What can we get out of the Viking Week 1 win?

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EAGAN – The Minnesota Vikings' first game is over before the end of the noon day, Sunday afternoon, which can make it hard to be sure that the trends of the first week will continue.

Head coach Mike Zimmer said Monday he reminded his team that their 28-12 victory over the Atlanta Falcons did not indicate that this season would be a pleasure cruise.

"I talked to them yesterday after the match, it's an overreaction Monday," he said. "Everyone will tell you how great you are today and we need to go back to work. There is still a lot to clean up. The penalties, I thought we were sloppy in the second half of the cover. We were a little tired, so we were neglected. If we had too many small silly penalties, it was really silly penalties, so there are a lot of things we can clean up. "

That said, a number of preliminary conclusions can be drawn regarding players, position groups, systems, etc.

Let …

Everson Griffen looked like his old man

After a team absence due to a mental health problem, Griffen did not have the same jump in the last nine weeks of the 2018 season as at his career best in 2017. He averages 2.5 QB per game after his match. Back from Week 8, according to Pro Football Focus. It's quite a drop of 4.1 pressures / play in '17. Against Atlanta, he posted four pressures and recorded a solid score of 70.6 points (against 61.4 last year).

"I thought Everson (Griffen) really played really well," Zimmer said. "Violent, aggressive, he ran well to the ball, so it was good to see and the other guys did a good job too."

"I felt very good about it. He looked a lot like the time he was at the Pro Bowl, "added the Vikings head coach.

Griffen is a vital cog in the rush of the Vikings. When they are both at their best level, opponents struggle to cope with Danielle Hunter, who has posted exceptional pressure of 10 QB. If Griffen continues to dominate as he did on Sunday, the Vikings have a chance to be even better than they were on the defensive last season.

Next week, he will face a real test in Green Bay, the left tackle David Bakhtiari.

The Vikings knew what they were doing by bringing back Anthony Harris

In recent years, many people have suggested that the Vikings look to the future of the security situation, but it seems that Zimmer knew they had Andrew Sendejo's replacement for Anthony Harris. The team has gone from a practice team body to a special team, but has become an independent player since signing as a non-escaped free agent in 2015. This season, he has was reclassified as a restricted independent agent for a one-year contract of $ 3.1 million.

Harris showed Sunday with his two interceptions that the playmaker talent he showed last year was not a coincidence. Zimmer said Harris and Harrison Smith, a security star, have a natural chemistry together.

"With him and Harrison (Smith), it's a good combination, because he sees Harrison doing one thing, then he tries to disguise himself to do something that lets them think that," Zimmer said. "So, they have a good little, I do not know, an aura about them that they can kind of show you this time, I show this time, no matter."

Since early 2018, opponents have targeted Harris 14 times. They scored 7 of 14 with five interceptions and zero touchdowns. During his career, the QBs have a score of 57.1 when they target him (by PFF).

Protection of the pass will be worth watching

The Vikings only returned 11 times in total. So it's hard to draw conclusions about how they will play the rest of the season, but if the line-off gives up the pressure as they did against the Falcons, the season will be long for Kirk. The cousins. By PFF, Cousins ​​suffered pressure on five of the 11 defeats. The Vikings ranked as the worst team blocking NFF passes by PFF. Rookie center Garrett Bradbury was 0.0 out of 100 and left-winger Pat Elflein had a score of 43.6 and bag and QB.

"We had some tough clashes in the passing match with some of their guys, some of the things they were doing were we had to clean up technically and our footwork," Zimmer said. "They fought, they scratched and some guys were cut to the back. I thought Kyle (Rudolph) had stuck very well yesterday, which was good to see. Garrett (Bradbury) has gone back and forth several times, and they have slept him several times, but they are all things that will be repaired and repaired. "

The sample is tiny, but any sign of Viking difficulty in pass protection will cause backtracking of Line 2018, which posed serious problems for the protection of Cousins. In two of the next three weeks, the Vikings will face North NFC superimposed D lines in Green Bay and Chicago, which will be the real test.

Current part includes only the zone schema

Gary Kubiak's offensive descent program focused on area racing throughout his offensive and head coaching career. Considering that Dalvin Cook played in a college zone program and shined in four race areas with Pat Shurmur, it was therefore perfectly logical that the Vikings use the races outside the area this year.

But Kevin Stefanski said at one point during the training camp that Cook was able to succeed in any type of game design. Sunday was proof that not only the star racer could excel in power, but also his offensive line.

ESPN's Matt Bowen tweeted several examples, including the following of the Vikings who used two tight ends, a back and Josh Kline as a guard. Cook finds a huge role for a big gain.

If the Vikings are multiple in their patterns and their staff in the running game, it gives them more chances to use actions similar to similar actions and to create big games. The fact that only a few throws are needed on Sunday could be an advantage, as the Vikings shot a lot on the tape, but not the passes that were "married" to them.

CJ Ham and Irv Smith will play a lot

Certainly, the backs and tight back-outs see even more action when their team is short of time, but it would not be surprising to see Kubiak and Stefanski continue to use the backs CJ Ham and Irv Smith often in all the situations. Ham played 22 times against Smith and 26 times. Both players earned high PFF scores for their blocking abilities on Sunday (Smith was the driving force behind Cook's second touchdown).

Although no one has had reception, Ham and Smith both possess the ability to be options in the passing game. It is likely that they are used with the intention of creating staff matches. After watching Ham as the lead blocker, the opponents will probably use bigger defenders, less likely to pass, lest Cook pass on them as he did in Atlanta.

Alexander Mattison can spell Dalvin Cook

In the pre-season, the third round, Alexander Mattison, had little success, but impressed the coaches during training camp training. Zimmer said at one point that he had a chance to be a "special" player. When he entered the match on Sunday, there was not much, if any, of Cook. The former Boise State star received nine hits and 49 km, including a 23-yard carry.

"It's been a long time with the off season, the OTAs and the training camp," Cook said after the match. "Alexander (Mattison) and I are two different types of backs. We both bring a change of pace that helps us. You never know what you are going to get and people underestimate how fast Alexander really is. It is a great compliment for me. Our offense did a great job in bringing it in. "

Although the Vikings wish to use Cook as much as possible, his workload should also be taken into account. Having a reliable back # 2 will be an advantage as the season progresses.

Xavier Rhodes played well but …

Since Zimmer said at NFL owners' meetings that Rhodes needed to earn his salary, the veteran cornerback was in the center of attention, which was widely regarded as a DB of elimination by elite in the last three years. Injuries and penalties were problematic for Rhodes last season and he entered Sunday's first game with many questions about the possibility of getting back into shape by 2017. By PFF he was targeted five times and did not granted only three passes for 27 yards. He was often aligned against Julio Jones.

The disadvantage is that Rhodes has limped twice and the seventh round rookie choice, Kris Boyd, was forced to play 15 shots. In good health, Pro Bowl corner can close the best of the best. But his health will always be a story after Sunday.

Jayron Kearse can handle multiple roles

The seventh-round pick of 2016 played 43 clichés on Sunday, including many (36) after Mackensie Alexander had a dislocated elbow. Kearse was initially selected for a "big nickel" position in which he would play a hybrid linebacker when opposing teams would use personnel with several tight ends or a back. But he proved he could take on any role (including the special teams where he is captain).

"Jayron did a good job, and we hope we can continue to give him more looks and plays," Zimmer said.

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