We all know a tie feels like kissing you sister, but there were a lot of positives to take from the game against the Packers, mainly from the offense in the 4th quarter. And, at least we can still call ourselves undefeated right? Let’s continue with the positivity… If the game didn’t end the way it did, we may not have made the moves that followed. After the tie, the Vikings moved on pick ups that brought in Aldrick Robinson, Dan Bailey and Tom Johnson.

Enough of last week! Here are this week’s bold predictions!

Laquon Treadwell will have over 75 yards receiving:

Normally having 75 yards receiving wouldn’t be too much of a bold prediction, heck Diggs got that on the deep throw from Cousins last Sunday!

Per #NextGenStats, Cousins’ 75-yard touchdown pass to Diggs traveled 62.9 yards in the air.

That’s longer than any single pass from the entire 2017 NFL season. pic.twitter.com/Cyl0kHoAUO

— Nick Olson (@NicholasJOlson) September 19, 2018

But, when we’re talking Laquon Treadwell… 75 yards is pretty damn bold. The amount of emotions he must have had vs. the Packers is insane. He got his first NFL touchdown (in his 3rd season…) but dropped a bunch of balls and caused an interception. The drops caused a lot of Vikings-Faithful to call for his release from the roster completely… (however, this would never happen, as it would cost us over $1.15 million to cut him and we are currently sitting at 150K in cap space according to Ben Goessling).

Kirk Cousins threw his first INT of the season on Sunday, but it wasn’t his fault.

Terrible effort by Laquon Treadwell. 2 catches, 3 drops on six targets.#Vikings #Skol pic.twitter.com/0NzkqRP2N8

— Anthony Broome (@anthonytbroome) September 17, 2018

It was a rough outing to say the least, but the move Treadwell put on his defender to get open for his touchdown, showed improvement. Aldrick Robinson was signed, and Stacey Coley got the axe. With that swap, we should see more competition for the WR3 spot. But, don’t get you hopes up too high just yet Treadwell haters, as Robinson will have to learn a whole new offense in less than a week.

75 yards is doable for Treadwell for multiple reasons. First, the Bills defense is bad. They gave up 47 points to the Ravens in week one and 31 to the Chargers in week 2. Treadwell is still the WR3 in those sets for now and Cousins still believes in Laquon. The Bills offense might be worse than their defense so this could be a blow out early on, pushing Thielen and Diggs to the bench sometime in the 2nd half.

Vikings defense has 5 INTs:

In only his second start, rookie Josh Allen may have a hard time. We all know how good this Vikings defense can be, but they have not been playing up to their potential, yet this season. This is their statement game. Putting constant pressure on Allen should be easy, even with Everson Griffen ruled out, and our secondary should dominate the Bills receivers. Josh Allen threw two interceptions against the Chargers. His day should be even worse this Sunday.

Josh Allen, still the guy you remember from Wyoming. pic.twitter.com/b5KMnC3azK

— Jon Ledyard (@LedyardNFLDraft) September 17, 2018

On a short week, the Vikings will want to put this game away early, to rest some of their starters. Turnovers are the easiest way to finish a game off quickly. Even if the starters are resting in the 2nd half, our defensive back group is deep enough to rack up interceptions off of this quarterback. Players like Mike Hughes, Holton Hill, George Iloka and Jayron Kearse may get extra reps on Sunday, but they are all still starting quality players and should look that way vs the miserable Bills offense.

Dan Bailey will go 4/4 on field goals:

Calm down everyone, we have a new kicker now! After showing rookie Daniel Carlson the door, the Vikings signed the second most accurate kicker in NFL history in Dan Bailey. Vikings fans have a bad history with kickers, even the good ones like Gary Anderson. Could Dan Bailey be the end of our sorrows?

This has to be the hope, as Mike Zimmer has almost gone through as many kickers as he has quarterbacks, during his tenure as the Vikings head coach. He seems to have solved the quarterback position… Could the kicker position now be solidified, not only for this season, but the near future?

Mike Zimmer explains why he released kicker Daniel Carlson and the physical upcoming for Dan Bailey.#Skol pic.twitter.com/Uz7RbIv71l

— Allan Bell (@AllanBell247) September 17, 2018

Going 4/4 in his first game as the kicker for the Minnesota Vikings would be a great start for Dan Bailey.

Final Score Prediction: Vikings: 40 – Bills: 10

Ian Parrague @Superskolfan
Minnesota Sports Fan

New Podcast Name… Same Hosts… Same Nonsense…

??? SUBSCRIBE, UNSUBSCRIBE – SUBSRIBE, UNSUBSCRIBE – SUBSRIBE, UNSUBSRIBE – REPEAT ???

iHeartRadio | iTunes | SPOTIFY (New) | Google Play | YouTube | SoundCloud | Spreaker

With a new football season upon us and a break to clear our minds, the old “No Shirts, Just Skins” hosts are back with a rebranded podcast name. The “Minnesota Sports Fan Podcast” is here. Eric and Brandon still host and episode one of the rebrand may show they are better than ever!

We start with a quick recap from Brandon’s Las Vegas trip, where Canadians and backside tattoos may or may not have happened… Quickly, we move onto the Vikings and the continued kicking problems. Feel bad for Daniel? We have something to say to you… Eric strikes from even mentioning WR #11 by name….

But, when it comes to Mike Zimmer’s clock management at the end of the game, things get a little heated between the two hosts.

We move past that eventually and onto Gopher Football, in the second half of the show, where Eric is flexing his Zack Annexstad muscles. We also decide, after looking at the schedule, that the Gophers should finish the year with A LOT more wins than many will give them. It’s time to change our culture, as fans

Then, before we close things out:

– Will the Jimmy Butler situation ever get better? Who is to blame?

– Will Joe Mauer play in 2019? How quickly can the Twins turn things around after another terrible season?

– Could 2019 be the recruiting class that turns Gopher Basketball around?

It’s a packed show and we had a hell of a time recording it. If we’re having fun then you’re having fun, right??? Come find out!

Well that didn’t take long. Out with the new and in with the old… or something like that. After his nightmarish Lambeau Field performance on Sunday, Daniel Carlson was waived today and Dan Bailey has been signed in his place:

Not even a full day after his nightmarish performance at Lambeau Field that resulted in a 29-29 tie, the Vikings have moved on at the kicker position. Carlson’s Vikings career saw him go 1-4 on field goals through 2 games, and for a team with Super Bowl aspirations that is not acceptable.

Oh wait there’s more. We have a new kicker already!

Bailey, who most recently kicked for the Dallas Cowboys, was waiting for the best opportunity in picking his newest team. Apparently the Vikings fit that bill. This move makes sense. The Vikings are in win-now mode and can’t afford to lose close games because of bad kicking. Bailey is one of the most accurate kickers in NFL history, despite some struggles last year.

Big leg, veteran kicker. Let’s go. One thing to keep in mind is that this has to go in the “big miss column” for Rick Spielman, who traded up to grab Carlson in the draft. And now he’s gone.

Hopefully we never have to see one of these again:

Well Eric… one down…

Seth Toupal @SethToups
MinnesotaSportsFan.com

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