Image courtesy of Vikings.com
Given the quick turnaround from Week 13 to Week 14, it’s no surprise that Anthony Barr (Groin), Linval Joseph (Foot), Antone Exum (Ribs/Shoulder), and Harrison Smith (Hamstring) have all been ruled out for Thursday’s game against the Arizona Cardinals. A.J. Mansour of KFAN broke the news early Tuesday morning and cast a dark shadow over the hopes of an optimistic Minnesota Vikings fan base.
Coming off a 38-7 drubbing at the hands of the Seattle Seahawks, the Vikings will need to regain their early season form to retain the NFC’s fifth Wild Card spot. They’re currently a game ahead of the Seahawks and two games ahead of a crowded group of teams “in the hunt.” On paper, Thursday’s game heavily favors the Cardinals, who enter Week 14 with the league’s top-ranked offense and fourth-ranked defense.
While the offense is relatively healthy, the defense has been ravaged by injuries at every level. The Vikings struggled without three of their top defenders against the Seahawks, allowing Russell Wilson to throw three touchdowns and Thomas Rawls to break the century mark on the ground. It was an uncharacteristic day for Mike Zimmer’s unit, complete with missed tackles and blown coverages throughout the game.
According to Mansour, seven Vikings defenders missed practice on Monday, including all four active safeties. The injuries in the secondary forced veteran cornerback Terence Newman into spot duty at safety, where he played three snaps on Sunday. Against an offense with receiving weapons like Larry Fitzgerald, Michael Floyd, and John Brown, that strategy won’t suffice in preventing explosive plays down the field.
As of now, Robert Blanton and Andrew Sendejo appear to be the most likely options to start at strong and free safety this week. In the middle of the defense, it’s hard to predict who will replace Barr. Jason Trusnik saw extended playing time last week, but either Edmond Robinson or Brandon Watts could take the field after his less-than-stellar performance. And on the defensive line, Sharrif Floyd and Tom Johnson will likely stay put at nose and defensive tackle.
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so, if we make the playoffs and the pukers have beaten us twice, and we play them in the first round, it might not be such a bad thing. it's hard to beat a team three times in a season, and i'd love to win that one
Don't think we'll make it at 8-8. It was a good run this year and we bested last years win total. Hopefully we'll try to do something different to get the Offense at a professional level next year. Kept waiting for things to change. Finally realized that it ain't gonna happen. Our offense is BAD. Make some changes Zim!!!
At full strength, I believe we can compete well with the Cardinals. Without these guys, we cannot, pure and simple. The best thing to do is give them all another 10 days of recovery so they can hopefully be ready for that final three-game stretch, which is where the season really rides.
Our chances tonight hinge on the offense coming up with a big surprise performance. Maybe that is something just on the verge of happening. A few breaks, turnovers, etc, wouldn't hurt either.