Happy Monday, Minnesota Vikings fans! How does it feel to wake up with your favorite football team 2-0 , and atop the NFC North? It’s pretty wild how much better Sunday evenings and Monday mornings are, when the Vikings win. Sunday scaries? Never heard of her.
There are a lot of reasons for the Vikings’ hot start. But really, there are two MVP factors in their undefeated record, through two weeks. First, Sam Darnold looks more like a No. 3 overall draft pick , than he does a 1st round bust. Second, Brian Flores has the defense playing on fire.
Minnesota Vikings defense playing dominant
Depending on down and distance, there is no telling what the Vikings defense is going to throw at an opposing offense, and it makes scheming during the week very difficult for the brilliant offensive minds in the league, like Kyle Shanahan.
For example, the Vikings blitzed more than any other team in the NFL last year, and brought more than four pass rushers at Daniel Jones a bunch, in week 1 . It’s all anyone ever talks about, when Minnesota’s defense is brought up. ‘Oh, Brian Flores? Yeah, all that guy does is blitz, blitz, blitz, no matter what.’
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But not in week two. With the San Francisco 49ers in town, Flores was hyper-focused on stopping the run and putting a bunch of bodies in the secondary, when QB Brock Purdy dropped back to pass.
On 3rd downs, they didn’t rush five or more, very often. Instead, they relied on their “NASCAR package” to get pressure on Purdy. That’s is a four-man defensive line made up of all EDGE rushers (Van Ginkel, Greenard, Turner, Pat Jones).
Purdy and Shanahan battled rather valiantly, and absolutely got some blows in on Flores and his defense. But in the end, the Niners’ sophomore QB and his ballyhooed head coach were exhausted by the Vikings’ physicality. Mentally, Flores and his crew twisted their football brains into tightly wound pretzels.
Brock Purdy knows how crazy Brian Flores’ schemes are
The 49ers offense finished just 2 of 10, on 3rd down, and that’s because they were in 3rd-and-long a lot. Of the twenty-three 1st downs gained by San Francisco’s offense on Sunday, only four were on the ground. The Minnesota Vikings’ defensive mission on Sunday was to make Brock Purdy beat them, and it worked.
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After the game, Brian Flores tapped the 49ers quarterback on the shoulder after the game. A shell-shocked Purdy turned around, shook the defensive coordinator’s hand. He only got in a few words before Flores walked away. The CBS microphones caught them clearly. “Great job today. Your scheme man, it’s crazy.”
Thanks to two Vikings red zone turnovers, on offense, San Francisco had a chance to win Sunday’s matchup, all the way until the end of the 4th quarter. But had Kevin O’Connell, Sam Darnold and the boys on offense been able to convert those turnovers into scores, of any kind, yesterday would’ve been over before the 4th quarter even started.
As Minnesota sports fans, we are trying our best not to get ahead of ourselves. This state isn’t just known for its lakes. It’s also The Land of “I’m ready to hurt again” Memes. As soon as the sports world starts to turn in our favor, we’re almost always reminded that we can’t have nice things.
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But maybe… just maybe… the Minnesota Vikings are in a much better place than where we expected them to be. Great coaching makes a difference. And so far, both at the head coach and defensive coordinator levels, this team is professional proof of that.
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