Commanders @ Vikings

[pattersaur]

I don't know what to expect.  O'Connell pumped more unintelligible word salad this week about dumbing it down and what JJM needs to do or not do or to be or not to be or something really long and impossible to make sense of.  Something along the lines of well folks I finally decided to try to be smart about qb development here in week 13.  Was that soon enough, derp dorp?

So I can't really parse all that into a meaningful feel for what's going on, where the team's collective head is at, what JJM is going to look like this week, etc., I got nothing, zip, nada.   I know Flores D comes to play most weeks despite the inept tackling.   I think a win or loss mostly comes down to can O'Connell get out of his own way for once and call a strategically sound game instead of filling a rookie qb's plate with so much stuff that he looks utterly lost out there?  

Before last week's game I said I felt sorry for Max Brosmer, because he was being thrown to the wolves and the people above him were responsible for whatever shitshow got put on the field.  It wasn't Max's fault, he was in a no win situation.  I feel kinda the same way about JJM.  As bad as he's looked and it's historically freaking bad, it's not like the HC and the organization are doing him any favors with the way he (and Brosmer) have been asked as basically kids with no NFL experience to drink a complex passing game through a firehose and run it like 6-7 year vets out of the gate.   There are so many things KOC could have done strategically and schematically to help the kid and bring him along slowly, building confidence, but instead he just stands on the sideline calling his shit and then exuding crappy body language and frowning as these kids apparently "let the great genius down".  It's nauseating to witness.   Maybe this week will be different.

I am a huge KO believer but yeah it's plain to see was trying to teach calculus to third graders. It's not gonna work and it's not the kids' fault. I'm shocked he made this massive error to be honest and it's disappointing considering I assume he has many resources around the league at this point to lean on for guidance on handling a young QB.

The most frustrating part about this season is how much it reeks of hubris from the front office and the coaching staff. I'm still in the camp of hope they learn from it rather than let them swing for it, but it hasn't been the funnest season.

[purplefaithful]

Thursday, Dec. 4

Vikings
Left guard Donovan Jackson returned to practice Thursday as a limited participant, meaning he could have a chance to play Sunday against Washington. Left tackle Christian Darrisaw did not practice, but that has been part of his typical weekly routine while managing last year’s knee injury. He’s expected to practice Friday and play Sunday.

Guard Blake Brandel, who would replace Jackson if needed, has progressed through the concussion protocol. He was a full participant and no longer needed the red, no-contact jersey.

Defensive tackle Levi Drake Rodriguez remains out due to a neck injury.

Four starters remain limited by injuries: outside linebacker Jonathan Greenard (shoulder), safety Josh Metellus (shoulder), running back Aaron Jones Sr. (shoulder) and safety Theo Jackson (neck).

Center Ryan Kelly (hip), running back Ty Chandler (knee) and defensive tackle Jalen Redmond (hip) were upgraded to full participants.

Commanders
The big development out of Washington on Thursday was that quarterback Jayden Daniels took every rep in practice, indicating he might play against the Vikings. Daniels has missed the last three games after suffering a dislocated left elbow Nov. 2 against the Seahawks.

[pattersaur]

Thursday, Dec. 4

Vikings
Left guard Donovan Jackson returned to practice Thursday as a limited participant, meaning he could have a chance to play Sunday against Washington. Left tackle Christian Darrisaw did not practice, but that has been part of his typical weekly routine while managing last year’s knee injury. He’s expected to practice Friday and play Sunday.

Guard Blake Brandel, who would replace Jackson if needed, has progressed through the concussion protocol. He was a full participant and no longer needed the red, no-contact jersey.

Defensive tackle Levi Drake Rodriguez remains out due to a neck injury.

Four starters remain limited by injuries: outside linebacker Jonathan Greenard (shoulder), safety Josh Metellus (shoulder), running back Aaron Jones Sr. (shoulder) and safety Theo Jackson (neck).

Center Ryan Kelly (hip), running back Ty Chandler (knee) and defensive tackle Jalen Redmond (hip) were upgraded to full participants.

Commanders
The big development out of Washington on Thursday was that quarterback Jayden Daniels took every rep in practice, indicating he might play against the Vikings. Daniels has missed the last three games after suffering a dislocated left elbow Nov. 2 against the Seahawks.

Daniels being rusty and playing poorly in his first game back is probably our best hope to win this week. Him getting the start probably increases the chances we get totally blown out, but also the chances we win I think. Provided we score more than zero points, of course.

[purplefaithful]

I am hoping for hope with JJM the rest of the way...Starting Sunday

[MaroonBells]

I want to end on a high note, where we have a manageable amount of problems, and hope going into next season.

I don't want to shit the bed, because everyone said it didn't matter, only to listen to them complain for the next 9 months about how bad we did (when it didn't matter).

I swear our fans would argue for putting in all the backups and then complaining that the backups sucked and the coaching staff needs to be fired.

*L* You're not wrong. Ever forget to take out the trash? And that singular mistake, in the mind of your wife anyway, expands to an enduring beef about your attitude, your salary, your mother and your aftershave? That’s kinda what’s happening among certain Viking fans right now.

Losing seems to suck out whatever football acumen they might've once had. The truth is that bad QB play makes the coach look bad, makes leadership look bad, makes the play calls look bad, makes the line, the running game and the defense look bad too. Football is a game of synergies. It's all tied together. I think everyone implicitly knows this. 

I think they also know that with just average QB play—something along the lines of Trevor Lawrence—this team is in the playoff hunt and we're not having any of these conversations. But that fact is drowned out by all the screaming about the mother and the aftershave.

[medaille]

How did Brandel make it through concussion protocol already? It feels like if you get a concussion, you should be sitting for a week at least.

[MaroonBells]

How did Brandel make it through concussion protocol already?  It feels like if you get a concussion, you should be sitting for a week at least.

That might be the prudent approach, but I think the protocol is based on symptoms and I read that Brandel wasn't showing any.

[purplefaithful]

Sunday’s matchup between the Vikings and Commanders will be another showdown between two 2024 quarterbacks, as Washington coach Dan Quinn announced Friday that No. 2 overall pick Jayden Daniels will start.

Daniels has been out since exiting against the Seahawks on Nov. 2 with a dislocated left elbow. It’s the third injury that’s benched him this season; Marcus Mariota has started has started six times in his place.

“It’s been a lot of adversity, but I’m young in my career,” Daniels said Friday. “Something that I gotta battle through. You go through adversity at some point, so however you try to approach it and weather the storm and come out seeing the light at the end of the tunnel.”

Daniels practiced in full for the first time Thursday after Quinn spent the beginning of the week talking about Daniels needing to go through QB-specific contact scenarios to be cleared.

Quinn said he felt good about Daniels’ chances at going since Wednesday’s practice.

Daniels said his confidence this week came from his range of movement, strength and “itch” to get back out there told him he was ready to return.

Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell said Friday that the Vikings went about the week as if Daniels would play, calling him “one of the best young players in the NFL.” Daniels led the Commanders to the NFC Championship Game last year, beating the Lions on the way there.

The Vikings, meanwhile, could have their full offensive line available again Sunday against the Commanders as Donovan Jackson made a limited return to practice Thursday from his ankle injury and was again limited Friday.

He was listed as questionable, as was left tackle Christian Darrisaw, who missed Thursday’s practice but was a full participant both Wednesday and Friday.
“Both CD and Donovan got some great work in today,” O’Connell said. “We’ll see how they turn over over the next 24 hours and hopefully have both those guys for the game.”

Even if Jackson or Darrisaw can’t go, the Vikings will have their multi-tool backup Blake Brandel available. He cleared concussion protocol after being placed in it following the Seahawks game.

The only two players the Vikings listed as out are safety Theo Jackson (neck) and defensive lineman Levi Drake Rodriguez (neck).


This will be McCarthy’s seventh start of the season, having missed five games because of a high ankle sprain and Sunday’s shutout loss to the Seahawks because of the concussion suffered against the Packers.

The Vikings shifted the focus amid their offense’s ongoing struggles, aiming to simplify for McCarthy, who on Thursday spoke candidly about his tendency to overthink.

“Cut it loose, pull the trigger, you’re prepared,” O’Connell said of his message to McCarthy. “He understands this game plan. He’s had a really good week of practice. Threw the ball really well. I think it’s now a matter of a lot of the principles that we’ve talked about coming in to play.”

Chief among those, O’Connell said, is McCarthy’s decisionmaking and creating real chances for the Vikings’ biggest playmakers to succeed at any level, whether it be a down-the-field shot to wide receiver Justin Jefferson, tight end T.J. Hockenson over the middle of the field or running back Aaron Jones Sr. on a check down.

“We’ve got playmakers that J.J. knows can do a lot of really good things if we get the ball in their hands,” O’Connell said. “Can we pitch-and-catch at the level that gives us opportunities to stack positive plays and have success?”

STRIB

[supafreak84]

*L* You're not wrong. Ever forget to take out the trash? And that singular mistake, in the mind of your wife anyway, expands to an enduring beef about your attitude, your salary, your mother and your aftershave? That’s kinda what’s happening among certain Viking fans right now.

Losing seems to suck out whatever football acumen they might've once had. The truth is that bad QB play makes the coach look bad, makes leadership look bad, makes the play calls look bad, makes the line, the running game and the defense look bad too. Football is a game of synergies. It's all tied together. I think everyone implicitly knows this. 

I think they also know that with just average QB play—something along the lines of Trevor Lawrence—this team is in the playoff hunt and we're not having any of these conversations. But that fact is drowned out by all the screaming about the mother and the aftershave.

Who wants average quarterback play? We are all beyond tired of average quarterback play and this team being a borderline playoff contenders without ever being real Super Bowl contenders. That's Wilf thinking right there and has done nothing for us. We are now praying for "average quarterback play" and hoping we can land Mac fucking Jones or Trevor Lawrence because McCarthy has been the worst quarterback in the league? Lol. What a spot to be in courtesy of ownership, the front office, and the coaching staff who has royally shit the bed this year (minus Flores).