The Vikings Special Teams Have Been a Mixed Bag All Season
K. Joudry
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The Vikings special teams need to perform better.
At various points, we’ve heard praise directed toward Matt Daniels. In fact, I’ve been among those who have been impressed by him. It’s hard not to like him given how passionate he is about football. He consistently offers tremendous charm and thoughtfulness in his press conferences.
However, the Vikings special teams have been far from dominant. There have been excellent plays, and yet there have been a lot of issues, as well. One thinks of the recent game for two great examples. After Josh Metellus made an awesome play to block a punt, the kickoff cover team allowed a touchdown:
Moverover, the Vikings left 6 points behind since Greg Joseph missed a pair of field goals. After drilling an absolutely remarkable 61-yarder to conclude Week 16, Joseph couldn’t hit big-time kicks in Week 17 to help give his squad a fighting chance.
Truth be told, assigning blame to individual players and coaches is often misguided. Football is a complex sport, one that humbles even the most talented and brilliant. Nevertheless, it’s fair to wonder about how the special teams can keep improving as the season gets closer and closer to its conclusion. The playoffs are on deck, and small mistakes can make a huge difference.
The Vikings Special Teams
By this point, we know that the defense isn’t very good. Minnesota is 31st in the NFL by allowing 25.9 points per game. The hope is merely that the defense can keep the game competitive.
Indeed, Ed Donatell’s group isn’t going to lead this team to a Super Bowl. Maybe they find a way to be better in 2023, but it’s a side of the ball that needs a lot of work. In the immediate, don’t completely sink the Vikings ship. That’s the goal.
The point, folks, is that Minnesota cannot afford to also have their special teams struggle. We all know that the offense is leading the charge, but that’s a task that gets considerably more challenging if both the specials and defense stumble.
Jalen Reagor has talent, but he hasn’t done too much as a punt returner. Kwesi Adofo-Mensah traded for him before the season began, hoping to ignite the returns while giving Kevin O’Connell another weapon on offense. He has returned the ball 25 times for 163 yards this season, a 6.5 yards-per-return average. In one of his best seasons, beloved Vikings punt returner Marcus Sherels averaged more than 15 yards per return. The undersized Sherels cleared 10 yards-per-return at four points in his career.
Currently, Reagor is 19th out of the 20 considered on PFR for punt return average. A total of 7 players are averaging more than 10 yards per return, so Reagor’s modest average is discouraging.
A ton has been said about the kicking situation, so we won’t venture too far down that path. Instead, we’ll merely offer a few of the most pertinent details. A year after putting up an 86.8 FG%, Joseph now has a 76.7 FG%. A year after putting up a 90.0 XP%, Joseph now has an 88.4 XP%.
Ryan Wright, to be sure, has been a bright spot. The rookie punter has consistently done a nice job of avoiding touchbacks while also showing an ability pick up some huge yards. After a slow start to the year, Kene Nwangwu has looked more decisive and explosive. His touchdown stands out, but he had several great gains against Green Bay.
Furthermore, we mustn’t forget several of the other strong performances from different individuals. Matt Daniels deserves credit for helping LS Andrew DaPaola make it to the Pro Bowl, just as he has helped allow Josh Metellus to be such a consistent tackler and Kris Boyd be such a nightmare from the gunner spot.
Therein lies the issue, though: the Vikings special teams have done some excellent things and some not-so-excellent things. Making a run in the postseason is going to require less back and forth between these two extremes, instead residing firmly in the “excellent special teams” category.
In a perfect world, we’ll see a crisp day for the special teams in Week 18. The Bears game will take place at Soldier Field. That game can hopefully function as the on-ramp to the highway that is the postseason, a period of Vikings football where the specials are (hopefully) sensational.
Editor’s Note: Information from Pro Football Reference helped with this piece.
