Chargers and Vikings Share the Same Painful Problems
Every team has a storyline whose chapter eventually comes to an end in any given season. Whether they are destined to have the first pick in the draft by midseason or they hoist the Lombardi Trophy, the end has a backstory as to how they got there.
The Chargers and Vikings share the same painful problems this season, from injuries to inconsistency, highlighting eerie parallels in their 2025 NFL struggles.
When it comes to winning the Super Bowl, some have an easy path with little to no resistance, while others have improbable hurdles to overcome. When it comes to the Chargers and the Vikings making the Championship game against each other, it would be a similar story (and one the NFL would eat up) to the trials and tribulations they had to overcome to actually get there.
Vikings, Chargers = Bedfellows
I’m not saying either team will be there with their current struggles, which are a mirror image in some respects, but we have seen storylines like this before.
The Injury Report Is A Main Character
Like the Vikings, Jim Harbaugh and the Chargers were early-season favorites to make a deep playoff run and possibly play in the Super Bowl. Justin Herbert is a top-notch quarterback, and the defense is pretty good.
Add in a strong running back crew with rookie Omarion Hampton and Najee Harris in the backfield, and wide receivers Keenan Allen and Ladd McConkey, and the Chargers can attack you on both the ground and air. Their offensive tackle tandem is one of the best in the league. This has been a bit derailed by the ultimate equalizer: injuries.
Hampton and Harris are both on injured reserve without designation to return. One of the individuals who helps them achieve success is All-Pro and Pro Bowl offensive right tackle Rashawn Slater, who is also on that list with a ruptured patella tendon. On defense, Kalil Mack and Denzel Perryman are also out, but with a designation to return, so, like the Vikings, they have some help coming back. Those are all bad losses for the Chargers, but it gets a bit worse.
Now let’s look at their current IR, which includes more key names, with Trey Pipkins, who was filling in for Slater, being questionable. To make it worse, left tackle Joe Alt is also questionable, and he is one of the best in the league.
Add in backup running back Hassan Haskins, who is doubtful; defensive tackle Jamaree Caldwell is questionable, and his line partner, Otito Ogbonnia, just got placed on IR as well. Does this sound familiar?
The Vikings have faced a similar issue with Kevin O’Connell, who has frequently shifted the offensive line, quarterbacks, linebackers, and edge defenders for most of the season. While others have stepped up and played well, the team has been plagued by too much inconsistency to establish a consistent rhythm.
The Vikings are coming out on the other side happily, with Aaron Jones returning to practice this week. Although Brian O’Neill is listed on the injury report with a non-participant designation for the last couple of practices, he might still play, as he played the entire game on Sunday while recovering from a sprained MCL. The same could be said for CJ Ham.
The only other starters still working things out are Andrew Van Ginkel, who we probably won’t see this week other than in street clothes, and JJ McCarthy, who will again be the third-string emergency quarterback. McCarthy’s progress has been more positive than Van Ginkel’s, but both appear to be trending in the right direction.
How Do The Vikings Win
One positive aspect of traveling to the Chargers’ stadium in the past is that it has given the Vikings a homefield advantage over the home team. California Vikings fans descend on the stadium and color it purple with the Skol Chant, which is regularly heard loud and clear during a game.
The Chargers don’t have a great following, as Byron Chamberlain backed up on Paul Allen’s 9 to Noon show on KFAN Wednesday morning. Having a crowd on their side at an away game is always helpful, but it can also be demoralizing to the home team, which is already reeling from the injury bug. It seems a small advantage, but look at the London game, where the Browns were the home team, yet the stands told a different story.
The offense needs to stay consistent and make drives that end in touchdowns, not just rely on several Will Reichard kicks. Will “The Thrill” has been keeping the Vikings in the games with clutch kicks that lessen the pain of missed 6-point opportunities, but it can’t be the plan every week.
Carson Wentz, Jordan Mason, Justin Jefferson, TJ Hockenson, and whoever else hits the field have to get in the endzone. Most of the consistency has to come from Wentz. Last week, he missed so many open and easy throws that he had Vikings fans facepalming more than a Jean-Luc Picard to Will Riker meme. While the offensive line can take some blame, he threw up two interceptions on ill-advised throws.
The most frustrating ones were to Jordan Addison, who was wide open for a potential touchdown in the flats, and another one to CJ Ham. He also made a bad throw to Addison that was down and behind him while he was wide open for a streak down the sidelines. He made the catch, but it was a terrible throw that could have been much more.
He followed that up with a throw into the end zone to a wide-open Hockenson, who had to go Superman to even get his hands on it, but it became an incomplete catch after the review. If Wentz plays that poorly again in the first half of Thursday night’s game, it wouldn’t surprise me to see him get the hook and give Max Brosmer a shot to possibly do no worse.
Defense Is The Biggest Key
The defensive line is where this game really should be decided. The Chargers’ offensive line is so decimated and limping that any of the defensive linemen that hit the field should have an opportunity to have a great night in primetime. Johnathan Greenard and Dallas Turner have the best chance to have great nights, but if the protection focuses on them, then Jalen Redmond, Johnathan Allen, or Javon Hargrave may prosper from it. It will depend somewhat on whether the Chargers adopt a quick passing game to help neutralize the pass rush or if Brian Flores employs a heavier blitz scheme to fluster Herbert.
With the running game not being as much of a threat as it was last week, it may loosen up the entire unit to go full tilt. If the offense can get things in shape and score by a few touchdowns, the defense can pin their ears back a bit more and keep Herbert uneasy in the pocket.
The other reason I emphasize the defense being the catalyst is so that Wentz has pressure taken off him early, allowing him to settle down, and the offense can utilize the running game to its advantage. Playing from behind puts the ball and Wentz into positions that haven’t fared well for the team.
I’m not saying it will heal all wounds and he’ll be perfect, but the less the ball is in the air or in his hands for too long, the better off the team will be, and the fans will feel.
The Chargers, like the Eagles, are in a spiral at the moment by barely eking out a win against the hapless Dolphins after losing to the Commanders and Giants and then getting whooped on by the Colts last weekend.
The Vikings need to take advantage of this and at least maintain their pattern of winning one week and losing the next if they’re going to get a winning streak going. It has to start Thursday night or possibly not at all.
You must be logged in to post a comment.