The Vikings Have Earned Every Inch of Their NFC North Standing
Not many people thought that the NFC North would look the way it does currently. The offseason prognostications had the Vikings, Packers, and Lions fighting for the top two spots in the division, with the Bears most likely at the bottom but making some noise.
The Vikings have battled through injuries and inconsistency but remain in the NFC North mix, albeit in last place through seven games.
At almost the halfway point, the Vikings are not holding up their end of the bargain by being a complete mess and letting national audiences see it nearly every week.
Vikings Sit Last in Division — and Belong There
Even though the Vikings still haven’t played many games in their own division, the losses outside those matches still add up. Meanwhile, the Lions and Packers are battling for the top spot with the Bears nipping at their heels.
Vikings at Chargers
Once again, Kevin O’Connell’s squad had the chance to take advantage of a team reeling from injuries and uneven play over the last four weeks. The Chargers have an injury report that rivals the one the Vikings are currently recovering from.
Their offensive line was the most glaring, making it a good chance the Vikings’ defensive line would have a good game. Unfortunately for the Vikings, the injury report wasn’t favorable again as offensive tackles Christian Darrisaw and Brian O’Neill were on it.
O’Neil was listed as out, and Darrisaw was questionable as his knee was flaring up from the last game. He played nine snaps Thursday night before getting shelved. With a short week, it’s not surprising they had some soreness they couldn’t recover from. So, Justin Skule and Walter Rousse returned to the lineup.
This was part of the reason Minnesota couldn’t get anything done. The offensive line played horribly from the get-go, struggling to block both the run and the pass. Blake Brandel is still struggling at the center position, and maybe it’s time to put Michael Jurgens back in there at what is his natural position.
Hopefully, the “mini bye” of a long weekend will help some of them get back to strength and back on track. Will Fries and Donovan Jackson didn’t get their names called out, so I would say they are doing a good job, except for one play when Jackson lost his balance and fell backward.
The main catalyst was the continued failure at quarterback. Carson Wentz is playing injured and was battered all night, and I give him huge credit for his toughness. But maybe he doesn’t take as much punishment if he gets the ball out to open receivers. He seems to be hesitating once again, and there are glaring screenshots to prove it.
Unfortunately for Mr. Wentz, the punishment came to an end as he underwent season-ending shoulder surgery due to the injury, with a dislocation that tore his labrum and fractured his socket. Just one of those things is enough to put anyone out of commission and begging for relief. This should mean that JJ McCarthy will have full hands-on the reins against the Lions this Sunday, unless there is a setback and Max Brosmer gets the call.
The Vikings were beaten on both sides of the ball, with both the offense and defense failing. The defense and special teams had played admirably in other games, keeping them close enough for the offense to strike, but that wasn’t the case Thursday.
The Chargers and quarterback Justin Herbert moved at will up and down the field, yet the offense looked as anemic as they have all year. The blocking for runs and passes was bad. Running backs couldn’t get a rhythm. Wide receivers couldn’t get open and dropped some key passes, while Wentz’s throws to open receivers were mistimed. It was a total and utter collapse.
The silver lining to everyone calling into Fan Line on KFAN after the game and on social media was that this is hopefully rock bottom, and all they can do is move up. Some are calling for Kwesi Adofo-Mensah and O’Connell to lose their jobs already, after they both just signed offseason extensions. If the Vikings want to turn the season around and show the NFL they’re as good as their roster, a Lions win would do just that.
The Vikings may have also lost Josh Oliver to injury for a time. His blocking is very underrated, and with an ailing offensive line, it doesn’t help. We won’t know more about him until later this week, but I doubt he plays against Detroit. They claimed Ben Sims off waivers from the Packers, and he had bright moments in the preseason a few years ago.
Bears at Ravens
The Bears and Caleb Williams have been on a hot streak. After starting the season by giving away the game in the 4th quarter to the Vikings in week one, they were able to string together wins. They faced the Ravens, who have been absolutely reeling since Lamar Jackson went down with an injury.
This was another opportunity for the Bears to take advantage of a team trying to keep their season alive. Tyler Huntley was given the start for the Ravens at quarterback after Cooper Rush was a bust. The Bears started out moving the ball well, but Baltimore’s defense held up in the red zone, and they could only kick a couple of field goals.
The Ravens’ defense was still sputtering, with Huntley not particularly impressive and Derrick Henry not much of a factor, as he has struggled all year. On the other side, D’Andre Swift has been having a resurgence of a season, cutting through teams.
The roles reversed on Sunday as Huntley started heating up while Williams cooled down, and Henry got a bit of his swagger back while Swift disappeared. While the Bears hung around, trailing by 3 points late in the game, Williams finally made a mistake and threw an interception that the Ravens turned into a touchdown with a Henry run.
The Bears made one last drive but couldn’t connect in the end zone. While Chicago didn’t look terrible, they sure didn’t look sharp against a one-win team that is struggling. They just aren’t as good as the Lions and Packers this year, but they are showing signs of growth.
Packers at Steelers
The Packers always have some storyline for the NFL Announcers to gush over. Sunday night was Aaron Rodgers playing against his former team and Jordan Love facing his former mentor. If Rodgers wins the game, he earns a title that Brett Favre, Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, and Drew Brees co-own of beating every team in the NFL.
Cris Collinsworth seemed to be having a hard time knowing who he should root for more. On the field, things remained interesting as the Packers got drives, but other than an early touchdown drive, they had two missed field goals by kicker Brandon McManus. Those are the type of things that come back and either become the reason your team lost or earn another tie.
They were trailing by nine at the half, and the Steelers were looking to have a signature win that would show they are better than they have really looked. The Steelers have been squeaking by in their wins, and this would be a win that, if they did the same, would hold more water.
In the battle between sack masters TJ Watt and Micah Parsons, the latter was getting the better of the matchup. Although he only got one sack, Parsons’ pressure was critical, helping Rashan Gary rack up two sacks as Rodgers scrambled most of the game and was unable to step up in the pocket.
It seemed the Steelers might get the win if they could at least get in field goal range and hold off the Packers. That didn’t happen as tight end Tucker Kraft had a seven-catch night for 143 yards and two touchdowns, leading all receivers. The Packers basically found their groove, knocked the Steelers out of theirs, and turned a back-and-forth game into a beatdown.
Division Standings
- Packers
- Lions
- Bears
- Vikings
The Lions were on a bye week, so everyone is back on even ground with their records. While a bye doesn’t change anything, the Packers’ win sure does. This is a game where Aaron Rodgers could have pulled another magic game out of his old rear end, upset his old team, and finished with that annoying smirk on his face.
While I don’t like ties—especially against a team they should have beaten—the Packers beat the Lions early on and didn’t fall into a “trap game”. It may stay this way until they go head-to-head again or the Packers stumble mightily. The Bears wouldn’t have moved up even if they had won, since the Ravens are struggling. They could make some noise the next few weeks against the Bengals, Giants, and Vikings and stay in the playoff hunt.
The Vikings are now in limbo with the Wentz injury and the unknown status of JJ McCarthy, honestly. The whole team needs to take a long look in the mirror and see exactly who they are and whether they can make up for a young quarterback who has played only 8 quarters of football this season. McCarthy has the chance to show what he could be if he suddenly figures things out and finally gets a healthy offensive line to help him get there.
While there could still be a race to the end of the season for the NFC North if some things click for any team or if there is a major injury, for now, it seems a two-horse race. Either the Packers or the Lions will win the division and possibly have the final say against each other in the playoffs.
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