Post by Funkytown on May 11, 2023 8:29:37 GMT -6
Tough schedule, right?
Well...
Purple Insider: How often will the Vikings have the advantage at quarterback? by Matthew Coller
< rest at the link >
You can decide for yourself about Mahomes, Burrow, Hurts, Herbert, etc.
Link:
purpleinsider.substack.com/p/how-often-will-the-vikings-have-the
Well...
Purple Insider: How often will the Vikings have the advantage at quarterback? by Matthew Coller
The Minnesota Vikings’ 2022 season was a walking contradiction. The metrics that indicate team strength told a different story than the win-loss record. When you look closer at the actual games, however, you can put a finger on one key factor that propelled the Vikings to so many close victories: They often had the better quarterback.
If we compare Kirk Cousins vs. his ‘22 opponents, the Vikings’ QB finished with a higher PFF grade than all of them except Aaron Rodgers, Jalen Hurts, Josh Allen and somehow Andy Dalton. The Vikings faced backup QBs in Weeks 4, 5, 7, 10 and 17. By ESPN’s QBR metric, which factors game situation and gives a lot of credit to running QBs, Cousins matched up with No. 2, 4, 5, 6 but the next best after that was Kyler Murray at 19. The rest were either lower or didn’t have enough snaps to qualify.
And to Cousins’ credit, he either made one more play or one fewer mistake and found his way to eight game-winning drives.
This year the Vikings have a first place schedule, which comes along with more big-name quarterbacks on the slate. As the league gets set to announce the full schedule on Thursday night, let’s take a look at how Cousins matches up against his opposing QBs this year….
Chicago Bears, Justin Fields
2022 PFF grade: 23rd
2022 QBR: 17th
X-Factor: Fields’ dynamic running and improved weapons
Justin Fields did enough last year to convince the Bears to trade out of the No. 1 overall pick and stick with him, in part because he found his stride as a runner. The former Ohio State standout ran for over 1,100 yards at 7.1 yards per carry, numbers that have only been recently approached by the likes of Lamar Jackson and Mike Vick. However, his issues with throwing effectively were still apparent. He did improve his QB rating to 85.2 but that’s only a shade above Trevor Siemian’s career mark. Fields also took a ton of sacks, which crushed his efficiency.
The Bears acquired DJ Moore and beefed up their offensive line to leave no excuses for their young quarterback. Which way things will go from here is a mystery. We have seen some highly touted QBs take big steps in Year 3 (like Josh Allen) and others continue with the same old struggles (Sam Darnold). Whether Fields can outplay Cousins really depends on which side of that he lands on. Until he shows it, the proven QB gets the benefit of the doubt.
Advantage: Cousins
Green Bay Packers, Jordan Love
2022 PFF grade: N/A
2022 QBR: N/A
X-Factor: Love’s inexperience
Nobody knows what we are going to get from Jordan Love this year, including the Packers and Jordan Love. He has just 83 career passes, 21 of which came last year when he showed some glimmers of talent. The Packers wouldn’t have stuck with him as Aaron Rodgers’ replacement if they weren’t at least intrigued by the idea he could be their long-term solution but that’s all we have to work with in terms of information right now. Again, the multi-time Pro Bowler has the clear edge until proven otherwise.
Advantage: Cousins
Detroit Lions, Jared Goff
2022 PFF grade: 20th
2022 QBR: 5th
X-Factor: Ben Johnson’s offensive scheme
Cousins vs. Goff has turned in some incredible performances from both over the years. Goff averages 299 yards per game and has a 101.6 career QB rating against the Vikings and that’s despite his rough first outing against Mike Zimmer’s No. 1 defense in 2017. After leading a top-five offense last year, he appears to have found the perfect fit with offensive coordinator Ben Johnson, who schemed receivers wide open all over the field against the Vikings last year at Ford Field. Of course, Goff isn’t perfect. He isn’t a playmaker and is prone to the occasional what-the-heck throw or sack. These two veterans fall into the same scheme-and-situation dependent category.
Advantage: Even
If we compare Kirk Cousins vs. his ‘22 opponents, the Vikings’ QB finished with a higher PFF grade than all of them except Aaron Rodgers, Jalen Hurts, Josh Allen and somehow Andy Dalton. The Vikings faced backup QBs in Weeks 4, 5, 7, 10 and 17. By ESPN’s QBR metric, which factors game situation and gives a lot of credit to running QBs, Cousins matched up with No. 2, 4, 5, 6 but the next best after that was Kyler Murray at 19. The rest were either lower or didn’t have enough snaps to qualify.
And to Cousins’ credit, he either made one more play or one fewer mistake and found his way to eight game-winning drives.
This year the Vikings have a first place schedule, which comes along with more big-name quarterbacks on the slate. As the league gets set to announce the full schedule on Thursday night, let’s take a look at how Cousins matches up against his opposing QBs this year….
Chicago Bears, Justin Fields
2022 PFF grade: 23rd
2022 QBR: 17th
X-Factor: Fields’ dynamic running and improved weapons
Justin Fields did enough last year to convince the Bears to trade out of the No. 1 overall pick and stick with him, in part because he found his stride as a runner. The former Ohio State standout ran for over 1,100 yards at 7.1 yards per carry, numbers that have only been recently approached by the likes of Lamar Jackson and Mike Vick. However, his issues with throwing effectively were still apparent. He did improve his QB rating to 85.2 but that’s only a shade above Trevor Siemian’s career mark. Fields also took a ton of sacks, which crushed his efficiency.
The Bears acquired DJ Moore and beefed up their offensive line to leave no excuses for their young quarterback. Which way things will go from here is a mystery. We have seen some highly touted QBs take big steps in Year 3 (like Josh Allen) and others continue with the same old struggles (Sam Darnold). Whether Fields can outplay Cousins really depends on which side of that he lands on. Until he shows it, the proven QB gets the benefit of the doubt.
Advantage: Cousins
Green Bay Packers, Jordan Love
2022 PFF grade: N/A
2022 QBR: N/A
X-Factor: Love’s inexperience
Nobody knows what we are going to get from Jordan Love this year, including the Packers and Jordan Love. He has just 83 career passes, 21 of which came last year when he showed some glimmers of talent. The Packers wouldn’t have stuck with him as Aaron Rodgers’ replacement if they weren’t at least intrigued by the idea he could be their long-term solution but that’s all we have to work with in terms of information right now. Again, the multi-time Pro Bowler has the clear edge until proven otherwise.
Advantage: Cousins
Detroit Lions, Jared Goff
2022 PFF grade: 20th
2022 QBR: 5th
X-Factor: Ben Johnson’s offensive scheme
Cousins vs. Goff has turned in some incredible performances from both over the years. Goff averages 299 yards per game and has a 101.6 career QB rating against the Vikings and that’s despite his rough first outing against Mike Zimmer’s No. 1 defense in 2017. After leading a top-five offense last year, he appears to have found the perfect fit with offensive coordinator Ben Johnson, who schemed receivers wide open all over the field against the Vikings last year at Ford Field. Of course, Goff isn’t perfect. He isn’t a playmaker and is prone to the occasional what-the-heck throw or sack. These two veterans fall into the same scheme-and-situation dependent category.
Advantage: Even
< rest at the link >
You can decide for yourself about Mahomes, Burrow, Hurts, Herbert, etc.
Final tally:
— Cousins has the advantage in seven games
— Two games we can give a slight edge to Cousins
— Two games are even
— Six games feature an opponent with a better resume
What does it mean? Depending on health, the Vikings could have much tougher road when it comes to opposing QBs than last year. It isn’t just that they play more quarterbacks who are terrific (and arguably the top two in the entire NFL), rather than the majority of total games are not an obvious edge (10 out of 17).
However, there are lots of contests on the schedule where Cousins should be the better quarterback and his supporting cast of receivers will have a great argument for being the best in the NFL if Jordan Addison makes a quick transition from college.
— Cousins has the advantage in seven games
— Two games we can give a slight edge to Cousins
— Two games are even
— Six games feature an opponent with a better resume
What does it mean? Depending on health, the Vikings could have much tougher road when it comes to opposing QBs than last year. It isn’t just that they play more quarterbacks who are terrific (and arguably the top two in the entire NFL), rather than the majority of total games are not an obvious edge (10 out of 17).
However, there are lots of contests on the schedule where Cousins should be the better quarterback and his supporting cast of receivers will have a great argument for being the best in the NFL if Jordan Addison makes a quick transition from college.
purpleinsider.substack.com/p/how-often-will-the-vikings-have-the
... and neither is this Chris guy.