The Vikings continue to keep handling their business. At times it was not pretty or efficient enough if you are being hyper-critical but the team stayed the course and eventually pulled away. That is how it is going to be the next three games vs the Seahawks, Packers, and Lions. Geno Smith went down with a knee but the tests were good so he MIGHT play this week. Playing on the road in Seattle is going to be tough as that stadium gets LOUD. It will be a good test though.
It has been a great season and it can get even better! Kwesi Adofo-Mensah and Kevin O’Connell have done a fabulous job in their three years despite the 2022 draft class. To go 13-4, 7-10 (without your starting QB for half the season), and now 11-2 is awesome.
Think about the QB room they have assembled. Sam Darnold, Nick Mullens, Brett, Rypien, JJ McCarthy, and Daniel Jones. They have their QBOTF and they have two decent young veteran QBs with a lot of experience. The Jones acquisition could prove to be sagacious (I did not know what this word meant until I looked it up).
If Darnold has a robust market where other teams are offering over 40M then Kwesi could pivot to Jones and see if Jones would take around 20M to 30M. There could be other teams wanting to sign Jones like the Panthers, Steelers, Colts, and even the Raiders. The Browns, Dolphins, Titans, Saints, and Seahawks also might be interested.
I think Jones will have a decent market and 10-15M per year sounds much better to me.
It is going to be very hard to see Darnold leave after the success the team has had this year. That would take some guts because if he does leave and JJ starts, the bar is going to be high for JJ which might be unfair. What is more unfair is asking the rest of the veterans to suffer through growing pains when they know how good they have been this year.
Minnesota Vikings News and Links
5 things that stood out in the Vikings’ dismantling of the Bears
1. Elite defense and big leads
Caleb Williams ran around like a chicken with its head cut off most of the night as Minnesota’s pass rush applied constant pressure and the defensive backs contested everything thrown in the direction of Keenan Allen and Chicago’s wideouts.
For the season, the Vikings have allowed 252 points, which equates to 18 points per game. Only the Broncos, Chargers and Eagles have allowed fewer points. Coincidentally, the Broncos, Chargers and Eagles have all allowed 247 points.
The Vikings are plus-117 in point differential this season. Only the Lions (plus-177), Bills (plus-135) and Eagles (plus-122) are better.
4. Third-down defense was spectacular
Film session this week is going to be an enjoyable experience when Brian Flores is showing his defense how they held up on third downs. Chicago was 1-of-12 on third downs and didn’t convert a third down for first down until there was about 13 minutes left in the game.
5. Cam Robinson had a rough game
Robinson has given Vikings fans almost nothing to complain about since Minnesota acquired him from Jacksonville after starting left tackle Christian Darrisaw was lost for the season with a torn ACL, but he had some struggles in his seventh game wearing purple and gold.
Battle for the No. 1 seed: Vikings, Lions, Eagles in three-team race
After dismantling the Bears 30-12 on Monday night, the Minnesota Vikings are 12-2, tied with the Detroit Lions and Philadelphia Eagles for the best record in the NFC.
According to The Athletic’s playoff machine, which simulates games thousands of times and supposedly takes into account injuries, the Eagles and Lions are both projected to finish 14-3 while the machine gives the Vikings a final record of 13-4.
The machine makes the Lions a 49% favorite for the No. 1 seed, while giving Philly a 41% chance at the top seed and the Vikings only a 10% shot at the first-round bye and home-field advantage throughout the playoffs.
Minnesota Vikings
Week 16: at Seattle Seahawks — the Vikings have opened as a half-point road favorite and the machine makes this a toss-up game, giving Minnesota a 51% chance to leave with a win
Week 17: vs. Green Bay Packers — the machine likes the Vikings at 51%, making this another toss-up.
Week 18: at Detroit Lions — despite all of the injuries the Lions have to overcome, the machine gives Minnesota only a 36% chance to win this game.
Does it all add up?
The Vikings have a very difficult final three games, though one could easily make the argument that Seattle is dealing with an injured quarterback (Geno Smith) and these aren’t the same Seahawks that used to dominant at home. In fact, Seattle is 3-5 at home this season, including blowout losses to the Packers, Bills and 49ers.
If the Vikings don’t win in Seattle, there’s a scenario where they are riding a three-game losing streak entering the playoffs because the Packers are a legit threat in Week 17 in Minneapolis and winning at Detroit in the regular-season finale won’t be a walk in the park.
Conclusion: Yes, it makes complete sense that the playoff machine is picking the Eagles and Lions to finish ahead of the Vikings. The No. 1 seed is within reach, but the Vikings will have to overcome a very hard schedule to get it.
Sam Darnold: We Can Be Better on Offense But We Got The Job Done, That’s All That Matters
Matthew Coller: Vikings defense looked like themselves again vs. Bears
Williams was exhausted after spending the evening running around US Bank Stadium in terror from a Vikings defense that was looking for revenge after Chicago’s No. 1 overall pick came back against them a few weeks ago at Soldier Field. This time around he was sacked twice and threw under duress many more times. In total, Williams led Chicago’s offense to just 171 net yards passing and only gained three yards rushing.
“I just think that we were really disciplined, but it felt explosive,” head coach Kevin O’Connell said. “Guys flying off the edges, and it’s great being back at home and the crowd noise. Them being on the silent count allows our guys to get off on the rock, and when that thing is moving, it just felt like it was relentless. Felt the Flo did a nice job changing up some of the rush patterns and sending some different guys and just changing things up.”
“Correcting our mistakes,” safety Cam Bynum said. “We watched the film last time and he was out there looking like a magician so it was like, this time let’s not let him look like that. There wasn’t anything that changed, just everyone doing their job. Back end staying tight to receivers and make him hold the ball and keep him in the pocket as much as possible and pressure him. He still escaped a few times and made it tough on us but the front seven to do their job tonight.”
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