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Vikings were good this year, but just not good enoughSometimes a team achieves as much as it possibly can — and that sentiment applies perfectly to this year’s Vikings.
They won two more regular-season games than a year ago, and as an added bonus pulled a first-round playoff upset at New Orleans. But on Saturday we learned definitively what we probably already knew: This is not a Super Bowl team, rather it’s one of a handful of above-average teams a cut below the best.
In times that are increasingly obsessed with all or nothing — championship or bust — it might be tempting to treat this season as a failure. But these Vikings at least properly achieved, if not overachieved.
Now, having said that: There is still ample room for concern and even disappointment, particularly as pertains to the future of this franchise.
Because this level of achievement certainly wasn’t the goal or the plan two offseasons ago when the Vikings invested $84 million in quarterback Kirk Cousins after coming up just short of the Super Bowl.
Rather, this has become the reality that has grown around a good but flawed roster. The defense has aged just enough to slip from championship-caliber to playoff-worthy — good enough to stymie a Hall of Fame quarterback like Drew Brees, but not great enough to sustain that while being run over by the 49ers.
The Vikings have made much-needed investments in the offensive line, with picks in the top three rounds each of the past three drafts. But it still isn’t nearly good enough to handle top defenses in critical moments, as the 49ers proved in holding Minnesota to just 147 total yards Saturday.
Cousins himself has been stabilizing and has put up strong numbers. When things are clicking and he has time — as he did for enough of the game against New Orleans — he is an asset. But he relies on a supporting cast to elevate him, not vice-versa.
It’s enough to make you wonder: As currently configured, with Cousins as the quarterback, Mike Zimmer as the defensive-minded head coach and Rick Spielman in charge of personnel, was this 2019 Vikings season about as good as things are ever going to get?
There’s no shame in answering “yes” to that question while still resisting the urge to want to tear it all down, just as there’s nothing wrong with a 10-6 season and a playoff win. It’s all a matter of expectations
http://www.startribune.com/vikings-were-...566928372/
SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- The route through the postseason for a No. 6 seed is treacherous. Entering Saturday, teams in the Minnesota Vikings' position were 5-19 in the divisional round of the postseason since 1990. At no point were the odds ever in Minnesota's favor to advance to the NFC Championship Game.
In a game that would be decided by who ran the ball better and defensive line play, the Vikings lost in both areas.
A week after a gut-it-out win in New Orleans, it wasn't Minnesota's defense that experienced a hangover in a 27-10 loss to the San Francisco 49ers.
Instead, the Vikings' offense looked anemic at Levi's Stadium, unable to drum up a repeat of the performance it had in the wild-card round. Minnesota finished with 147 yards total offense including 21 on the ground. Running back Dalvin Cook, who had averaged 81.1 yards on the ground per game this season, was held to 18.
“We were just not really able to get in a rhythm, so they were able to sit back and do what they do," Cook said. "We just never got a rhythm and they were just able to fly around and make plays.”
As the Vikings' season ends in the second round of the playoffs, the focus shifts to the changes that could soon take place for the offensive coaching staff, the offensive line and where the entire unit can improve most ahead of the 2020 season.
https://www.espn.com/blog/minnesota-viki...or-vikings
Vikings defensive end Everson Griffen was only a couple questions into his postgame media session in the visiting locker room at Levi’s Stadium on Saturday when he was asked about his emotions after the team’s 27-10 playoff loss to the 49ers.
“It’s tough. We never want it to end this way, and we’ve just gotta — I don’t know. I’m done, man,” the 10-year veteran said before ending the interview.
For the 10 teams that make the playoffs and fail to reach the Super Bowl, the ends of seasons always have a sharp abruptness to them. One day, they’re preparing for a playoff game that could bring them a step closer to their ultimate goal; the next, players are cleaning out their lockers and making travel arrangement they hoped not to need yet. But even by those standards, the Vikings’ loss on Saturday felt like it could represent a page being turned.
A defense that has prided itself on continuity could be headed for significant changes, with Griffen, defensive tackle Linval Joseph and cornerback Xavier Rhodes all set to be at least 30 by the start of next season and playing on contracts that carry cap numbers of at least $12.9 million next season. A team that’s tight on cap space also has to make decisions on 31-year-old left tackle Riley Reiff and 30-year-old tight end Kyle Rudolph, while determining the efficacy of contract extensions for quarterback Kirk Cousins, running back Dalvin Cook and safety Anthony Harris (who will be an unrestricted free agent after finishing tied for the league lead with six interceptions).
Changes to their coaching staff had already begun by 9 a.m. on Sunday, less than eight hours after the Vikings touched down at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport: the Browns hired offensive coordinator Kevin Stefanski as their next head coach, a year after making him a finalist for the job they gave to Freddie Kitchens.
The Vikings will be looking for their fifth offensive coordinator in as many years; they could give play-calling duties to assistant head coach Gary Kubiak or quarterbacks coach Klint Kubiak, though Stefanski’s relationship with both men could force the Vikings to block one or both if they get offers to join him in Cleveland. One NFL source named assistants who have worked with Stefanski for six years, like defensive coordinator George Edwards, wide receivers coach Drew Petzing or defensive backs coach Jerry Gray, as possible options to follow him.
And while co-owner Mark Wilf issued a statement before the Vikings’ first playoff game that ownership hopes to keep coach Mike Zimmer and general manager Rick Spielman in place for years to come, there’s business to be done with both men, who each have deals that expire after the 2020 season.
Beyond the shifting personnel, the Vikings have to ask themselves a fundamental question; Assuming they’re committed to their current approach, do they have the personnel to carry it out effectively?
The continuity they’ve enjoyed on defense — with players able to make rapid-fire adjustments or effectively hold blitz disguises until the final second — could be disrupted if the Vikings opt to move on from several longtime starters. New players might bring a fresh dose of athletic ability, but could also have growing pains as they get used to the scheme.
If that’s the case, can the Vikings count on their ability to win games with a stout defense? And can an organization that made no secret of its desire to run the ball behind heavy personnel groups win in the playoffs without another set of upgrades to its offensive line?
Losses to Chicago, Kansas City and Green Bay this season were marked by the Vikings getting whipped up front, and the lopsided nature of Saturday’s loss owed plenty to the 49ers’ physicality on both lines of scrimmage. In the locker room after the game, player after player summed up the defeat in the same succinct terms: “We just got beat.”
The Vikings appear to have a keeper in right tackle Brian O’Neill, and they’ll hope for more out of first-round pick Garrett Bradbury in the center’s second season. But Pat Elflein gave up six sacks (according to Pro Football Focus) in his first year at left guard, and the Vikings’ interior line struggled to win against the better defensive fronts it faced in a season that ended with the team rushing for just 21 yards on Saturday.
According to ESPN’s Pass Block Win Rate metric, the Vikings had the 26th-best line in the league this season, holding blocks for more than 2.5 seconds on passing plays just 37 % of the time. As much consternation as there was about Cousins’ lack of downfield attempts against the 49ers, the quarterback was under pressure on 17 of his 35 dropbacks on Saturday (despite the 49ers bringing extra pressure just six times). It’s tough to expect him to frequently work downfield when he’s under such consistent pressure — and it’s simply not reasonable to expect Cousins, at age 31, to suddenly find the mobility and verve to consistently make plays when things are breaking down.
The Vikings had enough talent and discipline to make the playoffs for the third time in five years this year, and they could have plenty of it next year, as well. Within a relatively stable structure (not to mention a top-loaded payroll), though, can they transform themselves into a group capable of winning multiple playoff games for the first time since 1987?
That’s the question that figures to animate much of an eventful offseason for the Vikings. And after Saturday’s loss in San Francisco, it appeared to be the toughest one to answer of them all
”http://www.startribune.com/as-season-ends-changes-loom-for-vikings/566925562/
Vikings defensive overhaul appears imminent this offseason
The Vikings’ final loss of the season felt familiar and welcome as a recurring credit card charge.
In the NFC Championship Game following the 2017 season, the final game of the 2018 season and Saturday’s playoff loss to San Francisco, the Vikings have been outscored by a combined 85-27.
Their offensive woes in those games are troubling. Their defensive lapses are startling, because coach Mike Zimmer was hired on the strength of his reputation as a defensive savant, the franchise spent most of its assets in his early years building his defense.
That group peaked the 2017 regular season by giving up fewer total yards than any team in the NFL. In 2018, the Vikings ranked fourth in yards against. This year, the Vikings ranked 14th.
Zimmer should examine whether he works his defenders too hard in practice late in seasons. Too often in their past three season-ending losses, his defense — even his most exceptional players — looked a step slow or simply tired.
The 49ers are a quality team, but they shouldn’t have outclassed the Vikings the way they did, often simply driving Vikings defenders backward so their backs could gain 6 to 8 yards merely by running hard and falling forward.
What is certain is that the defense that peaked in 2017 will be overhauled, in some cases by choice and in some by necessity. For all of Zimmer’s regular-season accomplishments, he will enter 2020 needing to prove that he can win with a new defense. It’s not a given.
Zimmer’s defensive problems are highlighted by the position in which he has invested the most — cornerback. Xavier Rhodes is in steep decline and has a $12.9 million cap hit for the 2020 season. There is no way he’s back at full price, and the way he played this year, he probably shouldn’t be back at any price.
But if the Vikings move on from Rhodes, that would make Trae Waynes their top corner. He performed poorly this season and is an unrestricted free agent. Do you pay big money to someone who you know isn’t worth that money?
Logic dictates bringing either Rhodes or Waynes back, but either move likely would result in regret. The rest of the cornerbacks are a source of angst.
Mackensie Alexander is an unrestricted free agent and expected to leave. Former first-round draft pick Mike Hughes appears to have a serious neck injury. Who knows if he can even be counted on for 2020? Holton Hill is talented but went undrafted because of character concerns and served an eight-game suspension this year for use of performance-enhancing drugs.
So a team featuring three cornerbacks drafted in the first round probably will have to spend another first-round pick on a cornerback despite obvious needs on the offensive line.
The Vikings safeties — Harrison Smith and Anthony Harris — are exceptional, but Harris is an unrestricted free agent and should make big money. Can and will the Vikings invest heavily in a second safety when they have so many other needs?
On the defensive line, Everson Griffen likely will depart and Linval Joseph is no longer the dominant player he once was. My guess is that the Vikings will ask Joseph to take a pay cut.
Danielle Hunter, Eric Kendricks and Smith are stars. Harris and Anthony Barr are high-quality players, even if a player with Barr’s contract should produce more impact plays. The Vikings have defensive line depth and promise in the form of Stephen Weatherly and Ifeadi Odenigbo.
But this team needs cornerback talent and depth, and fresher legs late in the season, and once again rebuilding a faltering Vikings defense falls to Zimmer.
As for General Manager Rick Spielman, he has to cater to Zimmer’s defensive wishes while rebuilding the offensive line, which might require three new starters, and making a franchise-altering decision on whether to sign running back Dalvin Cook to an expensive contract extension.
Cook has one year remaining on his deal, has played in 29 of 48 possible games since he entered the league, and belongs to a peer group that believes in holding out and getting financially rewarded.
Do the Vikings spend big on Cook when they have so many defensive problems to address? Do they spend big on a running back after the 49ers proved that you can dominate with the run with readily available backs and a strong offensive line?
Every team faces tough decisions every offseason, but the Vikings haven’t had to deal with this kind of defensive recalibration since Zimmer was a rookie head coach
http://www.startribune.com/vikings-defen...566927942/
Hughes has a serious neck injury?
Typical woe is us local coverage.
Vikings need to fix offensive line before they do anything elseThe line needs up to three new starters in order to adequately protect Kirk Cousins.Four quarterbacks played in two NFL playoff games Sunday: Patrick Mahomes, Deshaun Watson, Russell Wilson and Aaron Rodgers. Each displayed the comportment of an escape artist.
They zigged and zagged and darted and pirouetted until they found the right moment to pull a rabbit out of a hat. They made plays quarterbacks have no business making. Only they made them look routine.
It was like putting Dave Chappelle on stage at improv night and shouting “broccoli” and then he makes you laugh until you cry with a riff about broccoli.
Watching those maestros turn busted plays into their own personal highlight films reinforced what should be priority No. 1 for the Vikings this offseason.
Fix the offensive line. Because Kirk Cousins can’t make broccoli funny.
This is not another rebuke of Cousins’ aptitude. It’s become abundantly clear by now that he has undeniable strengths and undeniable weaknesses, and making something out of nothing will never be his calling card.
Give him adequate protection and Cousins can torch defenses. Put him under duress and what happened Saturday in the Bay Area often is the result. Houdini, he’s not.
A 27-10 loss to the San Francisco 49ers in the division round underscored the stark reality of how the Vikings are constructed, Mike Zimmer’s non-negotiable style of play, shortcomings in personnel and a looming decision on Dalvin Cook’s future. All of it tied to the O-line.
The 49ers overpowered the Vikings in the trenches with such force that they nullified the run game and pass game. Literally nothing worked because they slammed into an immovable wall. This wasn’t an outlier performance either. It’s happened before, including a pivotal Monday night loss to Green Bay in Week 16.
A top-dollar contract extension for Cook could happen as soon as this offseason. Cook is entering the final season of his rookie contract. He is a special talent and likely will want a big payday because of the physical nature and injury risk associated with his position.
Zimmer’s mandated offensive approach hinges on Cook’s brilliance, but Cook is not superhuman. Handing him a massive contract without also upgrading the offensive line in a meaningful way would be a waste of money. Some argue that paying big money to any running back is foolish, but the Vikings offense without Cook is less formidable and would mean the organization is committed to a 180-degree philosophical shift.
Problem is, in the biggest game of the season, Cook had zero impact because he kept getting hit and tackled at the line. The 49ers geared their game plan to stop him and it worked. The Vikings had no Plan B because Cousins gets rattled by pressure and lacks mobility when forced to flee.
In his year-end news conference Monday, Zimmer hinted strongly that change is coming. The roster has too many players on the wrong side of age 30 with high-value contracts. A youth movement seems inevitable.
The offensive line needs to be overhauled with a minimum of two new starters, perhaps three. Two guards and a left tackle to replace Riley Reiff.
The secondary likely will undergo significant change as well, but GM Rick Spielman should inform Zimmer that the first-round draft pick this spring will be an offensive lineman, not cornerback.
Zimmer noted that a few young linemen basically “redshirted” this season, so perhaps viable upgrades exist internally. Jettisoning older players should provide financial flexibility to devote to the position.
Pro Football Focus ranked the Vikings line among the NFL’s worst in pass blocking in four of the past five seasons. Eyeball test and metrics reach the same conclusion.
This isn’t about cleaning up an utter mess. The Vikings won a playoff game and finished eighth in the NFL in scoring. The focus, as Zimmer said Monday, is figuring out how to “get over this hump” of being good but not championship-caliber.
Building a strong offensive line is the first step. Cousins is what he is at this point. He’s not going to reinvent himself.
The organization has some big-ticket decisions on deck. This will be an eventful offseason in reconstructing the roster. Their playoff flameout could not have provided them a clearer roadmap.
http://www.startribune.com/vikings-need-...566955842/
^^^^ Sounds like Chip has been lurking on this board again...  B)
Quote: @purplefaithful said:
Vikings need to fix offensive line before they do anything else
Zimmer noted that a few young linemen basically “redshirted” this season, so perhaps viable upgrades exist internally.
http://www.startribune.com/vikings-need-...566955842/
So the team is already starting the narrative that Samia and Udoh - and nothing more unless maybe they find some "steal of the draft" guy in round 4 - will be our OL upgrades for 2020.
Quote: @Jor-El said:
@ purplefaithful said:
Vikings need to fix offensive line before they do anything else
Zimmer noted that a few young linemen basically “redshirted” this season, so perhaps viable upgrades exist internally.
http://www.startribune.com/vikings-need-...566955842/
So the team is already starting the narrative that Samia and Udoh - and nothing more unless maybe they find some "steal of the draft" guy in round 4 - will be our OL upgrades for 2020.
Always so negative. This could just as easily be early smoke signals to hopefully prevent a team from jumping in front of Minnesota to take an O-Lineman in the 1st or 2nd Round.
You also need to factor in that Rick & Mike have 1 more year to get it right. IF, IF, IF they are really dumb enough to roll with Samia and Udoh as Starters then the season will be a bust and we can finally, collectively move on from them.
I am curious to see how those two develop with a 2nd offseason of Dennison & Kubiak. Would be nice is Samia could really push Kline and Udoh could displace Hill as the swing Tackle.
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