Tag: Falcons Wire

The Atlanta Falcons and Minnesota Vikings came into the season with playoff expectations, but are a combined 1-9 through the first five weeks.

Neither team appears headed to the postseason and the Falcons have already started cleaning house. And while it’s safe to say this won’t be an NFC championship preview, both teams are talented enough to at least make some noise.

To help us preview this weekend’s matchup in Minnesota, we’ve gone behind enemy lines with Jack White, the managing editor of Vikings Wire.

The Vikings have a talented team on paper, with a solid ground game and play-makers on the outside. What’s the main reason the team is 1-4 this season?

Vikings Wire: I think it’s a variety of reasons, but the two main ones really come down to the defensive back play and the quarterback. The Vikings saw their two starters outside and their slot corner depart in free agency this offseason. In their place are Mike Hughes and Holton Hill, both of whom were reserves in 2019, and rookie corners Jeff Gladney and Cameron Dantzler. Those four, especially Hill, have struggled to get the Vikings defense off the field. Whether it’s getting beaten on long passing plays or lacking physicality, the Minnesota corners have not cut it.

There’s also the quarterback play. The Vikings offensive line has not done Kirk Cousins a lot of favors, but he still needs to make better decisions and get rid of the ball quicker. Cousins has the second-most interceptions in the NFL. When the offense is efficient, Cousins is thriving and holding onto the football. When it’s not, he’s all over the place, and failing to help the offense finish off games.

Rookie WR Justin Jefferson looks good so far. What does he do well and are there any other standouts from Minnesota’s 2020 draft class?

Yeah, he’s been great. He played pretty well in limited targets for the first two games. Then, he broke out in Week 3, tallying 175 receiving yards and a touchdown reception. The game after, he tallied more than 100 yards once again. He’s been great at making contested catches in coverage, but I think his biggest strength so far has been his ability to make plays after the catch in order to pick up extra yards.

In terms of other standouts, Dantzler hasn’t always looked great, but he’s become a fixture in the defense when healthy after getting drafted in the third round. Defensive tackle James Lynch, a fourth round pick, had a sack against the Seahawks last game. There haven’t been any shining stars other than Jefferson, but there are some rookies like Dantzler and Lynch who are producing from time to time.

How does the fanbase feel about Kirk Cousins at this point and do you think he is the answer for the Vikings at QB?

I think, for the most part, the fanbase probably doesn’t think Kirk Cousins is the quarterback of the future any longer. Personally, I thought Cousins got a bad rap before this season, and I don’t think most of the teams’ 2020 losses are on him. That said, he seems like the kind of player that needs to have a lot of talent around him in order to be successful.

Right now, there is simply not enough talent on defense or the offensive line to make sure Cousins is a winning quarterback for Minnesota. He’s improved on scrambling, but he’s still pretty much a pocket passer, which is tough to be when the interior offensive line is giving up pressure constantly. Vikings fans continue to photo-shop pictures of the top quarterback draft prospects in purple and gold. I think that should tell you something.

The Falcons obviously fired head coach Dan Quinn this week after an 0-5 start. Is Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer’s job in any trouble at all?

I don’t think he’s in trouble this year. The team just re-signed him and many of the games this year have been close. Zimmer has built up enough good faith to the point where I think general manager Rick Spielman and him stick around. That said, if the Vikings’ 2020 season continues to get worse and the team still doesn’t look good in 2021, I could see those two being in trouble.

How do you envision Sunday’s game going? Final score prediction?

I think the Vikings get back on track. They played the Seahawks close and the defense looked much better. I think the young talent on that side of the ball improves once again, enough for a Vikings’ offense to control the ball and hang on. Vikings 28, Falcons 24.

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