth it if the improvement he has shown over the last month continues.

“I feel like the age thing, it has its pros and its cons,” Turner said. “I just feel blessed and fortunate to go out there and do what I do at the age I’m at.”

Through all of the ups and downs, Turner has leaned on Van Ginkel for guidance. The seventh-year veteran speaks fluent Flores, often serving as an interpreter of sorts between professor and student. There can be times when Flores will be forceful in his messaging to young players after they make mistakes. Van Ginkel has been there, and he can help Turner focus on the content of the message, rather than how it’s delivered.

“Every time I’ve been with Flo, you see young guys struggle because it’s so much, it’s so demanding,” Van Ginkel said. “For him to be able to overcome that and play at a high level, you see his quickness. His speed off the ball is special. Next year, he’s going to be a great player, and I’m excited to watch it.”

J.J. McCarthy was also part of the 2024 draft class and has experienced his own highs and lows early in his career. So few on the team have the perspective that he does on Turner’s path with this team and this staff. Seeing him find his way late in his second season has served as an inspiration of sorts for McCarthy’s own career.

“He’s a special human being,” McCarthy said of Turner. “He’s on to great things. He’s got all the tools you could possibly imagine. But he’s got the mentality. And that’s something I can put all my chips in for.”

There was some poetic symmetry on Sunday against their division rivals. While Turner was exploding onto the scene and laying the foundation for a bright future, Harrison Smith was soaking up what was, in all likelihood, the last game of an incredible career. Past teammates such as Xavier Rhodes, Anthony Barr and Andrew Sendejo came to honor him. Teammates Isaiah Rodgers and Josh Metellus wore his jersey to the stadium.

Late in the game, coach Kevin O’Connell called a timeout, and referee John Hussey announced that it was taken “to honor Harrison Smith.” He received a standing ovation as he walked off the field for the last time, and Turner watched it all unfold.

“That was legendary to be a part of it, to be on the field to give him his flowers,” he said. “It’s a blessing to be a sponge on this defense, soaking in all the knowledge I can.”

That’s all the Vikings can ask of their young understudy. To take his lumps and keep pushing forward. To keep his focus on the big picture in the midst of early-career struggles. Who knows if he’ll ever be in a position to receive the same kind of adulation that Smith did on Sunday? But after watching the progress he made in Year 2, Minnesota will head into the offseason knowing that Turner will be a part of its plans for years to come.

“I told him I’m proud of him,” Van Ginkel said. “He’s gone through a lot this year. It hasn’t always been easy. He’s been behind me and (Greenard). I told him, ‘When you get your opportunity, be ready to go.’ Those opportunities, you have to take advantage of them and show you can improve and be coachable. … He’s shown constant improvement.”