The Vikings sit at 0-3 in large part due to the team’s struggles with ball security. Minnesota leads the league in turnovers, and lineup changes could be coming soon as a result. 
Quarterback Kirk Cousins has thrown a pair of interceptions – including one in the end zone in the losing stages of Sunday’s loss to the the Chargers – but the more troubling early trend has been the Vikings’ league-leading seven fumbles. Head coach Kevin O’Connell admitted he altered the team’s practice routine in the build-up to Week 3, but ball security remains an issue. In the aftermath of that contest, he issued a warning that players could find themselves on the bench in the near future.
“I think that’s something we’re going to fix one way or the other,” O’Connell said of the fumbling problems, via ESPN’s Kevin Seifert. “Either guys are going to [fix] it or we’re going to have to put other guys in the game that have ball security.”
Running back Alexander Mattison has been among the players who have lost a number of fumbles (although only one so far has resulted in a change of possession). The 25-year-old assumed lead back duties in the wake of Dalvin Cook‘s release, and he is currently averaging a career-high 13 carries per game. Mattison has recorded 155 scoreless yards on the ground, along with one touchdown in the passing game.
Minnesota’s struggles on the ground made it little surprise that the team added Cam Akers via trade. In spite of his arrival, Mattison has received a vote of confidence as the Vikings’ lead back, though Akers did not suit up in Week 3. The latter will however be involved in the team’s game plan for Week 4, Seifert notes. It will be interesting to see how the Vikings divvy up their RB snaps, particularly if ball security remains an issue.
Aside from Mattison, other skill position players could now be on notice in advance of Minnesota’s game against Carolina. That matchup of winless teams will be important in the NFC standings, but it could also play a part in dictating playing time moving forward in the Vikings’ case.
Minny, like the Giants, spent the offseason thinking they were better than they actually were. And it’s costing both franchises this year.
Vikings are rebuilding, we all know this. New GM & New Coach that need their own guys. Vikings lost Pat Peterson, Za’Darius Smith, Erik Kendricks, Davin Tomlinson, Davin Cook, Adam Thielen, Duke Shelly, Cam Danzler, & Irv Smith Jr. That’s 9 starters from last year. Plus more free agents this year including Kirk Cousins! This team is building young.
What cost Minnesota the game was 7 man blitz’s to a QB that has Allen. His catches and yards and Williams might have had more excepting being ACL’d.
Still 14 to go
Well that and having the ball inside the 6 yard line 3 times and only walking away with 3 points. Turnovers and poor red zone efficiency will kill ya.
Yep, charger fans experienced that sort of disappointment in the 1st 2 games. But our defense looked confused and unorganized except when they didn’t – which counted towards the win.
The last interception wasn’t on cousins it was just lucky defense.
The home crowd in U.S. Bank Stadium was so loud, Cousins didn’t hear his coach’s instructions to spike it. VIkings let the clock run down and Cousins threw the game-ending INT.
Yeah, I can’t blame Cousins at all for throwing two INTs, when he’s had to throw the ball up and down the field this year to keep the Vikings in games (hmm, sounds familiar…like this exact same scenario happened before).
Minnesota got inspired in the worst ways by their great offense last year and decided that they didn’t need a proven running game, by all appearances. Mattison and company finally played well last week, but consider also that that was a Chargers defense who, despite their head coach’s supposed defensive acumen, has been nothing short of terrible against the run since Staley’s hiring (even with all the talent that they have). Will Minnesota sustain that success? Can they improve on it? The ground game was decent, but not spectacular (the Risner signing may end up helping a lot, but the line in general is not helping matters at all). With as much as Cousins and Jefferson have been forced to carry the load, the Vikings desperately need something to relieve their complete dependence on the air attack. And, if you’re one of those people who still blames Cousins for his teams’ records, then you should agree, but for opposite reasons.
The defense, however, hasn’t gotten much better. The passing game is scoring enough to stay in games, or at least has to this point. Granted, the team chose to select a WR with their first pick in an offseason where the defensive need was so obvious that Gutekunst might have made the right choice (that’s a joke, and repeating it might be akin to dividing by zero). This isn’t to say that Addison is not a good receiver or that he would not be a worthy replacement for Theilen alongside Jefferson; rather, it is completely and totally a commentary on how badly the defense played last year. The Vikings could have capitalized on that momentum quickly, and filled some of the holes to help solidify what was a more vulnerable season than that record suggested. They chose to save money instead, and not in a smart way. At this point, I’m not sure what more you can ask your quarterback to do. As a team, you’ve got to stop making him be Drew Brees or Matt Stafford and bolster your defense to protect the points that he (and Jefferson) are giving you.