Here’s an understatement: the Vikings have not been one of the better teams in the NFL so far.
While the defense has let the team down in pretty much every game, Minnesota’s offense has actually looked pretty good, especially the last two weeks.
The team has scored more than 30 points in two consecutive matchups. The least amount of points the Vikings have scored this year is 28. To be fair, some of those high point totals can be contributed to garbage-time scores after the opposing team gives cushions to wide receivers in coverage.
But much of the success on offense appears legitimate.
Pro Football Focus recently ranked all NFL offenses so far. Minnesota was tabbed as the 14th best in the league. Here’s what the outlet said about the Vikings:
“No team has produced a lower rate of successful passing plays in the first three quarters of each game in 2020 than the Minnesota Vikings (38%). But in the fourth quarter, Kirk Cousins and the Vikings jump all the way to first, at 69% (five percentage points higher than any other team). Some of these big plays have come from trying to overcome a steep deficit, but it wasn’t at a point that it would be considered garbage time. The difference is also noticeable in Cousins’ passing grade, as his 66.5 mark in the first three quarters shoots up to 87.1 in the final period of play.”
In what might be one of the biggest mismatches of the NFL season, the Vikings young secondary has to try and stop the high-octane Seahawks offense. Minnesota will most likely have to score a lot of points just to stay in the game. The Vikings offense needs to get going before the fourth quarter.