Minnesota Vikings: 4 Quarters – 2016 Season Preview – Part 2

With Cincinnati, Seattle, San Diego, and Los Angeles looming in the preseason ahead, it is now time for the Minnesota Vikings season breakdown by quarter.

With the regular season less than 50 days away, 43 until the September 8th season opening game, a Super Bowl rematch (without Peyton Manning), the heat is turning up. On Thursday the Minnesota Vikings player will return to Mankato for the opening of training camp.

Phil Loadholt, the 13th player under the age of 30 to retire this season has taken himself out of competition for a roster spot but plenty of roster battles remain to send the Vikings top 52 on the field for week 1. With faith in the coaching staff to select the best 52 for the job, here is the breakdown of how I expect our Minnesota Vikings to fare.

First Quarter

@Titans, vs Packers, @ Panthers, vs Giants

Prediction 3-1

Unlike last seasons opening dud, I’m expecting quite the opposite out of the game against the Titans. As last seasons statistically worst team,  a quick turn about is not usually as easy as fans may think or hope for. If there are a couple of things to look into it’s that the Titans best game of the year was their first game of the season and last season Tennessee’s home record was 1-7.

All of the excitement comes to a head as the Green Bay Packers come to town looking to play home wrecker in a Sunday Night Football showdown to christen US Bank Stadium. I do believe the Green Bay Packers are going to play up to attempt to spoil the Minnesota Vikings opener. But that attempt will be in vain. It will most likely feature many lead changes, but Minnesota will prevail will a score like 31-28 or 35-31.

The hardest words for a Minnesota Vikings fan to say, is to say they feel that their team is the underdog. Every season it’s always fun to track the unbeaten teams in the NFL and I feel like the Vikings unbeaten streak will end at 2. Not a bad way to lose though if it does come to fruition. To play a competitive game and lose to the reigning NFC Champions the Carolina Panthers and the NFL MVP Cam Newton. If the Minnesota Vikings did somehow win it would be a dominant statement but for now this game sets their record at 2-1.

The New York Giants have spent a lot of money in free agency this off-season to try to shore up and re-take the NFC East. The NFC East belongs to the Dallas Cowboys this season, and the Minnesota Vikings are gonna help them out by going 2-0 at US Bank stadium and taking out Manning, Beckham, and the Giants. It will not be a total decimation like last season but clear victory for the Vikings from halftime on.

Second Quarter

vs Texans, @ Eagles, @ Bears, vs Lions

Prediction 4-0

In my opinion Brock Osweiler got his 1 in a million miracle deal that the Houston Texans are going to regret. Why would a team sign a quarterback that another team did not trust to play in the Super Bowl? Not that Sanchez or whoever starts for Denver is going to help them out any more, the Minnesota Vikings are going to have more problems against the J.J. Watt led defense than anything else. If Minnesota can maintain possession of the ball the Vikings will walk out with a win.

Facing potentially the third new starter for an NFL team this year, the Vikings defense will be at full strength and feasting on opponents after resting on their bye week. The Minnesota Vikings at this time should be in true form by this time and shutting teams down like they found out how to do at the end of last season. The Eagles are a stomping team that we need to just take advantage of from the get go and not let up until the replacements come in for the 4th Quarter. It doesn’t matter that it’s in Philly all that matters is that the Minnesota Vikings need to handle business.

Going in to game 7 this matchup against the Bears in Chicago will most likely be a trap game. In my opinion the Chicago Bears wasted a first round draft pick on a player who would still have been available in the 2nd maybe even 3rd round. In previous articles I’ve stated that the Minnesota Vikings seem to find a way to lose in Chicago, but not on this day. Primetime Monday Night, expect a high scoring game, 60+ points combined.

The Detroit Lions get to see the confines of US Bank Stadium for the first of many times and the 2 things I have to say are Skol Vikings and Welcome to Thunderdome. Without Megatron the Lions will be 1 dimensional at best, if they can even manage a running game. Golden Tate is a WR2 at best and Ameer Abdullah and Theo Riddick at the running back position will benefit nothing from the lack of a passing game. The Minnesota Vikings defense alone could probably score more points than the Detroit Lions offense.

Halfway point of the season prediction: 7-1

Next: Vikings game-by-game 2016 season preview

At this time last season the Minnesota Vikings were 6-2 with the toughest portion of the schedule up ahead. The other 2 Vikings losses will come again in the second half of the season most likely. I’m not saying that 6-2 or 8-0  aren’t entirely possible but I feel like 7-1 is a fair expectation against the scheduled opponents.

To be continued in a couple of days with the second half of the season….