Post by Purple Pain on Nov 5, 2024 11:39:14 GMT -6
Purple Insider: Everything that went right and wrong for the Vikings vs. Colts
What went right
The play count and offensive operation
The Vikings entered Sunday night last in the NFL in total offensive plays, which was something head coach Kevin O’Connell talked about wanting to improve on multiple occasions in the leadup to the game. Mission accomplished. They ran 71 total plays to Indianapolis’s 49 and stayed on the field for 36:54.
One of the main things that was hurting the offense’s ability to sustain drives was penalties. Specifically delays of game, false start and illegal motion/formation flags. On Sunday, they walked out of the stadium with only one offensive penalty (a holding call) and were otherwise clean in the operation. Sam Darnold also appeared to be getting to the line of scrimmage quicker out of the huddle.
O’Connell said Monday that they adjusted things in practice last week to speed up the process of getting the play call and adjustments made with more haste. They also didn’t have quite as many moving parts before the snap.
“We did some things specifically on some of the weightier downs where we maybe weren't as exotic with our formations,” O’Connell said. “It's all about the urgency in and out of the huddle. I can get Sam the wristband number or the play call in as fast as possible, but we still need to have the clarity of the play call and then guys breaking the huddle knowing exactly what to do, where to go.”
The Vikings’ head coach also pinned some of the previous issues on himself, saying that he has to make sure to get the play calls in as quickly as possible regardless of what’s happening in the game.
“It always starts with me,” O’Connell said. “I have to be really good about moving on from a previous play. Sometimes I get carried away with either the officials or trying to make sure what happens on the previous play, we've got to move on.”
Sam Darnold short and intermediate passing
The Vikings’ quarterback has been very good throwing the ball deep all season but against the Colts he was “playing point guard” with the quick and intermediate passing game. On throws that went between 0-19 yards, he completed 21 of 24 with 15 first downs, 251 yards and three touchdowns.
Passes that traveled less than 10 yards in the air made up 38% of his attempts and gained 8.2 yards per attempt, continuing with a positive quick-game trend that has been rolling for the offense since the matchup with Detroit.
Overall this season, Darnold has a 125.6 rating when throwing between 0-9 yards and 109.3 between 10-19 yards.
Cam Robinson’s debut, Brian O’Neill (as per usual)
Did you ever show up to a test having barely looked at the material and somehow passed? Well, that’s what Robinson was forced to do on Sunday night and he came away with a quality performance. The former Jaguar was acquired mid-week and still played all 73 snaps at left tackle in place of injured Christian Darrisaw and gave up four pressures (zero sacks or QB hits) on 42 pass blocking snaps and graded a solid 66.1 overall.
“A veteran player with over 90 starts, he knows how to play the game,” O’Connell said. “His physicality in the run game, maybe the technique might not have been perfect, but his length and strength and able to come off the rock when we needed him to, depending on if we were running to his side or he was on the back side of a run, that showed up to me.”
The offensive plan, KOC said, was built with the intent to give Robinson an extra hand but as the game went on they needed to give additional help to the interior so Robinson was on an island.
“We left him like a left tackle,” O’Connell said. “We left him by himself a few times and he answered the bell. I also want to highlight Blake [Brandel] and Garrett [Bradbury] for their communication.”
On the other side, Brian O’Neill put together a gem. On 42 pass blocking snaps, he gave up zero QB pressures. It was the second time he has pitched a shutout this year and the veteran RT has been credited with just one sack and zero QB hits this season.
“I think Brian O’Neill's having one of his best seasons I know that I've been a part of with him, and he's been an established core player in this organization for a long time,” O’Connell said. “But I cannot say enough about what he means to our offense and what he's been able to do this year at the right tackle spot, playing some of the best football of his career for sure”
Josh Oliver’s best career game
The Vikings’ massive tight end has proven to have very good hands for a man his size and he showed that again with a career high five receptions. Four of those went for a first down or touchdown, including the game-sealing TD on the Vikings final drive. Oliver also was the second highest graded run blocker on Sunday night by PFF and he provided assistance in the pass blocking game as well.
“Josh does that sometimes is not seen enough is his role in the run game and past pro, the physicality he brings to our offense, and he's got the ability to impact the past game, big moves well, great catch radius,” O’Connell said.
Dallas Turner emerges
The Vikings’ rookie played the second most snaps of his young career with 26 and produced four pressures on 11 pass rushing snaps. He was also asked to drop into coverage on six plays and was not targeted. Turner was graded 71.3 by PFF, his second highest mark of the year.
“I thought there were some real flashes in the pass rush and just the activity, solid in the run game,” O’Connell said of Turner’s game. “We wanted to make sure he was a little bit more involved in the game. And he showed up. He showed up. I thought it was a performance that I was not surprised by and I’ve kind of had been telling you guys as we move forward here and based upon game plans and things like that, but I thought it was a real great step in the right direction for Dallas [Turner] and one that I think he'll build on.”
Cam Akers, RB2
Breaking camp, it seemed that the Vikings might use Ty Chandler as part of a duo but that never materialized and Chandler ended up with just 12 carries since Week 2 outside of the game against the Jets in which Aaron Jones got hurt. Akers was acquired on October 15 and he got his first chance at the RB2 spot on Sunday night. The trade paid instant dividends as he ripped off three runs of 10 yards or more. He appears in line to be splitting carries more often with Jones.
“That's what made him somebody that I've always wanted to pursue to get here,” O’Connell said. “Because I think he's a guy that can watch the game and see how we're being defended, see how certain runs are kind of looking either on the tablet or in real time, and then he goes out there and he can adjust on the fly….I thought Cam’s impact was one that not only gave Aaron a breather so then he could be strong down the stretch, but was just impactful as just a guy stepping in the huddle.”
Harrison Phillips and the run defense
Jonathan Taylor never got a chance to get rolling against the Vikings. The star runner gained just 48 yards on 13 carries and the Vikings gave up an average of just 3.6 yards per carry overall. At the center of the run stopping effort was Harrison Phillips. He played 31 snaps as Brian Flores rotated defensive linemen more than in previous weeks but he was dominant when on the field. Phillips was the highest graded defender on the field at 83.2 and had three run stops.
The Vikings’ tackling effort was excellent. They were credited with just three missed tackles. It was clear that the extra rest was helpful in comparison to the quick turnaround they faced versus the Rams.
The play count and offensive operation
The Vikings entered Sunday night last in the NFL in total offensive plays, which was something head coach Kevin O’Connell talked about wanting to improve on multiple occasions in the leadup to the game. Mission accomplished. They ran 71 total plays to Indianapolis’s 49 and stayed on the field for 36:54.
One of the main things that was hurting the offense’s ability to sustain drives was penalties. Specifically delays of game, false start and illegal motion/formation flags. On Sunday, they walked out of the stadium with only one offensive penalty (a holding call) and were otherwise clean in the operation. Sam Darnold also appeared to be getting to the line of scrimmage quicker out of the huddle.
O’Connell said Monday that they adjusted things in practice last week to speed up the process of getting the play call and adjustments made with more haste. They also didn’t have quite as many moving parts before the snap.
“We did some things specifically on some of the weightier downs where we maybe weren't as exotic with our formations,” O’Connell said. “It's all about the urgency in and out of the huddle. I can get Sam the wristband number or the play call in as fast as possible, but we still need to have the clarity of the play call and then guys breaking the huddle knowing exactly what to do, where to go.”
The Vikings’ head coach also pinned some of the previous issues on himself, saying that he has to make sure to get the play calls in as quickly as possible regardless of what’s happening in the game.
“It always starts with me,” O’Connell said. “I have to be really good about moving on from a previous play. Sometimes I get carried away with either the officials or trying to make sure what happens on the previous play, we've got to move on.”
Sam Darnold short and intermediate passing
The Vikings’ quarterback has been very good throwing the ball deep all season but against the Colts he was “playing point guard” with the quick and intermediate passing game. On throws that went between 0-19 yards, he completed 21 of 24 with 15 first downs, 251 yards and three touchdowns.
Passes that traveled less than 10 yards in the air made up 38% of his attempts and gained 8.2 yards per attempt, continuing with a positive quick-game trend that has been rolling for the offense since the matchup with Detroit.
Overall this season, Darnold has a 125.6 rating when throwing between 0-9 yards and 109.3 between 10-19 yards.
Cam Robinson’s debut, Brian O’Neill (as per usual)
Did you ever show up to a test having barely looked at the material and somehow passed? Well, that’s what Robinson was forced to do on Sunday night and he came away with a quality performance. The former Jaguar was acquired mid-week and still played all 73 snaps at left tackle in place of injured Christian Darrisaw and gave up four pressures (zero sacks or QB hits) on 42 pass blocking snaps and graded a solid 66.1 overall.
“A veteran player with over 90 starts, he knows how to play the game,” O’Connell said. “His physicality in the run game, maybe the technique might not have been perfect, but his length and strength and able to come off the rock when we needed him to, depending on if we were running to his side or he was on the back side of a run, that showed up to me.”
The offensive plan, KOC said, was built with the intent to give Robinson an extra hand but as the game went on they needed to give additional help to the interior so Robinson was on an island.
“We left him like a left tackle,” O’Connell said. “We left him by himself a few times and he answered the bell. I also want to highlight Blake [Brandel] and Garrett [Bradbury] for their communication.”
On the other side, Brian O’Neill put together a gem. On 42 pass blocking snaps, he gave up zero QB pressures. It was the second time he has pitched a shutout this year and the veteran RT has been credited with just one sack and zero QB hits this season.
“I think Brian O’Neill's having one of his best seasons I know that I've been a part of with him, and he's been an established core player in this organization for a long time,” O’Connell said. “But I cannot say enough about what he means to our offense and what he's been able to do this year at the right tackle spot, playing some of the best football of his career for sure”
Josh Oliver’s best career game
The Vikings’ massive tight end has proven to have very good hands for a man his size and he showed that again with a career high five receptions. Four of those went for a first down or touchdown, including the game-sealing TD on the Vikings final drive. Oliver also was the second highest graded run blocker on Sunday night by PFF and he provided assistance in the pass blocking game as well.
“Josh does that sometimes is not seen enough is his role in the run game and past pro, the physicality he brings to our offense, and he's got the ability to impact the past game, big moves well, great catch radius,” O’Connell said.
Dallas Turner emerges
The Vikings’ rookie played the second most snaps of his young career with 26 and produced four pressures on 11 pass rushing snaps. He was also asked to drop into coverage on six plays and was not targeted. Turner was graded 71.3 by PFF, his second highest mark of the year.
“I thought there were some real flashes in the pass rush and just the activity, solid in the run game,” O’Connell said of Turner’s game. “We wanted to make sure he was a little bit more involved in the game. And he showed up. He showed up. I thought it was a performance that I was not surprised by and I’ve kind of had been telling you guys as we move forward here and based upon game plans and things like that, but I thought it was a real great step in the right direction for Dallas [Turner] and one that I think he'll build on.”
Cam Akers, RB2
Breaking camp, it seemed that the Vikings might use Ty Chandler as part of a duo but that never materialized and Chandler ended up with just 12 carries since Week 2 outside of the game against the Jets in which Aaron Jones got hurt. Akers was acquired on October 15 and he got his first chance at the RB2 spot on Sunday night. The trade paid instant dividends as he ripped off three runs of 10 yards or more. He appears in line to be splitting carries more often with Jones.
“That's what made him somebody that I've always wanted to pursue to get here,” O’Connell said. “Because I think he's a guy that can watch the game and see how we're being defended, see how certain runs are kind of looking either on the tablet or in real time, and then he goes out there and he can adjust on the fly….I thought Cam’s impact was one that not only gave Aaron a breather so then he could be strong down the stretch, but was just impactful as just a guy stepping in the huddle.”
Harrison Phillips and the run defense
Jonathan Taylor never got a chance to get rolling against the Vikings. The star runner gained just 48 yards on 13 carries and the Vikings gave up an average of just 3.6 yards per carry overall. At the center of the run stopping effort was Harrison Phillips. He played 31 snaps as Brian Flores rotated defensive linemen more than in previous weeks but he was dominant when on the field. Phillips was the highest graded defender on the field at 83.2 and had three run stops.
The Vikings’ tackling effort was excellent. They were credited with just three missed tackles. It was clear that the extra rest was helpful in comparison to the quick turnaround they faced versus the Rams.
and the Vikings offense only had 3 first downs. That's gotta be a record. 2/14 on 3rd down, 104 total yards, 10 penalties for 68 yards, and 25:21 TOP.
... and neither is this Chris guy.