Tag: Mike Zimmer

Expect Vikings put plenty of pressure on Lions QB David Blough

The Vikings are going from facing Russell Wilson in Week 13, to David Blough in Week 14. This is no disrespect to one Davdi Blough, but he is no Russell Wilson. On Thanksgiving, though, Blough held his own, throwing for 280 yards and two touchdowns …

The Vikings are going from facing Russell Wilson in Week 13, to David Blough in Week 14.

This is no disrespect to one Davdi Blough, but he is no Russell Wilson.

On Thanksgiving, though, Blough held his own, throwing for 280 yards and two touchdowns against a tough Bears defense. He did throw an interception and was sacked twice.

With Jeff Driskel on the IR and Matthew Stafford (back) out, Blough will likely get his second-straight start.

My guess is that the Vikings will put a lot of pressure on Blough, giving him plenty of blitz looks to avoid giving Blough too much time against a secondary that has really struggled in 2019.

The last time the Vikings faced the Lions, Stafford nearly threw for 400 yards and Marvin Jones caught four touchdowns. Even without Stafford, I would imagine Detroit will take that same approach against the Vikings on Sunday at U.S. Bank Stadium.

Vikings defense continues to struggle in loss to Seahawks

The Vikings defense allowed 444 total yards, and 218 of those yards came from the Seahawks run game. 

The Minnesota Vikings lost their fourth game of the season after nearly completing a comeback against the Seattle Seahawks. In one of the hardest atmospheres to play in in the entire NFL, the Vikings ended up losing 37-30. 

Going into halftime, the Vikings had all of the momentum. After a rough third quarter, the Vikings tried to claw back into the fight but ended up falling short. A valid effort led by Kirk Cousins and Kevin Stefanski fell short due to mistakes and poor play of Mike Zimmer’s defense. 

The tables have officially turned after the Monday Night Football loss, and the defense is no longer the strong suit for the Vikings. The Vikings defense allowed 444 total yards, and 218 of those yards came from the Seahawks run game. 

Not only did the Vikings front seven get gashed by Seattle’s rushing attack, but a few key mistakes in the secondary combined for the perfect storm. Cornerback Xavier Rhodes allowed a game-changing touchdown reception to David Moore thinking he had coverage over the top. It wasn’t a good night for the Vikings highest paid corner. 

Not only has Rhodes regressed in coverage, but he also leads the Vikings in penalties with eight total accepted penalties in 2019. The 2017 version of the Vikings cornerback is nowhere to be found, and he also had a crucial unnecessary roughness penalty in the back half of the game on Monday night. 

The secondary issues have been a problem all season for the Vikings, but even more so in the last three games. Over the last three games, the Vikings are allowing teams on average to throw for just under 300 yards.

The scary part about that stat is the fact that the Vikings just allowed more than 200 yards on the ground against Seattle. The Seahawks run game is one of the best in the NFL, but the Vikings are known for being great run stoppers nonetheless. If teams are able to continue to expose the Vikings defense both through the air and on the ground, it could be an ugly finish to the Vikings season. 

The national media is already putting up story lines of Kirk Cousins being 0-8 on Monday Night Football, and he did have one turnover. However, that turnover bounced off the hands of Stefon Diggs, similar to his last interception that happened nearly two months ago. 

This loss should not be put on Cousins. Instead, he is the reason the Vikings were able to get back into the game. He is playing MVP worthy football, and is a huge reason the Vikings are still four games above .500. 

Even with the one turnover and multiple penalties, this loss falls on the hands of Zimmer’s defense. The offense has shown how much fight it has in the last two weeks, it just wasn’t enough to pull of a win in Seattle. 

It will be critical down the stretch for the Vikings to find some sort of balance between their offense and defense in the final quarter of the season and potentially into the playoffs. With how well the offense has performed since the loss in Chicago, the Vikings could make a run in the playoffs if the defense can get back on track. 

Vikings coach Mike Zimmer says Dalvin Cook’s injury not serious

On the season, Cook has run for 1,046 yards and a league-leading 12 touchdowns.

Vikings running back Dalvin Cook injured his right shoulder in the third quarter of Monday Night Football’s game against the Seahawks.

Cook did not return to the game and looked like he was in severe pain after.

However, after the game, Vikings coach Mike Zimmer said that Cook’s injury wasn’t serious.

That’s good news for a player who had the feel-good story of he’s finally healthy going for him in 2019.

Just because the injury isn’t serious doesn’t mean Cook will be ready in Week 14 against the Lions, especially on a short week. If Cook can’t go, we’ll see rookie Alexander Mattison handle the majority of the touches.

On the season, Cook has run for 1,046 yards and a league-leading 12 touchdowns. However, in his last two weeks, he’s combined for just 55 yards and has averaged less than four yards per carry in four-straight games.

The Vikings’ first practice this week will be Wednesday.

Vikings focused on fundamentals with Week 12 bye week

It’ll be interesting to see if we start to see some changes starting on Monday Night Football against the Seahawks. 

The Vikings had the latest bye week possible in 2019, with the break coming in Week 12.

While there are some disadvantages there as far as injuries are concerned, there are advantages as far as identity is concerned.

“I think with 11 games, you got a pretty good sample size of who you are and what you’ve done and the tips that you might be giving and things like that, and if you can make it through those 11 ball games, I think it gave us another chance to sit back and reevaluate and get back to some fundamental things that kind of slip and get away when you’re game-planning for somebody each week and next week and on a short week,” Vikings coach Mike Zimmer said Wednesday. “You’re concentrating so much on the other team you don’t concentrate on your own team quite as much, so I think it gave us an opportunity to do some of those things as well.”

As far as the fundamental things are concerned, the most obvious aspect of the game the Vikings need to improve upon is their pass coverage. Xavier Rhodes especially has struggled with his coverage, and if he does have solid coverage, chances are it was because he committed a penalty.

It’ll be interesting to see if we start to see some changes starting on Monday Night Football against the Seahawks.

Gary Kubiak doesn’t have ‘the itch’ to return as a head coach

Kubiak served as an NFL coach for 10 seasons, eight with the Houston Texans and two with the Denver Broncos.

Gary Kubiak is with the Vikings this season, serving as an offensive advisor.

It was a major addition for this team over the offseason.

Kubiak served as an NFL coach for 10 seasons, eight with the Houston Texans and two with the Denver Broncos. Kubiak totalled a 82-75 record. His 2015 Denver Broncos team won the Super Bowl.

Kubiak was last head coach in 2016 when his Broncos went 9-7.

So, now that he’s with the Vikings, playing a pretty big role, does he feel the urge to get back into the game as a head coach?

Not so much, per Chad Graff of The Athletic.

Kubiak, 58, has had some health issues that have hindered his ability to coach, so health wise, this is probably the right move.

Earlier this season, Vikings coach Mike Zimmer called getting Kubiak on the coaching staff one of the best things that have happened to him since taking over.

Kubiak, along with offensive coordinator Kevin Stefanski, has the Vikings rankek eighth in points scored and ninth in total yards.

Kubiak’s son, Klint, is the team’s quarterbacks coach.

Vikings will look to slow down Broncos’ 1-2 punch at RB

The Vikings have the test of going up against the Broncos, Phillip Lindsay and Royce Freeman on Sunday at U.S. Bank Stadium.

The Vikings have been pretty solid against the run this season, ranking seventh in yards allowed to go with just two rushing touchdowns, a mark that ranks second in the league.

They will have the test of going up against the Broncos, Phillip Lindsay and Royce Freeman on Sunday at U.S. Bank Stadium.

“Lindsay kind of can do it all,” Vikings coach Mike Zimmer said Friday when comparing the two running backs. “He’s a little bit more of a scat guy, bounces. He’s got great speed and acceleration, really tough. They’re both tough, hard runners. The other guy (Royce Freeman) might be a little bit more in the tackles, but he does a nice job on screens and getting the ball to the perimeter as well. He’s a good back.”

Lindsay, who is in his second season, has 585 rushing yards to go with five touchdowns. He also has 25 receptions for 160 yards. Freeman, also in his second season, has 374 rushing yards and two touchdowns to go with 27 catches for 181 yards.

Both players are averaging more than four yards per carry.

They might not be the biggest names the Vikings have faced this season, but they are certainly dangerous, and without Linval Joseph, chances are the Vikings are plenty aware of that.

Vikings not among 11 teams committed to attending Colin Kaepernick workout

Of course, the workout is in two days and more teams will likely be added to this list.

There are 11 NFL teams that are confirmed to be there for Saturday’s Colin Kaepernick workout, per the NFL.

The Vikings are not one of them.

The teams that have committed thus far are Arizona, Atlanta, Cleveland, Detroit, Miami, New England, New York Giants, New York Jets, Tampa Bay and Washington.

Of course, the workout is in two days and more teams will likely be added to this list.

Vikings coach Mike Zimmer was asked if the team would have someone at Kaepernick’s workout, Zimmer said that was more of a Rick Spielman kind of question.

Kaepernick last played in 2016.

In six seasons and 58 starts with the 49ers, Kaepernick threw for 12,271 yards, 72 touchdowns and 30 interceptions while rushing for 2,300 yards and 13 touchdowns.

The Vikings have Kirk Cousins under contract for next season, but no other quarterback is under contract.

Vikings NT Linval Joseph could be back sooner rather than later

It’s probably fair to wonder if Joseph could play in Week 13 when the Vikings travel to Seattle to play the Seahawks.

Vikings nose tackle Linval Joseph missed Sunday night’s game against the Cowboys after undergoing knee surgery last week, the Star Tribune reported.

When will we see Joseph? Could it possibly be in Week 11 against the Broncos?

“I don’t know yet,” Vikings coach Mike Zimmer said. “Could be back this week. We’ll see.” 

It seems very unlikely that Joseph would be back so quickly, but considering the team has a bye in Week 12, it’s probably fair to wonder if Joseph could play in Week 13 when the Vikings travel to Seattle to play the Seahawks.

Per Pro Football Focus, Joseph has a player grade of 74.9, a mark that ranks 35th out of 121 interior defenders.

If Joseph can’t play in Week 11, we’ll see a few players fill his spot with Jaleel Johnson likely starting.

Mike Zimmer is the best in Vikings locker room speech

After the team’s win over the Cowboys, the Vikings coach put his comedian hat on.

The Vikings beat the Cowboys, 28-24 on Sunday night, earning a huge statement win over another playoff-caliber team.

The win was important for the Vikings, who moved to 8-3.

It was also special for Vikings coach Mike Zimmer who was with the Cowboys from 1994-2006.

Zimmer had his postgame locker room speech and as you’d expect from Zimmer, there were a few swear words. But he also dropped the ultimate dad joke, telling the team he would see them on Monday morning for practice.

Then, like a true comedian, he paused. He was just kidding!

Check out it. This team clearly respects Zimmer, and Zimmer clearly loves his players. Good stuff all around.