Packers-Vikings

The Minnesota Vikings clinched a playoff spot on Saturday. They played the Green Bay Packers last night like a team that no longer had a reason to play a regular season football game. The Packers took the game 23-10. They also took the NFC North title. In a single word, the Vikings were terrible last night. Actually, the offense was terrible. The defense played great until injuries and being on the field for 3/4 of the game wore them down. Despite appearances, the Vikings had several reasons to play football against the Packers.

1. It's the Packers
2. Improve their playoff seeding
3. Enter the playoffs with momentum
4. It's the Packers!

None of those reasons to play seemed to matter.

On the Packers first possession of the game the Vikings defense forced and recovered a fumble. The defense handed the offense the ball just inside the Packers 10-yard line. They could manage only a field goal. Offenses have to score touchdowns when gifted with such fantastic opportunities. They have to score touchdowns in games like this. The next time the Vikings defense got the ball back for the offense in excellent field position (Packers 26-yard line) the offense did manage a touchdown. Kirk Cousins hit Stefon Diggs for a real pretty 21-yard score. That play was the highlight of the game for the offense. The Vikings offense did nothing when not given a real short field. The defense got the ball back for a third time in the first half. Unfortunately, that turnover was around midfield. There was too much ground for the offense to cover. That opportunity did present a "would've/could've" moments for the Vikings. In an effort to perhaps energize a sluggish offense, offensive coordinator Kevin Stefanski brought some trickery to the game. A well-drawn up trick play had Diggs throwing a pass to Cousins. Everything was set up to succeed beautifully until Diggs overthrew Cousins. If that play had been a success maybe it would've been the spark that the offense desperately needed.

There really was something missing from the Vikings offense. The obvious missing parts were running backs Dalvin Cook and Alexander Mattison. Having Mike Boone as the primary ball carrier appeared to give license to the Packers to rush Cousins without restraint. An ineffective run game and continually being behind the chains further emboldened the pass rush. The entire Packers front seven, especially Za'Darius Smith, found a game-long home in the Vikings backfield. The Vikings offensive line had been making positive strides all season. They had even improved so much that it wouldn't be a stretch to say that they've been a very good offensive line over the past month. Their performance last night was more like the disaster against the Chicago Bears in Week 4. Cousins had no time to throw. But there was more than just poor line play and an ineffective run game. It felt like I was watching an offense going through installs in the spring. It didn't appear that anyone was on the same page. The playcalling felt rough and the players looked unsure of it. Nothing on offense looked connected. Most teams, if not all, go into games with a script of offensive plays. They practice those plays repeatedly and prepare for them mentally. The Vikings first offensive possession was inside the Packers 10-yard line. Their second offensive possession was inside their own 10-yard line. Those two starting situations don't really play into that pregame script of plays. I just wonder if that threw off the playcalling and the offensive script. If it did, that's also a problem. Good teams take advantage of the first situation and deal with the second.

Lost in this terrible game were a couple positives for the Vikings.

1. The defense played great. They took the ball from the Packers three times. Due mostly to Aaron Rodgers rarely making mistakes, the Packers are very good about maintaining possession of the football. The Vikings defense punched the ball out of the typically secure arms of Packers players three times, recovering two of them, and Anthony Harris intercepted Rodgers. The Vikings had three turnovers in the first half and gave the offense prime opportunities to put 21 points on the board. It really could've/should've been 21-9 at the half. The Vikings defense was great for 3/4 of the game. If the offense had done even a little to give them much-needed breathers they might've played great for the entirety of the game. And the Vikings and Packers might be tied at 11-4. The Packers held the ball for nearly 38 minutes of the game. That's ridiculous. It's remarkable that the defense held up for as long as it did. Linebackers Eric Kendricks and Anthony Barr left with muscle strains and/or cramps. Probably from being on the field for 3/4 of the game. It's no surprise that Packers running back Aaron Jones ran 56 yards for a score on the play after Barr left the game. Even with both Kendricks and Barr on the field the Packers runners had a few too many 5-9 yard runs. So, it wasn't a complete defensive showing. All things considered, the Vikings defense played great in this terrible game.

2. Punter Britton Colquitt was a star. It's rarely a good thing when the punter is needed to be a star. Colquitt punted eight times for an average of 47.1 yards. Half of those punts were returned for little yardage. Two of his punts were downed inside the 20 and he had no touchbacks. Due to the ineffective offense, Colquitt often had to punt from deep in his own territory and each time he put the Packers at their end of the field. Rodgers and the Packers offense can't be given short fields and Colquitt's punting didn't give them any.

I've spent all season anticipating a game in which the Vikings offense and defense play well. I'm still waiting. Through 15 games of a mostly successful season, the Vikings have yet to play a complete game. Despite last night's game, I still have hope that we'll see the best of both units in the same game. If the Vikings have any hope of playing more than two more games this season, they have to play a complete game. They have to play to their abilities on offense, defense, and special teams. They host the Bears next week to close the regular season. Last night's terrible game locked the Vikings into the #6 seed so they really have nothing to play for against the Bears. But it'd be nice to see something positive before the playoffs.