Mid year review

[since72]

6-2  On pace for 12-4, although 10-6 or 11-5 seem more realistic and quite doable.

They played six Sunday noon games so far.

We're fortunate the NFC East and the AFC West are kind of wimpy this year.

We have a really fun WR duo and a really fun RB duo to watch.

This year's draft is looking pretty good.  But as someone else said, Kubiak is the best off-season acquisition.

Second half of the season, they have two Sunday night and two Monday night games.  Three HOME divisional games in December.  Bye week 12.

Looking at the schedules today - Packers next games is at KC, Vikings next game is at KC.  

Your thoughts on the season at midpoint?

 

[swede700]

7 minutes ago, since72 said:

6-2  On pace for 12-4, although 10-6 or 11-5 seem more realistic and quite doable.

They played six Sunday noon games so far.

We're fortunate the NFC East and the AFC West are kind of wimpy this year.

We have a really fun WR duo and a really fun RB duo to watch.

This year's draft is looking pretty good.  But as someone else said, Kubiak is the best off-season acquisition.

Second half of the season, they have two Sunday night and two Monday night games.  Three HOME divisional games in December.  Bye week 12.

Looking at the schedules today - Packers next games is at KC, Vikings next game is at KC.  

Your thoughts on the season at midpoint?

 

I think they are about where they should be.  They certainly got off to a rough start, but I think as the offensive line has improved so has the offense.  As far as the defense, they are still pretty good, especially along the defensive line and the linebackers.  There's certainly a weak point in the secondary, but they are good enough on the whole as a defense, when coupled with the offense, to be considered one of the most balanced teams in the entire NFL.  It should make for a tremendous second half.  

It should be noted that, even after last night's game, to put it all in perspective as far as the defense...at 132 PA in 8 games, only 8 teams have given up less points..and only New England and San Francisco have a larger +/- in points.  Right now, the Vikings are certainly one of the best teams in all of the NFL.  Let's keep it that way!  

[vikingsrule]

I hope November is more like October than September. 

My biggest concern is how the secondary is playing right now, there are far too many lapses. If this continues, i could see the defense sliding out of the top 10 as the competition improves.

Theyve got to figure out the CB situation. I don’t know what the answer is. Would they consider letting Mackensie Alexander start? Can he play outside in 2 Cb sets? Should Hughes see the field more? They’ve got to do something opposite of Waynes. 

Seems the pass rush hasn’t been dialed in either. 

Basically, the offense has been carrying this team in October.

[swede700]

6 minutes ago, vikingsrule said:

Basically, the offense has been carrying this team in October.

I disagree somewhat, the offense carried the team vs the Lions, but the defense did pretty well in the other 3 games.  

[wcblack34]

The defense has not been playing at its "elite" level, but is still good enough to win a championship. 

Kirk Cousins has been terrible and brilliant. He's beaten up on some tomato cans, but that's what he should do. He only needs to play well enough not to lose games against the better defenses and let the rest of the team pick him up. The team only goes as far as Cousins takes them. He has the talent to take them far. He just has to get out of his own head when playing against better competition.

Our stable of RB's is one of the best in the league, and they all contribute in meaningful ways. I'd like to see Abdullah be able to return punts too, but he's been a solid special teamer. Mattison was a great pick and cold easily shoulder the load if something happened to Cook. Dalvin is making a strong case for All-Pro honors this year, and if he maintains this pace, he'll merit some MVP discussion.

Diggs and Thielen are continuing to make the case that they are not only the best receiving duo in the league, but also both Top 5 WRs. They make DBs look silly on a regular basis. Bisi Johnson is showing flashes of becoming that reliable and steady #3 WR that we need. He passes the eye test. Our depth behind him is mainly a question of who can get and stay healthy. Beebe or Doctson needs to grab hold of the #4 role in the second half.

Rudolph and Irv Smith Jr. haven't been game changers, but they've played their roles well. Smith looks like he's on the verge of breaking out, and if that happens, this offense is going to see a whole new dimension. Let's hope that happens in the 2nd half of the season.

The Offensive Line is still not a strength, but it is no longer a glaring weakness, and that is a big reason for our success. Bradbury belongs, and the light seems to have gone on for him. O'Neill is proving to be one of, if not the best, Vikings draft pick of the last 5 years. He's exceeded every expectation we've had for him. Kline has been so much better than I expected him to be; he's probably been our 2nd best lineman. Reiff has been average - which I'll take. Elflein has been terrible. They need to find an upgrade from within or without. Even below average play would be an improvement.

The defensive line has been solid. Griffen has been very good, and Hunter has been great. Linval is aging, but is still a top 10 DT, in my opinion. The rotation behind him has been good, but no one will confuse any of them with Aaron Donald. The backup DE's have been pleasantly surprising. 

Anthony Barr has been stellar. I'm very glad he decided to resign with us and not the Jets (he probably is too...). I did not necessarily feel that way at the time.  Kendricks is playing lights out right now. He may merit All-Pro consideration at the end of the year, but should definitely get a Pro Bowl nod. The depth has been good, but hasn't really been relied upon. Wilson and Gedeon have been more than capable.

The DB's have been good, but not as dominant as we've seen in years past. Rhodes is done. He's not elite anymore, but he also doesn't appear to be average either. Waynes is a top-flight #2 CB, and I think we should see how he responds to being the team's #1 CB. Alexander may be an elite slot-CB. I'd like to see Hughes and Hill eat into Rhodes snap count. Harrison is still an elite Safety, and Harris has been very good. He's seemingly growing. Jayron Kearse has definitely flashed at times, and he's a highly valuable role player.

Special Teams have been excellent so far. The Colquitt signing may be our most underrated move. 

All in all, this team is streaking right now and looks like a team on the rise. They're not going to be an easy out for anyone, and they have a good shot at the NFC North title and homefield advantage. They're going to have a harder schedule the second half, but look like they could power through it to surprise a lot of people. I don't expect San Francisco to play as well in the 2nd half and the NFC West will end up being a meat grinder. Green Bay isn't nearly as good as their record. Dallas is going to benefit from a weaker division, but they'll crap the bed a couple of times.

There isn't one unwinnable game left on our schedule (especially if Mahomes is out when we play KC). 13-3 is a real possibility. That could be good enough for homefield advantage, but will definitely be good enough for a first round bye.

[vike daddy]

and to add to waterclosetblack34's well rounded review, Zimmer never appears satisfied and always want more from the team.

[PrplChilPill]

I'm mildly optimistic, but not convinced, this is a serious contender yet.

WR, RB, and LB are great right now. But I think the DTs and CBs and OL and probably QB aren't quite good enough to beat the best teams three or four games in a row, which is what needs to happen in the playoffs.

Good to very good team, but my impression is not elite team. There is the possibility to be one, but the OL needs to improve, and either the DTs need to get pressure, or they need to do something else to get pressure, because the DBs are not shut down. Maybe Hughes will be that guy by the end of the year? We can hope!

[Cearbhall]

6 hours ago, PrplChilPill said:

I'm mildly optimistic, but not convinced, this is a serious contender yet.

WR, RB, and LB are great right now. But I think the DTs and CBs and OL and probably QB aren't quite good enough to beat the best teams three or four games in a row, which is what needs to happen in the playoffs.

Good to very good team, but my impression is not elite team. There is the possibility to be one, but the OL needs to improve, and either the DTs need to get pressure, or they need to do something else to get pressure, because the DBs are not shut down. Maybe Hughes will be that guy by the end of the year? We can hope!

Yep, yep, yep.

I do think that the team can win enough games in a row without all of those areas improving. I think they need to see improvement in one on each side of the ball, either DTs getting better pressure while still containing the run or CBs covering better as well as either the OL improving in pass protection or Cousins improving to compensate.

Of those, I think it would be easiest to improve the OL and DTs. However, that won't be too easy to do during the season. On defense, maybe Zimmer can cobble something together. We have seen the last few weeks what Cousins can do when he isn't getting as much pressure. He is the same as ever as it relates to that. I am not optimistic what will happen when the offensive line is losing. Therefore, it would be great to plug the hole on the offensive line. The coaches don't seem interested in working Jones in and we know that Dozier isn't the answer. That leaves hope that something clicks for a developmental guy.

I read today that the Vikings haven't been developing Samia over at LG who would have been my best hope. It is disappointing that the team hasn't been developing him over there. It is unclear what the team's plan is over there. They probably have more faith in Cousins' ability to compensate than I do.

Edited October 26, 2019 by Cearbhall

[SteelKing728]

The 2nd half will be much more difficult, him going to KC, Dallas and Seattle. Plus our division is probably the best in the league this year besides the NFCW.

We get back Holton Hill, Josh Doctson and Chad Beebe. Being relatively healthy is fantastic but adding even more talent in the mix is even better.

The 2 weakest links on the team are Pat Elflein and Xavier Rhodes. At this point, I'm all in on Dakota Dozier starting and Rhodes splitting time with Hughes evenly.

Besides that, we are 6-2 and headed in the right direction. If we can pick up some tough wins, we'll be right there with SF, NO and GB.

Skol Vikings!