NFL
By Steve Rogers
The Minnesota Vikings came into this season with some of the highest expectations and loftiest goals in the NFL, after coming off a 14-3 record last year. The Vikings let quarterback Sam Darnold walk out of the building in the offseason. To hand the keys to the offense over to first-round pick and second-year in the league quarterback JJ McCarthy.
There really is no such thing as a seamless transition from one quarterback to the “next” one. Just ask the Green Bay Packers how well it worked out moving on from Hall of Famer Bret Favre to future Hall of Famer Aaron Rodgers. If my memory serves me I believe it was compared to a “messy divorce”. The Vikings managed to avoid most of the bad blood, hurt feelings, and or animosity and hostility of a “messy divorce” from Darnold to McCarthy as far as off the field was concerned.
The struggle has come from the on-field performance. Or more specifically the lack of being able to be on the field to perform. Darnold managed to play all 17 games last year. McCarthy due to a torn meniscus was forced to miss the entire season. Although that was technically the plan all along was for young McCarthy to have a “red shirt” sit, watch, learn, and absorb the speed and skill of the game on the NFL level. As it turned out Darnold played so well that even if he was healthy I don’t think McCarthy would have been able to do anything to surpass Darnold and force head coach Kevin O’Connell to make a switch at the quarterback position last year.
This is what it was always planned out to be McCarthy’s “rookie” season. The Vikings identified major weaknesses on both sides of the line offensively and defensively. They spent this off-season retooling both. They added a new veteran center in Ryan Kelly and his fellow Colts teammate guard Will Fries. Then the Vikings used their first-round pick and acquired Ohio State combo guard Donovan Jackson. The Vikings overhauled the entire interior of the offensive line. On paper, they established one of the more impressive offensive lines in the league. So preseason it was one of their strengths. Here’s the depth chart:
LT Christian Darisaw
LG Donovan Jackson
C Ryan Kelly
RG Will Fries
RT Brian O’Neill
On paper, this is a loaded offensive line. To start the year I would have given this unit a B+. However, these five starters have logged exactly 0 snaps together thus far through the first eight games of the year. Due to injuries there have been 16 different o-line combinations used by the Vikings. That’s an average of two different units per game. They preach there are three C’s to any good o-line. That’s Chemistry Continuity and Consistency. The Vikings have had absolutely none of that. There has been one bright spot here guard Will Fries has played every single game. Overall O-line mid-season grade is a D+. How they have managed to win four games is remarkable and downright miraculous. The good news here is that the guys are finally back and healthy for a second-half surge.
The Vikings have also had to start two different quarterbacks JJ McCarthy and Carson Wentz. Wentz came off his couch to be the Vikings’ backup right before the end of training camp. Wentz came in and in five games did for the most part what you would expect from a backup. He kept the Vikings near .500. Helping them win two games and losing three. McCarthy has played in three NFL games now. He is 2-1 as a starter in the NFL. Both of McCarthy’s wins are on the road in inner division battles. The future looks bright here for McCarthy in Minnesota IF he can stay healthy. As we all know 2/3 is 66%. Which is C- D+ territory. However, factoring in the level of difficulty beating the Lions in Detroit and a little bit of his projected potential I’m giving McCarthy a B grade.
It only took all nine of the first weeks of the regular season but I think we just saw the beginning of the norm for the Minnesota Vikings. With a roster back to full health on all sides of the ball they can make plays on all three phases offense defense and special teams. Overall the Vikings’ first-half grade is a C. They were underwhelming and plagued by injuries to key players. The plus side is that this could be an A-level potential roster that is healthy and starting to show its value now in the back half. This Vikings team is rated as dangerous and unpredictable.
