Week 9 Defensive Preview: Vikings @ Oakland
Brent LaBathe
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For a 6-2 football team, there have been plenty of doubts about the 2015 Vikings. There was plenty of skepticism about the Vikings’ ability to win on the road, especially within the division. How about winning at Soldier Field? Ok, how about beating a team with a winning record?
Thankfully, the Vikings have overcome all of the prior skepticism and have proven to be a legitimate contender, especially because of the defense.
The schedule isn’t getting any easier, by the way. As the Bridgewater led Vikings head to Oakland to face his draft mate in Derek Carr, the Vikings prepare for arguably their most difficult defensive match up on 2015.
Top of their game upfront:
The Raiders made a very clear effort to enable their second year quarterback, not only with offensive play makers, but also upfront with their offensive line. Adding center Rodney Hudson via free agency from Kansas City was a shrewd move that anchors the Raiders upfront. Having allowed only 8 sacks on the season, the Raiders offensive line is very good and often gives Carr a clean pocket to throw from.
Thankfully, the Vikings are getting defensive tackle Sharrif Floyd back from injury and his return could not have been timed better. Floyd will need to be disruptive and helped the Vikings control the game in the trenches. Pairing a healthier Floyd with Week 8 Defensive Player of the Week, Linval Joseph will be fun to watch as Joseph is seemingly playing at the highest level right now.
With Floyd and Joseph creating havoc, rookie linebacker Eric Kendricks, who has returned to practice as of Wednesday, should be free to do what he does best: flow to the ball and make plays.
That said, the Vikings are dangerously thin at linebacker after trading Gerald Hodges to San Francisco and losing Audi Cole to a season ending injury. Adding to that, Anthony Barr has been sitting out practice with a cast on his arm, and I’d be surprised if he suits up Sunday. If that is the case, the Vikings will need to find a way to balance that loss at the position.
I think the Vikings’ front seven vs the Raiders’ offensive line will ultimately be the match up to watch on Sunday. It’s long been said that football games are won in the trenches and I think that applies very well to this game.
AC/DC
No, not the rock band, but this duo packs just as much punch. As corny as that sentence was, it really has to be the biggest concern going into Sunday’s game. Carr has proven himself as a second year quarterback and has put up numbers that are nearly identical to Aaron Rodgers in 2015.
There is plenty of debate about who is the better quarterback, Carr or Bridgewater. If you are only going to look at stats, Carr wins that argument and it’s not even close. A lot of his success has to be due to rookie wide out Amari Cooper, who looks every bit like the future star people thought he’d be coming out of Alabama.
Cooper, however, sat out practice on Wednesday due to a hamstring injury and his availability for Sunday is in question. Personally, I’d love to see Cooper play Sunday, but the Vikings defense would be best served if he was forced to sit this one out.
In terms of the running game, the Raiders have an up and coming runner in Latavius Murray, who seems to have found a home in the Bay area. Murray is currently ranked 6th in the league with 630 yards rushing and is an excellent compliment for Carr and the passing game.
Speaking to that balance, former Vikings’ offensive coordinator Bill Musgrave seems to have found it in Oakland. After being run out of town when Leslie Frazier was relieved of his duties as head coach, Musgrave is putting together something to note in Oakland.
The Raiders go into the game Sunday ranked 8th in the league with 374 yards a game and 213 total points. Averaging nearly 27 points a game, something will have to give facing a Vikings defense that hasn’t allowed more than 23 points a game this year.
*****
The Raiders’ defense is pretty bad and the Vikings should be able to move the ball fairly well. The game will be contingent on the Vikings’ ability to tame the Raiders’ offense and as I’ve mentioned in previous weeks, that will start upfront with controlling the line of scrimmage.
If Carr has a strong pocket to throw from, he’s proven he can move the ball down field with ease and coupled with a strong running game, the Raiders could prove to be the toughest defensive match up the Vikings have faced this year.