NFC Game Of The Week
Minnesota Vikings at Washington Commanders
Vikings: Getting rid of Mike Zimmer was the best thing they could’ve done. If they had kept him as Head Coach, they would’ve regressed and continued to struggle. I said it a few years back, there are times when a particular type of coach is popular and becomes the “wave” of some sorts and these last few years, young and offensive minded coaches have been what teams are targeting. When they hired Kevin O’Connell, they were hiring a guy that worked his magic with the Los Angeles Rams. I remember Justin Jefferson saying “Now I see why Cooper Kupp was always wide open”. The Minnesota Vikings have won five in a row and are in the drivers seat of the NFC North in first place. They’ve done it with a nice offensive attack. Kirk Cousins isn’t a bad Quarterback as many label him to be. I say it all the time, he can only throw the ball and put you in the best position possible to win you games. He can’t play defense. What else can I say about Justin Jefferson? He’s become one of the best receivers in this league and Kirk’s top target for a reason. Don’t forget, he also has Adam Thielen on the other side to feed the ball too as well. Where the Vikings have improved has been on defense and the presence of Za’Darius Smith has made all the difference. He leads the team with 8.5 sacks on the year. On Sunday, the Vikings will look to win their sixth in a row.
Commanders: Their season was saved when they beat the Bears a few weeks back on a Thursday night. When I watched them at the beginning of the year, I immediately said to myself, “this is going to be a really long year for them”. At this point, Carson Wentz is damaged goods. There’s no other way to put. He has the worst luck and can’t stay healthy. Ron Rivera has turned to Taylor Heinicke to bail them out once again and they’ve won his last two starts including an upset victory over the Green Bay Packers a few weeks back. In an NFC East where you have the undefeated Eagles, a much improved Giants group that’s won more games alone this year than I’m sure they have the last few seasons combined and the Cowboys who will always been the topic of discussion, the Commanders have entered themselves back into the race in the division, if you say. Their offense is hit or miss. One, they can’t get out of their own way and two, they aren’t doing much of anything if Terry McLaurin isn’t going. He’s the fuel to their engine so to say. The problem I find with their offense is they look to get it going in the fourth quarter and it won’t always work that way. The defense this year has been up and down and understandably so without Chase Young. They’ve built the entire unit around him. Luckily, he makes his season debut on Sunday! Washington will look to keep this streak going.
Vikings X-Factor: K.J. Osborn– This is another weapon at Kirk’s disposal. While Justin and Adam are the vertical threats, K.J. is the one weapon that works underneath. In just his third season, he’s become that chain mover. Every offense has one as I like to say. This is who the Quarterback turns to when he needs a third down conversion, or they need to extend drives. K.J. is a sneaky fast receiver that can slip by you if you aren’t covering or paying attention to him.
Commanders X-Factor: Daron Payne– He’s one of those key pieces on this Washington defensive line. In the middle, Daron can get home to the Quarterback and as you’re seeing, many pass rushers are playing from the interior. When he’s unblocked, he’s getting home and there’s no doubts about it. Daron is also the Commanders best run stopper. He’s that piece that clogs up the middle of the field and because of that, the Linebackers and safeties can roam around freely to the ball.
Final Thoughts: Kirk Cousins returns back to where it all started for his career. The Commanders are looking to keep this winning streak alive. These two teams are like night and day. The Vikings are going to score and have no problem running up the scoreboard. They were able to win that game last week against the Cardinals because they came away with points each time they were in the red zone. The biggest question is can Washington score early on? That’s the issue I have with them because they’re known to struggle early on and then, they’ll get it going in the second half. How will this Washington secondary handle Justin? Once Kirk gets him the ball, he will continue to look his way. Minnesota has too much offensively for the Commanders here.
Prediction: Vikings 34, Commanders 21
