Friday Mailbag: Answers and options

There are four games left and Vikings fans want to know what's next

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By Matthew Coller

Happy Friday, everyone. Well, another football game is upon us. Let’s take a look at what’s on your minds…

Drew…. Is KOC’s offense behind the times?

It’s funny because last year it looked ahead of the times. The whole NFL is trying to stop deep passes and explosive plays and the Vikings led the league in those categories. He was the guy who cracked the code to defeat the 2-deep coverages that Mel Kiper Jr. wanted to ban.

I can’t imagine what that room has been like from week to week as the staff has tried to come up with gameplans for McCarthy and Wentz. There seems to be an idea that KOC has been inflexible about his system and he’s forced McCarthy to try to do all the same things that Sam Darnold did and… I just don’t see that on the tape.

Having checks and motions at the line of scrimmage is just typical NFL stuff. I see criticisms of too many downfield passes but McCarthy’s PFF grade when throwing between 10-19 yards is 76.0 and his short passing (0-9 yards) is 48.3. Short stuff takes timing, which has been a big issue.

They could definitely do more stuff behind the line of scrimmage. He’s 19th in percentage of passes behind LOS and some pretty good QBs are at the top (Mahomes, Allen, Goff, Mayfield, Rodgers). But it’s hard to find too many other ways they could have chopped this stuff down to make it work for the QB.

What I think about this offense is that it needs certain things to work. It needs very good pass protection, a quarterback who’s able to throw into spots with anticipation and someone who is going to be able to throw as the pocket gets muddy. If Matthew Stafford is their QB this year, they might be 10-3.

I don’t think there is a current system that would allow McCarthy, with his decision-making and pocket issues, to have performed really well. We could say Shanahan but his offenses ranked 23rd in 2013, 27th in 2014, 21st in 2015, 20th in 2017, 21st in 2018, 21st in 2020…. what did those years have in common? Poor QB play.

It reminds me of a question that was presented to me early in my career when I was covering EJ Manuel. Someone asked what percentage was coach Doug Marrone’s fault after some writer blamed Marrone’s offense for everything. I said maybe 5-10%. My co-host at the time said 50%. Manuel probably started 4 games the rest of his career after that. It probably wasn’t 50% but people really wanted it to be 50% because then the answer could be clearly just changing the scheme/coach.

Ben…Is throwing screens to Van Ginkel side is like running at Linval Joseph in 2017??

It’s become comedy. For every INT, he has five more deflections or near misses. I don’t understand it. AVG is one of the most unique and fascinating players I’ve ever been around.

Matt…I know at this point this seems like a completely unrealistic option, but Joe Burrow’s recent interview was extremely revealing on his unhappiness in his current situation. Is there any realistic world where the Vikings could pursue a trade for him in the offseason? Maybe a package of first round picks plus Jonathan Greenard or something to try and maximize their roster window next year?

Losing is hell on these guys. Burrow has gone through a lot since he went to the Super Bowl and it’s probably tearing him to shreds that they haven’t been in big games and he’s missed so much time due to injury. I can’t imagine a scenario where they’d trade him this offseason but he could pull a Carson Palmer and just say that he’s not going to play there anymore.

The Vikings absolutely are making that phone call. It probably begins with three first-round picks and McCarthy…. maybe more.

There will be 10 teams to compete against in that negotiation, at least. Though if he says he’ll either play for the Vikings or retire — which isn’t the most insane thing ever considering Jefferson is here — then they have to make it happen no matter what.

Sean M… There has been a lot of talk in the fan base about a Mac Jones trade for a QB option next year. What if instead of trading draft capital for Jones we sign Kenny Pickett? He is a FA since his 5th year option was declined. In my opinion they both have the same likelihood of success in KOC’s system and Pickett comes without losing a needed pick. Plus Jones was terrible in Jax and NE prior to this year and it seems stupid to trade a pick for a regression candidate. Maybe Jordan Addison can turn Pickett into a star again like he did when they were both at Pitt (i know highly unlikely)?

As a Mac Jones buyer, I’ve been walking around with my head held a little higher this year. I do think Mac could be like Kirk lite in this system. He has the capability to throw with anticipation but doesn’t have the arm strength to make crazy throws like Darnold, so he’d probably rely on someone like Hockenson a lot. I wouldn’t call him a “regression candidate” as much as someone whose success/failure is dictated by the surroundings and there’s a very clear ceiling there.

Pickett also has a clear ceiling only he can’t make all the throws. He is 100% a backup QB in the NFL. I see him as being much less talented than Mac Jones. A great backup, but only a backup. I’d be down with him as QB2 and someone who could slightly push McCarthy in camp, he’s fine. Nothing more.

I’d rather them go with nobody as competition for McCarthy than options that won’t be able to hang with the rest of the NFC North.

Eldon… Hey Matthew before the Commanders game nfl.com released an article stating the Vikings would look to bring in a veteran QB to pair with McCarthy and listed several names like Joe Flacco, Case Keenum, Russell Wilson, Jimmy Garoppolo and Carson Wentz. What does that tell us about the mood in the bldg surrounding McCarthy?

One thing that tells you is that the options are pretty dang bad for that type of QB.

I’m not sure about the mood. Earlier in the year, there was a defensiveness in the commentary about McCarthy. Like, hey, give him time. But over the last few weeks, it feels like that has shifted. In Week 14 of your second year as an NFL player, it’s time to put up or shut up. Go make this happen over the last four weeks and prove it. No excuses.

If he can’t do that and Washington ends up as a blip on the radar, then they have to get somebody else who could potentially start. But those names are horrendous. It has to be someone better than that if they are going to be serious about a competition in camp.

CMBoourns… Would you rather we roll with Brandel and Jurgens as a center group or go back into the free agent pool, assuming Kelly retires at the end of this season. Are there any cheap-ish decent options available in free agency?

If Kelly doesn’t return, you gotta aim higher. Having an elite center is a cheat code. What Drew Dalman has done for Chicago has been game changing. What the Vikings O-line looks like with Kelly in there versus anyone else is wildly different. Not that center wasn’t always valuable but with the defenses doing crazy stuff all the time now and running the ball being a great counterpunch, an elite dude can give you a serious advantage.

Tyler Linderbaum is the best free agent. He’s going to get paid big time. He’s the only one on the list who’s worth paying. Smart teams do not let these guys walk.

Jason… My viewing of the Vikings from here on out will be about what to watch for with the future in mind. Outside of JJ’s development, what are the things we should be looking to see develop in building for next season?

I kinda got nothing. Tai Felton? Ty Ingram-Dawkins? Jay Ward?

If you go through the entire roster, is there anybody that we don’t have answers about? We know what all the veterans are. We know that Donovan Jackson can play. We know that Jalen Redmond can play.

I’m only in “what is the future” mode on one player: JJ McCarthy. However, I am in future mode on the final win-loss total. Because finishing the season 9-8 is insanely different than finishing it 5-12 in terms of how that’s going to feel to the folks who make the final decisions on stuff. These games are actually pretty darn big.

Patrick G…You touched on it a little with Alec Lewis yesterday, how screwed is the team next season if they don’t keep Flores in the building? KOC doesn’t come anywhere close to 26 wins the last 3 seasons without his defense

It’s hard to say exactly how screwed they would be because I don’t know who would be replacing him. I know that there’s been talk about Daronte Jones as a defensive coordinator in other buildings. It’s plausible that he could take over and continue with the scheme. He’s been a big part of it, even if he doesn’t get much credit publicly.

The personnel is still going to be very good. If they can keep Eric Wilson and if they want to keep Hargrave, they’ll have the entire front seven back and a lot of work to do on the secondary but that still gives them a chance to be a quality D.

Would it be the same? Definitely not. Flores is 1 of 1. I don’t think it has to be totally devastating though since these guys have been in the system.

Chuck A…Seems like KOC is in a tough spot-the best way to win games the rest of the season is a gameplan like they had vs. Washington, but does that really help develop JJ/show if he’s making progress? But it feels like the team might abandon him if they don’t try to win.

You make a fair point. My concern would be having solid showings versus really truly awful defenses doesn’t really show us much. Like Christian Ponder going 20-for-27 with 270 yards vs. the 2-14 Jaguars to open the 2012 season.

Single games do not tell us very much information about a quarterback and judging anything off the Washington game or games against Dallas and New York seems like pretty faulty logic.

The one argument that I might buy is that using the training-wheels offense could be a decent idea to get the kid some confidence. Get him into a bit of a groove throwing the football and then ramp things up and see how it goes against Detroit and Green Bay.

That’s the best they can really do at this point.

JeffInSeattle…McCarthy’s performance last week was very good. However, with the Washington defense being epically bad, I’m not sure how much weight to put on it. Was it more like a joint practice or a pre-season game than a real, live NFL game? I’m still in “show me” mode with him.

It was like a preseason game. Very little pressure. Very basic coverages. Guys on the field who shouldn’t be playing in real games. Quiet stadium. Getting the lead immediately put him in an extremely favorable situation.

The best place to stand coming off that game is: That was progress. It wasn’t proof of anything.

Pickle Enjoyer… Is there any possible way that you can make an episode that’s just your best rants? The loss to the winless Lions and when Darnold beat Kirk last year come to mind as my favorites, with the mini-rant about not screwing up tanking after Kirk tearing his Achilles (which they did screw up! Huzzah!) coming in a close third.

You have to go back a ways for my top rant. In 2018 after the Vikings lost in the final week of the season and Kirk went to the podium and said that they’d be better next year with more “code words,” I completely lost it. They played the rant on DC radio a bunch of times.

I’m glad you enjoy the rants. I’m sure not everybody inside TCO Performance Center shares that opinion. But I don’t ever do it for attention or to sound like a raving lunatic, it’s entirely just that it takes passion to do this and sometimes that turns up to 11.

I also feel like the fans deserve a winner. If they aren’t getting that, then we can’t just pat everybody on the head and say it’s OK. The tickets cost too much. The jerseys cost too much. The fans put way too much time and heart into this team to make excuses for them.

Arin J…Matt, isn’t the Justin Jefferson problem more of a KOC issue. Defenses shade him, McCarthy is not ready to later passes. He will need to learn that in the off season? Along with fundamentals? So is it too simple to say KOC needs design different ways to get Justin the ball. The normal ones will not work until next year?