Turnovers and Penalties Lead to a Third Vikings Home Loss
Vikings Territory Breakdown
The Minnesota Vikings suffered their third loss at U.S. Bank Stadium this season (by a score of 27-19 to the Baltimore Ravens) to go to 4-5 and remain in the basement of the NFC North. The team had a chance to beat the Ravens thanks to a decent game on defense, but they were let down on offense due to turnovers and a record number of false starts.
It will be easy to blame the young signal caller J.J. McCarthy (he threw two interceptions, had accuracy issues and made some poor choices), but the 22-year-old is in his fourth start and there were some signs to be hopeful about. He had some very good throws (his bullet to Jalen Nailor for a score comes to mind) and used his running ability to get out of some jams. But he continues to be a work in progress that will be marred by inconsistency and a steep learning curve in Kevin O’Connell’s offense.
The defense once again played tough enough to win the game (they held the Ravens to just four field goals early (three of them when Baltimore was in the red zone), but thanks to three turnovers, they were on the field too long and couldn’t keep Derrick Henry under wraps late when they were tired.
Some fans and observers have suggested that the head coach’s play calling didn’t help the young passer (going for a long pass while in short yardage situations) and the fellas at the Vikings Territory Breakdown podcast, Joe Oberle, senior writer at vikingsterritory.com and purplePTSD.com and Mark Craig, NFL and Vikings writer for the Star Tribune and startribune.com), would like to discuss that. Tune in and check it out. Skol!
