12-05-2022, 08:29 PM
During the final three years of Mike Zimmer's time as head coach, only one team in the NFL ran the ball in the red zone more frequently than the Vikings. And no running back logged more carries near the goal line than Cook.
Cook ran 146 times inside the opponent's 20-yard line from 2019-21, carrying four more times than the Raiders' Josh Jacobs. Those carries were good for a league-best 446 yards and 30 rushing touchdowns, second in the league behind the Titans' Derrick Henry.
As a team, the Vikings ran 280 times in the red zone during those years, trailing the Colts by just two attempts. They threw only 213 passes, the fifth-fewest in the league, but those three Vikings teams finished 10th, sixth and ninth in red-zone scoring percentage.
During Kevin O'Connell's first season as head coach and offensive play caller, the Vikings have taken a markedly different approach in the red zone. They've thrown on 83 of their 126 red-zone plays, with Cousins attempting more passes in the red zone than any passer not named Patrick Mahomes. They've run it only 43 times, and Cook ranks 13th in the league with 27 red-zone attempts.
On Sunday, though, the running back got his first red-zone rushing TD of the year, on a 4-yard run in the second quarter. Alexander Mattison followed with a 14-yard score off a draw play later in the second quarter. Overall, the Vikings ran on three of their six red-zone plays. It's far too small a sample size to suggest a trend, but the running game helped the Vikings go 3-for-3 in the red zone on a day when the Jets went 1-for-6.
"We take pride in being the legs of this football team," Mattison said. "Trying to bring extra energy, bring extra juice and keep that going for this football team is something we put on our plate today."
Cook ran 146 times inside the opponent's 20-yard line from 2019-21, carrying four more times than the Raiders' Josh Jacobs. Those carries were good for a league-best 446 yards and 30 rushing touchdowns, second in the league behind the Titans' Derrick Henry.
As a team, the Vikings ran 280 times in the red zone during those years, trailing the Colts by just two attempts. They threw only 213 passes, the fifth-fewest in the league, but those three Vikings teams finished 10th, sixth and ninth in red-zone scoring percentage.
During Kevin O'Connell's first season as head coach and offensive play caller, the Vikings have taken a markedly different approach in the red zone. They've thrown on 83 of their 126 red-zone plays, with Cousins attempting more passes in the red zone than any passer not named Patrick Mahomes. They've run it only 43 times, and Cook ranks 13th in the league with 27 red-zone attempts.
On Sunday, though, the running back got his first red-zone rushing TD of the year, on a 4-yard run in the second quarter. Alexander Mattison followed with a 14-yard score off a draw play later in the second quarter. Overall, the Vikings ran on three of their six red-zone plays. It's far too small a sample size to suggest a trend, but the running game helped the Vikings go 3-for-3 in the red zone on a day when the Jets went 1-for-6.
"We take pride in being the legs of this football team," Mattison said. "Trying to bring extra energy, bring extra juice and keep that going for this football team is something we put on our plate today."
