Vikings v. Broncos

[khans2k5 [enjin:6608728]]

That was a good game for the Vikings. Unfortunately Denver took advantage of all of our weaknesses. Blanton gave up some big plays including taking some terrible angles to try to tackle guys. The O-line got worked except for 1 run. I don't get Norv's offense. He went away from what worked the last two weeks and the offense again took a long time to get on track. AP is a monster and Norv just refuses to try to get him going early in the game. The defense played well overall, but the weak players gave up some big plays and probably cost us the game with the O-line. I'll end on a good note. Barr is a destroyer of worlds and I'm not feeling so bad that we picked him over Mosley any more.

[thedoper]

Yeah it was a good game. The d is young and exciting. Turner doesnt like the power run sets, and the one play one was there AD gets a 50 yd run. Everyone is progressing and eventually there will be balance in the offense.

[TAFKASP]

I don't get Norv's offense. He went away from what worked the last two weeks and the offense again took a long time to get on track. AP is a monster and Norv just refuses to try to get him going early in the game.

There was nothing about the Detroit or SD Defenses that remotely resembled what the Vikes faced today. Norv doesn't refuse to get the ball to AP, at the same time he cannot try to force the ball down the number 1 defenses throats when its not working and risk the game getting away from them before they can get their feet planted. When your 1st down run nets next to nothing you find yourself in passing situations, like it or not. Finally, I'm not so certain the Vikings offense ever actually got on track so much as the Broncos for some reason stopped pressuring like they did most of the first half.

It was a great game for a young team, on the road in a tough stadium and against an excellent opponent! I don't think you can blame the coaches for the fact that Denver's D strength just happened to line up against the gaping hole that is the Vikings O-Line. Teddy never had time, AD rarely had room to run, Denver is simply the better team right now.

[Monster]

I watched the game with a very good friend that's a Bronco's fan it was a good fun game to watch. Denver was at home so I was expecting them to win.

Norv had some creative plays that just didn't work. Sometimes I don't like those plays but some of these were not to crazy.

Peterson continues to be somewhat of a liability as both a pass protector and in the passing game as a real receiver. AP is a fantastic talent but there are some holes in his game and they come out sometimes and I feel like people don't want to see or notice them. It still looks like it is going to take some time for he and Teddy to work within an offense that works for both of them.

Denver's D looked for real. There were times they also had like 9 guys at the LOS. If you can check to a pass instead of a run that makes a lot of sense to me. That happened a few times to AP and the Vikes.

Teddy isn't perfect but damn that guy can make something out of nothing more that people thought he would coming out of college. He played well that second half for sure.

There is some nice young talent on this team in all phases. Diggs fumbled but looked terrific. Locke looks like a different punter when Walsh gets his mojo back and Locke keeps up what he has been doing wow we could be set for years.

[khans2k5 [enjin:6608728]]

AP has always been a bad pass protector and catcher. It stems from the fact that he's dumb as a rock and has rocks for hands. He doesn't understand the blocking schemes and who he's responsible for most of the time. This was all well known before Turner got here. The fact is Turner's offense has always been pass heavy with a receiving back like LT and Sproles.

Denver made the adjustment to the pistol to appease both Peyton and Kubiak so the running back stays 7 yds deep to get the proper running start and Payton doesn't have to play from under center and have to make big drop backs. So far Turner can't seem to make an adjustment like that because we started this game out of the shotgun just like we did week 1 against SF. AP hates running out of the shotgun and right now his rushing dominance in weeks 2-3 are the only thing that have made this a respectable offense. Since AP is currently the MVP of the offense and Teddy's life is at risk every time he tries to pass it would make sense to run out some more 2 TE and jumbo packages and run the ball down their throats. Maybe even get Line in there more as a blocking FB. All I know is going pass heavy against the number 1 pass defense in the league isn't a good game plan. Stop starting games out with 15 passes and 5 rushes like we did this one.

[longstrangetrip [enjin:6600564]]

I've been really impressed with this team the past few weeks. especially beating up a pretty good Chargers' team and then taking a very good Broncos' team down to the wire on their field. I don't have a problem with Turner staying away from the run...Denver was daring them to pass, and we couldn't keep running into that brick wall. Even though two of our best receivers were out, Teddy was able to find single coverage often and pick out the right receivers, and put up some nice stats against perhaps the best defense in the league. Denver sacked him 7 times, but it could have been 15 times if Teddy hadn't been so elusive. I attribute the pressure more to Denver's defense than our OL, but let's see if they can bounce back in 2 weeks.

Blanton looked lost out there. I don't know how bad Sendejo's knee is, but if it's bad, they better get Exum ready to go in the next 2 weeks. Xavier Wright's penalties might have cost us the game...he needs to play better than that. But our young linebackers were terrific...man, this Barr is a player!

I think most of us had this team 2-2 at the bye, but still, they have exceeded my expectations. I don't think 10 wins is out of the question as I look at the rest of the schedule.

[GymRat [enjin:6592663]]

The Vikings are hanging with top tier teams in a way we've probably not seen in decades. The coaching has turned this defense into a real game changer, and it's not surprising we're going to be competitive anywhere we play this year.

With that said, I have a few qualms, but it's not as much coaching as it is player related.

1) Blanton is not a starting NFL safety. Can't tackle to save his life, and is a liability in coverage. Sendejo is just as bad in coverage, but he can at least thump in the run game. He only seeks to hit hard. We need a legit starter next to Smith.
2) Hodges is not ready to be a starting middle linebacker. We played much better with Kendricks in the game. Hodges misses gaps and reads, repeatedly takes bad angles, and is a relatively average tackler despite his athleticism.
3) Cole (mostly) messed up coverage on the Daniels touchdown. I think most of us watching probably knew Denver would run an 'across the formation' route of some type. It's one of the most common goal line passing plays, which we executed to perfection with Mike Wallace in the first half. Need better communication.
4) Greenway. I love the guy but he's not exactly performing well. He's getting blown up at the line and I'm afraid he's turned more Ben Leber than anything.
5) Walsh is pressing hard. He looks like he's gained his footing a bit and is trending in the right direction, but he needs to work out his issue with always wanted to kick from the left hash when his kicks are still fading left. Normally moving the direction you miss is a solid idea, but it's not working for him right now, and even his middle kicks go that way.
6) Offensive line protection must be better. For the most part it's okay in a normal 4-5 man rush, but when blitz packages get sent after Teddy, it's basically a potential murder scene. Blitz pickups are pretty bad right now, and while some of it is on the QB to read the defense, AP and others need to block better, period.

Some of these things are not really solvable this year. We need another draft class to cover these gaps as we have the past 2 off-seasons. However, there is such an immense sense of optimism and hope during each game. I no longer feel like every throw from our quarterback is going to be intercepted, nor do I feel like our defense is just going to give up every pass that is thrown.

1 good thing I do want to point out is we plugged away at Denver's defense and essentially got them on their heels until that last drive when protection broke down. We were 6/16 on 3rd down conversions, which equates to 38%. Denver had a rating of 18% prior to that game. We were also 2/2 on 4th downs. Think about that. That means we have good players and good coaching, and they're all getting better every week. When were we last able to legitimately say that?

I won't go crazy with the win predictions, but if they can improve to 8 or 9 wins this year, I will consider this a successful season.

[Monster]

I've been really impressed with this team the past few weeks. especially beating up a pretty good Chargers' team and then taking a very good Broncos' team down to the wire on their field. I don't have a problem with Turner staying away from the run...Denver was daring them to pass, and we couldn't keep running into that brick wall. Even though two of our best receivers were out, Teddy was able to find single coverage often and pick out the right receivers, and put up some nice stats against perhaps the best defense in the league. Denver sacked him 7 times, but it could have been 15 times if Teddy hadn't been so elusive. I attribute the pressure more to Denver's defense than our OL, but let's see if they can bounce back in 2 weeks.

Blanton looked lost out there. I don't know how bad Sendejo's knee is, but if it's bad, they better get Exum ready to go in the next 2 weeks. Xavier Wright's penalties might have cost us the game...he needs to play better than that. But our young linebackers were terrific...man, this Barr is a player!

I think most of us had this team 2-2 at the bye, but still, they have exceeded my expectations. I don't think 10 wins is out of the question as I look at the rest of the schedule.

I am not worried about Rhodes penalties. One of the PI calls was pretty weak and my friend who was a Broncos fan thought so too. The horse collar one didn't bother me that much either it looked worse live than it was I agree that they should have thrown the flag. Rhodes is aggressive I will take that over the crap that has been our CBs over the years.

[longstrangetrip [enjin:6600564]]

The Vikings are hanging with top tier teams in a way we've probably not seen in decades. The coaching has turned this defense into a real game changer, and it's not surprising we're going to be competitive anywhere we play this year.

With that said, I have a few qualms, but it's not as much coaching as it is player related.

1) Blanton is not a starting NFL safety. Can't tackle to save his life, and is a liability in coverage. Sendejo is just as bad in coverage, but he can at least thump in the run game. He only seeks to hit hard. We need a legit starter next to Smith.
2) Hodges is not ready to be a starting middle linebacker. We played much better with Kendricks in the game. Hodges misses gaps and reads, repeatedly takes bad angles, and is a relatively average tackler despite his athleticism.
3) Cole (mostly) messed up coverage on the Daniels touchdown. I think most of us watching probably knew Denver would run an 'across the formation' route of some type. It's one of the most common goal line passing plays, which we executed to perfection with Mike Wallace in the first half. Need better communication.
4) Greenway. I love the guy but he's not exactly performing well. He's getting blown up at the line and I'm afraid he's turned more Ben Leber than anything.
5) Walsh is pressing hard. He looks like he's gained his footing a bit and is trending in the right direction, but he needs to work out his issue with always wanted to kick from the left hash when his kicks are still fading left. Normally moving the direction you miss is a solid idea, but it's not working for him right now, and even his middle kicks go that way.
6) Offensive line protection must be better. For the most part it's okay in a normal 4-5 man rush, but when blitz packages get sent after Teddy, it's basically a potential murder scene. Blitz pickups are pretty bad right now, and while some of it is on the QB to read the defense, AP and others need to block better, period.

Some of these things are not really solvable this year. We need another draft class to cover these gaps as we have the past 2 off-seasons. However, there is such an immense sense of optimism and hope during each game. I no longer feel like every throw from our quarterback is going to be intercepted, nor do I feel like our defense is just going to give up every pass that is thrown.

1 good thing I do want to point out is we plugged away at Denver's defense and essentially got them on their heels until that last drive when protection broke down. We were 6/16 on 3rd down conversions, which equates to 38%. Denver had a rating of 18% prior to that game. We were also 2/2 on 4th downs. Think about that. That means we have good players and good coaching, and they're all getting better every week. When were we last able to legitimately say that?

I won't go crazy with the win predictions, but if they can improve to 8 or 9 wins this year, I will consider this a successful season.

Really good analysis, gymrat. I mostly agree, although I am more satisfied with Hodges than you are. I would also point out that Greenway isn't on the field very much this year, since they take him out whenever they anticipate a pass. He was only on the field for 12 snaps against Detroit and it seemed like about that many against Denver. I think we are witnessing the end of his career.

Harrison Smith is a terrific player, but we need to find his running mate. It's certainly not Blanton, and Sendejo has his issues too. I wish I knew more about Exum...hope he's the answer.