Fire Donatell tonight

[Chuckf]

let Pettine take over.  This has become embarrassing.  I am having recurring visions of Serwanga, Tate, Walker and Bass getting torched week in and week out.  

[Guest]

I wouldn't mind but you know they won't.

[Guest]

They have to do something about the defense. 10-2 sort of disguised the one thing that will very likely prevent the Vikings from advancing in the playoffs. 

A defense with Hunter, Z, DT, Kendricks, Harry, P2 and Dantzler shouldn't be this bad. It shouldn't be awesome, but it shouldn't be THIS bad. 

The passing game appears to be hitting its stride, but we can't run the ball and we can't play defense, the foundations of good football teams. 

[Guest]

That's exactly right, when you can't run well? Or play defense? Good luck in the post-season! 

Not absolving KOC for some bad play calling yesterday, but Donatell is the coach that needs to go. 

And I gotta say 1 more thing, I watched P2 quit a bit yesterday and it wasn't pretty. He looked entirely disinterested and not engaged. I am starting to suspect there are some attitude things going on with that side of the ball. 

[Guest]

Kevin O'Connell's decisions cost Vikings dearly in loss to the LionsAbove all Sunday, what Vikings coach Kevin O'Connell may regret the most is hiring Ed Donatell as his defensive coordinator.All week, Vikings players called their visit to Detroit a "hat and shirt game," meaning that if they won, they'd get to wear championship gear.
Their 34-23 loss to the Lions did not earn new clothing for the players, or a diploma and mortarboard for their head coach.
Kevin O'Connell's first season with the Vikings has been a resounding success. His first try at winning a division title resembled a graduate tripping while climbing the stairs to the stage.
On a day when Justin Jefferson set a franchise record with 223 receiving yards and Kirk Cousins threw for 425, O'Connell made a pivotal play call that involved neither.
Late in the first half and trailing by seven points, the Vikings faced first-and-goal from the Lions 3. O'Connell called for running back Dalvin Cook to take a handoff and make a jump pass to tight end Johnny Mundt.
These plays often work. In this instance, Cook looked uncomfortable as he approached the line. Instead of tucking the ball under his arm as he would on a running play, he was holding it away from his body, waiting to throw.
He got hit. He fumbled. Detroit recovered. The Vikings played catch-up the rest of the game.
"We had some interior penetration on the play," O'Connell said. "Ultimately, trying to be aggressive in that moment. We had a play set up and just didn't execute and the ball went the other way. It was a critical, critical error."
Any play call that fails can be second-guessed. Generally, NFL coaches spend so much time assessing their opponent's weaknesses and situational probabilities that second-guesses can be uninformed.
Sometimes, though, NFL coaches spend so much time dreaming and scheming during the week that they lose sight of obvious truths. In this case, the obvious truth was that the Lions couldn't cover Jefferson, Cook had scored easily on a previous goal-line carry, Adam Thielen is a gifted red-zone receiver, and T.J. Hockenson and K.J. Osborn are worthy options.
Instead, O'Connell called for Cook, who had never attempted a pass in the NFL, to throw to a blocking tight end.
This was not the same as a run-first offense like Tennessee's handing the ball to Derrick Henry and knowing that the defense would overreact. Cook was not presenting a threat to the middle of the Lions defense. He would rush for 1.5 yards per carry.
"I'm always going to rely on our guys to make that play and execute in that moment," O'Connell said. "We practiced it quite a bit."
O'Connell might have cost his team points with two other decisions.
The Vikings moved into range for a 64-yard field-goal attempt at the end of the half, but decided to throw the ball instead of attempting a field goal.
This is more of a quibble than a second-guess, but the ease with which modern kickers make long field goals, especially in domed stadiums, might have given O'Connell reason to call on Greg Joseph rather than trying a desperation pass play.
In the third quarter, after Cousins hit Thielen for a touchdown to make it 21-13, O'Connell called for a two-point conversion.
This wasn't merely odd. This was strange. Then O'Connell called for a pass to Thielen along the line of scrimmage, and the conversion failed.
The Cook fumble, the two-point conversion decision and the choice not to try a long field goal could have cost the Vikings up to 11 points

The Vikings also allowed a 42-yard run on a fake punt against a team known for special-teams surprises.
The decision that might bother O'Connell the most, were he to submit to questioning under oath, might be one he made in February, when he hired defensive coordinator Ed Donatell.
The Vikings defense is currently the worst in the NFL. They have set a franchise record by allowing 400 yards of total offense in five straight games. They have allowed 300 yards passing in all five.
"We've got to take a look at what we can do to help our guys be in position to make more plays," O'Connell said. "Be a little more aggressive, possibly. I think we've got to generate some more rush, however we do it, and then just try to limit the explosives."
O'Connell and Donatell should take the blame for this one


https://www.startribune.com/vikings-lions-kevin-oconnell-ed-donatell-coaching-dalvin-cook-pass-fumble-jim-souhan/600234969/

[Guest]

Vikings coach Kevin O'Connell says Ed Donatell will retain defensive play-calling dutiesAfter giving up 400 yards for the fifth game in a row, the Vikings fell to last in the NFL in total defense.

Vikings coach Kevin O'Connell said Monday there are "a lot of things on the table" to repair his team's 32nd-ranked defense, but shifting play-calling duties away from defensive coordinator Ed Donatell is not one of them.
"You know you're always looking at things that you think might be — what could be a possible answer to help the guys play better and be more consistent," O'Connell said, "but as of right now, no, that's not something I'm considering."
In the first season under Donatell and a new coaching staff, the Vikings defense has regressed to the point of allowing a franchise-worst five consecutive 400-yard games, including 464 in Sunday's loss to a Lions offense that didn't punt after halftime in Detroit's 34-23 home victory. The Vikings are now giving up an average of 403.7 yards per game, more than the franchise-worst 397.6 yards per game allowed in 2013.
A rash of mental and physical errors have plagued the Vikings secondary that, when combined with an inconsistent four-man pass rush, have led to open skies for quarterbacks. O'Connell said coaches can do a better job of forcing the defensive disruption that has been a key ingredient to the Vikings' winning formula during a 10-3 season; their 20 takeaways are tied for seventh in the NFL. They had no takeaways or sacks in recent losses to the Lions and Cowboys.
"Whether it be personnel-based, schematics-based," O'Connell said, "changing some looks, being a little bit more aggressive at times. Just picking our spots defensively to put our players in situations to be aggressive and try to make some plays. I think we've thrived this year when we've been able to turn the football over and be around the football."
O'Connell said coaches can't "completely change the scheme outright" in December, but they are looking for feasible adjustments to build momentum during a four-game stretch to end the regular season.
"Coaching is very important in times like this," O'Connell said. "Although we don't want to completely revamp, we have to be honest and look at things in a way where we can be the most competitive group we can possibly be over there, and that's what we're doing.
A Discouraging StreakThe Vikings defense has yielded more than 400 yards for five games in a row, and is now last in the NFL in yards allowed (403.7 per game) and passing yards allowed (287.2):
Week 10: W 33-30 (OT) at Buffalo
486 total yards (311 passing, 175 rushing), 6.8 yards per play, 4 takeaways
Week 11: L 40-3 vs. Dallas
458 total yards (307 passing, 151 rushing), 6.5 yards per play, 0 takeaways
Week 12: W 33-26 vs. New England
409 total yards (364 passing, 45 rushing), 7.4 yards per play, 0 takeaways
Week 13: W 27-22 vs. Jets
486 total yards (366 passing, 120 rushing), 5.9 yards per play, 2 turnovers
Week 14: L 34-23 at Detroit
464 total yards (330 passing, 134 rushing), 6.7 yards per play, 0 takeaways


https://www.startribune.com/vikings-coach-kevin-oconnell-defense-ed-donatell-play-calling-last-nfl/600235263/

[Guest]

I thought the most interesting quote from KOC was "but as of right now" that doesn't seem like someone who thinks there is not going to be a change at some point.  From someone who has been dumped a lot, I am sensitive to that kind of language  =)

[Guest]

The article fails to mention an important piece of information highlighting just how stupid the Cook pass call was -- the situation.  It was first and goal at the 3 with 1:06 on the clock.  The Lions had just taken their 2nd timeout.  The play progression is easy -- power run to your strong side.  If you score, great.  If you don't, you force the Lions to use their last timeout.  You have two goals -- score a touchdown and leave the Lions no time on the clock to come back and score.  There are two things you do not do on that 1st and goal play -- pass the ball or run a play that risks negative yardage.  Worst case you end up kicking a FG with no time left in the half and you are down 14-10 and receiving the 2nd half kickoff.  I can't stress enough how monumentally stupid a play call that has Dalvin Cook tip toeing up to the line of scrimmage looking to pass the ball on 1st down was.  Even if it works, you give the Lions over a minute with a timeout to comeback and likely get 3 of those points back, if not more.

[Guest]

  the offense and special teams have both improved with the Coaching changes.


The defense..... not so much.

  the defensive personnel still playing is better than last year.







I get this isn't a top 5 defense?

But it also shouldn't be bottom 5 either. 

[Guest]

@"purplefaithful" said:
That's exactly right, when you can't run well? Or play defense? Good luck in the post-season! 

Not absolving KOC for some bad play calling yesterday, but Donatell is the coach that needs to go. 

And I gotta say 1 more thing, I watched P2 quit a bit yesterday and it wasn't pretty. He looked entirely disinterested and not engaged. I am starting to suspect there are some attitude things going on with that side of the ball. 

In fairness, they’re already a game over what I thought would be a successful season. KOC has been a blessing.  We’ve got a long way to go on D, but it’s doable over the next few years. 

The Vikings will win a SB with KOC in control.