Stay Away From Twisting It. The Vikings’ loss to Denver has just one main cause.
The story of Josh Dobbs is no more. It’s true that the Vikings can lose games without Justin Jefferson. Six weeks earlier, when Kevin O’Connell’s squad was 1-4, purple team supporters would have readily accepted that their team had dropped to 6-5 in the standings. Notwithstanding a significant setback to their aspirations of winning the NFC North, the team is still in a great position to make the playoffs, holding a commanding lead in the wild card race.
Avoid Getting It Twisted. The Vikings’ defeat at DEN can be attributed to one main factor.
The first loss in a long time had swiftly been explained. People often overreact to losses on social media, which is crazy. Naturally, after playing a fantastic game for fifty-seven minutes, the defense committed a few errors on the game’s last drive. They simply crumbled, giving people flashbacks to the Mike Zimmer team of 2021, which had historically poor numbers in the last two minutes of each half.
There was certainly much to be desired in the last offensive drive. In the drop back passing game, Dobbs shown certain limits, and when Jefferson was the target of his passes, he really missed him. O’Connell is held partially responsible for punt selections and short-yardage play selections.
Even while each of those factors contributed, they weren’t the primary reason for the final loss. That was the turnover issue once more. The organization has been plagued by losing the football, either in the air or on the ground, the entire season. Any team should prioritize ball security, but it doesn’t seem like the Vikes have received that message.
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The Vikings let up three field goals and did not force any on defense against the Broncos, although they did force a fumble in the fourth quarter that was eventually recovered by Denver before the ball went out of bounds.
The Vikings made a mistake on the opening drive once more. It was Dobbs on an intriguing trick play this time. A player with a history of overstepping boundaries, Kareem Jackson, struck him hard on the head after he fumbled. The NFL fined him four games’ worth of salary.
But when a different defender stripped the ball and Dobbs lost it, the tackle had nothing to do with the turnover. Dobbs should have made sure to keep onto the football even though the play should have been overturned by a flag, but the Vikings have to take control of what they can control. Additionally, he mishandled the ball twice after center Garrett Bradbury gave him the snap. Even though they have only played three games, they still lack experience, therefore they should definitely work harder to perfect the snap exchange.
The game was altered with the second, aggravating turnover. Following a brilliant drive that put Minnesota ahead by eight points on the scoreboard, running back Alexander Mattison coughed up the ball. It altered the game’s momentum entirely. It was suddenly down to a five-point game instead of leading by at least eleven points. Since it was only the fourth fumble of his career and the second of 2023, Mattison had no prior history of making mistakes.
With a five-point advantage and the defense keeping the Broncos out of the end zone, Dobbs dropped back to pass on the following drive. Ty Chandler missed the blitz pickup, Dobbs was hit during the throw, and the ball ended up in the hands of a defender, leading to the third turnover, which happened to be in excellent field position once more.
Winning games like this is unsustainable, and the going becomes considerably harder away from home. It is practically miraculous to win on the road when you lose the turnover battle by at least three points. The teams that fit those criteria are 76-1 and 466-6.
The Vikings can’t get rid of their deadly fault, even if they emphasize it every week. They are ranked 30th in the NFL with a -20 ratio. Head coach Kevin O’Connell declared that he will begin benching players who keep losing the ball and that he should give it serious thought going forward for repeat offenders.