Vikings Offense Looks Like It’s From The 1920s
The film of the Vikings’ offense paints a pretty clear picture.
— Alec Lewis (@alec_lewis) October 27, 2026
It’s not one person. It’s not one thing.
This is how the group finds itself in conversations with teams from the 1920s. This is why it all feels so choppy, so disjointed, so disconcerting:https://t.co/o4cyP4HANX
How the Vikings are 6-0 despite an offense that looks like it’s from the 1920s
If the name Elbert “Al” Bloodgood rings a bell, you are either an extraordinarily well-informed fan of the Nebraska Cornhuskers or a professional football historian.
Bloodgood, who was all of 5 feet 8 and 153 pounds, played quarterback for the Kansas City Cowboys in 1925 and ’26. He kicked, too. Once, in a December 1926 game, Bloodgood converted 4 of 6 field goal attempts to beat Ernie Nevers and the vaunted Duluth Eskimos.
The more you know …
That 1926 season is worth remembering now for one very specific reason. Preposterously, the 2026 Minnesota Vikings are the first team since Bloodgood’s squad to win five straight games with five or fewer touchdowns over that span. This comes a few weeks after the Vikings found themselves in the same conversation as the 1923 Chicago Cardinals, another team from that low-scoring era that won games despite limited offensive output.
Now, some caveats are required. First and foremost, the Vikings’ touchdown count would look a bit different if tight end T.J. Hockenson hadn’t slid to run out the clock in the Week 4 matchup against the Miami Dolphins. The Vikings offense has also operated for stretches without several of its starters. The staff knows defense and special teams are the team’s strengths, and they’ve strategized a way to play that elevates those advantages.
Still, the historical comparisons paint an appropriate picture of the Vikings’ uniqueness. They are off to a 6-0 start with an offense that ranks near the bottom of the NFL in most meaningful statistics.
“We know that if our defense is playing like (it does) and we only give the other team so many opportunities, it’s going to be really hard for them because they’re going to have to start pressing,” Vikings right tackle Brian O’Neill said after his team’s 16-10 win over the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday. “And when you start pressing against this defense, it’s not a good formula.
“But we’re going to have to put up more than 16 points. We’re going to have to.”
The dilemma is fairly straightforward. The Vikings recognize that minimizing turnovers and maximizing time of possession will prop up their other units. That’s how they’ve won 11 games in a row, dating to last November.
They also realize the team’s ceiling will likely depend on its ability to move the football and score points.
OFFENSIVE STAT | VIKINGS' RANK |
Offensive DVOA | 30th |
EPA per pass | 26th |
EPA per rush | 25th |
Pass yards per play | 21st |
Yards per carry | 19th |
Time of possession | 2nd |
Turnover margin | 1st |
Searching for one lone culprit in the offense’s struggles is futile. The Vikings’ unit, which as a group is being paid over $152 million in 2026 (the eighth-highest figure in the NFL), finds itself 32nd in success rate, 31st in EPA per play, 27th in yards per play and 18th in explosive-play rate. The problems are more holistic.
The play of this group is like that of an amateur golfer who cannot seem to stitch together a round of effective driving, chipping and putting. The rotating trouble is less a bug than a feature of being an inconsistent golfer — or, in this case, an inconsistent offense.
“There’s a little bit of Monday morning quarterbacking on plays,” coach Kevin O’Connell said, “but the bottom line is that it’s all 11 executing on the field and getting as many plays where we can get 11 guys doing their job to the standard where the effectiveness of the play can take hold.”
Against Indianapolis, many of the well-trodden, season-long themes re-emerged. Minnesota couldn’t establish a rhythm on early downs in the run game as a result of leaky blocking and poor reads by the running backs. Longer third-and-long attempts complicated the protection plan against the Colts’ creative blitz packages.
Those situations also called for more precision from Vikings quarterback Kyler Murray, who still appears to be acclimating to the team’s progression-based passing game.
Murray missed superstar receiver Justin Jefferson on an in-breaking route on Minnesota’s first play of the second half. Even that snap, though, revealed how all 11 players are involved in the team’s issues. Colts defensive tackle DeForest Buckner pushed left guard Joe Huber into the backfield. Huber collided with tight end Ben Yurosek, who gave Murray less room to step into his throw.
Similar domino-effect sequences show up throughout games. On one snap, Murray might not progress in time to connect with an available receiver. On another, a receiver might get jammed at the line of scrimmage when Murray finally has time.
Even one-off penalties affect the synergy. For example, late in the fourth quarter Sunday, Murray was flushed from the pocket and found receiver Jordan Addison down the left sideline. But a holding call on center Blake Brandel wiped out the 34-yard gain.
“We’ll continue to get better,” Murray said Sunday night. “I know we will. I know we keep saying that, but I felt like we moved the ball well (against the Colts). We’ve just got to put the ball in the end zone.”
O’Connell and Murray have said they didn’t expect fireworks from the outset. The summer quarterback competition kept Murray from getting a full allotment of reps and delayed his ability to sync up timing-wise with the Vikings pass catchers.
Some of the early-season dynamics didn’t help, either. Murray played just 11 snaps in Week 1 before suffering a concussion and missing the following game. In Week 2, a downpour in Chicago affected both teams’ ability to move the ball. Then, just as Murray returned, Jefferson exited six snaps into the Week 3 matchup with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Add in the season-ending injuries to left guard Donovan Jackson and starting tight end Josh Oliver, and it becomes easier to understand the poor results. Jackson’s absence places more pressure on Brandel and right guard Will Fries. Without Oliver, it’s harder for the Vikings to run the football out of 11 personnel.
None of this would feel as weighty if the Vikings had won a playoff game since 2020. Wild-card losses in 2022 and ’24 frame some of the national conversation around this franchise, perhaps unfairly, given the major differences between those teams.
Because Minnesota has an incredible defense, the offense’s performance will remain in the spotlight. Potential trades in the coming weeks might affect the overall trajectory. If that’s what it takes to distance the Vikings from Bloodgood’s Cowboys — if that’s what it takes to inspire confidence during a treacherous November schedule in which they face the Detroit Lions, Buffalo Bills, Green Bay Packers, San Francisco 49ers and Atlanta Falcons — then it’ll be well worth it.
LIVE WELL ~ LOVE MUCH ~ LAUGH OFTEN
Honestly, its bullshit and unacceptable. This offense has zero excuses for playing like ass. Point the finger where you will, but this wasn't the 'dynamic Kyler Murray offense' that was touted preseason as basically a forgone conclusion by some. And if you didn't agree with that, you somehow just weren't sophisticated enough to grasp it. 🙄
Its coming, KOC says.....so is Christmas. Tick, tock.
StickierBuns wrote:
Honestly, its bullshit and unacceptable. This offense has zero excuses for playing like ass. Point the finger where you will, but this wasn't the 'dynamic Kyler Murray offense' that was touted preseason as basically a forgone conclusion by some. And if you didn't agree with that, you somehow just weren't sophisticated enough to grasp it. 🙄
Its coming, KOC says.....so is Christmas. Tick, tock.
PREACH IT!!
I know that I caught flack for questioning the dwarf king, despite years of evidence backing my position. The offense looks...preseason, to me. Everyone knows their assignments, their blocks, their routes...but, it looks like an "August" team heading into November.
Being undefeated just feels like more to lose when the team is hard to watch. Kyler currently reminds me of...Teddy. He can do the job, but my expectations aren't high.
"AVAILABLE: DUMBASS GM. MAY TRADE WRONG QB. WILL TRADE FOR 1/2 PACK OF FUDGE STRIPE COOKIES. 'QB WHISPERER POTENTIALLY' THROWN IN FOR FULL PACK"
Zanary wrote:
PREACH IT!!
I know that I caught flack for questioning the dwarf king, despite years of evidence backing my position. The offense looks...preseason, to me. Everyone knows their assignments, their blocks, their routes...but, it looks like an "August" team heading into November.
Being undefeated just feels like more to lose when the team is hard to watch. Kyler currently reminds me of...Teddy. He can do the job, but my expectations aren't high.
I'm still giving Murray some leeway, but for me I swallowed the signing of K1, the moving on from McCarthy, etc. for wins. And we have those wins, its great. But not by anything that Kyler Murray has done. Zip. I've got a Hundo that says if we had a crystal ball and saw that the team would start out 6-0, everyone would have agreed that it must have been because of Kyler Murray. EVERYONE. That isn't the case. My recent flare up, if you will, of agitation over K1 is he seemed to regress on Sunday. That's concerning. Some fans said, 'hey, he's learning.....he's getting incrementally better'....ok....I can get aligned with that. There's a smidge of excuse making there, but hell.....fine. He's 'ascending'. Not against the Colts he didn't. Disappointing.
StickierBuns wrote:
Honestly, its bullshit and unacceptable. This offense has zero excuses for playing like ass. Point the finger where you will, but this wasn't the 'dynamic Kyler Murray offense' that was touted preseason as basically a forgone conclusion by some. And if you didn't agree with that, you somehow just weren't sophisticated enough to grasp it. 🙄
Its coming, KOC says.....so is Christmas. Tick, tock.
It's true... like we're still using the rep split thing as an excuse? We're almost two months into the regular season and 3.5 months since Kyler has gotten basically all the starters reps since he was named our starting QB. We have all these weapons, but still waiting for this better QB play we were promised.
StickierBuns wrote:
I'm still giving Murray some leeway, but for me I swallowed the signing of K1, the moving on from McCarthy, etc. for wins. And we have those wins, its great. But not by anything that Kyler Murray has done. Zip. I've got a Hundo that says if we had a crystal ball and saw that the team would start out 6-0, everyone would have agreed that it must have been because of Kyler Murray. EVERYONE. That isn't the case. My recent flare up, if you will, of agitation over K1 is he seemed to regress on Sunday. That's concerning. Some fans said, 'hey, he's learning.....he's getting incrementally better'....ok....I can get aligned with that. There's a smidge of excuse making there, but hell.....fine. He's 'ascending'. Not against the Colts he didn't. Disappointing.
I have to add this. If it wasn't the Vikings, it probably wouldn't be so difficult to accept the success, but as we know when something can go wrong, it will at the worst possible time. Folks want to compare this team to the 2000 Ravens or the 01 Bucs. Maybe this defense is close to that, but we are all sitting around on our hands waiting for the offense to "Vikings" it up. A bad turnover somewhere, a stupid mistake and the razors edge we are living on for wins is gone.
As many have said, it will probably be more clear after the next 4 games where we stand. Or maybe it won't be. Maybe we will continue to live on this razors edge until it really matters....the playoffs. I think everyone's fear coming up is that one of these 4 coaches are going to find a solution for the Flores defense and we are going to need more then 16 points from the offense going forward.
Yeah, we are 6-0, but no one with an ounce of Vikingdom in them doesn't have that foreboding dark thought in the back of their head wondering when is the roadrunner going to drop the Acme anvil on our head? The more wins they stack the harder it will fall and the harder it is to detach emotionally from the fall.
THAT is why the discussions for McCarthy are still going on. THAT is why Murray is catching all the angst. The only way to really feel better is to remove any chance that when we hit the see saw, the rock doesn't go up and then come and land on our head. We need to see a #15 or so offense to feel good and enjoy the season. As a Vikings fan, I don't give a shit WHO is running it. If suddenly Murray turns in to a half assed QB, or they bring in Jonathan Taylor and can rush for 250 yards per game, or if they trade the entire farm and Mankato for Justin Herbert. FOR GODS SAKE, don't waste this defense by being stubborn and stupid....don't Vikings it up!
Kentis wrote:
Kyler will surely grow into this offense, hell I bet he’ll be up to 6’2” shortly…😇😏
I'd take 5'10"!
gonna have to put or shut uphttps://t.co/4J1oWmxqm3
— VikesNow (@VikesNow) October 27, 2026
The Vikings Are Running Out of Excuses
All offseason, everyone who followed the NFL was united, saying the Vikings would have a sweet defense and they would just need an average offense to be a serious football team.
Six games into the season — more than a third of the season — the Vikings have yet to show that they can actually have an average offense. And the excuses lined up well for the squad, enough to have most of the fan base buy in that it would eventually improve.
Excuse after excuse
The season has begun with six consecutive wins, but the offense hasn’t contributed much more than taking care of the ball. Indeed, an important element, but it’s fair to hope for an explosive unit when Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison threaten the secondary, while a solid running back tandem and T.J. Hockenson can cause havoc underneath. Add in a talented passer (and runner) like Kyler Murray and you should have an offense that can score more than 15 points.
Unfortunately, those players struggled to share the field together, allowing the excuses to come in bunches.
In Week 1, Murray left the field with a concussion early in the game and Carson Wentz took over for about seven quarters. With a backup quarterback, surely we can’t expect fireworks.
Additionally, Jordan Mason suffered a thumb injury that sidelined him for the next four contests. Aaron Jones took over the entire backfield, which is a ridiculous ask from a 31-year-old who’s playing through a knee injury, and it allowed us to put the blame for the struggling ground attack on the running back group.
In Week 3, Murray returned to the lineup, but Jefferson exited early in the game and also missed Week 4. Guess what? The passing game just cannot work without him, is what we said.
Jefferson was back in Week 5, but Hockenson suffered a concussion a couple of plays into the game and Addison was out. Additionally, the Vikings lost Donovan Jackson, Josh Oliver and Christian Darrisaw along the way.
Week 7
It’s not unheard of to have a shaky offense when half the unit is missing, including some star players. However, Week 7 proved that it’s time to retire that narrative.
Mason returned from IR; Jefferson and Addison were available; and Hockenson and Darrisaw had moved past their concussions. Only Jackson and Oliver were out — and will remain out for the rest of the season. Missing a couple of players is normal in the NFL, though.
The output was modest, as the Vikings generated 275 total yards. Jones and Mason rushed for 94 yards on 23 carries. Murray completed 14 of 24 passes for 150 yards and a touchdown. Minnesota was 3-for-11 on third downs. Once again, it did not turn the football over.
The Asterisk
The Vikings have beaten six opponents. Chicago and Green Bay are solid football teams, but they are not known for scary defenses. Among Vikings foes, only Tampa Bay ranks inside the top 10 in EPA/play on defense (3rd). New Orleans, Indianapolis, and Miami rank in the 20s, while the division rivals are middling units.
Despite the lack of strong competition, the Vikings have yet to deliver a good offensive football game.
The next test
The schedule is about to make the problem harder to ignore. Detroit, San Francisco and Buffalo are among the offenses waiting over the next few weeks, and none is likely to let Minnesota get away with another afternoon of stalled drives and missed chances. The Vikings’ defense can keep them in games, but asking it to carry the entire team against those units is not a sustainable plan.
That doesn’t mean the offense has to become dominant overnight. It does mean the Vikings need to show a dependable version of themselves, one step at a time: run the ball with purpose, stay out of third-and-long, finish drives with touchdowns and keep the pressure off the defense. Six games have provided enough evidence about what this offense can do — and enough time to work through the injuries and lineup changes.
The search for an identity is over. The Vikings are 6-0, but the record can’t be the answer to every concern. Against Detroit, then the challenges ahead, the offense has to start giving this team more than hope that it will eventually click.
LIVE WELL ~ LOVE MUCH ~ LAUGH OFTEN
I agree with a lot of the above. Plus something concerning to me is that I have yet to really hear KOC talk about something that he can do better. He seems to lack any measure of accountability in this mess. All I ever hear from him is along the lines of what he said above, "it’s all 11 executing on the field and getting as many plays where we can get 11 guys doing their job to the standard where the effectiveness of the play can take hold.”
Where are the adjustments to Kyler's strengths? He's not a pure, progression-based pocket passer which is obvious to everyone else at this point. Where are the adjustments to the offense that are constantly being made on the defensive side of the ball?
I'm getting more and more frustrated with KOC by the day. At some point, will we let Flores leave for a head coaching job and be stuck with this mess on offense with no defense to bail us out? Or do we make the tough call and promote the coach who has shown he has earned it? Obviously a question for another day but starting to weigh on my mind as I have lost quite a bit of faith in KOC since the start of last season and now even more with his handling of the McCarthy situation and lack of accountability with the current offensive mess.
We are in the position we are in, because of the terrible decision to move on from Darnold. We can continue to discuss Murray and JJM, but we had the perfect fit for the offense who had a pro bowl like season in his first season here and we let him move on.
It is what it is now, we are stuck with a series of poor decisions at the position. Unless Murray shows some signifiant improvement this week, I think we should go back to Wentz who at least gives us a chance to get the ball downfield. Jets had as many catches in the two games with him than the last 4 with Murray.
JR44 wrote:
We are in the position we are in, because of the terrible decision to move on from Darnold. We can continue to discuss Murray and JJM, but we had the perfect fit for the offense who had a pro bowl like season in his first season here and we let him move on.
It is what it is now, we are stuck with a series of poor decisions at the position. Unless Murray shows some signifiant improvement this week, I think we should go back to Wentz who at least gives us a chance to get the ball downfield. Jets had as many catches in the two games with him than the last 4 with Murray.
Uncle Sammy.....sweet, sweet Uncle Sammy. 😍
Dunno, seems really simple to me. Two issues. Jones being our only RB hurt. He was a warrior, but lacks the explosion and power to be the bellcow. Now that Mason is back, I expect better results.
The main issue is Murray. WRs are open, Jefferson has been open quite often, so the offensive scheme is good IMO. Murray just has to hit the open WRs. If he hits those open guys, the drive continues. If the drive continues, then more chances for the explosive plays. I would also wager if Murray starts hitting those, the run game will open up a bit.
SFVikingFan wrote:
I'm getting more and more frustrated with KOC by the day. At some point, will we let Flores leave for a head coaching job and be stuck with this mess on offense with no defense to bail us out? Or do we make the tough call and promote the coach who has shown he has earned it? Obviously a question for another day but starting to weigh on my mind as I have lost quite a bit of faith in KOC since the start of last season and now even more with his handling of the McCarthy situation and lack of accountability with the current offensive mess.
I know, 6/0 sucks...😉
Seriously though, I have heard him talk about how his play-calling can improve, and more than one time.
Hurry-up Vikings, we ain't getting any younger!
greediron wrote:
Dunno, seems really simple to me. Two issues. Jones being our only RB hurt. He was a warrior, but lacks the explosion and power to be the bellcow. Now that Mason is back, I expect better results.
The main issue is Murray. WRs are open, Jefferson has been open quite often, so the offensive scheme is good IMO. Murray just has to hit the open WRs. If he hits those open guys, the drive continues. If the drive continues, then more chances for the explosive plays. I would also wager if Murray starts hitting those, the run game will open up a bit.
U have a lot more faith in Mason then I do.
Theilen nailed it in his interview on KFAN...Flashes are there, they need to stack plays more consistently.
Chances are we're going to be riding with current roster as it is. Lets hope for no major injuries, saddle-up and see what the next 4 games bring.
Hopefully it'll be entertaining, least I hope so. I would be delighted going .500 the next 4 and sitting at 8/2 by Thanksgiving.
Hurry-up Vikings, we ain't getting any younger!
I don't think this is a Kyler Murray issue. I think this a KOC can't implement an offense issue. Too many guys are making mistakes. Its not everyone is good but Kyler doesnt get it. My guy feeling is that instead of making an offense tailored around Kylers skillsets they either built an offense that was twice as big (half what KOC wants and half what Kyler needs) with half as much practice in it or they scrapped it early in the season and we're basically winging it out there. The offense is clearly different now from early season Kyler.
I'm going with a combination of things.
KOC needs to adapt to K1 skill set. Last week we did the most play action, week before we were in shotgun (pistol)
Second I love that we are committed to the run but lets face it. To grind it out 80 yards on 15 plays is pretty challenging.
Let K1 roll out, boot let, move the pocket so the little guy can see.
More designed safe runs for K1. Seems way to hesitant to take off. Pick up some yards slide and get ready for next play.
LUCK- 2 turnovers in the redzone killed a lot of momentum against Saints. Last week Colts won the time of possession because the run game was clicking and they were over 50% on 3rd downs. Defense held them to 10 but lost field position.
Vikes need another blocker or 2 (TE, Guard) and a RB (Taylor or Barkley) would tip the scales on offense.
purplefaithful wrote:
U have a lot more faith in Mason then I do.
Theilen nailed it in his interview on KFAN...Flashes are there, they need to stack plays more consistently.
Chances are we're going to be riding with current roster as it is. Lets hope for no major injuries, saddle-up and see what the next 4 games bring.
Hopefully it'll be entertaining, least I hope so. I would be delighted going .500 the next 4 and sitting at 8/2 by Thanksgiving.
I wouldn't mind a RB with much more flash than Mason, just saying he is a better bell cow than Jones. Stacking completions will make the offense look so much better.
medaille wrote:
I don't think this is a Kyler Murray issue. I think this a KOC can't implement an offense issue. Too many guys are making mistakes. Its not everyone is good but Kyler doesnt get it. My guy feeling is that instead of making an offense tailored around Kylers skillsets they either built an offense that was twice as big (half what KOC wants and half what Kyler needs) with half as much practice in it or they scrapped it early in the season and we're basically winging it out there. The offense is clearly different now from early season Kyler.
I agree, the fact the offense is still in flux at this point is both encouraging and infuriating.
Every single QB we bring in flounders while KO "dials it in" and "tailors" the offense to the QBs strengths. Is that not what the offseason is for? If you think the JJM/KM competition was real well that looks like a colossal misuse of time. If you think the JJM/KM competition wasn't real then why wasn't that time spent tailoring things to a short QB who prefers shotgun and pistol formations, and peppering TEs?
On the one hand I do see the changes and to some degree, the progress. So it gives me hope that we'll continue to improve. On the other hand why does it seem like every QB we bring in isn't just starting at Square One, but from Square 30-Below?
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