The Vikings NEED to get creative FAST
Dustin Baker
|
Wanted: A Slate of…Creative
Through two weeks of aggravating Vikings football, the only aspect of the team that has flourished is the kicking game. In an ordinary Vikings season, mistake-free kicking would warrant a parade on Chicago Avenue in Minneapolis. It’s an afterthought right now as all other facets of the team’s performance is in peril. For clarity, Dan Bailey has made two field goals and an extra point, so the excitement is subdued.
The defense orchestrated by head coach Mike Zimmer is generally the spine of the 53-man group, but it’s now arthritic – at least through 120 minutes of football. Danielle Hunter has missed both contests versus Green Bay and Indianapolis, and his absence is painstaking. The Vikings sparsely generated pressure on Aaron Rodgers and Philip Rivers while the secondary has been forced to mature expeditiously as a result. That maturity is indeed underway, but the growing pains are palpable. Ideally, this Zimmer defense could develop in an undercover sense because an adroit offense could, in theory, pick up the slack. That hasn’t happened.
Minnesota posted some flashy numbers as the Packers game wound down, and those were not wholly for nothing. Yet, truth be told, the Packers were merely interested in slowing the Vikings down by a smidgen so that they could depart U.S. Bank Stadium with their second-ever victory at the relatively new facility. And, that’s what they did. The Vikings moved the ball just enough and notched some points to keep the Week 1 game moderately interesting.
In Indianapolis last weekend, the offense had one applaudable drive to start the game, but it ended there – with three points. The rest of the afternoon was marred with miscues, game-altering penalties, another safety, and turnovers.
The Minnesota Vikings offense have been mostly inept, and that has played a crucial role in an upside-down time-of-possession discrepancy. The team ranks dead last in the NFL in time of possession. If this continues, the Vikings will win south of three games. It’s the nuts and bolts of football that mandate a losing record when the time of possession is so wildly lopsided. Why? If a team doesn’t have the ball for 45 percent (or more) of the time, it cannot score points. Fatigue sets in on defense. Plain and simple.
Creativity is needed to whisk Minnesota out of its offensive quagmire. From an optimistic standpoint, the way to attain it is rather uncomplicated.
Lessen Adam Thielen’s Targets
The 30-year-old Adam Thielen is the primary, undisputed WR1 of an offense for the first time in his professional life. He is overtly capable of taking on this mantle, but it must not be in a singular scope.
That’s what is presently occurring within the Vikings offense through two weeks. Kirk Cousins is deliberately targeting Thielen presumably due to a deserved trust in his abilities. If this strategy was profitable and the points were filling up box scores, the concern would be nil. That simply isn’t happening.
Instead, a Thielen-only philosophy is hampering Gary Kubiak’s offense. Because Minnesota’s time of possession is so skimpy, targets are wasted on Thielen, and defenses know where the ball is going. It’s reminiscent of the Vikings 2002 approach to involving Hall of Famer Randy Moss in the gameplan. It was coined the “Randy Ratio.” In a video game, it may have worked swimmingly. But it didn’t work in 2002 to foster wins, and it most certainly isn’t working in 2020.
Thielen will be there when he is called upon; he has proven that ad nauseam in his seven-year career. However, throwing the ball in his direction repeatedly has ended several drives through two games. A continuance of the pattern will not remedy the offense or its time-of-possession shortcomings.
Cousins must involve several other pass-catchers. It’s his duty to do so, and the recipients of his passes are professionals that are compensated to make plays.
More Dalvin Cook – more of the time
Barring a strange trade, Dalvin Cook will be a member of the Minnesota Vikings until the end of the 2025 season. That’s half of a decade. Cook was just rewarded a handsome contract extension and is the type of player that is the lifeblood of an offense – especially one accountable to Mike Zimmer.
Recently, the Vikings utilize his skillset for one drive to start a game and then allow his presence to be an afterthought. This was particularly bizarre during the Colts game as Minnesota was very much within striking distance on the scoreboard for three-fourths of the game.
It was not the type of affair where an opponent raced to a three-score lead and the quarterback was solely responsible for flinging the ball to remain competitive. An example of that is available in the Vikings 2019 comeback against the Denver Broncos. The Colts game was not that.
Dalvin Cook needs more touches — in the beginning, middle, and end of football games. He’s too dynamic to be a sports car packed away for winter in the garage. Arguably, he alone could fix the time-of-possession conundrum. Effective running backs make the clock tick, and that keeps defenses off the field.
Whether it’s rushing carries, short passes, or gadget-like stuff, Cook needs to have his number called – early and frequently.
If it needs to be dink-and-dunk for a while –so be it
A hallmark of the Teddy Bridgewater and Sam Bradford eras in Minnesota was the short pass. This was, in large part, due to shoddy offensive line mashups. This season may be another one of those seasons, but the next handful of games will determine if the offensive line solidifies. That feels like a longshot right now in September, but Gary Kubiak historically nurtures offensive lines to respectability.
Meanwhile, the Vikings are not extending drives, and shots down the field (mainly to Adam Thielen) are not yet fruitful. For the mere purpose of evening up the time-of-possession disparity, “small ball” is a suitable, short-term solution. It’s evident within the numbers that Kirk Cousins can throw the ball downfield – he has more completions of 25+ yards than anybody in the NFL since 2016. Yes, more than Russell Wilson, Aaron Rodgers, and Tom Brady. Everybody.
To create some momentum, register some first downs, get Cook involved, and stay on the field, some simple, short passes are probably necessary. And if such throws are successful in keeping an opposing secondary honest, then Cousins can let it fly to Thielen or Justin Jefferson thereafter.
No matter what the strategy is offensively in Week 3, the Vikings must have the ball on offense for at least 28 to 30 minutes. Otherwise, 0-3 is inevitable.