So this supposed "stacked roster" places 2 on All Pro - and second team at that
Danielle and Dirty Harry - Congrats to them of course.
Boy, I was wearing some deep purple shades when it came to how stacked I thought this roster was B)
Zimmer and staff are culprit for much, but the "Big Knockers" on this team collectively had a bad year or collectively peaked a season or 2 ago. I honestly dont know if this roster needs a few tweaks or major overhaul (OL aside).
Hurry-up Vikings, we ain't getting any younger!
Hunter fell off the face of the earth after his 3.5 sack game vs the laydowns. Getting just 3 sacks in 7 games after registering 11.5 in his first 9.
Much like the rest of the Vikings... just kinda faded into not playing meaningful football in January after... well we all know.
There's no question the roster is stacked. But players that don't win don't stand out. I think Xavier Rhodes is a great example. Without question, one of the best corners in the NFL. Not a great year though. Why? Probably several reasons. What about Adam Thielen? All world the first half of the season, nearly invisible the 2nd half. Is it because he's not talented? Of course not. Is Cook not talented? Is Diggs not? It's a machine. With a hundred moving parts and they all have to work together. That didn't happen this year because of poor coaching, injuries and an overmatched offensive line. And not necessarily in that order. But Jesus God, don't think the team has to be overhauled. LOL
OL aside, the personnel group that has me thinking the hardest is the DL...
Griffen, Linval, Richardson...That's 75% of that group.
Maybe Linval was injured more than we know and he couldn't anchor?
Sheldon - Zimmer gushed about, but I didn't see a 3T that flashed very much
Everson? Of course has his personal challenges, but not the same guy as before. I truly think age has caught-up with him. Might be a good rotation/situational player from now on - at the right price.
Yep, a highly rated 3t or 1 gapper @ #18 wouldn't shock me - not with the draft the way it looks in January. Strong for DL.
Thielen produced when targeted. He was targeted 96 times in the first 8 games. He was targeted 57 times in the last 8 games. 78% catch rate in the first 8 and 72% catch rate in the second half of the season. That's not much of a drop off. Yes less yards but he had a lot less opportunities to amass yards, about 5 targets per game less. Can't really blame him for not doing more when he did not have the ball to do so.
@"Bezerker88" said: Thielen produced when targeted. He was targeted 96 times in the first 8 games. He was targeted 57 times in the last 8 games. 78% catch rate in the first 8 and 72% catch rate in the second half of the season. That's not much of a drop off. Yes less yards but he had a lot less opportunities to amass yards, about 5 targets per game less. Can't really blame him for not doing more when he did not have the ball to do so.
That depends on whether or not he was getting open. But there are a lot of reasons why he might not be getting targeted as much. They tried to focus on running the ball more too so less passes were attempted overall. Defenses also began doubling both Diggs and Thielan since they didn't have a legitimate 3rd WR.
@"Purplewhizz" said:@"Bezerker88" said: Thielen produced when targeted. He was targeted 96 times in the first 8 games. He was targeted 57 times in the last 8 games. 78% catch rate in the first 8 and 72% catch rate in the second half of the season. That's not much of a drop off. Yes less yards but he had a lot less opportunities to amass yards, about 5 targets per game less. Can't really blame him for not doing more when he did not have the ball to do so.
That depends on whether or not he was getting open. But there are a lot of reasons why he might not be getting targeted as much. They tried to focus on running the ball more too so less passes were attempted overall. Defenses also began doubling both Diggs and Thielan since they didn't have a legitimate 3rd WR.
The guy literally caught a pass behind the back of a defender. He doesn't have to be wide open to throw him the ball.As far as 3rd receivers, I hear that Rudolph guy is pretty good at catching the ball. Cook can catch. Can anyone really name a lot of 3rd WRs?
@"Purplewhizz" said:@"Bezerker88" said: Thielen produced when targeted. He was targeted 96 times in the first 8 games. He was targeted 57 times in the last 8 games. 78% catch rate in the first 8 and 72% catch rate in the second half of the season. That's not much of a drop off. Yes less yards but he had a lot less opportunities to amass yards, about 5 targets per game less. Can't really blame him for not doing more when he did not have the ball to do so.
That depends on whether or not he was getting open. But there are a lot of reasons why he might not be getting targeted as much. They tried to focus on running the ball more too so less passes were attempted overall. Defenses also began doubling both Diggs and Thielan since they didn't have a legitimate 3rd WR.
Vikings ran a total of 357 attempts. The last 8 games they ran it 183 times vs 174 rushing attempts in the first 8 games. 9 more rushing attempts in 8 games, or 1.125 more attempts per game in the second half of the season. The offense stalled in the second half of the season, one could say because they went away from targeting Thielen.
Goes along with our former OC who was supposed to be the next hot HC candidate. As the season goes, so goes the respect and hype
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