Dear Mr. Wilf

[RandyMoss84]

Please do us a favor and fire Zimmer after the game, his stupidity just cost Vikings the game!

[Maelstrom88]

Just an awful loss. I thought they should have taken the points but you also have to be able to get an inch and then you have to be able to stop them from driving 95 yards and converting 2 fourth downs. Just disgusting.

[Boon]

They kick the fg, they still lose. Its not zimmers fault dantzler let metcalf catch that wobbly duck for 50 yards. Or made mattison run right into hams back when he had a hole to the right. Literally not his fault

[StumpHunter]

Wilson is the best ever at last minute TD drives. Getting 6 inches to seal the game is a lot easier than stopping him on the final drive.

This defense is missing starters all over the place and Zimmer still had them playing well for the majority of the game.

It was a really well coached game and a great decision to go for it.

[Boon]

Wilson is the best ever at last minute TD drives. Getting 6 inches to seal the game is a lot easier than stopping him on the final drive.

This defense is missing starters all over the place and Zimmer still had them playing well for the majority of the game.

It was a really well coached game and a great decision to go for it.

Exactly. If dummy goes right and gets an extra foot we're not even having this discussion right now. But no, here comes the illogical blame train

[Pondering Her Percy]

Wilson is the best ever at last minute TD drives. Getting 6 inches to seal the game is a lot easier than stopping him on the final drive.

This defense is missing starters all over the place and Zimmer still had them playing well for the majority of the game.

It was a really well coached game and a great decision to go for it.

Exactly. If dummy goes right and gets an extra foot we're not even having this discussion right now. But no, here comes the illogical blame train

Yeah I could’ve fit my truck through that hole to the right but at the same time, our left side dominated all game. Why run up Samia’s as#?

[MikethePurple]

Wilson is the best ever at last minute TD drives. Getting 6 inches to seal the game is a lot easier than stopping him on the final drive.

This defense is missing starters all over the place and Zimmer still had them playing well for the majority of the game.

It was a really well coached game and a great decision to go for it.

Exactly. If dummy goes right and gets an extra foot we're not even having this discussion right now. But no, here comes the illogical blame train

Yeah, there was a gigantic lane to the right of the guard. He kicks it outside it's kneel down to victory. I'm not upset about going for it at all. Mattison had been running on them for the entire drive and he'd been getting seemingly 5 yards a carry at least. The decision between trusting your defense and trusting Mattison to get inches doesn't seem like a crazy decision to me. It didn't work out but I still think it was the right decision. If anything, blame Mattison for not going to that huge lane. But even there, I don't blame him for the dive to just get inches.

[Boon]

Exactly. If dummy goes right and gets an extra foot we're not even having this discussion right now. But no, here comes the illogical blame train

Yeah I could’ve fit my truck through that hole to the right but at the same time, our left side dominated all game. Why run up Samia’s as#?

Cook takes an evening stroll into the endzone untouched there. It is what it is though.

Samia is trash

[Pondering Her Percy]

Can’t dog mattison because he played great but dude, I could’ve fit my truck through that hole. And EVERYONE was blocked. Not only is that a first down but it’s a TD

[Boon]

Can’t dog mattison because he played great but dude, I could’ve fit my truck through that hole. And EVERYONE was blocked. Not only is that a first down but it’s a TD

I just went back and looked at it too. Cant help but laugh lol. There was literally a wormhole straight to the endzone if he goes right. Literally nobody to stop him besides a corner being blocked. He walks into the endzone

[J. Kapp 11]

Can’t dog mattison because he played great but dude, I could’ve fit my truck through that hole. And EVERYONE was blocked. Not only is that a first down but it’s a TD

OK, I thought I was depressed about that play before I saw this photo.

Mattison played the best game of his career, but how does he not see that?

Such a Vikings way to lose.

[vikeinmontana]

Always fascinating when we can all watch the exact same play and come away we completely opposite opinions about it. I was arguing with my brothers for an hour after the game. I’m one that loved the play call. We needed a foot. Players gotta make plays.

We didn’t get it and we know about our D. But the guys on that side of the ball get paid too. If we can’t stop a team, even with a great QB, from going 95 yards with less than two minutes we don’t deserve to win.

I’m always of the belief people put WAY too much emphasis, both good and bad, on coaching. You don’t have to love the call, but our PLAYERS had many opportunities on both sides of the ball to make plays and win the game.

[J. Kapp 11]

Always fascinating when we can all watch the exact same play and come away we completely opposite opinions about it. I was arguing with my brothers for an hour after the game. I’m one that loved the play call. We needed a foot. Players gotta make plays.

We didn’t get it and we know about our D. But the guys on that side of the ball get paid too. If we can’t stop a team, even with a great QB, from going 95 yards with less than two minutes we don’t deserve to win.

I’m always of the belief people put WAY too much emphasis, both good and bad, on coaching. You don’t have to love the call, but our PLAYERS had many opportunities on both sides of the ball to make plays and win the game.

Amen.

In the moment, I was really conflicted on what the Vikings should do. That told me that whether going for it was the "right" call was going to be determined by what happened afterward. In other words, it was going to be all second-guessing.

Courtney Cronin of ESPN tweeted IN THE MOMENT — according to ESPN Stats and Info., if the Vikings kicked the field goal, they had a 98% chance of winning. If they went for the first down and failed, they had a 97.8% chance of winning. It's hard to blame Zimmer for going for it. Because if they make it, they have a 100% chance of winning.

The Vikings still had a 97.8% chance of winning. They lost. We had two chances to stop Seattle on 4th down. We didn't do it. As you said, Montana, we didn't make the plays we needed down the stretch to win the game.

I'm still pissed we lost. But after giving it a ton of thought, I don't think the call to go for it cost us the game.

[IIsweet]

Ham got blown up and shoved back into Mattison. He couldn't get right. Follow the footage after that picture.
When he went for it, my brother and I were talking. He was going nuts.... Take the three points and go up 8. Worst case scenario is OT ! I was glad that they went for it. Finally the Old Man letting the players play.
I do not know why we did not throw more to JJ ? 3 catches on 5 targets for 23 yards. Where is the deep route and the pass to JJ in space. I get it, it was raining early on... BUT he is a game changing talent. Have to utilize him !

[VikingLord]

Ham got blown up and shoved back into Mattison. He couldn't get right. Follow the footage after that picture.
When he went for it, my brother and I were talking. He was going nuts.... Take the three points and go up 8. Worst case scenario is OT ! I was glad that they went for it. Finally the Old Man letting the players play.
I do not know why we did not throw more to JJ ? 3 catches on 5 targets for 23 yards. Where is the deep route and the pass to JJ in space. I get it, it was raining early on... BUT he is a game changing talent. Have to utilize him !

I agree with you. Mattison is getting blamed for not seeing a hole to the right, but to get to that hole he needed space and time to make the cut, which the defender denied by neutralizing Ham's block.

This is a play where Cook probably has the reaction time and cutting ability to jump right and get to the hole. Mattison isn't as quick and doesn't make those cut jumps generally. He gets to a hole and plows forward.

One other item of note on this play that isn't getting much mention is that Mattison's legs got chopped by another defender. Guess who was blocking the guy who submarined his legs? O'Neill. You can see O'Neill's defender throwing him off.

My point is, this play isn't all on Mattison. O'Neill lost his one-on-one battle with the defender, allowing him to come in low. Ham didn't exactly lose his battle, but he also didn't win it, allowing his defender to stand him up and take away the chances a falling Mattison could extend for that 6 inches the Vikings needed. And Mattison just isn't a shifty runner. He's not going to make sharp cut jumps. He is a north-south runner who is going to pound it forward, especially in a situation like this.

Last observation - look at that 6 inches the Vikings needed. The overhead shot with the "wormhole" yellow arrow shows it very clearly. Why not run a QB sneak in this situation?

If they do want to run, why run to the weaker right side of the OL? Why not pound it left?