This is a pivotal game for Minnesota as they currently sit right at 3-3. The task at hand is not easy as the Chargers (4-3), led by quarterback Justin Herbert are a dangerous football team.

With Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy expected to return soon, Carson Wentz is running out of opportunities to prove he can lead the offense. This could be his last chance to keep his starting role. That motivation could pay off for the Vikings.

Here are three keys to victory that can help the Vikings leave SoFi Stadium with a win.

1. MN Vikings, Carson Wentz Must Protect the Football

Turnovers have been an issue for the Vikings at times this season. They were a major factor in the loss to Philadelphia. Wentz has thrown 4 interceptions this season, which isn’t terrible but he simply cant turn the ball over if the Vikings are to win games.

He definitely can’t throw 2 in a game like he did against the Eagles. Carson Wentz is actually completing 66.9% percent of his passes but his 42.6 QBR is among the lowest in the league.

Carson Wentz throws his second interception of the day

📺FOX pic.twitter.com/DGc7f4S0qM

— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) October 19, 2025

Wentz can focus on ball security by doing the following three things:

• Make quick, decisive throws to avoid expected pressure.
• Limit wild deep shots that could lead to turnovers.
• Utilize short passes to get in a rhythm and keep the offense moving.

The Chargers’ defense will look to put Wentz in the same situations the Eagles did. Protecting the football will be essential for sustaining drives and keeping Herbert off the field.

2. Minnesota Vikings Defense Must Contain Justin Herbert

Justin Herbert is having an impressive 2025 season so far. He is leading the NFL with 1,913 passing yards and 13 touchdowns. His 94.5 passer rating ranks 10th in the league.

After allowing Jalen Hurts to throw for over 300 yards and 3 touchdowns last week, the Vikings’ defense must find ways to sack Justin Herbert. They need to make him uncomfortable early and control the tempo.

Herbert is too good of a player if he gets in a rhythm. To be clear I said they must sack Herbert as opposed to just pressures and QB hits. The reasoning is important. This season Herbert has been hit more than any other QB, but still leads the NFL in passing yards. He needs to be sacked in order to be stopped.

No QB in football has taken more punishment than Justin Herbert this season.

🥇 62 QB Hits — Most in the NFL
How much longer can the Chargers let this go on? 👀 pic.twitter.com/SMWYmpEPqa

— LAFB Network (@LAFBNetwork) October 22, 2025

A lot of what needs to happen falls on the shoulders of defensive coordinator Brian Flores. He must dial up creative blitzes and coverage schemes that create sack opportunities and also limit big plays.

3. Vikings Must Establish the Run and Control the Clock

This goes hand in hand with containing Justin Herbert. If the defense does their job, the offense needs to control the pace of the game by running the ball and keeping The Chargers offense off the field. Minnesota must focus on winning the time of possession.

The Vikings have been lead by Jordan Mason at running back this season after an early injury to Aaron Jones. He has done a great job stepping up. However, that One-Two punch might be available tonight as the latest report from Ian Rapoport of NFL Network says that Jones has a realistic chance to play against the Chargers.

From @GMFB: Key injury updates for the #Vikings–#Chargers TNF game, with an emphasis on big-time offensive linemen. pic.twitter.com/RSAgqbkr1Z

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) October 23, 2025

A strong running performance will:

• Keep the Chargers’ high-powered offense off the field.
• Allow Wentz to operate in manageable third-down situations.
• Wear down the opposing defense, opening up play-action opportunities.

If Kevin O’Connell can establish the run early and often, the Vikings will dictate the pace of the game and put themselves in a better situation.

Bottom Line

The Vikings definitely have the tools to defeat the Chargers on Thursday night. By focusing on protecting the football, containing Herbert, and establishing the run, Minnesota can control the game and secure a crucial bounce back victory to avoid a losing record and trailing in a competitive NFC North.

Related: Should Minnesota Vikings Focus on Future After Falling to 0-3 vs Chargers

Kevin O’Connell’s confidence unshaken after 0-3 start

O’Connell displayed an extreme amount of confidence, throughout his 10-minute postgame interview. And when tee’d up perfectly by KSTP (Ch. 5) veteran sports anchor, Joe Schmit, who asked the 38-year-old head coach if he felt like the Vikings had “the right guys in the locker room” for such a historic turnaround.

KOC used the question to reference a 3-game losing streak he experienced as an assistant coach for the Los Angeles Rams during a 2021 season that eventually ended in a Super Bowl parade.

The smooth talking head coach then flowed seamlessly from his misleading, non-relevant reference about a mid-season slump, and right into a repeated (emphatic) announcement regarding the belief he still has in his current squad.

“I believe in this team, I believe in the makeup, I believe our leadership, I believe our coaches, and we are going to continue to work. That is not one concern of mine with the type of guys we have in there.” – Head Coach Kevin O'Connell pic.twitter.com/vWkrbSCeQH

— Minnesota Vikings (@Vikings) September 24, 2023

“I believe in this team, I believe in the makeup of this team, I believe in our leadership, I believe in our coaches and we are going to continue to work. That is not a concern of mine, with the guys in there”.

“Our backs are against the wall now. We have to find a way to get our first win this week and go on the road to do it. Then see if we can start stacking them from there and working our way out. We’ve got a lot of football left.”

Speaking of walls, I may need one to run through, after listening to that pep talk. Moments later, in his own press conference, Kirk Cousins mostly mimicked his head coach’s outlook on what has been, and what is yet to be of the 2023-24 Minnesota Vikings season.

0-3 start changes nothing for Kirk Cousins

He nearly took the words right out of PJ Fleck’s mouth when he told reporters that he really looks at each week like they are their own season or stage, “much like the Tour de France”. He and the team will learn what they can from their week 3 loss, then flush it and move on: “We have a lot of opportunities ahead of us.”

Related: Vikings Need to Hire PJ Fleck as Ball Security Consultant

"We got a lot of opportunities up ahead…I view them as 1-0, and whatever happens you erase that week and start a week fresh." – QB Kirk Cousins on long season ahead. pic.twitter.com/VjZTdOmHaH

— Minnesota Vikings (@Vikings) September 24, 2023

But what else are Kevin O’Connell and Kirk Cousins supposed to say? “We suck, the season is probably dead.” That isn’t going to happen. Of course, they still believe in their team. If they didn’t we’d have bigger problems.

Minnesota Vikings’ backs against the wall

Still, there’s no doubt everyone in that locker room has had their confidence severely shaken over the past three weeks. KOC was right about one thing, in the clip above. The Minnesota Vikings’ backs are up against the wall now. There’s no doubt about that.

One more loss and he won’t have to worry about convincing the outside world that his Vikings still have a shot. He’ll have his hands plenty full with convincing those in the locker room and within the walls at TCO Performance Center.

Read the rest of our Minnesota Vikings blogs

Eric Strack | Minnesota Sports Fan

Minnesota’s offense turned the ball over, the defense allowed too many big plays and star players couldn’t make the game-winning play when it was required.

The Minnesota Vikings prove they are a mess vs Chargers

The interior of the Vikings’ offensive line is a mess, leaving QB Kirk Cousins’ life legitimately in danger, every time he drops back. Tight end, TJ Hockenson — who was rewarded a massive preseason contract extension for his training camp holdout — gave the football to a defender, inside the redzone, twice on Sunday.

Related: Vikings Continue To Take Kirk Cousins’ Durability For Granted

He had it literally taken out of his arms when the Minnesota Vikings were threatening on their first drive of the game. Then, he ended the contest by dropping the game-winning touchdown and subsequently popping it up in the air for a Chargers defender to intercept.

Gilman rips it for the @Chargers takeaway

📺: #LACvsMIN on FOX⁰
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus https://t.co/UQdQ05gT8f pic.twitter.com/a2RostmIvV

— NFL (@NFL) September 24, 2023

The @Chargers secure the W with a goal line interception! #LACvsMIN pic.twitter.com/NPDc5LZBpJ

— NFL (@NFL) September 24, 2023

On the other side, new defensive coordinator, Brian Flores, is trying every blitz package and scheme he has ever buried under his bed. But the talent he has to work with is lacking and young players continue to miss opportunities at making momentum-changing plays. Plays that win close games.

The @Chargers re-take the lead on THIS unreal touchdown

📺: #LACvsMIN on FOX
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus https://t.co/UQdQ05hqXN pic.twitter.com/M1MzjHxIo3

— NFL (@NFL) September 24, 2023

The Vikings play two of their next four games vs Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs and the undefeated San Francisco 49ers. If the team is 2-6, entering the 2nd half of the season, it’ll be time to trade Kirk Cousins and look toward the future.

That means, tonight, it is time for Kwesi Adofo-Mensah to sit down with the Wilf family and seriously discuss the plan for this franchise’s future. Kirk Cousins is on the final year of his contract and, at 37 years old next season, it might be time for the Vikings to shit or get off the pot, when it comes to his future and that of the organization.

Time for Vikings to tank for a QB of the future?

So, if a garage sale at TCO Performance Center is the likely outcome anyway, Kwesi Adofo-Mensah would be smart to move sooner, rather than later. To land Caleb Williams (USC), Drake Maye (North Carolina) or Shedeur Sanders (Colorado), the Vikings will have to secure a top-5 pick, which means losing games now, not later.

Oh my god Caleb Williams. pic.twitter.com/NioRGuPyzV

— JPAFootball (@jasrifootball) September 24, 2023

If the Minnesota Vikings want to compete for the NFC North title next year, and in the immediate future, Cousins is their guy. He has proven that over the last couple of years. But it’s hard to see a playoff light at the end of the 2023 tunnell and the Vikings already have a head start at the #1 overall pick.

Remember, the Vikings young GM is Wall Street raised; he’s a percentages guy. Only SIX teams in NFL history have made the playoffs, after starting 0-3. Yes, there are more regular season games and more playoff teams than ever before but those factors only improve the statistical odds of a turnaround, which still isn’t likely, from that standpoint.

If selling, everyone should be on the block for the right price

Should the Vikings choose to sell, all players should be on the table. Obviously, that means Cousins, Hockenson, Garrett Bradbury, Danielle Hunter, Harrison Smith and Jordan Hicks, but also players who are worth their trade value in gold. They should take calls on everybody.

Related: O’Connell Reiterates Alexander Mattison is Vikings’ RB1; Cam Akers Likely Inactive

I’d imagine Justin Jefferson is mostly off limits. But even for him, if a desperate team calls offering a king’s ransom for JJ, like (3) 1st round picks + more… Kwesi & Co need to seriously consider trading him too.

If the Vikings decide to push forward, I’d imagine it’s the Wilfs making that decision, not the 2nd-year general manager.

Eric Strack | Minnesota Sports Fan

Since the moves were made, everyone involved has downplayed both transactions, as related to this weekend’s game vs the Los Angeles Chargers. Dalton Risner told reporters, earlier this week, that he isn’t expecting to start on Sunday.

Related: Vikings Continue To Take Kirk Cousins’ Durability For Granted

Cam Akers takes backseat to Alexander Mattison

Then on Friday, Kevin O’Connell addressed the Akers trade, all but declaring his new running back inactive for week 3 and reiterating to everyone watching that Alexander Mattison is still the Minnesota Vikings’ RB1.

"It's a little too soon to ask him to go this week." – Head Coach Kevin O'Connell on RB Cam Akers pic.twitter.com/qyQK7XddRD

— Minnesota Vikings (@Vikings) September 22, 2023

“I told Alex nothing changes for him. The feelings I’ve had about Alex and his role for us still all feel the same. There’s a thousand things that we can all do to improve our run game, but as far as Alex Mattison goes, he’s our lead back and continue to want to build things around him.”

When at his best, Cam Akers is a legitimate threat in the running game and a talent defenses have to plan for. But in his first game of 2023, he was far from that, rushing for just 29 yards on a legitimate 22-carry workload. The next weekend, he was inactive and, by Wednesday, Aker was a Viking.

No matter what version the Viking get, Cam Akers has never been a workhorse running back. So that’s certainly not what Kevin O’Connell would ask of him. Still, it is kind of interesting that KOC felt he needed to back Mattison so strongly today.

Alexander Mattison still Minnesota Vikings’ RB1… for now

Alexander Mattison has been better statistically (3.3 YPC) than Akers was in week 1, but he’s had some butter finger problems and the Vikings running game, as a whole, is one of the worst in the NFL.

But O’Connell made it clear, there’s nothing in the game plan for Cam Akers this week. Thus, it makes sense that O’Connell would pump up the running back who will be taking all of the RB1 carries, instead.

We’ll see what kind of tune the head coach is singing next week, after we see another Sunday with Mattison in the backfield and after another week of getting Aker up to speed on the Vikings playbook.

Read the rest of our Minnesota Vikings blogs!

Eric Strack | Minnesota Sports Fan

Kevin O’Connell speaks with media prior to Vikings vs Chargers:

Vikings head coach, Kevin O’Connell, touched on the team’s transaction report mid-week, as part of his opening statement. He mentioned Oli Udoh landing on injured reserve and the addition of offensive guard, Dalton Risner, who he hopes to get up to speed ASAP.

"Looking at our run game, what we've done, what we clearly can do better…for that group upfront I want them to be the driving force of success." – Head Coach Kevin O'Connell on the O-line group and adding Dalton Risner. pic.twitter.com/8Fe7aeVT47

— Minnesota Vikings (@Vikings) September 20, 2023

Opening Statement: “It’s a very important week for our team. [I’m] very thankful to be back at home, in front of our fans, as we take on a really good football team, a really well-coached football team. Brandon does a great job, and with Kellen Moore now as his coordinator on offense, you can see on tape a lot of things that they’re doing that are causing people a lot of problems. [The Chargers] are a really talented team so we’re gonna need a great effort from our team. We’re already off to a great start, prep-wise, having Monday being a bonus day that we got a little bit of a head start. Got our players some rest, this past weekend, so we’ll continue that preparation, but our team’s locked in right now. We know we have not played our best overall football yet and that needs to be out in front of us very soon.”

On Risner: “We did sign, as you guys know, Dalton Risner, who we will attempt to get up to speed, as fast as possible, and see how he progresses. The guys he’s stepping on the practice field with have been playing football for the better part of two months, now. I know he’s in shape, he’s in great shape, and he’s very excited to be here; as we are to have him. So we’ll see how he progresses day-to-day and kind of getting caught up. We don’t have a lot of similar things in our offense, from his time in Denver, even though we do have some coaches with some relationships with him, which I know played a big part in [him landing here].”

"Looking at our run game, what we've done, what we clearly can do better…for that group upfront I want them to be the driving force of success." – Head Coach Kevin O'Connell on the O-line group and adding Dalton Risner. pic.twitter.com/8Fe7aeVT47

— Minnesota Vikings (@Vikings) September 20, 2023

Related: Dalton Risner Does Not Expect to Start for Vikings vs Chargers

Kirk Cousins Speaks with media prior to Minnesota Vikings vs Los Angeles Chargers:

Kirk Cousins wore an Alexander Mattison “I Am Gifted” Foundation hat as he talked about his wife’s excitement over certain QB matchups around the NFL while answering questions surrounding everything from his focuses in week 3 and his matchup vs Justin Herbert to his appreciation for superstar wide receiver, Justin Jefferson.

LIVE: QB Kirk Cousins speaks to the media. https://t.co/EWiU6h6s8F

— Minnesota Vikings (@Vikings) September 20, 2023

Opening Statement: “Umm, another great football team coming in here, great challenge for us, gotta get on track, you know, tough start. We dug ourselves a hole and now we gotta dig ourselves out. Uh… A lot of football up ahead and gotta take it one day at a time, as the old cliche would say.”

Reporter: “You lose two close games and you’re 0-2 and you have seven turnovers… Does that make you feel better about your team, or worse?”

Cousins: “I don’t know… I know, uh, that’s kind of the message, right? You know, we’re 0-2, we’re -6 in turnover margin. If you had told me, after two weeks, we’d be -6, I would tell you we’d be 0-2. So, we don’t really have to look at much else. That pretty much tells the story. That being said, um, we’re in those games, it’s come down to the last couple plays and there’s something encouraging to take from that. But only so much, you know, at some point the bottom line is, you gotta win.”

Related: Kirk Cousins Lost His Mind on Sideline After Interception vs Bucs

Reporter: “Do you know Justin Herbert at all and even if not, what do you think about his game?”

Cousins: “I’ve only crossed paths with him playing [against] the Chargers and at the Pro Bowl. [Herbert is] fun to watch. There’s guys that, maybe, my wife, I’ll come home from work on a Thursday and there’s a Thursday night game or Sunday night game let’s say after a game and she’ll say, ‘oh it’s Rodgers versus Brady, this will be a good one tonight’ and I’m like, ‘well, it’s the Packers versus the Patriots, but I hear what you’re saying’ and Herbert ‘s one of those guys where you kind of say, ‘oh, he’s playing tonight that’ll be fun’. You know you’ll get to see great great arm talent and ability and explosive offense. And you know that his skill guys, they know the ball could be coming their way anytime and and that’s the kind of quarterback you wanna be. I think we (the Vikings) take pride as an explosive group that can make a lot of plays, anybody can help us. And I think the Chargers have been that way as well.”

Reporter: “What do you have to do to get more out of the run game?”

Cousins: “You know, we can’t be down 27-7. If we could be up 27-7, I think we’ll get more from our running game. And guess what that goes back to? Turnovers. So, if we can protect the football we’ll be in a much better position to do a lot of different things. We talk about situational football, right, so third down, red zone, two minute… Well, if you look at those phases of football, we’d be a lot better if we hadn’t turned the ball over in those phases of football. We had a 3rd down turnover, a red zone interception, a two-minute interception… So, it all kind of goes back to the same thing and it’s fixable, which goes back to having hope, you know? And it’s fixable. There’s times you sit there and you go, ‘this issue isn’t fixable’ and that’s not a good feeling. But in this case, you say, ‘hey, we can fix this’. But it remains to be seen if we will. We gotta go do it.”

Reporter: With Justin Jefferson and the numbers he’s put up so far; he’s only had to make a couple of spectacular catches. What’s allowed him to have opportunities, despite the fact that everybody knows the ball’s gonna go to him?

"I will always say, among many traits, the trait that might be the best is he's fearless…he catches the ball and people are all around him." -QB Kirk Cousins on the number of opportunities for catches for WR Justin Jefferson. pic.twitter.com/5IVw0n7jZQ

— Minnesota Vikings (@Vikings) September 20, 2023

Cousins: “Yeah, I think that’s coaches. I think that’s, you know, their game plans, their schemes, moving [Jefferson] around, [the] route trees, giving him enough of a route tree where it’s difficult to defend. And then, it’s obviously ability, right? I mean, at some point, he’s gotta go make a play and he made some catches the other night. I will always say, among many traits, that the trait that I think might be his best is, he’s pretty fearless, you know? He catches the ball and people are all around him and there’s a lot of, you know… guys get alligator arms and they hear footsteps and that’s just not him. He just runs through it. You know [with] how good he is, I’m not trying to put him in those positions where he’s getting hit and having to hear footsteps a lot. But when he does, he tends to make the play, hold on to the ball; and that’s a great thing to see. As I told him, after the game, I told him on a couple plays, you know, they’re great plays and he said, ‘hey man, you put the ball there, it’s my job to go catch it’, so he also sets a high standard for himself. That, ‘if it’s in my general area, shame on me if I don’t catch it’.”

Related: Check out the rest of our Vikings blogs

TJ Hockenson Speaks with media prior to Vikings vs Chargers:

LIVE: TE TJ Hockenson speaks to the media. https://t.co/qtX62IK5F2

— Minnesota Vikings (@Vikings) September 20, 2023

Reporter: “What does the addition of Risner do for the offensive line and the run game?”

Hockenson: “I mean, yeah, we’ll see, you know? I was in his position last year, you know, coming in and trying to learn everything, so it’s one of those things, you gotta learn everything first. I mean, that’s the hard part about this league, about offenses. There’s a lot to learn in our offense, it’s pretty complex, and so, to be able to do that in a short time it’ll be a challenge for him. It’s great to have him in this locker room, you know, obviously. And, you know, we’ll see what he can do.”

"We got a lot ahead of us, we're looking forward to this weekend. We got sour taste in our mouth. It's nice to get that first one, once you get that first one, they all start rolling." – TE TJ Hockenson after Phili, looking ahead to this weekend against the Chargers. pic.twitter.com/zNutQufrVA

— Minnesota Vikings (@Vikings) September 20, 2023

We’ve been waiting for Zimmer to hand the franchise keys over to the offense so they feel empowered to aggressively go out and win games when needed but it actually happened last Sunday. Cousins, Cook, Jefferson and Thielen were all entrusted, at some point in the 4th quarter and even during the final drive, to keep the football away from Justin Herbert and the LAC offense.

Even when put in some precarious long-yardage situations, the head coach kept his offense in attack mode and was paid off with a victory. When it was over, the Vikings’ offense had the ball for 15:32 of the final 21:25, including all but 4:53 of the 4th quarter.

The new and improved Minnesota Vikings close games by holding the football for 15.5 of the final 21.5 minutes.

(including all but 5 minutes in the 4th quarter) pic.twitter.com/duzL41xBgR

— Minnesota Sports Fan (@realmnsportsfan) November 19, 2021

Once was nice but not enough.

But that was only one week. The Vikings are still a sub-.500 (4-5) football team. That’s because, until last weekend, they refused to take risks on offense when necessary. Instead, check-down passes short of the sticks and run plays in obvious passing situations became the norm.

Something changed last week. Even in the final drive, the offense was faced with multiple 1st, 2nd or 3rd down and long situations. Instead of playing it safe on offense, then punting and relying on defense, they targeted the sticks through the air and even went for it on 4th down to seal the game.

Most fans, myself included, need to see that offense-first mindset more than once before we will believe that Mike Zimmer & Co has finally seen the light. And even if the head coach continues to call on Klint Kubiak and Kirk Cousins to win him games, those two guys still have to prove they can deliver on a consistent basis.

Mike Zimmer, Kirk Cousins’ jobs is still on the line.

One big win did not save Mike Zimmer or Kirk Cousins’ job. Making the playoffs isn’t guaranteed to keep either guy employed under the Vikings umbrella. A deep playoff run is the only thing that will make Kirk and Mike safe for next season and beyond.

Both guys are under contract for next season but the Wilf’s have outs in either case. If Zimmer really did have an epiphany and what we saw last week from Cousins and the offense becomes the new expectation, then the playoffs go from “possible” to “likely”. And once in the tournament, there might not be a roster more talented than the one in Minnesota

Mike Zimmer yesterday on telling Kirk Cousins to be more aggressive: "Second-and-18 or whatever it is, he’s gotta get the ball down the field. We can’t throw five-yard throws."

— Chad Graff (@ChadGraff) November 15, 2021

If Mike falls back into his “just trust my defense” mentality or Kirk Cousins reverts back to “Check-down Charlie” then the losses will start piling back up. In that case, the Minnesota Vikings will be searching for a new head coach and QB this offseason.

Green Bay is a great test.

Lucky for fans and media, we’ll probably find out this weekend if the new Mike Zimmer is here to stay. The Green Bay Packers are coming to US Bank Stadium and winning will rely on more aggressiveness. Aaron Rodgers actually has a defense this season and the Vikings will need the pass and run game to beat one of the best teams in the NFC.

To beat Aaron Rodgers you need to keep the ball away from him in the 4th quarter. If you give him the ball late in a close game, Rodgers will beat you every time. He knows it, his offense knows it and your defense knows it.

We all expect this weekend’s game to be close. That means keeping Aaron Rodgers on the sideline late, just like Justin Herbert last week, is how you win. We’ll find out then if Zim trusts the offense and if Kirk trusts himself. Either way we should get a glimpse into what we can expect going forward.

Eric Strack | Minnesota Sports Fan

Himself.

In a lot of ways, Kirk Cousins and Mike Zimmer are perfect for each other. The head coach has always preferred a risk-averse signal-caller who values the football more than his own ability to make plays. That was until the last week or two, when suddenly Zim was calling for more offensive aggressiveness too. At 3-5, the conservative “play not to lose” mentality clearly wasn’t working and I guess we should give Mike some credit for actually seeing it.

Mike Zimmer said he told Justin Jefferson earlier in the week to prepare for a lot of targets today.

“I know that he was very frustrated last week,” Zimmer said after Jefferson wasn’t a focal point of the offense in Baltimore.

— Chad Graff (@ChadGraff) November 15, 2021

On 4th down, Zimmer could've had MIN kick a 54-yard FG to go up 30-20. But if Greg Joseph would've missed it would've allowed LAC to tie with a TD and PAT (or win with a 2pt).

Zimmer didn't want to give LAC the ball back w/2+ min remaining. And that was the right call.

— Courtney Cronin (@CourtneyRCronin) November 15, 2021

Breaking Nature + Nurture Habits

Nobody really doubts that Kirk Cousins has the arm, the talent or the downfield vision to be a top QB. What he lacks is trust. He lacks trust in himself to deliver throws that other quarterbacks may not be able to make and he lacks trust that his wide receivers will make contested catches.

This isn’t an attack on #8’s confidence. I have no doubt he believes in himself and his offensive weapons. Taking chances in the passing game just conflicts with his risk-averse nature. Something that’s been compounded by years of nurturing in Mike Zimmer’s style of football.

But on Sunday in Los Angeles, with the help of attack-mode Klint Kubiak, Cousins looked like a newly freed man. Even in the riskiest moments, Kirk trusted his own accuracy, instincts and the talent that oozes out of his wide receivers. It didn’t matter the situation, Cousins was focused on pushing the ball downfield.

Kirk Cousins trusted his arm, his instincts and his receivers (instead of Zim's defense) vs the Chargers and the #Vikings won because of it. pic.twitter.com/Sb9FXbbNIc

— Minnesota Sports Fan (@realmnsportsfan) November 18, 2021

Payoff

And guess what? He and the Minnesota Vikings were rewarded with a huge win that ended with a Kirk Cousins kneel-down. No nail-biting defensive possession to sweat through. No Justin Herbert come back. Just a stress-free victory formation with two minutes still left on the clock.

So if Zimmer, Kubiak and Kirk Cousins learned anything from last week, we should see continued aggressiveness going forward. Adam Thielen called for as much in Wednesday’s media availability.

Attack, attack, attack.

Eric Strack | Minnesota Sports Fan

Hope inside Vikings Nation was difficult to find. Mike Zimmer, Klint Kubiak and Kirk Cousins had finally hammered fans into hopelessness with their mallet of offensive conservatism. That’s because the losing game script had become too monotonous to warrant any positivity.

(scene 1): Jump out to a lead in the first quarter with aggressive and creative play calling.

(scene 2): Sit on your lead and get more conservative as the game progresses.

(scene 3): Too much trust in your defense and a run-first until it’s too late offensive mentality leads to a close loss.

Winds of change

Shortly after the football kicked off inside of SoFi Stadium (3:05 CT), the script changed. But not the way fans had hoped. Instead of jumping out to an early lead, Kirk Cousins and the Vikings offense stumbled out of the gate.

But after a slow start for both teams, the punches started flying in the 2nd quarter. Kirk Cousins got hot, thanks in large part to his connection with Justin Jefferson and Tyler Conklin. Justin Herbert also fought back admirably, throwing his own TD late in the first half.

When the dust settled and teams entered the locker rooms for halftime, it was the Vikings standing (barely) on top, 13-10. ‘Ah, we’ve seen this before’, is what most of us were thinking.

Can’t wait for the passing offense to go into hiding now that the Vikings have a lead.

— Minnesota Sports Fan (@realmnsportsfan) November 14, 2021

2nd Half Miracle

But as the 2nd half unfolded, something miraculous seemed to be happening. We waited… and waited… and waited for the classic 1st-and-20, 2nd-and-10 run plays but they never came. Where were the 3rd-and-long dump-off passes, a Zimmer/Kubiak/Cousins offensive staple?

All of the nervous play calling and fear-filled decision-making that fans had become so accustomed to seeing from Minnesota’s 2nd half offense suddenly disappeared. Kirk Cousins prospered, while throwing to his best weapons and Dalvin Cook thrived against boxes that weren’t stacked with defenders.

And the later into the game we got, the more aggressive the Minnesota Vikings offense became. I had to pinch myself a few times to be sure what I was watching was reality. They weren’t forced into playing with the aggressiveness we witnessed, either. LAC grabbed a 4-point lead right out of halftime but that was quickly erased after the Vikings converted on an aggressive 4th and goal play-call later in the 3rd quarter.

Shocking, I know. But wait, it gets crazier.

Cousins to Conklin again! @Vikings take the lead in LA. #SKOL

????: #MINvsLAC on FOX
????: NFL app pic.twitter.com/XEYVzZCve1

— NFL (@NFL) November 14, 2021

The Final Exclamation Point

Throughout the 2nd half, Zimmer and Kubiak put the ball in their $35 million QB’s hands and said, “go win us a game”.

So that’s exactly what Kirk Cousins did, continually daggering the Chargers whenever his team needed him. The Vikings held onto the ball for 11.5 of the final 15 minutes including a 12-play TD drive to start the 4th quarter. After LA kicked a FG to cut the lead to seven, Kirk and the offense ate up all 4:36 remaining on the game clock with a 10-play game-sealing drive that magnified the difference in Mike Zimmer’s mentality.

It included two possibly devastating penalties that set the offense back into 1st, 2nd and 3rd-and-long situations, all of which Cousins (with the help of his many weapons) pulled out of. Instead of giving the ball back to Herbert, Kirk finished the game in victory formation.

On their final game-sealing (4:36) drive vs LAC, the #Vikings trusted their offense to overcome two gut-wrenching penalties that set the sticks way back.

– Holding (1st-20, 2nd-17)
– Off facemask (1st-25, 3rd-20, 4th-2) pic.twitter.com/zD6Y7iAHRG

— Minnesota Sports Fan (@realmnsportsfan) November 15, 2021

There’s no chance Mike Zimmer from weeks 1-9 is letting Kirk Cousins fling it around in his own territory, with a late lead. But that changed on Sunday. Hell, the Vikings lead this game throughout the entire 4th quarter and they never stopped coming.

Different Zimmer Going Forward?

Only time will tell us whether Mike Zimmer has turned a new leaf. But, yesterday’s aggressiveness resulted in a win and that has to push him into his offensive trust fall. If Zim knows what’s best for his team and his own future, this will be the turning point of the Minnesota Vikings’ season and his coaching career.

Eric Strack | Minnesota Sports Fan

On Friday’s episode of Minnesota Sports & Stuff, Eric and Seth are talking Vikings/Chargers and Bears/Packers while we wait to see how the NFC North will shake out… We also chat about Gopher MBB commit Treyton Thompson, Wild, and Wolves (if we get that far) Let’s roll!