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Tuesday, July 15th Weather

Vikings Get First Win at Home

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The hardest part of any journey is the start. So when the Vikings began their season on the road with back to back losses, a return home was just what the doctor ordered. Only 11% of teams who start 0-2 make it to the playoffs and less than 3% make it after starting 0-3. So the Vikings 30-17 win over the Seattle Seahawks was one of the most important (regular season) games in recent history.
 

For the first time since December 2019, the Vikings were back in front of a live home crowd. Immediately, I could tell that these fans were dying for football. The last two weeks be damned, U.S. Bank Stadium was rocking.
It was one of those crowds that you can feel in your chest. That reverts throughout your body. That gives you life. It was one of that things that I had missed since the beginning of COVID and reduced crowds.


They say that the camera can add 15 pounds to a photo, but it has to reduce the speed of NFL wide receivers by a few degrees as well because the difference between Seahawks wideout DK Metcalf on the tube and in person is astonishing and it’s something that you almost can’t describe. On a field filled with the some of the best athletes on the planet, he stands out. Not only one of the biggest, but the fastest.
The opposite could be said about Patrick Peterson. Giving him the benefit of the doubt is charitable, and saying that the he’ll get used to the Vikings defense is hopeful- but I think he’s starting too look like your favorite pair of jeans from college. Washed.
On Seattle’s first possession, the Seahawks were able to go 75 yards on nine plays capped off by a Russell Wilson-Metcalf score from ten yards out. The combination of Tyler Lockett being on the best receivers in football through two weeks, Peterson looking mismatched, and Vikings defensive back Bashaud Breeland getting bullied by Metcalf, Seattle took the first lead of the game.
The thing that Head Coaches, Degenerate Gamblers and Fantasy Owners all have in common is they hate to hear about “Game Day Inactive,” which is what Dalvin Cook was today. Luckily for Minnesota, Alexander Mattison came to play.
Mattison has been the backup running back for two seasons and I have always liked him, but in this game he was the difference between a win and a loss. Mattison on 26 carries was able to slice up the Seattle defense for 112 yards on the ground and was able to catch six passes for 59 yards.
Mattison won’t be taking Cook’s job permanently- but he all but solidified himself a roster spot for the foreseeable future. Mattison is the type of back that casual fans will point to next time a star ball carrier gets paid. “Why do we need to pay Cook when someone like Mattison can do just as well?” It’s a debate for another day.


Kirk Cousins has played the best eight quarters of football in a Vikings jersey the past two weeks.  With  6:37 left in the first quarter, Cousins connected with his Tight End Tyler Conklin for the seven yard score. 


A takeaway for me in this one: Russell Wilson has some of the best hips in football. The difference between Russell and every other mobile QB in the league is that Wilson has protected himself from the start. Kyler Murray had to learn how, RG3 never figured it out, and Lamar Jackson still has time. Wilson from day one knew when to slide, when to fall, and when to push for the extra yards. 
Even with a Vikings pass rush that has some big names, Wilson was able to maneuver his way to not take a loss on a sack and protect himself to play the next down.
With 27 seconds left in the first quarter, Jason Myers was able to put the Seahawks ahead by three with a field goal from 53 yards out.
On the next Seattle possession, Running Back Chris Carson was able to bust a 30 yard run off. I was surprised how involved Carson was early in this game. With 11:12 left in the half he had 10 carries already. To really add to the confusion, he ended the game with 12 touches for 80 yards. Seattle never figured out what their identiy was in this one.
On offense, Kirk Cousins was able to get what he wanted when the Seahawks dropped into zone coverage, their base defense. Cousins was able to dice up the field with Justin Jefferson and Adam Thielen getting in between defenders. 


Something that nobody in the media will tell you is, we enjoy watching fans run the field. I don’t know a single media member who doesn’t crack a smile when we see a fan make a complete fool of themselves. This one wasn’t a good as others, but it’s a start. Fans have been off for a year- it’s going to take some times to get back into it.
Patrick Peterson finally woke up with four minutes to go in the half, locking Metcalf up on 2nd down and Lockett on 3rd down.  Forcing a Meyer 44 yard field goal attempt that was no good. With 3:14 left in the half and the Vikings receiving to start the third quarter, a score to cut the lead down would be huge on their next possession. 
With 16 second left in the half, Cousins was able to connect with Jefferson from three yards out to give the Vikings their first lead of the game. It was the most important catch. Not only because it was right on the money, but because Jefferson has had a *little* bit of a dropping issue. Seeing him pull down a potential momentum shifting score did wonders for my confidence in him.
It also gave Cousins three touchdown passes in the first half and the Vikings led 21-17.


The second half wasn’t any different than the first, with Mattison running the ball well and Cousins making the safe throws. I don’t want to be pessimistic after a win, but this could have more to do with Seattle’s defense being…bad? Are the Seahawks a bad team? It’s hard to say right now but I think at the half way point this team might be out of serious playoff contention.
The Vikings opening drive stalled due to a Cousins fumble that he was able to recover. It was time for Greg Joseph to redeem himself after last week’s debacle. From 43 yards out, he was able to connect to extend the Minnesota led to 24-17.


After another Seattle punt, the Vikings had the ball again to start the fourth quarter. After a Cousins sack, it was fourth and 21 from the Seattle 25. Head Coach Mike Zimmer, whose seat coming into this game was already a tad warm, showed faith in his kicker sending Joseph out again.
The difference between aggressive coaching and dumb coaching is a tight line to walk. In the moment, kicking a field goal to only go up ten against a team that has one of the league’s best QBs felt dumb. In hindsight, taking the points worked so Zimmer lives to see another Sunday. Vikings lead with 11:37 in the game 27-17.


This was the best Cousins has looked all season. Seattle’s pass rush had been completely nullified- and the secondary couldn’t stop the tight end safety blanket all game. With the entire defense and the kitchen sink thrown at him, Cousins was able to get a pass off to KJ Osborn. Then on third and goal, Cousins tried to hit Thielen on the screen pass, but was taken down.
Minnesota fans in the stadium wanted the Vikings to go for it. Leading by ten with Wilson on the other sideline 7:08 left in the game, a field goal felt pedestrian. Their team had been waiting for this moment. The Vikings hadn’t beaten Seattle since 2009. Some of the fans in attendance were barley able to walk and chew gum when Favre was suiting up in the Purple and Gold. 
The Vikings kicker completely redeemed himself with three field goal connections in the second half to give Minnesota a 30-17 lead with 7:08. Now it was the defenses turn to show up.


The Vikings defense, full of names but not full of stats so far this year, was able to sack Wilson on first and ten from the Vikings 41 then, Eric Kendricks was able to make the tackle when Wilson tried to make something happen with his legs. On third and forever, Wilson threw to the endzone where Metcalf wasn’t able to come up with it. Fourth down was the same story- an incompletion on an attempt to cut the lead. Instead Seattle and Wilson came up short.
The Vikings were able to run out the clock with 2:05 to win their first home game of the season and their first game of the season making them 1-2 going into next week’s matchup with the 2-1 Cleveland Browns at home.
Cousins finished with 323 passing yards and three touchdowns. Mattison 171 total yards were a team high and Jefferson and Thielen were both able to score touchdowns for the Vikings.

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