8:20 PM EST, FOX – Line: Vikings -16, Over/Under: 42
Familiar faces reunite as two teams headed in very different directions clash as the struggling Washington Redskins battle the high-powered Minnesota Vikings, from U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Nearly at the midpoint of the season and it’s become quite clear that it can’t end faster for the Redskins (1-6, 4th in NFC East), who are off to their worst start since 1998, in which they lost each of their first seven outings under Norv Turner. At this point, Washington appears headed for a rather significant rebuild, having already fired their Head Coach, Jay Gruden, following an 0-5 start in which his side were outscored 73-151, or in other words, by an average margin of 15.6 Points. Replacing him on an interim basis is Assistant Head Coach and Offensive Line Coach, Bill Callahan, who hasn’t seen much improvement in his two games in charge, with a narrow 17-16 victory over the winless Miami Dolphins hardly qualifying as a confidence-builder. When we last saw this team, they were shutout at home by the unbeaten San Francisco 49ers, in an affair that was contested during a proverbial monsoon. With the weather clearly hindering both sides, the hosts were absolutely dreadful in possession of the football, mustering a miserable 154 Total Yards on Ten First Downs, including Seventy-Seven Yards on 9-of-12 Passing from veteran Quarterback, Case Keenum (66.3%, 1,213 YDS, 6.13 NY/A, 9 TD, 4 INT, 42.8 QBR), who was reinstated as the team’s Starter in the aforementioned victory over the Dolphins. It was clear that Keenum & Co. weren’t going to be able to get much of anything going on the rain-soaked grass of FedEx Field, with Callahan implementing a far more conservative Gameplan to battle the conditions. With that said, it would difficult seeing this game playing out differently even if it was played under optimal conditions, for the Offense has been a proverbial train-wreck in 2019, lacking an identity altogether. Through seven games, Washington has averaged 12.9 Points per Game (30th Overall) on 290.7 Total Yards (29th Overall), including 206.0 Yards through the air (31st Overall) on 5.47 Net Yards per Attempt (29th Overall), and another 84.7 Yards on the ground (24th Overall) on 4.0 Yards per Carry (17th Overall), while converting just 24.7% on Third Down (31st Overall), and scoring a Touchdown on 46.2% of their trips into the Red Zone (27th Overall). On his fourth team in four years, Keenum has hardly been the answer at Quarterback, with the Coaching Staff reluctant to hand the starting job permanently over to Dwayne Haskins (52.9%, 107 YDS, 4.53 NY/A, 0 TD, 3 INT, 26.1 QBR), the lauded local product whom they drafted No. 15 Overall. Callahan and Gruden before him have maintained that the Rookie isn’t ready at this stage, with his only action coming in an embarrassing 3-24 loss at the New York Giants, in which the young Quarterback completed just 9-of-17 Attempts for 107 Yards and Three Interceptions. With all that said, it’s hard to imagine anyone really succeeding given the circumstances in the nation’s capital, with an Offensive Line beset by the prolonged absence of Pro-Bowl Left Tackle, Trent Williams, and an overall lack of weapons. Ironically, the team they face tonight, the Vikings, features their last Quarterback to truly flourish within their franchise, Kirk Cousins (more on him in a bit). Much has been made of the consistent lack of direction from one of the most derided organizations in the league, with their Owner, Dan Snyder, and Team President, Bruce Allen, drawing the brunt of the criticism. With little to play for moving forward, it would behoove this team to play as many of the younger players as possible, for there are some promising talents to be found on their roster. Case in point: Haskins’ Ohio State teammate, Terry McLaurin (24 REC, 419 YDS, 17.5 Y/R, 5 TD) was selected in the Third Round of the 2019 Draft, and has been arguably their most notable contributor, reeling in Twenty-Four Receptions for 419 Yards and Five Touchdowns, setting a league record for Touchdowns by a Rookie Receiver through his first five games. A similar approach should be taken on Defense as well, where the Redskins haven’t been much better, allowing 25.1 Points per Game (21st Overall) on 374.4 Total Yards (21st Overall). They’ve been particularly poor against the run, with opponents churning out 134.4 Yards against them (27th Overall), which has led to a dismal showing on Third Down, where they’ve yielded success on 49.5% of occasions (30th Overall).
Meanwhile, the Vikings (5-2, 2nd in NFC North) are absolutely trending upward, though they certainly had to deal with their own problems for a good bit. Following a listless 6-16 defeat at the Chicago Bears three weeks ago, it was open season on Minnesota’s Quarterback, Kirk Cousins (69.8%, 1,711 YDS, 8.04 NY/A, 13 TD, 3 INT, 61.4 QBR), who drew a wealth of public criticism from his own Receiving Corps, with Pro-Bowler, Adam Thielen (27 REC, 391 YDS, 14.5 Y/R, 6 TD) lamenting his reluctance to throw the football downfield, while his teammate, Stefon Diggs (30 REC, 562 YDS, 18.7 Y/R, 4 TD) outright refused to come to practice because he was so disgusted with the situation. Of course, this prompted the news cycle to kick into overdrive, with teams calling in regards to a potential trade for Diggs, while Cousins was left to pick up the pieces. Ladies and gentlemen, this is why sports is so great, for redemption is always one play away… Indeed it’s been smooth sailing for Mike Zimmer’s charges, particularly the triumvirate of Cousins, Thielen, and Diggs, who have collectively exploded over the past three games, with the Vikings outscoring their opponents 108-60, or in other words by a margin of 16.0 Points per Game. Cousins, during that period of time has been on fire, completing 75.6% of his Passes for an average of 325.3 Yards per Game on a much-improved 10.45 Net Yards per Attempt, with Ten Touchdowns in comparison to One Interception, with the aforementioned tandem of Wideouts on the receiving end of all but three of those scores. It really has been a stark turn for Minnesota, who appear to have really found their stride under Offensive Coordinator, Kevin Stefanski, who was retained following his promotion to Interim Coordinator late last season. In 2018, this unit’s biggest issue was that they lacked any clear identity, exhibiting very little balance from week to week. Stefanski immediately implemented a more balanced approach upon his elevation, though it was perhaps a case of too little, too late to make a difference last year. Indeed, his troops were slow to show positive results in 2019 too, averaging 21.0 Points on 324.3 Total Yards, including 169.0 Passing Yards and 155.3 Rushing Yards through the first four games. However, over the last three outings (all victories), the Offense has posted averages of 36.0 Points on a whopping 480.0 Total Yards, including 313.7 Passing Yards and 166.3 Rushing Yards. When we last saw them, triumphed in a thrilling 42-30 shootout with NFC North rival, the Detroit Lions, scoring a Touchdown on six out of eight drives at one point. Cousins was fantastic, completing an efficient 24-of-34 Passes for 337 Yards, with Four Touchdowns to four different Receivers, led by Diggs, who hauled in 7 Passes on Eight Targets for 142 Yards. It’s really rather remarkable that this team has managed to be so productive in the Passing Game without sacrificing anything on the ground, where Dalvin Cook (133 CAR, 725 YDS, 5.5 Y/C, 8 TD) has thrown his hat into the conversation for MVP. After his first two seasons were slowed by injuries, the Tailback has absolutely exploded in 2019, leading the league in Rushing Yards (725), Rushing Touchdowns (8), Rushing Yards per Game (103.6), and Yards from Scrimmage (945). The issues along the interior of the Offensive Line that plagued them last season have apparently been corrected, which when coupled with a healthy Cook, has translated to one of the most feared attacks in the NFL today. And with that said, it all comes back to Cousins, who after signing an unprecedented fully-guaranteed contract in Free Agency last season following his acrimonious split with the Redskins, is seeing the field with a clarity that he hasn’t exhibited before; his Touchdown Percentage (6.9%), Yards per Attempt (9.1), and Passer Rating (114.3) currently lead the NFL, with each of those figures representing career-highs. We have a feeling that he’s got something up his sleeve in lieu of this matchup with his former employers…