Quote: @greediron said:
Oh I agree, it looked awful. Just not sure how much I put into it.
I think if they were going to throw a stinker up there, this was the time to do it. This will have gotten Zimmer's attention and I'd rather him make adjustment now, that face a SF opener like we had a few years ago and buzz-sawed by a shitty 49er team on opening night.
Quote: @Tom Moore said:
My GUT CALL? This is an 8-8 team. With some good futune and improvement in the line and run game, this Viking squad is 10-6. With injuries or performances like Sunday night by the starters and it could be a long year. Glad opening day in not tomorrow!
What was your gut call prior to Sunday nights egg laying by the first team? I posted twice last week that 8-8 looked like the ceiling, so far I've seen nothing to change my mind. This team played with a fire up until that Philly game last year when Zimmer called them "soft" postgame. Haven't seen so much as a spark since then. I have no idea if I'm right about that being the issue but I can't see them doing much or going far when they are so flat so often and Sunday was another example of this. Zimmer's been lost since then and so is this team. Looks like a postseason housecleaning may be on the way, from the g.m. on down.
I think this team should win 9 or 10 games IF the oline is average.
The biggest concern I had in the first half was how SF was completing passes over the middle. Seemed like the big plays were all over the middle area.
Any stab at a prediction for me would just be a stab in the dark. I have no idea what the hell this coaching staff is doing with the team right now. The Oline looks to be a complete and total mess and I don't even mean that from a talent perspective... They don't seem to know who is going to play where yet. Defense could be an aberration but then again maybe not. I worry that we have some new defensive systems in place that the defense doesn't quite understand yet. or doesn't trust... Or worse yet, isn't going to be effective.
All of that said the worst thing I think we as fans could have to endure is a housecleaning. Look at the steelers. They stick with their coaching and GM's because even though you may suffer through some bumps in the road, continuity is really the best way to more forward. Every coaching staff and front office is going to have to learn from their mistakes and build cohesion.... Cleaning house every few years just forces us to have to go through that again and again and again. It isn't like we have the Browns organization here.
without know what we were trying to do on D vs their O, nothing can be gleaned from the game except maybe some tackling drills are in order, other than that SF was pulling out the stops and our D was playing very basic and basically just taking reps. People need to keep remembering that this game meant more to a new regime in San Fran than it did to Minny. smart coaches use the preseason for what it is... a practice, practice is where you try new things to see if you want them in the real games. As bad as we looked and as confused as we looked on D, they had to be trying new shit and it wasnt working.
Quote: @JimmyinSD said:
without know what we were trying to do on D vs their O, nothing can be gleaned from the game except maybe some tackling drills are in order, other than that SF was pulling out the stops and our D was playing very basic and basically just taking reps. People need to keep remembering that this game meant more to a new regime in San Fran than it did to Minny. smart coaches use the preseason for what it is... a practice, practice is where you try new things to see if you want them in the real games. As bad as we looked and as confused as we looked on D, they had to be trying new shit and it wasnt working.
That is my take as well. Most of the guys are vets in Zim's defense and he likely is testing new wrinkles. Without film study, the team is susceptible to the trickery that SF was doing. Rhodes and the safety bit on the reverse and left a guy wide open. The one 3rd and long screen for a TD was just bad tackling. Exum missed badly and so did several others. And some of those will not be here in the reg season.
Quote: @comet52 said:
@ Tom Moore said:
My GUT CALL? This is an 8-8 team. With some good futune and improvement in the line and run game, this Viking squad is 10-6. With injuries or performances like Sunday night by the starters and it could be a long year. Glad opening day in not tomorrow!
What was your gut call prior to Sunday nights egg laying by the first team? I posted twice last week that 8-8 looked like the ceiling, so far I've seen nothing to change my mind. This team played with a fire up until that Philly game last year when Zimmer called them "soft" postgame. Haven't seen so much as a spark since then. I have no idea if I'm right about that being the issue but I can't see them doing much or going far when they are so flat so often and Sunday was another example of this. Zimmer's been lost since then and so is this team. Looks like a postseason housecleaning may be on the way, from the g.m. on down.
It's weird. I had no gut feel. On paper, the talent is slightly better than the team that started 5-0, but something is missing. There seems to be no spark. Cook is the real deal, so getting him more than 6 carries may show you something.
i think they are a middling team, mainly due to the continued Offensive Line questions. The defense should be okay, but the first half Sunday was disturbing. Wonder if Zimmer goes back to calling the defensive plays
Reason For Worry…. Reason For Hope
Tom Moore is VikeFans.com lead interviewer and Senior Content Provider. The Vikings can’t avoid the fan’s talk of concern. The third preseason game is the true “dress rehearsal&…
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Solid synopsis of the game Tom. I know that I'm a little bit more critical of Ben Gedeon than maybe is warranted, we'll see how he pans out. I think with some seasoning he can fill the role, I'm just not sure he is ready for it. Then again what else do we have?
Here's to hoping that what we saw can all be credited to two teams treating the preseason differently.
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