Mystery Dwindles on QB Situation for Packers-Vikings
Minnesota Vikings fans began the week wondering about their QB1’s injury status while side-eyeing operations in Wisconsin to determine if Jordan Love or Malik Willis would get the nod for Week 4.
Mystery Dwindles on QB Situation for Packers-Vikings
The purple team travels to Green Bay for a meeting with the Packers this Sunday and has not won a game at Lambeau Field in the season’s first seven games since 2003. The Vikings have a 0-4-1 record early in the year at Green Bay in the last two decades.
And according to some credible hints, Jordan Love is trending to start this weekend, about three weeks removed from his sprained MCL that he suffered in Brazil against the Philadelphia Eagles. Without Love, the Packers have netted wins over the Indianapolis Colts and Tennessee Titans. The aforementioned Willis suddenly seems somewhat unlocked.
But The Athletic’s Vic Tafur made it sound this week like Love will likely play in Week 4, as Green Bay might need his services to solve the Vikings’ suddenly elite defense, led by coordinator Brian Flores.
“LaFleur totally remade the Packers offense to feature Willis’ running skills, and Willis is 2-0 after routing his old team last week,” Tafur wrote. “The expectation is that Jordan Love will be back this week, and the Packers will need him against the Vikings defense, which has been on fire under coordinator Brian Flores and is the first unit in the last 23 seasons to have at least five sacks in each of its first three games.”
For good measure, Tafur also picked Green Bay to defeat Minnesota.
Meanwhile, Darnold, the Vikings’ QB1, has fully participated in practice all week after a brief knee injury in a win over the Houston Texans. Darnold missed a single snap, returned to the game, and the Vikings medical staff concluded an MRI on Monday that revealed a bruise. Barring a bizarre setback, Darnold is a full-go for Packers-Vikings.
Tafur also outlined other factoids and opinions about the matchup.
“Meanwhile, it’s revenge week for Aaron Jones, and he has had a nice start with the Vikings. He ranks fifth in EPA per carry (0.12) and fourth in rush success percentage (50.0 percent) and is a nice complement to Justin Jefferson — who ranks second among receivers in EPA per reception (1.8),” he noted.
“It’s probably cliche to say that we expect Sam Darnold to come back down to earth a little, and maybe he overcomes a sore knee and won’t, but we’re siding with LaFleur, Love and the Packers to take care of business at home. Or else we’ll be saying next week that Kevin O’Connell has clinched the Coach of the Year award.”
According to NFLPickWatch, a website that logs all experts’ weekly predictions, the showdown between Green Bay and Minnesota is a true pick ’em. Fifty-one percent of the experts have selected the Packers, compared to 49% for the Vikings.
The Vikings are 9-8-1 (.528) against the Packers since the start of 2015.
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. The show features guests, analysis, and opinion on all things related to the purple team, with 4-7 episodes per week. His MIN obsession dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ Basset Hounds, and The Doors (the band). He follows the NBA as closely as the NFL.
All statistics provided by Pro Football Reference / Stathead; all contractual information provided by OverTheCap.com.
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