How will the Vikings solve what ails their defense?
Beginning of the end or wake-up call? The Minnesota Vikings get to decide how we ultimately will look back upon their loss to the Detroit Lions.
After Jared Goff picked them apart at Ford Field on Sunday, the Vikings sit in 32nd place in yards allowed and 25th in points against.
In recent weeks they had been bleeding yardage, giving up 400-plus yards in four straight games prior their matchup with Detroit but the defense routinely found ways to survive, whether it was an overtime interception in the end zone against Buffalo or a five-for-six red zone performance versus the Jets. But the key turnover or last-ditch effort stop never came on Sunday, leaving them fully exposed as a passing defense that has allowed four opposing QBs this year to register their highest PFF grades of the season.
They gave up repeated explosive plays while rarely getting in Goff’s face, pressuring him just 26% of the time, per PFF.
In the lead-up to the Lions game, head coach Kevin O’Connell hinted at being more aggressive with blitzes and the Vikings gave that a shot on Sunday, blitzing on 31% of Goff’s drop-backs. But those designed pass rushes were ineffective. According to PFF, Goff went 10-for-13 with 101 yards and one touchdown when blitzed.
Now the Vikings aren’t just looking for answers, they are sending a full-on search party to figure out how a team with five starters that have Pro Bowl appearances can allow the most passing yardage in the NFL — particularly when they play in the NFC, where QB play has been much more spotty than the counterpart conference.
The natural first place to point fingers is with the scheme and play calling.
On Monday, O’Connell said that he won’t be making a change in play caller from defensive coordinator Ed Donatell.
“You’re always looking at things that you think might be a possible answer to help the guys play better and be more consistent, but as of right now, no, not something I’m considering,” he said.
What other buttons can be pushed? Over the next four games, the Vikings may have to mash a bunch of them and see what works. But there was one theme to O’Connell’s comments on potential adjustments: Switching things up.
“At this point in the season, it’s hard to completely revamp everything that you do, but I also think when you have enough inventory and information telling you certain things, I think we’ve got to find ways to provide different looks and change-ups to the offense,” O’Connell said.
Along those lines, ESPN’s Mina Kimes tweeted on Monday: “The Vikings are allowing 9.23 Y/A playing off coverage this year—unsurprisingly, the worst rate in the NFL. You know what they say about the definition of insanity…”
On an individual level, every Vikings cornerback not named Patrick Peterson or Duke Shelley has struggled by the numbers. Here’s how they have fared by QB Rating allowed:
- Cam Dantzler — 125.7
- Akayleb Evans — 119.9
- Andrew Booth Jr. — 108.9
- Chandon Sullivan — 108.4
Linebackers Eric Kendricks (102.0) and Jordan Hicks (122.5) rank 30th and 42nd of 43 LBs in rating against.
The defense has also relied heavily on Za’Darius Smith and Danielle Hunter to create pressure. The pair created eight pressures against Goff on Sunday. The rest of the team had six.
After sacking Goff zero times, the Vikings sunk to 17th in sacks and 24th in QB knockdowns. Last year they ranked second in sacks while missing Hunter for the majority of the season.
Even without fixes some of these stats would have a good chance at turning around in the coming weeks. After getting run over by the No. 2 ranked passing offense in Expected Points Added, the Vikings will match up with the 29th ranked team this Saturday against Indianapolis, then take No. 23 in the Giants, No. 16 in Green Bay and No. 30 in Chicago.
With the Vikings nearly locked into either the No. 2 or 3 playoff seed, they have time to work through potential improvements but how will they evaluate whether those changes will actually work when they take on playoff teams? They have given up 300-plus yards passing in five of six games against teams that are currently in the postseason.
“I think we can try to establish some of the things we think can be possible fixes on some of our issues we’ve had of late with explosive plays and teams being able to take advantage of maybe some things they’re seeing on tape,” O’Connell said. “If we can do that on the short term and start building an inventory of things that can be put in our toolbox to help with some of those issues, then we can rely on some of those things in addition to personnel we think gives us the best possible chance to win.”
Those things need to be in place before the playoffs begin. In the Super Bowl era, only five teams have reached the Super Bowl while giving up a passer rating against of more than 90. The Vikings right now? 94.5.
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