Mattison released...

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@Vikergirl said:
Kudos to the front office for moving forward and correcting mistakes. They took a shot and it didn't work, time to move on 

It clearly wasn't a mistake to move on from Dalvin. If there was a mistake it was giving Mattison RB1. I really think it should've been a committee with Chandler from day one. 

Vikings are definitely adding a RB in free agency or the draft. 

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Two seasons ago I though Mattison looked both faster and stronger than ever.  I was surprised he didn't look anywhere near as explosive last season for some reason.  I think he earned his shot at RB #1, and it's too bad for all parties involved it didn't work out.

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@HappyViking said:
Two seasons ago I though Mattison looked both faster and stronger than ever.  I was surprised he didn't look anywhere near as explosive last season for some reason.  I think he earned his shot at RB #1, and it's too bad for all parties involved it didn't work out.

Agreed. I get why they resigned him. 

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@StickyBun said:

@HappyViking said:
Two seasons ago I though Mattison looked both faster and stronger than ever.  I was surprised he didn't look anywhere near as explosive last season for some reason.  I think he earned his shot at RB #1, and it's too bad for all parties involved it didn't work out.

Agreed. I get why they resigned him. 

I did as well at the time. They stuck with him @ RB1 too long is the issue. 

Cut bait and move on...

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@Mattyman said:
180 rushing  attempts and 0 TD's.
 
ouch.

As a team 393 attempts and 7 TD's. And realistically to say seven is generous as 3 of those comes from Dobbs and off the top of my head 2 of his 3 were not designed runs but him scrambling for a score after pass protection broke down. Safe to say the team as a whole was garbage running. The question is, were they garbage because of the talent or was the talent made to look like garbage because KOC didnt ever commit to the run and guys didn't get into a rhythm.  They were 28th in rushing attempts last season. 

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Chandler can be RB 1 if he can learn to read and pick up the blitz better. I would like to see them bring in a powerful, short yardage back to pair with him. This is something Kwesi should be able to find with his value picking tendency!

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@StickyBun said:

@HappyViking said:
Two seasons ago I though Mattison looked both faster and stronger than ever.  I was surprised he didn't look anywhere near as explosive last season for some reason.  I think he earned his shot at RB #1, and it's too bad for all parties involved it didn't work out.

Agreed. I get why they resigned him. 

The problem was they got stuck and "had" to sign him. I believe they wanted David Montgomery and when DM signed with the Lions, they were "stuck" with Mattison. That was the bigger problem. Sticking with him too long hoping he would figure it out was also a problem; should have gone with Chandler sooner. But also, the running game does seem to be secondary for KOC.

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it wont matter who is the RB until they fix the IOL,  simply no excuse for how pathetic our OGs and C have been for the last..... decade+?  When was the last time they other team knew we were going to run the ball,  and we actually thought we were going to win that play consistently by running the ball?  we've had streaks,  usually late in the game or when the other team is playing more prevent,  but its been a long damn time since the Vikings consistently exerted their offensive will through the running game.  The best clock control we have had in the last 10 years is the short passing game.

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I’m with Happy.  I
totally get why he was resigned, he just lost his burst for whatever
reason.  Chandler shouldn’t be the lead
back until he can prove he can block.  As
long as he sucks at blocking, you need to be looking for a guy who is effective
at running and blocking.


That said, our ground game has more problems than just which
person is the running back.  I don’t
think there’s ever been much commitment from KOC towards running the ball.  At the very least, we’re not seeing it in
game.  What do we have like 12 passing game
coaches now and the only specialist running coach is the OLine coach’s side
gig?  Would it be safe to say that this lack
of commitment extends into us not preparing to run the ball when we draw up the
schemes, gameplans, practices?


At some point, we need to become multiple.  While passing is probably the bread and
butter of any offense going forward, we need to be able to run the ball when we
want.  Is it the 4 minute offense and we
need to burn the clock?  Are key players
in the passing game hurt or is Cousins having a bad Kirk day?  Is the defense just keying in on what we’re
doing and shutting it down?  Sometimes
you need to be able to run the ball.
While I don’t disagree that our interior OLine needs to get
better, I believe that it can’t come at the expense of fixing the talent on the
defensive side of the ball.  We can
probably afford to spend 1 pick on offense in the first 4 rounds.  The rest need to go to defense, and there’s a
very real chance that 1 pick is a QB, as it should be.

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@medaille said:
I’m with Happy.  I
totally get why he was resigned, he just lost his burst for whatever
reason.  Chandler shouldn’t be the lead
back until he can prove he can block.  As
long as he sucks at blocking, you need to be looking for a guy who is effective
at running and blocking.


That said, our ground game has more problems than just which
person is the running back.  I don’t
think there’s ever been much commitment from KOC towards running the ball.  At the very least, we’re not seeing it in
game.  What do we have like 12 passing game
coaches now and the only specialist running coach is the OLine coach’s side
gig?  Would it be safe to say that this lack
of commitment extends into us not preparing to run the ball when we draw up the
schemes, gameplans, practices?


At some point, we need to become multiple.  While passing is probably the bread and
butter of any offense going forward, we need to be able to run the ball when we
want.  Is it the 4 minute offense and we
need to burn the clock?  Are key players
in the passing game hurt or is Cousins having a bad Kirk day?  Is the defense just keying in on what we’re
doing and shutting it down?  Sometimes
you need to be able to run the ball.

While I don’t disagree that our interior OLine needs to get
better, I believe that it can’t come at the expense of fixing the talent on the
defensive side of the ball.  We can
probably afford to spend 1 pick on offense in the first 4 rounds.  The rest need to go to defense, and there’s a
very real chance that 1 pick is a QB, as it should be.

how many times in the last decade does our O have the ball,  just needs to run the clock down,  and they go 3 and out, or at least dont burn shit off the clock because the other team knows we cant run the ball,  they over play the safe short passsing game,  and we are once again turning the ball over on downs without taking time off the clock or forcing the to burn all their time outs?  the focus definitely needs to be on the why,  not the who,  I agree its the lack of attention paid to that side of the offense that is more the issue.

I also still maintain that if we fix the IOL,  it keeps Kirk cleaner and healthier for a longer run in the playoffs.