Monday Impressions: Cousins Continues to Lead the Vikings
K. Joudry
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Nov 30, 2020
During the offseason, Mike Zimmer was asked about what Kirk Cousins could do to take the next step: “when we get to the end of ball games, go win. That’s what everyone wants out of a quarterback is to go win games in the fourth quarter.” Against Dallas, Cousins’ teammates prohibited him from securing the fourth quarter comeback. Against Carolina, Cousins orchestrated an impressive game-winning drive. Kirk Cousins has more than earned his contract since the bye.
Offense
- Chad Beebe’s first career TD couldn’t have come at a better time. While the touchdown deserves most of the attention, it’s worth noting that he made several big catches on that final offensive drive. His first catch gained six yards before he stepped out of bounds to stop the clock. His next gained twelve yards to secure a first down. Beebe, The Little Engine That Could, demonstrated tremendous resilience on the final drive.
- Another impressive game for Justin Jefferson: 7 catches, 70 yards, 2 touchdowns. It’ll go to a quarterback, but Jefferson should be a front runner for OROY. What he is doing isn’t impressive because he is a rookie, it’s just impressive. Through eleven games, Jefferson has 52 catches for 918 yards and six touchdowns. With another 82 yards, Jefferson will become just the sixth first-round receiver to go for more than 1000 yards in his rookie season over the past ten years.
- Olabisi Johnson did a really nice job. Toward the beginning of the game, Johnson made a tough mistake by not getting to the sticks, resulting in a catch that failed to pick up the first down. Throughout the rest of the game, though, Johnson played well. He finished with 7 catches for 74 yards.
- Dalvin Cook struggled for a third straight week. Opposing defenses seem to have cracked the Kubiak code. There needs to be some serious self-scouting to ensure the Vikings aren’t falling into predictable patterns.
- Cousins has made a massive improvement in terms of his overall poise in the pocket. It’s entirely possible that the opening six weeks of the season involved Cousins trying to do too much as he adjusted his play style. Hopefully Kirk Cousins is settling into his groove as a QB who balances smart decision-making with some increased play making; if he is successful, then his contract will be more than worth it.
Defense
- Mike Zimmer’s defense deserves a ton of credit for their performance. Minnesota allowed 27 points yesterday; 17 came off of turnovers. The defense allowed 10 points. After the Beebe fumble, the defense held Carolina to a field goal, giving Minnesota a chance to win the game and keep their playoff chances alive.
- Another step forward for Jeff Gladney and Cameron Dantzler. We admit that we didn’t have too much confidence in either heading into this game, largely due to Carolina’s receivers. I’m happy to be wrong.
- The Vikings have a problem at linebacker. Eric Kendricks has been incredible, but Eric Wilson and Troy Dye present some real issues in run defense. If I was an opposing OC, I’d run the ball at Dye and Wilson as much as possible.
- D.J. Wonnum made a big impact out there. There was the pressure on Teddy Bridgewater, the pass deflection, and then the blocked FG. It was a one point game, so each of these plays made a huge difference.
- Kris Boyd is an up and down player. Would a switch to safety be beneficial for both him and the Vikings?
Special Teams
- Two straight weeks of Andrew DePaola; two straight weeks of crisp long snapping. At this point, the Vikings would be foolish to bring Austin Cutting back. Demote Cutting to the practice squad. Dan Bailey went 2/2 on FGs and 2/2 on the XPs. Britton Colquitt had a good game. He averaged 51 yards across three punts; his season average is 45.1.
- Beebe’s fumbled punt seemed to result from some indecision. He signaled fair catch, but he did so quite late. It caused him to take his eyes off the ball. There is some inexperience here, so perhaps this is something he can improve on with more reps. That being said, Beebe does have some issues when it comes to fumbling, meaning the Vikings would be wise to diligently search for a lasting solution at punt returner.
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