After losing to the Detroit Lions for the second time, the Minnesota Vikings head into the playoffs to play the only other team that has beaten them this season. If Minnesota is going to take revenge on the Los Angeles Rams, changes will need to be made from what happened in Week 8 of the regular season.
Where Vikings Have to Be Better vs. Rams This Time
Outside of Sam Darnold’s missed facemask, several key factors in the game swung the game in the Rams’ favor. We look at where the Vikings need to improve against the Rams the second time around and possible ways to achieve that.
Stop Puka Nacua
He might not have scored any touchdowns, but Puka Nacua’s 106 yards from just seven catches was a major factor in the Rams winning the game. Vikings defensive coordinator admitted this week that they were surprised that Nacua was activated from IR, played in the Week 8 meeting, and had to do some last-minute scrambling to prepare for him.
There is no such excuse this time, and the Vikings must plan to stop him. He was particularly effective on short, quick passes from Matthew Stafford that beat the blitz and gave him a chance to show his run-after-the-catch ability. He forced several missed tackles, which the Vikings’ defense needs to do better this time. The Rams are far from a one-man offense, but Flores needs to make stopping Nacua a top priority.
Cut Out Penalties
The more penalties you commit, the harder it is to win games. It is that simple. On offense, they are drive killers; on defense, they are demoralizing. In the first meeting, the Vikings committed penalties with particularly bad timing. Twice on the Rams’ second touchdown drive, Minnesota thought they were getting off the field on third down, only to be thwarted by a penalty flag. On the other side of the ball, pre-snap penalties have been frustrating this season.
After the back-to-back opening TD drives, the Vikings started their third drive with back-to-back pre-snap penalties. That’s not a recipe for success, particularly in the playoffs when facing the league’s strongest teams.
Run the Ball Better/More
After some good early runs on the opening drive from Aaron Jones, the Vikings lead back ended up with just 19 carries for 58 yards. No other Vikings back touched the ball, with the recently acquired Cam Akers not involved in the offense for the first time since being traded from the Texans until the following week. The former Rams second-round pick should see some involvement in this game and give the Vikings a chance to run the ball more often and effectively than they did in Week 8.
However, Kevin O’Connell often seems to forget about his run game. The Vikings’ offense will always be better when it balances the pass and the run, something O’Connell will need to get right in this game. An effective run game will also help the Vikings win the time of possession battle, which is usually key to which team wins the game. The Rams won it comfortably in Week 6, 33:37 to 26:23.
More Jordan Addison
In the first meeting, Jordan Addison had a season-low of three targets, of which he caught two for 22 yards. That was also a season-low until last week’s game against the Lions, where Addison caught just 1 of 6 targets for 0 yards as Darnold and the Vikings offense fell apart. Three targets aren’t anywhere near enough for someone of Addison’s ability, and with T.J. Hockenson (who missed the first game) available this time, he should help open the offense.
After that game, the rapport between Darnold and Addison seemed to grow. They scored eight touchdowns in the next ten outings and had a couple of big 100+ yard games.
