Vikings Running Game Would Make Mike Zimmer Cringe
There was a time when the Minnesota Vikings lived and died by the run. Mike Zimmer was the head coach, and he parlayed Adrian Peterson into Dalvin Cook. It was a ground-and-pound style that often allowed more prolific offenses to outgun Minnesota.
The Minnesota Vikings struggled to run the ball again on Thursday night, and Kevin O’Connell never leaned into the running game at all.
When Kevin O’Connell took over, the belief was that the Vikings were getting a progressive-thinking head coach who could push the ball down the field. He’s a former quarterback and has proven adept at developing the position.
Vikings’ Run Game Isn’t Doing the Thing
The problem, at least this season, appears as though O’Connell has jumped the shark. Minnesota invested substantial money this offseason into the offensive line. Of course, that hasn’t gone as planned, with many in the group both injured and ineffective. However, the only aspect of the beefed-up position that matters to O’Connell seems to be in the throwing game.
Carson Wentz has played in place of J.J. McCarthy for the past five weeks. Despite being a journeyman backup and having a well-understood track record in the league, it has been a pass-heavy offense from the get-go.
On Thursday night against the Los Angeles Chargers, Minnesota ran the ball a whopping 11 times. They generated just 34 yards on the ground, and Zavier Scott led the team with 16 yards on two carries. Despite getting veteran Aaron Jones back and having quality trade acquisition Jordan Mason as a full go, Minnesota never attempted to get anything going.
The game script made things worse as the Vikings failed to move the ball. O’Connell must have been afraid of getting behind the sticks, but he wasn’t worried about Wentz failing to convert passes or taking sacks to generate the same result. Ultimately, it was a house of horrors —one we have seen too often this year.
Minnesota has the seventh-lowest rush yards per game this season, and the teams ahead of them are all bad. A balanced offense doesn’t have to lean on the run, but the Vikings have failed to do anything on the ground while struggling to compete through the air as well. O’Connell’s rigidity in play-calling and situational understanding has been problematic, and Minnesota is now 3-4.
If things don’t get fixed soon, this season is going in the tank quickly.
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