dc_vikingfan Posted December 31, 2019 Share Posted December 31, 2019 (edited) 13 hours ago, vikingsrule said: So how do we stop Michael Thomas and Alvin Kamara? Kamara while been solid hasn't dominated this season. Key is slowing down Thomas you can't stop him. If the Vikings can limit him they have a chance. This the game you look at Rhodes tell him to play press, roll coverage to Thomas and pray he has one more "Rhodes Closed" game in him. This is why the Vikings need a penetrating DT they affect a QB play like Brees more than DE's. Edited December 31, 2019 by dc_vikingfan 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wcblack34 Posted December 31, 2019 Share Posted December 31, 2019 15 hours ago, vikingsrule said: So how do we stop Michael Thomas and Alvin Kamara? Ever hear of Tonya Harding? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteelKing728 Posted December 31, 2019 Share Posted December 31, 2019 If Cousins can play calmly, we got a shot. You can tell almost immediately how his gameflow will go based on his first few passes. Time to rise to the occasion! Skol Vikings! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteelKing728 Posted December 31, 2019 Share Posted December 31, 2019 Points of interest: Taysom Hill is much more involved in the offense now and will need to be respected. Yes, he's a QB but he's truly an offensive weapon. Kamara will play some wideout with former Viking Murray in the backfield. That can be confusing and will need to be addressed. Diggs and Thielen should do fine winning one on one. Kirk needs to see this and trust his receivers. The Saints will almost certainly try to blitz constantly to not allow that to happen. This is where Cook in the screen game will be very useful. I think their LBers are banged up too so maybe Rudolph could get involved heavily too? The Saints have the best OL in the league. Hunter and Griffen might need career days to get Brees off his game. Interior DL push will be critical. Its a big game. I hope the Vikings don't beat themselves. I don't know how to fix that. I just don't. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VikeManDan Posted December 31, 2019 Share Posted December 31, 2019 3 hours ago, SteelKing728 said: Taysom Hill is much more involved in the offense now and will need to be respected. Yes, he's a QB but he's truly an offensive weapon. He's definitely an X-Factor. I want to control the clock and grind out the win. Lean on Cook and Mattison and have Kirk hit the throws he needs to make. I posted in the 2019 defense thread a table that had TOP stats for each game. Needless to say they weren't pretty for games that we lost. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CriminalMind Posted December 31, 2019 Share Posted December 31, 2019 #throw.on.1st.down 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vikesfan89 Posted December 31, 2019 Share Posted December 31, 2019 9 minutes ago, CriminalMind said: #throw.on.1st.down Does anyone have the stats on how often they throw on first down compared to run? It's got to be quite a bit higher than most years Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cearbhall Posted December 31, 2019 Share Posted December 31, 2019 (edited) 21 hours ago, vikesfan89 said: Does anyone have the stats on how often they throw on first down compared to run? It's got to be quite a bit higher than most years If I used the right query, it looks like 185 passes and 250 rushes on first down this year. I would encourage you to double check that. Our head coach loves the run. Offensive coordinators that pass too much get fired or resign in the middle of seasons as a result of the philosophical difference. Last year, it was 255 pass to 199 rush on first down. Edited January 1, 2020 by Cearbhall 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vikesfan89 Posted December 31, 2019 Share Posted December 31, 2019 4 minutes ago, Cearbhall said: If I used the right query, it looks like 185 passes and 250 rushes on first down this year. I would encourage you to double check that. Our head coach loves the run. Offensive coordinators that pass too much get fired over or resign in the middle of seasons as a result of the philosophical difference. Last year, it was 255 pass to 199 rush on first down. That surprises me but I guess that makes with the last OC being pass heavy and the Vikings trailing in more games last year. Wouldn't you make the argument the Vikings have been better off after the firings or resignations? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SotanKing Posted December 31, 2019 Share Posted December 31, 2019 59 minutes ago, vikesfan89 said: Does anyone have the stats on how often they throw on first down compared to run? It's got to be quite a bit higher than most years Vikings actually are 6th from bottom when it comes to throwing on early downs...below graph shows Pass % on Early downs (1st & 2nd) outside last 2mins of the half and when game is in balance (win probability between 0.2 & 0.8). Lot of early down runs have also not been efficient for a while 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nozizaki Posted December 31, 2019 Share Posted December 31, 2019 55 minutes ago, upriser7 said: Vikings actually are 6th from bottom when it comes to throwing on early downs...below graph shows Pass % on Early downs (1st & 2nd) outside last 2mins of the half and when game is in balance (win probability between 0.2 & 0.8). Lot of early down runs have also not been efficient for a while Thanks for finding/compiling this. Looks like the Vikings are extremely unpredictable on 1st and 2nd down. Just 50% passing on the two plays. That's honestly really encouraging to see. Also the Saints are EXTREMELY similar to the Vikings in EPA/play on defense and offense. This game really is between two evenly matched teams. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SotanKing Posted December 31, 2019 Share Posted December 31, 2019 21 minutes ago, Nozizaki said: Thanks for finding/compiling this. Looks like the Vikings are extremely unpredictable on 1st and 2nd down. Just 50% passing on the two plays. That's honestly really encouraging to see. Also the Saints are EXTREMELY similar to the Vikings in EPA/play on defense and offense. This game really is between two evenly matched teams. That graph consists of Saints numbers when Teddy was playing too...their offense wasn't playing well in the games that Teddy played. If you only consider the games Brees played, then their offense is better than what's shown in the graph. Regarding Vikings, I don't think it's a good thing that are rushing so much on early downs...especially when the rushing has been inefficient for a while now. It often leaves offense with 3rd & medium or 3rd & long situations. Vikings rush EPA/Play is pretty average. Rushing success rate is below par (21st in league)...you could conclude that this team has some explosive runs but in between those explosive runs, there are lot of inefficient runs. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swede700 Posted December 31, 2019 Author Share Posted December 31, 2019 1 hour ago, Cearbhall said: Our head coach loves the run. Offensive coordinators that pass too much after getting told to run more by the head coach get fired over or resign in the middle of seasons as a result of insubordination. FTFY. Sometimes you still have to run, even when it's been ineffective, otherwise, you become one dimensional and predictable. That was JDF's problem last year, he absolutely refused to call runs, even when the team was in position to do so. And last I checked, he's been even worse in Jacksonville than he was here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nozizaki Posted December 31, 2019 Share Posted December 31, 2019 26 minutes ago, upriser7 said: That graph consists of Saints numbers when Teddy was playing too...their offense wasn't playing well in the games that Teddy played. If you only consider the games Brees played, then their offense is better than what's shown in the graph. Regarding Vikings, I don't think it's a good thing that are rushing so much on early downs...especially when the rushing has been inefficient for a while now. It often leaves offense with 3rd & medium or 3rd & long situations. Vikings rush EPA/Play is pretty average. Rushing success rate is below par (21st in league)...you could conclude that this team has some explosive runs but in between those explosive runs, there are lot of inefficient runs. Oh I agree, the Vikings are more efficient passing than throwing. Kirk is having a career year, tied for 6th (with Russell Wilson) at 8.7 AY/A and 7th with 8.1 Y/A. I think they could pass more, and should. However, they need to remain unpredictable to slow down pass rushers and be able utilize play action. They honestly should pass earlier in games and run later (once they have a lead), since the team is so heavily run oriented. You will always require some inefficient runs to keep the defense honest and aid your O-Line in protection. A 2 yard run is always better than a 5+ yard loss on a sack. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vike daddy Posted January 1, 2020 Share Posted January 1, 2020 The Saints rank seventh in passing yards per game with 265.3 but have been less effective on the ground this season, ranking 16th in rushing yards per game (108.6). New Orleans’ defense ranks sixth in the league on third downs, having allowed its opponents to convert just 34.8 percent of their third-down attempts. Minnesota converted 42.8 percent of its third downs this season. https://www.vikings.com/news/vikings-saints-numbers-note-wild-card-game-mike-zimmer-100th-game-min Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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