Matthew, your Gamer reflected the mood of the team in the game, and not surprisingly, it reflects the mood of the fans who follow the team. Robert Smith, doing color, said near the end of the first half that the Vikings looked unfocused throughout the first half. He was being kind. But that’s on the players and it is really on the coaching staff (Zimmer) to have your troops ready to play. Both groups failed today, just like Week 1.
There is no excuse for early-game safeties two weeks in a row, and there is no excuse for Cousins throwing up a jump ball to Adam T. and two Colts’ defenders midway through the game. It was an unprofessional decision, a desperate decision, an “If we die, we die” decision.
The Vikings need way better quarterbacking to be competitive this year. We know we’re going to get Bad Kirk from time to time, but he’s an egg we can’t unscramble, and we’re stuck with who he is: A quarterback who bangs around between below average and above average. Irv Smith Jr. had a choppy day. So did Bisi. I’m in favor of moving Justin Jefferson into the No. 2 receiver position. He’s the future and let’s see what the kid can do. Three targets today and three completions. He can help the team more as the No. 2 receiver right now.
There was small improvement in TOP, but not much. I think the offense finished with 21 minutes and change in possession. They have got to be better at piling up first downs throughout the game, and not in the first quarter. The defense needs a lot of help and overall, I thought the defense played better today than last week, but they have to get off the field and somehow, they must firm up the run defense. Green Bay had 156 rushing yards last week, Indy had 151 yards today. The Vikings aren’t going to win many games by allowing teams to run on you when they want to.
As Denny Green told his Vikings, “The Calvary ain’t coming.” These Vikings are going to have to play better with what they have. If this season gets away from them in the first four games, those last 12 games will be as exciting as watching two old men ice fish. And all we fans will have is endless speculation about draft position. That’s not a good look.
To be competitive, ALL the pieces had to fit together, and that requires total focus by the coaches, players and some help from Lady Luck. It's not happening. The young, talented back end needs a voracious pass rush to help/give them time to learn the intricacies of the NFL. Pierce and Hunter out... mediocre interior DL, it's not going to happen. The interior OL is still a big problem. Cousins is Cousins. He's not going to perform in a pinch. I recall a year or two ago Zimm quipped something to the effect he wished Cousins would play more like sandlot or high school football. I took that to mean he needs to be more of a gunslinger when things collapse. I'm sad to say, that's not Cousins. We'll be lucky to hit .500 ball this year. BTW, Matt, I loved listening to a pissed off Courtney Cronin!!!!
I listened to Courtney after my tirade above. I am very happy Matthew is still doing this and providing a podcast that is thoroughly entertaining and professional. That said, I love Courtney's commentary!! Not only is she remarkably entertaining ticked off SHE'S SPOT ON ACCURATE! Matt and Courtney make an excellent team. Enjoyed your post as well :)
So Cousins was having one of his bad games, how about trying to get him going with some easy screen passes!!! We were like the best screen team in the league last year. Does Kubiak hate screens or something? Offense lost that game. Defense was slightly better than last week had some stops and showed some improvement at least.
I really didn’t think the defense was that bad given the circumstances. They had some stops unlike last week & time and time again the offense didn’t step up. This had to be Cousins worst game as a pro.
Before I get into the tirade, I want to say Spielman and Zimmer need to apologize to the Wilf's for the pathetic showing… Wilf's extended both of them and I’m positive they were not expecting this… Back to the tirade, I expected the Colts to hand us a significant defeat but I could not believe how poor we played… Where the heck was Dalvin Cook? Cousins was truly terrible. The statements about receivers not open simply isn’t true. Jefferson, Johnson and Smith were open much more than people are admitting. Cousins simply was late to discover when they came open and as the commentators stated, he needed to throw someone open. He’s proven he won’t throw someone open unless they are Diggs and Theilen. Speaking of Theilen, he’s a great receiver but what the heck were you throwing the ball in his direction when he was double and triple teamed? When he got hit for the safety it looked like he was looking to Theilen again and Jefferson was wide open.
I really don’t want to hear about Diggs. The real issues was bankrolling Cousins to the point that the rest of the team is hamstrung. To me Diggs biggest issue was specifically Cousins missing him when he was open over and over. I don’t think the Vikings had a choice but trade a high caliber player and force Rob to work a miracle to try to manage the salary cap in a proactive way after giving Cousins that ridiculous contract. I mean who didn’t know we were going to lose half of our secondary and need replacements, have to figure out what to do with Harris, find replacements in the Offensive line? That ALL cost money. It sounds radical but we should have either cleared out for a rebuild or admitted we were going to be a .500 or worse team even with good coaching, with an eye on 2021. We should have started with not extending Cousins, he’s never been worth it despite the crap time statistics. We should have cleared cap space by moving Rudolph, releasing Rief, find a reasonable trade for Harris, restructure Bar’s contract, flushed those almost but not quite NFL player backups and begin again.
I do think, as I’ve stated in earlier posts, that we have a personnel issue of substantial proportion. Some of it COVID, some is injury, some is rookies but the biggest issue is a roster filled with less than mediocre players and inadequate backups that are now our only resource to field 53… what’s worse is that those mediocre and inadequate players make up the majority of our D and O lines; my comment does not include O’Neil, Bradbury, Ngakoue, and Hunter whose injured. I know that the lack of OTAs and training camp have an influence but I don’t know how the coaches are going to be able to repair this before the by. Even if they achieve a significant improvement… you are left with Cousins, who is smiling all the way to the bank. I think the guy is a legend in his own mind and the rest of the team is just that... the rest of the team. He's bound to the money. I don't see the same dedication to the team.
It is totally aggravating to know that I’m stuck with watching Cousins for the next 2 or 3 years. I love the Vikings but the relationship is not easy.
Curt I can’t respond to every point here because it would take a long time hah but I just want to say I appreciate you and the extra entertainment value you brought with this to everyone who read it
You're welcome! I felt much better afterward. Then I listened to the podcast and about spit my Dr. Pepper across the monitor when Courtney went off! That girl has spunk and she's spot on accurate. I thought you two made a good team from the first time you worked together and its even more true today. Thanks for the Vikings coverage Matt. Your podcasts and written work are the two places I go first for Vikings coverage.
Curt: This last sentence of your “tirade”: A more accurate description of what it means to be a Vikings fan cannot be found. Well said, and keep your tirades coming. They are excellent.
And the coaches and the front office. Why haven't the Vikings done anything to replace Pierce? There are several interior lineman on the street right now who are better than Stephen and Johnson.
I have been referring to him for 2 years now as KFC... Kirk F... Cousins.
Don't let the stats fool you, this guy is a loser. Not in the sense that he is below average QB, but in the sense that, unlike truly elite QBs who get paid what he does, he cannot do anything to lift the team up when things are going badly. In fact, more often than not, when things are going badly KFC's play makes things even worse.
I think Spielman has done a good job overall, but with some serious asterisks.
1. Offensive line
2. KFC
Given how bad KFC is playing now, and given the fact that we are saddled with this loser for 2 more years AND are paying him a king's ransom, Spielman needs to be fired.
Since everyone with eyeballs could see that KFC stumbles in the sam situations every time (i.e., when a defense has a good pass rush), I have no idea why this wasn't a prove it year rather than a big fat extension year for KFC. I just don't get it, he definitely has not proven himself a winner.
Couple that with the fact that he is the most gutless QB I have ever seen, and it is just impossible to like this guy.
I hate to say it, but I may bail on the Vikings next year if they don't cut him. Even if it costs us $31M or $41M of dead cap, I'm for getting rid of this loser. And I am a season ticket holder, so seriously committed to the Vikings (but not KFC).
Uggh, just when you thought 2020 couldn't get worse... thank you, KFC!
Look I watched Jeff Driskel throw for 250 vs pburg today, FuMinchew throw for 330ish vs Tennessee etc..Cousins until the last meaningless drive could’ve been anyone of the fans in attendance that won a chance to play qb in the nfl. It was awful. He made me miss CP7. They should start Stanley and move on
BarryB: I heard Judd Zulgad say yesterday that Cousins would count $31.5 in dead money if the Vikings said good-bye to him after June 1, 2021. With performances like Sunday’s, it’s almost worth it.
I agree Rog and the thing is Cousin's is like that ex-girlfriend that you know is just bad news for you and you swear that "this time it's over" only to have her do something to pull you back in. The reality is that Cousins just doesn't have "it" and on a team that is in a type of rebuild he is not the right person for the job. I would like to see a situation similar to what happened with Brock Osweiler where we may be able to be creative in order to recoup some money in order to unload him. Even if he stays and you draft his replacement next year he could start until that person is ready.
Honestly all I want to hear on one of the podcasts is how Garett Bradburry has been looking. Also in my opinion this loss was more on cousins than the defense. He kept putting the defense in terrible situations.
Yikes. They need to categorically improve tremendously just to become marginally competitive.
Matthew, your Gamer reflected the mood of the team in the game, and not surprisingly, it reflects the mood of the fans who follow the team. Robert Smith, doing color, said near the end of the first half that the Vikings looked unfocused throughout the first half. He was being kind. But that’s on the players and it is really on the coaching staff (Zimmer) to have your troops ready to play. Both groups failed today, just like Week 1.
There is no excuse for early-game safeties two weeks in a row, and there is no excuse for Cousins throwing up a jump ball to Adam T. and two Colts’ defenders midway through the game. It was an unprofessional decision, a desperate decision, an “If we die, we die” decision.
The Vikings need way better quarterbacking to be competitive this year. We know we’re going to get Bad Kirk from time to time, but he’s an egg we can’t unscramble, and we’re stuck with who he is: A quarterback who bangs around between below average and above average. Irv Smith Jr. had a choppy day. So did Bisi. I’m in favor of moving Justin Jefferson into the No. 2 receiver position. He’s the future and let’s see what the kid can do. Three targets today and three completions. He can help the team more as the No. 2 receiver right now.
There was small improvement in TOP, but not much. I think the offense finished with 21 minutes and change in possession. They have got to be better at piling up first downs throughout the game, and not in the first quarter. The defense needs a lot of help and overall, I thought the defense played better today than last week, but they have to get off the field and somehow, they must firm up the run defense. Green Bay had 156 rushing yards last week, Indy had 151 yards today. The Vikings aren’t going to win many games by allowing teams to run on you when they want to.
As Denny Green told his Vikings, “The Calvary ain’t coming.” These Vikings are going to have to play better with what they have. If this season gets away from them in the first four games, those last 12 games will be as exciting as watching two old men ice fish. And all we fans will have is endless speculation about draft position. That’s not a good look.
To be competitive, ALL the pieces had to fit together, and that requires total focus by the coaches, players and some help from Lady Luck. It's not happening. The young, talented back end needs a voracious pass rush to help/give them time to learn the intricacies of the NFL. Pierce and Hunter out... mediocre interior DL, it's not going to happen. The interior OL is still a big problem. Cousins is Cousins. He's not going to perform in a pinch. I recall a year or two ago Zimm quipped something to the effect he wished Cousins would play more like sandlot or high school football. I took that to mean he needs to be more of a gunslinger when things collapse. I'm sad to say, that's not Cousins. We'll be lucky to hit .500 ball this year. BTW, Matt, I loved listening to a pissed off Courtney Cronin!!!!
I listened to Courtney after my tirade above. I am very happy Matthew is still doing this and providing a podcast that is thoroughly entertaining and professional. That said, I love Courtney's commentary!! Not only is she remarkably entertaining ticked off SHE'S SPOT ON ACCURATE! Matt and Courtney make an excellent team. Enjoyed your post as well :)
So Cousins was having one of his bad games, how about trying to get him going with some easy screen passes!!! We were like the best screen team in the league last year. Does Kubiak hate screens or something? Offense lost that game. Defense was slightly better than last week had some stops and showed some improvement at least.
When do we start draft sim season?
I really didn’t think the defense was that bad given the circumstances. They had some stops unlike last week & time and time again the offense didn’t step up. This had to be Cousins worst game as a pro.
Before I get into the tirade, I want to say Spielman and Zimmer need to apologize to the Wilf's for the pathetic showing… Wilf's extended both of them and I’m positive they were not expecting this… Back to the tirade, I expected the Colts to hand us a significant defeat but I could not believe how poor we played… Where the heck was Dalvin Cook? Cousins was truly terrible. The statements about receivers not open simply isn’t true. Jefferson, Johnson and Smith were open much more than people are admitting. Cousins simply was late to discover when they came open and as the commentators stated, he needed to throw someone open. He’s proven he won’t throw someone open unless they are Diggs and Theilen. Speaking of Theilen, he’s a great receiver but what the heck were you throwing the ball in his direction when he was double and triple teamed? When he got hit for the safety it looked like he was looking to Theilen again and Jefferson was wide open.
I really don’t want to hear about Diggs. The real issues was bankrolling Cousins to the point that the rest of the team is hamstrung. To me Diggs biggest issue was specifically Cousins missing him when he was open over and over. I don’t think the Vikings had a choice but trade a high caliber player and force Rob to work a miracle to try to manage the salary cap in a proactive way after giving Cousins that ridiculous contract. I mean who didn’t know we were going to lose half of our secondary and need replacements, have to figure out what to do with Harris, find replacements in the Offensive line? That ALL cost money. It sounds radical but we should have either cleared out for a rebuild or admitted we were going to be a .500 or worse team even with good coaching, with an eye on 2021. We should have started with not extending Cousins, he’s never been worth it despite the crap time statistics. We should have cleared cap space by moving Rudolph, releasing Rief, find a reasonable trade for Harris, restructure Bar’s contract, flushed those almost but not quite NFL player backups and begin again.
I do think, as I’ve stated in earlier posts, that we have a personnel issue of substantial proportion. Some of it COVID, some is injury, some is rookies but the biggest issue is a roster filled with less than mediocre players and inadequate backups that are now our only resource to field 53… what’s worse is that those mediocre and inadequate players make up the majority of our D and O lines; my comment does not include O’Neil, Bradbury, Ngakoue, and Hunter whose injured. I know that the lack of OTAs and training camp have an influence but I don’t know how the coaches are going to be able to repair this before the by. Even if they achieve a significant improvement… you are left with Cousins, who is smiling all the way to the bank. I think the guy is a legend in his own mind and the rest of the team is just that... the rest of the team. He's bound to the money. I don't see the same dedication to the team.
It is totally aggravating to know that I’m stuck with watching Cousins for the next 2 or 3 years. I love the Vikings but the relationship is not easy.
Curt I can’t respond to every point here because it would take a long time hah but I just want to say I appreciate you and the extra entertainment value you brought with this to everyone who read it
You're welcome! I felt much better afterward. Then I listened to the podcast and about spit my Dr. Pepper across the monitor when Courtney went off! That girl has spunk and she's spot on accurate. I thought you two made a good team from the first time you worked together and its even more true today. Thanks for the Vikings coverage Matt. Your podcasts and written work are the two places I go first for Vikings coverage.
Curt: This last sentence of your “tirade”: A more accurate description of what it means to be a Vikings fan cannot be found. Well said, and keep your tirades coming. They are excellent.
I appreciate your comments and your pain Rog :) I know I'm certainly not alone sir :)
A total failure by the offense, defense, and special teams.
And the coaches and the front office. Why haven't the Vikings done anything to replace Pierce? There are several interior lineman on the street right now who are better than Stephen and Johnson.
I have been referring to him for 2 years now as KFC... Kirk F... Cousins.
Don't let the stats fool you, this guy is a loser. Not in the sense that he is below average QB, but in the sense that, unlike truly elite QBs who get paid what he does, he cannot do anything to lift the team up when things are going badly. In fact, more often than not, when things are going badly KFC's play makes things even worse.
I think Spielman has done a good job overall, but with some serious asterisks.
1. Offensive line
2. KFC
Given how bad KFC is playing now, and given the fact that we are saddled with this loser for 2 more years AND are paying him a king's ransom, Spielman needs to be fired.
Since everyone with eyeballs could see that KFC stumbles in the sam situations every time (i.e., when a defense has a good pass rush), I have no idea why this wasn't a prove it year rather than a big fat extension year for KFC. I just don't get it, he definitely has not proven himself a winner.
Couple that with the fact that he is the most gutless QB I have ever seen, and it is just impossible to like this guy.
I hate to say it, but I may bail on the Vikings next year if they don't cut him. Even if it costs us $31M or $41M of dead cap, I'm for getting rid of this loser. And I am a season ticket holder, so seriously committed to the Vikings (but not KFC).
Uggh, just when you thought 2020 couldn't get worse... thank you, KFC!
Add Justin Herbert to the list. Enough is enough
Look I watched Jeff Driskel throw for 250 vs pburg today, FuMinchew throw for 330ish vs Tennessee etc..Cousins until the last meaningless drive could’ve been anyone of the fans in attendance that won a chance to play qb in the nfl. It was awful. He made me miss CP7. They should start Stanley and move on
BarryB: I heard Judd Zulgad say yesterday that Cousins would count $31.5 in dead money if the Vikings said good-bye to him after June 1, 2021. With performances like Sunday’s, it’s almost worth it.
I agree Rog and the thing is Cousin's is like that ex-girlfriend that you know is just bad news for you and you swear that "this time it's over" only to have her do something to pull you back in. The reality is that Cousins just doesn't have "it" and on a team that is in a type of rebuild he is not the right person for the job. I would like to see a situation similar to what happened with Brock Osweiler where we may be able to be creative in order to recoup some money in order to unload him. Even if he stays and you draft his replacement next year he could start until that person is ready.
Honestly all I want to hear on one of the podcasts is how Garett Bradburry has been looking. Also in my opinion this loss was more on cousins than the defense. He kept putting the defense in terrible situations.
Haha Bradbury has at least been serviceable but his guards next to him have been awful