Everything for Vikings in Next 15 Games Hinges on Defense

Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports

The Minnesota Vikings currently rank 11th in the NFL per points scored. Guess what? That’s where they landed last year at year-end.

For yards gained, Minnesota ranked third in the league during the pandemic season. The team sits at sixth-most yards gained right now.

The Minnesota Vikings currently rank 26th in the NFL per points allowed. Guess what? They ranked 29th in 2020.

For yards allowed, Minnesota ranked 28th in the league during the pandemic season. The team sits at 27th for this metric at the moment.

Put simply, the 2021 season through two weeks is a continuation of the 2020 season. Plain and simple. Special teams have played better notwithstanding a missed game-winning field goal. K.J. Osborn emerged as a trustable WR3. And then the names on defense are better. But on the whole, the 2021 Vikings are the 2020 Vikings.

There is no need to monkey with the offense. Barring injury, it should only get better as Klint Kubiak, who replaced his father last winter, hits his groove.

Here’s what is needed: The Vikings need a return to Zimmerian normalcy on defense. If the team is even quasi-serious about making a playoff or Super Bowl push — it better be — the defense, with all of its dazzling names, must return to form. This can be the 2018 or 2019 edition. The 2017 brand — a firestorming force of mayhem — probably won’t be experienced for decades. It was just that good. However, inching closer to a 2018 or 2019 similarity is achievable.

In 2021, the Vikings are minimizing turnovers. Check. They’re scoring points. Check. Playmakers on offense — Adam Thielen, Justin Jefferson, Dalvin Cook, K.J. Osborn, and Kirk Cousins — are creating highlights. Check.

What’s missing? It’s the defense, stupid.

Thankfully, Minnesota has a three-game homestand to get feet underneath itself defensively. And there is no better spot in the world to do it than U.S. Bank Stadium. Since the building opened and when fans are in attendance, the Vikings flourish. From 2016 to 2019 (fans were allowed), only the Tom Brady-led New England Patriots owned a better home winning percentage. If fans are raucous — they will be — and Minnesota avoids futile stretches inside games, wins should fill up the NFC North standings.

But the winning must start immediately. In the last 30 years, only one NFL team has reached the playoffs following an 0-3 start. It was the 2018 Houston Texans, and they met demise in the Wildcard Round of the postseason. Ergo, to placate history, the Vikings have to conquer the Seahawks in Week 3. A 1-2 record with the Cleveland Browns, Detroit Lions, and Carolina Panthers on the agenda suddenly feels like a pathway to 3-3, at the very least.

We already know the Vikings can score points — they’re doing it at a Top 11 clip. Mike Zimmer is employed, foremost, to inspire a defense-first operation. Right now, it’s an offense-first enterprise. Some fans love that — all the power to them. Yet, Zimmer must get back to basics. Because when he does — that Top 11 offense will marry his usually-good defense in long-awaited harmony.

That’s the Holy Grail for the Zimmer Vikings, right? Just once, blend a hotshot offense with a vintage Zimmer defense. Minnesotans are waiting.

Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. He hosts a podcast with Bryant McKinnie, which airs every Wednesday with Raun Sawh and Sally from Minneapolis. His Viking fandom dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ and The Doors (the band).

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