Vikings’ Winners And Losers From Week 12
Ben Lyso
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In what was an unbelievably sloppy and error-filled affair from both sides, week 12 at U.S. Bank stadium ended, miraculously, in a Vikings victory.
The Carolina Panthers did everything in their power to hand the Vikings the win — and while normally the purple would hand the win back in a never-ending game of “you take the win”, “no, YOU take the win” — Kirk Cousins facilitated a 75-yard game-winning drive to keep the team in the thick of the playoff hunt.
There is a tremendous amount of possible winners and losers from Sunday afternoon, but these are the ones that stick out the most.
Winners:
Kirk Cousins
Just a short time ago, fans were clamoring to burn it all down.
Angry Minnesota mobs grabbed their proverbial torches and pitchforks to march on U.S. Bank Stadium after a 1-5 start in which the Vikings looked anything but competent.
But now? The team has won four of five games and surprisingly finds themselves one game back of the final Wild Card spot — and that same angry mob can thank Kirk Cousins for that.
While mistakes plagued the Vikings all Sunday afternoon against the Panthers, Cousins conducted the eventual winning crescendo. With 1:51 left in the game, he went 6-7 for 75 yards and the game-deciding touchdown in just over a minute of game time.
After a horrendous start to the season that saw him leading the league in interceptions, Cousins is quietly playing some of the best football of his career.
Cousins currently ranks:
First in the NFL in 4th quarter passer rating,
First in the NFL in 4th quarter passing touchdowns,
And first in the NFL in 4th quarter passing touchdowns when the score is within seven points.
(Ben Roethlisberger did get a touchdown with the score within 7 points in Wednesday’s matchup against the Ravens, but that doesn’t affect Cousin’s rank)
There’s no denying Kirk Cousins is on fire. And if the Vikings do indeed make the playoffs after a 1-5 start, all the praise should go Cousins’ way.
Chad Beebe
Most redemption arcs take some time to materialize.
Boxer Tyson Fury went from heavyweight champion, to drug addict, back to heavyweight champion in a matter of years. Tiger Woods went from early-2000s superstar, to cheater extraordinaire, to winning his first major in 11 years at Augusta in 2019.
Chad Beebe only needed 86 seconds of game time to turn this:
Into this:
Beebe’s first career touchdown was remarkably memorable. Not only did he absolve his sins from 86 seconds prior, not only did he win the game for the Vikings, but he brought the team to within one game of a playoff spot.
In a game that seemed like the microcosm of the Vikings’ entire season — inept, error-filled, and yet somehow pulse-pounding — Beebe’s play was the cherry on top of a Sunday afternoon the Vikings would love to leave in the rearview.
Even though Adam Thielen will likely return this week, Chad Beebe may very well have just secured himself a bigger role on the roster.
Brian O’Neill
Brian O’Neill has emerged as the uncontested number one talent on the Vikings’ offensive line, and week 12 was another glimpse into his recent brilliance.
O’Neill absolutely manhandled Brian Burns, PFF’s 6th best EDGE, limiting him to his lowest pass rush grade for the year.
If you are unfamiliar with Burns, he is currently tied for 11th in sacks and 4th in total pressures among all EDGE rushers. He’s a second-year pro who is emerging as one of the league’s great young defensive lineman.
But, once again, none of that mattered on Sunday as O’Neill held him to not only his worst pass-rushing performance of the season, but also the second-worst pass-rushing performance of his entire career.
O’Neill has improved every year of his three-year career, and his current campaign has him ranked in the top 25% of all offensive lineman.
Losers:
Cap Space
I think everyone can cautiously say that Kirk Cousins is slowly starting to figure it out. His recent performances aren’t just another Kirktober-Esque hot-streak of last year, but show the tendencies of a truly refined player.
One of the major things holding Cousins back over the years has been his mobility and pocket presence — or, lack thereof — but that has turned into a strength of his game over the previous weeks.
Start with a slightly above-average quarterback, add in a good dose of pocket presence and 4th quarter dominance, remove the immobility and awkward gait of a newborn deer, and you’re left with PFF’s 5th ranked quarterback.
The refined Kirk Cousins is good for the organization, good for the fans, and good for the state as a whole. But what refined Cousins is not good for is financial flexibility.
As a refresher, Cousins is due $31 million next season and $45 million in 2022.
With the only other “out” seemingly off the table due to his recent hot-streak — that being a Cousins trade this offseason — the Vikings find themselves with two options.
One, extend Cousins yet again and tie him financially to the organization, assumedly, until he is 36 or 37 years old.
Or two, eat his $45 million cap hit in 2022, making him the highest-paid quarterback in the league at 34-years old.
The Cousins saga could prove to be a pivotal situation for an organization with their back already firmly against the cap line.
Marwan Maalouf
The Vikings’ special teams errors this season have almost been uncountable.
Add in the Beebe muffed punt from Sunday to the Cordarrelle Patterson kickoff touchdown versus the Bears week 10, the two blocked punts versus the Lions week 9, and the fumble and shaky returning from K.J. Osborn.
These are just a small list of gaffes that could have been avoided with better coaching, and that falls on the shoulders of Special Teams coordinator Marwan Maalouf.
Normally, I would say Maalouf is in hot water, but special teams hasn’t exactly been an effective area for the Vikings since the Spielman/Zimmer regime began. Take, for example, Mike Priefer, who was the special teams coach for the Vikings from 2011-2018.
The Vikings wanted to re-sign Priefer for the 2019 season and beyond, but he chose to join the Cleveland Browns instead.
That means the Vikings wanted him back even after:
· The Vikings’ collective opponents were top-10 in field goal percentage 6 of his 8 years
· The Vikings themselves ranked in the bottom half of the league in field goal percentage 6 of his 8 years
· The Vikings ranked in the bottom half of the league in net punt yardage 6 of his 8 years
· He said that he wanted to “put all the gays on an island and nuke it” in 2014.
So while Marwan Maalouf definitely seems to be in hot water after this week, I’m not so sure that I would bet against him being on the coaching staff in 2021.