Vikings keys for 4th straight victory as they hit primetime on Thursday vs. Washington
By Jeff Diamond, former Vikings GM who is co-hosting Monday Night Purple with Joe Anderson this season on News Talk 830 WCCO. Next show is Monday, October 28 live from 6-7 pm at B-52 Burgers and Brew in Inver Grove Heights with linebacker/leading tackler Eric Kendricks and tight end Tyler Conklin as the Vikings player guests. Jeff also co-hosts Purple Sunday Postgame with Henry Lake which will air upon the conclusion of Vikings-Redskins this Thursday night.
The 1-6 Washington Redskins are coming to town and for Vikings fans concerned about a letdown following the big division road win in Detroit, fear not.
Reason #1--Kirk Cousins surely will not let that happen as he faces his former team for the first time after they refused to sign him to a long term deal and allowed him to leave in free agency when they traded for Alex Smith.
Reason #2—It’s a prime-time, Thursday night telecast and players always want to play well and impress on national TV.
Reason #3—Coach Mike Zimmer will emphasize that two prominent former Vikings now with the Redskins in key roles—quarterback Case Keenum and running back Adrian Peterson-- will be fired up and get their teammates amped up, along with the national TV angle a motivating factor for the opposition. Zimmer also will be all over his defensive players after they gave up 433 yards and 30 points to the Lions.
Reason #4 and really the most important in the big scheme of things—the Vikings want to win their fourth straight game, improve their record to 6-2 at the mid-point in the season and position themselves to possibly be tied for first place in the NFC North if the Packers lose in Kansas City on Sunday night. And with tough road games in Kansas City and Dallas up next, the Vikings need to handle a struggling Washington team that was shut out 9-0 at home last Sunday by the 49ers.
Five keys to a Thursday night win:
1.Rise to the occasion, Kirk: Much has been made of Cousins’ poor record in primetime games that currently stands at 5-13. Here’s an opportunity for Minnesota’s scorching hot QB to improve on that mark against what should be a relatively easy opponent, although the Redskins’ No. 21 ranked defense led by defensive end Jonathan Allen and safety Landon Collins is better than their woeful offense ranked fourth worst in the NFL.
After the Bears fiasco in Soldier Field three weeks ago, few would have believed that over his next three games Cousins would throw for 976 yards, 10 touchdowns with one interception that bounced off Stefon Diggs head in the win over the Eagles. Adding to this amazing story is the fact he now leads the NFL in passer rating at 114.3, ahead of Russell Wilson and Patrick Mahomes.
Cousins will probably be without Pro Bowl receiver Adam Thielen due to the hamstring injury he sustained while stretching to make a great catch for the first of Cousins’ four touchdown passes against the Lions. Thielen told the media on Tuesday that his hamstring is much improved and he’s “extremely hopeful” he’ll be able to play but he also said he’ll look to the team trainers and doctors on if they think it’s wise for him to play in a short week before the Thursday game.
Thielen will be needed to beat the Chiefs and Cowboys so if there’s a chance of aggravating the injury, then it’s best to rest him this week. Diggs, rookie Bisi Johnson and the revived tight ends in the passing game with Kyle Rudolph and Irv Smith Jr. being targeted more often should be enough to beat Washington.
2. Run Dalvin Run: Pardon the Forrest Gump pun. The balanced offense has been terrific to watch especially with 503 total yards against the Lions but the Redskins defense is No. 27 against the run so it’s a great opportunity for Cook as the NFL’s leading rusher (with 725 yards) to outshine former Viking great Peterson.
Having left tackle Riley Reiff and right guard Josh Kline back in the lineup was huge for the Vikings much improved offensive line as they both played well. First round pick Garrett Bradbury is improving every week at center, Pat Elflein is adjusting well to his left guard spot and right tackle Brian O’Neill is an emerging star. Add a terrific blocking fullback in C.J. Ham who also had a TD catch and big first down run last week and excellent tight end blockers and the run game should set up Cousins for some big plays in the play action game once again.
3. Defense put the hammer down early on a struggling offense and corners need to play better: The key to beating teams that are down is to not give them early life so the Vikings defense needs to stop the running game led by Peterson who is dealing with an ankle injury and then get after Keenum from the start. That was not the case in Detroit against a more talented offense led by Matthew Stafford as the Lions put up 21 first half points that the Minnesota offense matched.
Rookie third rounder Terry McLaurin has 24 receptions for 419 yards and five TDs to lead a no-name receiving corps and the Vikings corners, especially former Pro Bowler Xavier Rhodes, must step up their game compared to the shaky performance we saw in the Lions den. A stronger first half pass rush also will help as the Vikings’ only two sacks came in the second half against Stafford.
4. Win the special teams battle: Dan Bailey missed a 45-yard field goal that could have been costly in Detroit although his kickoffs were excellent and he made all six extra points. He needs to get back on track field goal-wise to help beat Washington and as prep for the stretch of tougher games ahead.
5. Home crowd in full throat for national TV audience: Minnesota is 3-0 at home and all three wins have been dominating performances by the Purple with great support from the loud U.B. Bank stadium crowds. The home crowd can disrupt Washington’s offense and help the Vikings pass rushers get off the ball quickly. And the fans can send a message to home opponents in the second half of season—most notably the Packers and Bears in what should be a division-deciding final two weeks.
The pick: Vikings in a blowout:
Zimmer says Cousins is playing “the best I’ve seen him play since he’s been here, obviously.” Cousins says he plays better with an edge and he claims to not have a vendetta against the Redskins who he says were “the team that drafted me when others didn’t and made me their starter.” I’m not buying his diplomatic statements about this game. He’ll be playing with a big edge as he thinks about his final years in Washington and how he was forced to play several years under one-year, franchise tenders before being jettisoned by Redskins owner Daniel Snyder and team president Bruce Allen.
I think Cousins’ excellent recent production will continue and he’ll complete several long gainers in play action. But I think Cook, the running game and the Minnesota defense will dominate against Keenum who in another story line is returning to U.S. Bank Stadium for the first time since his Minneapolis Miracle pass to Diggs that beat the Saints in the 2017 playoffs.
I’ve got the Vikings winning big—34-10.
Around the NFL Observations:
1.Mitchell Trubisky is as popular in Chicago as Cousins was in Minnesota after the early road losses in Green Bay and Chicago. Cousins of course has rebounded and we’ll see if Trubisky can do the same. The Soldier Field boo-birds were not cutting Trubisky any slack last Sunday after he had been out several weeks due to a shoulder injury sustained on a Danielle Hunter tackle. He missed numerous open receivers in an embarrassing 36-25 home loss to the Saints—and it was that close only due to two garbage-time TDs by the Bears.
And what’s up with the vaunted Chicago defense that allowed two ex-Vikings to have a big game for the Saints, a week after the Raiders shredded the Chicago D in London? Teddy Bridgewater passed for 281 yards and two TDs while Latavius Murray rushed for 119 yards and two TDs for New Orleans. Chicago now sits at 3-3, looking up at the Packers and Vikings and badly needing a bounce back game against the Chargers before an anxious Soldier Field crowd.
2. Could the Vikings be fortunate enough to dodge Patrick Mahomes and his dislocated kneecap in their visit to K.C. a week from Sunday? Chiefs Coach Andy Reid isn’t ruling him out yet so this will be the big story next week if Mahomes sits out as expected this week against the Packers. Matt Moore did enough in relief of Mahomes to help defeat Denver but the Vikings certainly would rather face Moore than the NFL’s reigning MVP in Mahomes.
3. The most surprising win last week was by Baltimore in Seattle with dual threat QB Lamar Jackson throwing for 143 yards and running for 116 yards and the winning TD. Russell Wilson threw his first interception of the season and it was a pick six by just acquired cornerback Marcus Peters. Both of the Seahawks’ losses this season have come at home where they are usually dominant. This could bode well for the Vikings who play in Seattle on Monday night, December 2.
Jeff Diamond was the NFL Executive of the Year in 1998 after the Vikings' 15-1 season. He also is former president of the Tennessee Titans. He does sports/business consulting, media and speaking work including corporate and college speaking on Negotiation, Management, Leadership and Sports Business--contact him at diamondj4@comcast.net
