Post by Danchat on Dec 4, 2020 22:47:12 GMT -6
The Vikings face the Jags fresh off a 10 game losing streak. Will our Vikings choke away another easy game, or will they finally pound a pathetic team into the pavement like they should?
Line: Vikings -10
Injury Report
Jaguars
DT Hamilton Out
CB Jones Out
LB Allen Out
TE Ellefson Out
WR Conley Questionable
RT Taylor Questionable
FS Wilson Questionable
Vikings
TE Smith Jr. Out
DE Wonnum Out
*My Thoughts*
Getting to face a team that has lost 10 straight games is a rare occassion, but the Vikings have recently struggled hard when favored heavily. They'll face Mike Glennon, who's only started 5 contests in the past 5 years. He was able to help the Jags come within an extra 2 attempt within the Browns last week, but re-watching the game, he missed several throws. Normally I'd say the Vikings should have no problems stopping him, but this isn't the Z-fense of old. They may have trouble with UDFA James Robinson, who's been way better than expected. Running behind a bad O-line, he's recorded 890 yards at a 4.6 YPC clip. They use him as a feature back, and don't bother to use any of the other 4 HBs on their roster. As for their weapons, D.J. Chark is a speedy downfield threat who could do some damage to our secondary, but he has been banged up. The rest of their weapons are mediocre - Keelan Cole is an occaionsally decent depth threat, 2nd round rookie Shenault Jr. is a strong YAC receiver, but hasn't done a whole lot this year. Eifert is an even slower version of Rudolph. O'Shaughnessy is a blocking TE who isn't especially good at his job.
The Jags' O-line has been a primary reason why their offense has underachieved this year. RT Jawaan Taylor has disappointed big time after a strong rookie year, as he's been giving up tons of pressures every week. LT Robinson has been a decent pass protector, but has been a poor run blocker. With the highly paid Andrew Norwell on the IR, backup center Tyler Shatley has filled in at LG, but poorly. RG Cann is finally having a decent season after a good 4-5 years of below average play. C Linder has consistently been one of the best centers in football, but unfortunately the Jaguars are always terrible, and he rarely gets any credit.
The Vikings get to go up against a very bad defense for the third week in a row - Jacksonville gives up the 3rd most points, and the 2nd most yards. They traded away their best players, and many others are on the IR. Their defensive line is completely barren. Smoot is the only player on the line with more than 1 sack (2.5). With no Josh Allen, 1st rounder Chaisson has been horrendous, and the others have brought zero pressure. Taven Bryan is a solid run defender, but that's about it for the positives. The linebacker group is led by Myles Jack, who's basically doing what Kendricks is doing for the Vikings. He's been an elite coverage LB. Free agent acquisition Joe Schobert has disappointed, being terrible in the passing game with 474 yards given up (that's a ton for a LB) and a 81.3% completion rate.
The Jags are even more barren than the Vikings are at CB, with 1st rounder Henderson, D.J. Hayden, Chris Claybrooks, and Sidney Jones injured. Tre Herndon, a former UDFA, leads the group, but he's been picked on by better WRs, and has no chance against Thielen or Jefferson. Their #2 CB will a UDFA named Luq Barcoo out of San Diego State. Their nickel CB will likely be rookie Josiah Scott or SS Brandon Rusnak, but neither have played very much this year. At least the safety position is not a disaster. Jarrod Wilson has been a quality starter for a few years now, as he can cover and tackle well enough. Former UDFA Andrew Wingard has been a much better player than expected, sporting some clutch knockdowns and rates as a good tackler.
Prediction: Vikings 33, Jaguars 25
I'm getting tired of always predicting close games, but the Vikings have consistently struggled when favored heavily (they are 1-3-2 against the spread when favored by 10 or more). The Jaguars roster is devoid of talent, but the Vikings' defense and poor special teams should allow the Jags to hang around, or at least score some points in garbage time. A loss here would not be acceptable... here's hoping we don't get a repeat of the Falcons or Cowboys games.
Any thoughts?
Line: Vikings -10
Injury Report
Jaguars
DT Hamilton Out
CB Jones Out
LB Allen Out
TE Ellefson Out
WR Conley Questionable
RT Taylor Questionable
FS Wilson Questionable
Vikings
TE Smith Jr. Out
DE Wonnum Out
*My Thoughts*
Getting to face a team that has lost 10 straight games is a rare occassion, but the Vikings have recently struggled hard when favored heavily. They'll face Mike Glennon, who's only started 5 contests in the past 5 years. He was able to help the Jags come within an extra 2 attempt within the Browns last week, but re-watching the game, he missed several throws. Normally I'd say the Vikings should have no problems stopping him, but this isn't the Z-fense of old. They may have trouble with UDFA James Robinson, who's been way better than expected. Running behind a bad O-line, he's recorded 890 yards at a 4.6 YPC clip. They use him as a feature back, and don't bother to use any of the other 4 HBs on their roster. As for their weapons, D.J. Chark is a speedy downfield threat who could do some damage to our secondary, but he has been banged up. The rest of their weapons are mediocre - Keelan Cole is an occaionsally decent depth threat, 2nd round rookie Shenault Jr. is a strong YAC receiver, but hasn't done a whole lot this year. Eifert is an even slower version of Rudolph. O'Shaughnessy is a blocking TE who isn't especially good at his job.
The Jags' O-line has been a primary reason why their offense has underachieved this year. RT Jawaan Taylor has disappointed big time after a strong rookie year, as he's been giving up tons of pressures every week. LT Robinson has been a decent pass protector, but has been a poor run blocker. With the highly paid Andrew Norwell on the IR, backup center Tyler Shatley has filled in at LG, but poorly. RG Cann is finally having a decent season after a good 4-5 years of below average play. C Linder has consistently been one of the best centers in football, but unfortunately the Jaguars are always terrible, and he rarely gets any credit.
The Vikings get to go up against a very bad defense for the third week in a row - Jacksonville gives up the 3rd most points, and the 2nd most yards. They traded away their best players, and many others are on the IR. Their defensive line is completely barren. Smoot is the only player on the line with more than 1 sack (2.5). With no Josh Allen, 1st rounder Chaisson has been horrendous, and the others have brought zero pressure. Taven Bryan is a solid run defender, but that's about it for the positives. The linebacker group is led by Myles Jack, who's basically doing what Kendricks is doing for the Vikings. He's been an elite coverage LB. Free agent acquisition Joe Schobert has disappointed, being terrible in the passing game with 474 yards given up (that's a ton for a LB) and a 81.3% completion rate.
The Jags are even more barren than the Vikings are at CB, with 1st rounder Henderson, D.J. Hayden, Chris Claybrooks, and Sidney Jones injured. Tre Herndon, a former UDFA, leads the group, but he's been picked on by better WRs, and has no chance against Thielen or Jefferson. Their #2 CB will a UDFA named Luq Barcoo out of San Diego State. Their nickel CB will likely be rookie Josiah Scott or SS Brandon Rusnak, but neither have played very much this year. At least the safety position is not a disaster. Jarrod Wilson has been a quality starter for a few years now, as he can cover and tackle well enough. Former UDFA Andrew Wingard has been a much better player than expected, sporting some clutch knockdowns and rates as a good tackler.
Prediction: Vikings 33, Jaguars 25
I'm getting tired of always predicting close games, but the Vikings have consistently struggled when favored heavily (they are 1-3-2 against the spread when favored by 10 or more). The Jaguars roster is devoid of talent, but the Vikings' defense and poor special teams should allow the Jags to hang around, or at least score some points in garbage time. A loss here would not be acceptable... here's hoping we don't get a repeat of the Falcons or Cowboys games.
Any thoughts?
... and neither is this Chris guy.