Vikings vs. Rams: Minnesota attack will improve

In what could end as the biggest surprise of the NFL season, the Buffalo Bills, neglected 16.5 points, went to Minnesota last weekend and beat the Vikings. And they did not just beat the Vikings, they dominated them. They forced the turnovers and played the ball well. They allowed Josh Allen – Josh Allen! – out of the pocket. On the defensive, they followed the Vikings and did not allow many things.

Let's put the spotlight on the Vikings offensive, the offensive line in particular. We will be very concerned about their poor performance on Sunday, as it should be. The Vikings were playing against a Bills team that had awarded 78 points in the first two weeks of the season. This is the same Buffalo team that, two weeks ago, had a player retire at half time. The Vikings could not score them.

This seems like a real problem, no. But I've watched the three Vikings games up here and I'm here to tell you …

The Vikings attack will be fine.

As this guy from Wisconsin once said, "RELAX!"

When the Vikings landed Kirk Cousins, it was a great improvement to Case Keenum. The franchise and fans of the Vikings were perfectly entitled to be pumped for the season. They brought back one of the most talented players in the NFL and added a quarter of a franchise. Optimism was high.

But … there was this offensive line. Due to injuries, he was considered the only weak point of this team.

During the first week, the Vikings dominated the 49ers to a higher level, forcing turnovers and making life difficult for Jimmy Garoppolo. Cousins ​​played a solid game and they took 116 yards in the first game of Dalvin Cook after his injury last season. It was a good start to the season against a great line of physical defense.

Two weeks ago, they went to Green Bay to face Aaron Rodgers and the Packers. This match ends with a tie. The cousins ​​have designed an excellent workout that ends with an exceptional spin and take. But the game started to suffer. He won only 57 yards between Cook and Latavius ​​Murray. Watching the movie, it was not as bad as it looked. They only used these guys for 14 races that day, and they averaged 4 yards per run.

Pass protection was also not a problem in this game. Cousins ​​had time to play most of the game and when he did not do it, it was not on the offensive line.

And last Sunday?

It was a bad performance, no doubt. Good teams usually have one clanker per season, and that could be the Vikings.

In addition, credit the bills here. Everyone, including myself, wrote them down. They came out and dominated this game. The Bills have talent in their defense, including Kyle Williams, Jerry Hughes, Lorenzo Alexander, Tremaine Edmunds and others. It is not out of the question that they can play well.

So here is. A bad game. A Bills defense that has some good players. But let's deepen this offensive line and the Viking attack in general.

A bad day for the Vikings O-line

Watching the movie, I was still struck by the fact that there was not only one player who burned himself, but rather a collective failure. As I often say, these are not the five guys at the same time. It's a different player each time. This leads to poor performance. If you have a lower line player, you can work around it. When everyone fights in turn, things can deteriorate quickly.

Give credit to the Bills: Buffalo did a remarkable job in making things difficult on the Vikings offensive line by moving into the running game. They had to see on the film that the Vikings' line pilot did not move and / or did not settle the offensive lines as well, as seen here. The left side of the offensive line sees this movement, but the center is beaten. It does not help the back end either.

Here is essentially the same movement from the start, and the Vikings resume:

Things went pretty badly so that finally the starting center Brett Jones was replaced by Pat Elflein, the starter of last season, who managed to recover from an injury. Things have improved for the line after it comes into play.

It's not just Jones who has a stench. Once again, days like this are usually a matter of being beaten. The line has not been terrible for most of the day in passing protection, but that being said, it's bad. Your two best paid men are beaten at the same time. Look, guys are fighting a lot, but you're hoping it's not the guys you paid the most for, not at the same time.

Now, there are many problems in attack since Sunday that were not the fault of the offensive line. A bag in the third quarter was produced because a running back was beaten.

In addition, I am not willing to put the first Cousins ​​on the O-line. Yes, there is a little pressure on his face, but he has Thielen directly in front of him. He must pull the trigger and if he does not, he must run and protect the ball. Again, a little pressure, but Cousins ​​must make it work and intensify.

And, finally, look at this piece from the first half of Sunday. When things are not going well and you have the chance to play, you have to play. Cousins ​​misses an open receiver for a long win. You have to reach them when things are not going well.

So, in summary, let's go with one of my favorite football quotes: "It's never as bad and it's never as good as you think." That's good for Vikings after three weeks. When you install a new offense, and especially with a new quarterback in a new team, it takes time to get started. Even with the defeat against the Bills, Cousins ​​is leading the NFL quarters in the assists with 115. He has played very well in the offensive and will continue to play well in Minnesota.

We must improve the ball race. The Vikings averaged only 3.4 yards per attempt from their starters and 54 total yards per game. They should recover Dalvin Cook this Thursday against the Rams, which should help. In addition, the return of the center Pat Elfein will be a big help. It will be a battle this Thursday against the Rams, but I still do not see any concern for the future of this attack of the Vikings. Everything does not go wrong with every game.