10-30-2020, 04:42 PM
The Vikings have become what Mike Zimmer fearedIn Zimmer’s six full seasons as Vikings head coach, Minnesota has never finished lower than 11th in points allowed. And the Vikings have never finished with an offensive ranking in points scored or yards that was better than their defensive ranking in those categories in Zimmer’s six seasons.
But this is the direction the Vikings have been trending. In an ideal world, the Vikings would be good in both — as they were in 2017 and 2019, when they ranked in the top 10 in points scored and points allowed.
In the real world, the shift is a consequence of the Vikings’ actions — and, as the headline suggests, the coming to fruition of what Zimmer articulated during one of the most honest media sessions of his tenure at the scouting combine 2018.
The Vikings were mulling their quarterback options at the time, trying to decide whether to re-sign Case Keenum (or perhaps Teddy Bridgewater or Sam Bradford), invest in a low-price stopgap, perhaps draft a QB or go all-in during free agency on an expensive but stabilizing presence less than months after reaching the NFC title game with Keenum.
Zimmer said at the time, on March 1, 2018: “I think it’s really, really important that we understand — and I’m not just saying this — we’ve won 40 games in the last four years. We’ve done that by being pretty good on defense. This year obviously the offense was much better, but part of the reason we’ve been winning games and staying in games is because we’ve been playing good on defense and we’ve been a smart team and all those things. I want to be really careful about taking away from our strength and saying, ‘OK, we’re not going to be able to do this and we’re not going to be able to do that anymore because of financial reasons or something else.'”
The Vikings of course ended up signing Kirk Cousins, the biggest all-in move they could have made at that position. And while it hasn’t stopped them from retaining a decent amount of their defensive core, it certainly has influenced the direction of their team toward the one you see today.
Simply put: When you invest that much money in a quarterback, there are fewer resources to commit to the defense. It also sends a signal — and naturally triggers more investment on offense.
Since signing Cousins to the fully guaranteed $84 million deal in mid-March of 2018, just two weeks after Zimmer’s comments at the combine, the Vikings have:
*Used six of their nine picks in the top three rounds of the draft on offensive players: linemen Brian O’Neill, Garrett Bradbury and Ezra Cleveland, running back Alexander Mattison plus the aforementioned Smith and Jefferson.
*Used precious cap space to extend running back Dalvin Cook and keep tight end Kyle Rudolph.
*Extended Cousins himself through 2022.
It’s no wonder the Vikings’ fortunes this year hinge on offense and that it has become a bright spot. What they probably couldn’t have imagined, of course, is just how far the defense would fall early on in 2020 — even without the injured Danielle Hunter, Anthony Barr and with a very inexperienced secondary.
But the results are what they are. And coaches are ultimately judged not just by results but by how those results are measured against expectations. Zimmer surely knew that on that fateful day at the combine as well when he said this about their impending QB decision.
“It’s important for myself and [General Manager] Rick [Spielman] and the organization that we pick the right guy that is going to help us to continue to move forward,” Zimmer said. “If we don’t do that, then I’ll probably get fired.”
https://www.startribune.com/the-vikings-...572923521/
But this is the direction the Vikings have been trending. In an ideal world, the Vikings would be good in both — as they were in 2017 and 2019, when they ranked in the top 10 in points scored and points allowed.
In the real world, the shift is a consequence of the Vikings’ actions — and, as the headline suggests, the coming to fruition of what Zimmer articulated during one of the most honest media sessions of his tenure at the scouting combine 2018.
The Vikings were mulling their quarterback options at the time, trying to decide whether to re-sign Case Keenum (or perhaps Teddy Bridgewater or Sam Bradford), invest in a low-price stopgap, perhaps draft a QB or go all-in during free agency on an expensive but stabilizing presence less than months after reaching the NFC title game with Keenum.
Zimmer said at the time, on March 1, 2018: “I think it’s really, really important that we understand — and I’m not just saying this — we’ve won 40 games in the last four years. We’ve done that by being pretty good on defense. This year obviously the offense was much better, but part of the reason we’ve been winning games and staying in games is because we’ve been playing good on defense and we’ve been a smart team and all those things. I want to be really careful about taking away from our strength and saying, ‘OK, we’re not going to be able to do this and we’re not going to be able to do that anymore because of financial reasons or something else.'”
The Vikings of course ended up signing Kirk Cousins, the biggest all-in move they could have made at that position. And while it hasn’t stopped them from retaining a decent amount of their defensive core, it certainly has influenced the direction of their team toward the one you see today.
Simply put: When you invest that much money in a quarterback, there are fewer resources to commit to the defense. It also sends a signal — and naturally triggers more investment on offense.
Since signing Cousins to the fully guaranteed $84 million deal in mid-March of 2018, just two weeks after Zimmer’s comments at the combine, the Vikings have:
*Used six of their nine picks in the top three rounds of the draft on offensive players: linemen Brian O’Neill, Garrett Bradbury and Ezra Cleveland, running back Alexander Mattison plus the aforementioned Smith and Jefferson.
*Used precious cap space to extend running back Dalvin Cook and keep tight end Kyle Rudolph.
*Extended Cousins himself through 2022.
It’s no wonder the Vikings’ fortunes this year hinge on offense and that it has become a bright spot. What they probably couldn’t have imagined, of course, is just how far the defense would fall early on in 2020 — even without the injured Danielle Hunter, Anthony Barr and with a very inexperienced secondary.
But the results are what they are. And coaches are ultimately judged not just by results but by how those results are measured against expectations. Zimmer surely knew that on that fateful day at the combine as well when he said this about their impending QB decision.
“It’s important for myself and [General Manager] Rick [Spielman] and the organization that we pick the right guy that is going to help us to continue to move forward,” Zimmer said. “If we don’t do that, then I’ll probably get fired.”
https://www.startribune.com/the-vikings-...572923521/
