Tag: Mike Zimmer

Stock up, stock down from the Vikings’ loss to the Rams

Here is the stock report from Week 16:

The Vikings fell to 7-8 after yet another close defeat. This time, the team lost to the Rams on Sunday. Minnesota needs to close out the two final games of the regular season with wins if it has any hope of making the postseason. Even then, it’s not a sure thing.

Here is the stock report from the game:

Why the Vikings need to move on from Mike Zimmer

It’s time to talk about Mike Zimmer.

It can’t be stated enough that Mike Zimmer saved the Vikings franchise.

When Zimmer arrived in 2014, the franchise was in disarray. Outside of Adrian Peterson’s MVP season — which in and of itself was filled with issues — the Vikings had been on a downward spiral since the NFC Championship against the Saints. From Brad Childress getting fired for cause after releasing Randy Moss, to the forced selection of Christian Ponder, all the way to Percy Harvin forcing his way out of town, the myriad issues kept building.

When Zimmer took over, the Vikings were a 3-13 team that needed a savior. It was evident once Teddy Bridgewater started at quarterback that Zimmer was the guy. He fixed the defense almost immediately, taking the unit from the worst scoring defense in the league to 11th in just one offseason. In his second season, Zimmer had the team at 11-5 and won the division. Just two years later, the Vikings went 13-3 and were a game away from the Super Bowl. Unfortunately, that was when the team plateaued, so now a change needs to be made at head coach.

Vikings vs. Bears: Everything we know

What did we just watch?

A blocked field goal, a muffed punt, baffling throwing miscues and general chippiness — the Vikings’ game against the Bears had all the makings of a black-and-blue NFC North clash.

The Vikings were not spectacular. The team finished with 4 yards per carry. Minnesota allowed four sacks in the game. The Vikings only scored 17 points.

But the 2021 Vikings did something they haven’t done all season: they pulled away from an opponent. Chicago’s last-second touchdown makes the game look closer than it actually was on Monday night.

Minnesota moved the chains and controlled the matchup enough to defeat Chicago at Soldier Field and move back to .500.

Vikings come all too close to second-biggest blown lead in NFL history

The Vikings have experienced more than their share of late-game collapses. Against the Steelers, they almost collapsed historically.

Before their improbable loss to the Lions last Sunday, the 2021 Vikings had established at least a seven-point lead in each game, and had a 5-6 record to show for it. So, it’s not as if Mike Zimmer’s team has been immune to heartbreaking losses.

On Thursday night, Zimmer and his team came all too close to making regular-season NFL history. When Greg Joseph kicked a 25-yard field goal with 6:15 left in the third quarter, Minnesota had a 29-0 lead against a Steelers offense that couldn’t get anything going, and a Steelers defense that allowed Dalvin Cook to run through it with absolute impunity.

And then, as has happened all season, things changed all too quickly for the Vikings.

Pittsburgh scored four touchdowns in less than a quarter of football, Kirk Cousins threw two interceptions to cornerback Ahkello Witherspoon, and Minnesota managed just one more touchdown — a 62-yard touchdown pass from Cousins to receiver K.J. Osborn.

It was that play that saved the Vikings from the wrong side of the biggest regular-season comeback in NFL history.

It put the Vikings up, 36-20, and gave them enough room to withstand Ben Roethlisberger’s 15-yard touchdown pass to tight end Pat Freiermuth with 4:14 left in the game.

The Vikings were unable to get past their own 45-yard line on their next drive, but when Jordan Berry executed an outstanding punt to pin the Steelers at their own three-yard line, you would think that even the Vikings were safe.

Not so fast, as they say. Roethlisberger carved Minnesota’s defense right up on the Steelers’ last drive, and with three seconds left in the game, he threw an absolute time to Freiermuth that the rookie just couldn’t hold onto. Vikings safety Harrison Smith saved what would have been a tie with a two-point conversion.

If the Steelers had scored the touchdown and two-point conversion at the end of regulation, and won in overtime, it would have marked the biggest comeback in any regular-season game in NFL history, topping the 1980 49ers, who beat the Saints, 38-35, after trailing, 35-7 in the second quarter.

Fortunately, the 49ers had a second-year quarterback named Joe Montana.

The biggest comeback in NFL history belongs to the Buffalo Bills, who roared back from a 35-3 deficit against the Houston Oilers in the wild-card round in the 1992 season.

Cook, who finished his day against the Steelers with 205 rushing yards and two touchdowns on 27 carries, seemed exhausted by the ordeal — and by the fact that these things just keep happening.

“We keep asking ourselves why we keep putting ourselves in this position,” he said after the game. “We’re a better team than these games have been telling. We’ve got to figure out a way to get out of that funk we’re in at the end of a game.”

“A relief,” Cook said of the feeling after the final play. “That’s been us all year. Living and dying by that last drive. We’ve got to figure it out. We’re going to keep trying to figure this our.”

It’s hard to say what exactly has befallen these Vikings, and why they’re unable to close things out, but they nearly did it at an historic level on Thursday night.

Stock up, stock down from the Vikings’ loss to the Lions

Here is the stock report from the Vikings’ Week 13 loss:

The Vikings had high expectations before the year.

Minnesota loaded up in 2021 free agency. The team kept most of the pieces from a high-octane offense in 2020. The Vikings looked to be among one of the two best teams in the NFC North in 2021.

While Minnesota may be the second-best team in its division, the Vikings have failed to meet other perceived goals. Minnesota sits at 5-7. On Sunday, the Vikings were on the losing end of their biggest disappointment of the season thus far: an upset defeat to the Lions.

Minnesota needs to find out what went wrong. Here is the stock report:

Why the Vikings shouldn’t fire Mike Zimmer yet

Here is why the Vikings should not fire Mike Zimmer yet:

Minnesota narrowly lost to a winless Detroit team in Week 13. The Vikings, once streaking and in the playoff hunt, look too inconsistent to put together any strong postseason run.

Even if Minnesota sneaks into the playoffs, the Vikings do not look like the kind of team that can even win a game there.

There are also implications to those hypothetical playoff wins. The Vikings may be forced to kick the ball down the road on a brain trust that seems destined for mediocrity with this current roster.

I’m not saying Rick Spielman is a bad general manager or Mike Zimmer is a bad coach, but it seems like this project ran its course in terms of Super Bowl contention.

So why not just fire Zimmer now? Plenty of fans are clamoring for it on social media. I mean, the Lions just snapped their 15-game winless streak against the Vikings. Minnesota is 5-7. Is this team going anywhere? Not really.

For now, though, I think Zimmer should stay. Minnesota is past the NFL trade deadline. At this point, the Vikings can’t just offload a ton of older talent and gear up for a new era. They might as well see if Zimmer can pull off a late-season turn-around.

Also, the Vikings should hire someone from outside the organization. Minnesota needs an offensive-minded coach, one who could either put Kirk Cousins in a better scheme or find a young quarterback who can lead a more aggressive offense.

The best options for interim coaches would be OC Klint Kubiak or Co-DC Andre Patterson, both of whom are good coaches, but not the ones the Vikings should be seeking out for the next head coaching gig. The team needs to look outside the organization, making an interim coach less necessary. Zimmer may as well stay — for now.

Vikings’ Mike Zimmer, 49ers’ George Kittle have differing views on officiating in Week 12 game

The 49ers ran all over the Vikings defense on Sunday. Was it purely skill or did the officials help them out?

The 49ers powered through a depleted Vikings run defense to finish with 208 rushing yards on Sunday. Deebo Samuel, a wide receiver, tallied 66 rushing yards and two touchdowns. 

It’s safe to say Mike Zimmer was not pleased about it. Asked about Samuel’s performance, Zimmer took note of the officiating in the game:

“The other ones were the fact these guys hold all the time, so they are grabbing us around the waist, grabbing our backs, and you know officials, they don’t want to call it every play. Until they start calling it every play, they’re not going to stop doing it.”

49ers TE George Kittle had some thoughts on Zimmer’s comments. Here’s his response via ESPN’s Nick Wagoner (H/T our friends at Niners Wire).

“I think if you’re running your feet and hands inside, just because a guy spins and flails his arms, it’s not holding … If you’re gonna sit on the sideline and complain about holding the whole time, tell your guys to make better plays.”

I think the actual issue might have been that Minnesota had all of its starting defensive linemen out, while San Francisco had an elite running game in Week 12. The Vikings have been a team on the unfair side of a refereeing decision — or lack thereof — plenty of times this year. I’m not sure Samuel and the other 49ers ball carriers running free mostly had to do with the officiating, though.

Vikings head coach complains about 49ers holding, George Kittle responds

Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer had some complaints about the #49ers holding, and George Kittle had a response.

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Who doesn’t love some good post-game media sniping between two teams that just played a football game against one another? A comment by Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer after the game indicated the 49ers’ successful day on the ground came as a result of some lenient officiating. That comment prompted a response from 49ers tight end George Kittle.

One of the keys to the 49ers’ success on the ground was wide receiver Deebo Samuel’s effectiveness as a runner. He carried six times for 66 yards and two touchdowns. As a team San Francisco racked up 208 rushing yards and three scores on 39 carries. Zimmer in his post-game press conference was asked about those runs by Samuel and instead of crediting his opponent, blamed the officiating.

“The other ones were the fact these guys hold all the time, so they are grabbing us around the waist, grabbing our backs, and you know officials, they don’t want to call it every play. Until they start calling it every play, they’re not going to stop doing it.”

The 49ers and Vikings were both flagged five times. Minnesota drew 38 penalty yards compared to 57 for San Francisco.

One player who took exception to Zimmer’s post-game comment was 49ers tight end George Kittle. Here’s his response via ESPN’s Nick Wagoner:

“I think if you’re running your feet and hands inside, just because a guy spins and flails his arms, it’s not holding … If you’re gonna sit on the sideline and complain about holding the whole time, tell your guys to make better plays.”

It’s understandable why Zimmer might be frustrated. In his last two games against the 49ers, both losses, Zimmer’s defense has allowed 394 rushing yards and five touchdowns on 86 carries.

Whatever San Francisco is doing on the ground it’s been working this season. They’ve gone 42, 42 and 39 carries in each of their last three games and appear to have re-established themselves as one of the NFL’s premier rushing attacks. Meanwhile, the Vikings’ defense was 27th in Football Outsiders’ run defense DVOA entering Sunday, and is allowing 4.8 yards per carry – second-worst in the NFL.

If the 49ers did get away with some holding, it’s because the officials gave a good running team the benefit of the doubt against arguably the worst run defense in the NFL.

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Vikings coach Mike Zimmer wants QB Kirk Cousins to stay aggressive

Vikings coach Mike Zimmer had quite the quote regarding his quarterback.

The Vikings’ recent pass-happy and aggressive offensive approach seemingly runs counter to the team’s past style.

Minnesota coach Mike Zimmer praised the new strategy after the Vikings defeated the Packers on Sunday.

Minnesota QB Kirk Cousins threw some dangerous passes, but that’s an accepted risk for any efficient offense. The Vikings quarterback talked about those passes after the Week 11 win:

“I could kind of point to a half dozen throws there that were too aggressive and I could argue that that’s one of them, and I don’t think you want to live doing that,” Cousins said, via Will Ragatz of Sports Illustrated. “The difference between him catching that and making the play he did and it going the other way [on an interception] is very small.”

Zimmer, however, said this:

“I want him to keep doing it like he’s doing it. If you throw an interception, you throw an interception,” Zimmer said, per Will Ragatz of Sports Illustrated. “That’s life. If we keep going for the jugular, that opens up a lot of other things.”

Despite the risky throws, Cousins hasn’t thrown a whole lot of interceptions this year. The Vikings quarterback has 21 touchdown passes and two picks. If you don’t like basic stats, the team is ranked 11th in EPA/play on offense and Cousins ranks ninth in EPA+CPOE composite. Take your pick — eye test or analytics — Minnesota’s offense looks better when it’s more aggressive. Zimmer is correct.