A Closer Look At How Minnesota’s Skill Guys Perform Against Seattle

Justin Jefferson and Adam Thielen
Sep 27, 2020; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Adam Thielen (19) celebrates his touchdown with wide receiver Justin Jefferson (18) in the second quarter against the Tennessee Titans at U.S. Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brad Rempel-USA TODAY Sports

The upcoming Seattle game, as I’ve previously noted, feels like a must win. The issue, of course, is that those pesky Seahawks always find a way to play us tough. We’ve lost to them for three straight seasons.

This unfortunate reality got me thinking about how Minnesota might overcome the Seattle hurdle. Kirk Cousins needs to continue being our best player, the coaching needs to avoid more questionable decisions, and the defense needs to limit the big plays. From there, I think it’s fair to say we need more help from our skill players.

Pro Football Reference has a very handy history feature for each player, one that will tell how a player has performed against a specific team. So, if you’re someone like myself who wants to see how, say, Adam Thielen or Dalvin Cook have done against Seattle, you can access that info in a concise, efficient manner. Whoever thought of this feature deserves a raise and a hearty “well done” from management.

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Let’s start things off in the backfield. Dalvin Cook, after all, is the engine that makes our team go. Here are our RBs’ statistical averages against Seattle:

– Cook: 13 rushes, 49.7 yards, 0.7 TDs (3 games)
– Mattison: 12 rushes, 67.0 yards, 0 TDs (2 games)

The numbers, as you can see, are underwhelming. Now, Seattle’s defense isn’t what it used to be. The Legion of Boom is long gone, and so too is K.J. Wright. Bobby Wagner remains. When healthy, Jamal Adams is a difference maker. This talent, though, shouldn’t be enough to slow down our guys, especially when we factor in the receivers.

Speaking of which, let’s take a look at the averages for our top two:

– Thielen: 4.7 catches, 50 yards, 0.7 TDs (3 games)
– Jefferson: 3 catches, 23 yards, 0 TDs (1 game)

Once again, we’re left with some underwhelming numbers against Seattle. There’s simply no way that our three-headed monster on offense should average a collective 122.7 yards against the Seahawks. Cook alone should surpass that yardage total. They might be in our head at this point, but such lackluster numbers need to go the way of the dodo.

Finally, let’s take a look at our QB1. How has he done in his five starts against Seattle?

– Cousins: 22/35, 253 yards, 1.4 TDs, 0.4 INTs

Underwhelming stuff, especially when you contrast it with Russell Wilson’s averages. Over his six career games against Minnesota, Wilson averaged 17/25, 201 yards, 2.2 TDs, and 0.5 INTs. His numbers are far from gaudy, but they’re noticeably better than Kirk’s, especially when you add in the clutch factor that accompanies those bare bones statistics. Wilson wins a ton; Cousins wins sometimes.

The defense has underwhelmed through two games, especially in the secondary (though Dantzler might help). If that trend continues, we’ll need the offense to score in bunches.

I’m expecting a high-scoring game, one that will require us to get Seattle’s Starbucks-fueled defensive monkey off our back. We ought to respect their defense, but there’s simply no way they should be able to slow down our elite collection of skill players. If the offensive line can replicate last week’s strong performance – a huge emphasis on the “if” – then our skill guys will have no excuse.

Let’s get to 1-2. Skol.

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