psjordan wrote: ↑Mon Sep 09, 2024 10:20 am
Being a fan for so long, watching games always gives me the “yeah buts”. We won going away, but it was the Giants. We scored 28 but one was a defensive TD. Jefferson caught a long one but only had 4 catches. Punter did OK but shanked another one. So I’ll sum up my feelings this way:
The negatives:
One yard run up the middle on first play of season. What I would do for a creative first play of a season.
Sack on second play of season.
Fumble on third play of season, leaving opponent on our 21 yd line.
Ran FIFTEEEN plays before throwing a pass towards Jefferson. Nice play when we did however. Only 4-for-59 for JJ against a somewhat suspect D.
Shanked another punt for a 26 yarder.
Addison hurt again.
50% of your list of negatives were from the first drive of the game. I personally take that as another item you should have added to your list of positives...
Haha, good point! I was SO peeved after those first three plays I couldn't leave them off the list. But yes, from there Darnold completed 11 straight. I was impressed with both he and Jones in that their predecessors seemed a lot less "slippery" in tight spots. Darnold escaped once or twice where I didn't expect it, and Jones eeked out more than a few yards where I thought he would just go down. Sometimes those things fire up other players to put in the same "discretionary energy" (as Solomon Willcotts calls it).
Let's hope it all works in our favor going forward. It is really nice to have a W under the belt and some reasons for optimism in the belly.
JJ2014 wrote: ↑Tue Sep 10, 2024 12:22 pm
Really bad no-one uses this forum.
The people posting up thread are using it. I just don't think there's much to add at this point. "Vikings won and this is all that matters" is a fine post, but it's not exactly a conversation starter.
cmoss84 wrote: ↑Mon Sep 09, 2024 5:59 pm
Run CMC out tonight...opens up the door for a break for us next week.
Watching the 49ers vs. Jets, it's hard to say if the 49ers are that good or the Jets are that bad, but that was a pretty ugly beat down sans Run CMC (love that). 49ers didn't really need him apparently.
One thing is for sure - the national media is stroking both the Chiefs and 49ers. It is justified given both are really good teams, but man, a Vikings win on Sunday would really shake the faith of a lot of analysts I think. ESPN has the 49ers at #2 in their power rankings while the Vikings moved up a single spot to #22 after beating a Giants team that is ranked at like #29. So no real love for the Vikings.
Here's hoping the Vikings start creating some true believers on Sunday...
Seems we are seeing the development of some of what Flores showed last year on defense. That side of the ball, I think, is legit. I'm not yet convinced that the offense is there, but the way they ran the ball gave some cause for hope.
If the QB play can be better than average, I think the rest of this team is building toward a legitimate championship window
Aaron Jones averaged 5.6 yards AFTER contact against the Giants. We haven't seen that out of a running back in a long, long time.
Sam Darnold was over 10 YPA for most of the game. He finished at 8.7. Also very good. Other than the INT, which was caused by his arm being hit, he never had one of those Kirk moments where you go, "What the heck is he doing?"
Tell you what, that KOC is a helluva coach for quarterbacks. Every QB that has played for the Vikings has played the best football of his career. In the case of a guy like Nick Mullens, that may still result in 8 INTs in 3 games, but it was still the best of his career. Word among the media types is that Darnold was really good and progressively better as training camp went along. If KOC can keep him from losing his mind when adversity strikes, Darnold can have a really good year. I think it's important to remember that he WAS the No. 3 pick in his draft class, and he's never been in a better NFL situation where he's the starter.
Defense did what Ivan Pace promised it would ... dominated the Giants. I said when the Vikings acquired Andrew Van Ginkel that Vikings fans were going to love this guy. Holy cow did he show out. That pick-six was all film study and pure athleticism. And guys, did y'all see Dallas Turner when KOC gave him a game ball. The man was almost in tears. I love that. Young man cares. You've gotta have a team of guys who care.
And how about that Harrison Smith? He continues to play at a high level in Year 13. That pick was vintage Harry. Absolutely baited Jones into that throw. Incredible.
Tougher test upcoming, but the Vikings are at home. The Bank will be rocking. The 49ers are a 5-point early favorite. We'll see.
J. Kapp 11 wrote: ↑Wed Sep 11, 2024 4:14 pm
I said when the Vikings acquired Andrew Van Ginkel that Vikings fans were going to love this guy. Holy cow did he show out. That pick-six was all film study and pure athleticism.
Hey Kapp! Long time no post! Glad to see you back on the board.
That AVG INT was crazy good. It was so good than when it happened I literally wondered what had happened to the ball on the play. My brain saw Jones throw the pass and saw AVG in the path of the pass, but all my experience watching similar plays told me that the ball should be somewhere on the ground, in the air, or even in the intended receiver's hands. It was only until after AVG was in the end zone holding it out that I realized he had in fact picked it off and taken it in for a score.
I'm going to nickname him the Magician after that play, because he makes passes (and passers) disappear.
I also agree with you on Darnold. A lot of people said he'd been thrown into some pretty crappy situations since he was drafted, but just watching him on Sunday you can see the arm talent, the ability to see the field and the timing he has on throws. It will be interesting to see how he does against a more complete defense than the Giants had last Sunday, but if he carves up the 49ers I wouldn't be surprised at all.
