What does Mike Zimmer have to improve before the 2017 season?
By Adam Patrick
Zimmer vs. the game clock:
His skills with clock management reared its ugly head once again in 2016, especially during Minnesota’s overtime loss to the Detroit Lions in Week 9.
Down 13-9 (thanks in part to a Blair Walsh missed extra point) with 1:13 remaining in the fourth quarter, the Vikings offense were faced with first and goal from the Lions’ three-yard line. The first play was a pass to Minnesota wide receiver Stefon Diggs that managed to only gain one yard, but he stayed inbounds and the clock continued to run.
Instead of winding down the clock a little bit more, the Vikings elected to call their next play just 20 seconds later. A one-yard run by Minnesota running back Matt Asiata got the team closer to the end zone and also allowed the clock to keep running.
Despite the odds being his team’s favor to score a go-ahead touchdown, Zimmer decided to call a timeout just 13 seconds after Asiata was tackled, leaving 27 seconds remaining on the game clock. The Vikings went on to find the end zone on the very next play thanks to a one-yard run by tight end Rhett Ellison and took the lead over Detroit by a score of 16-13 with just 23 seconds left in the fourth quarter.
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But apparently that short amount of time left in regulation was all Detroit’s offense needed to drive 35 yards downfield and tie the game up with a 58-yard field goal by kicker Matt Prater. The Lions eventually went on to beat Minnesota in overtime that day and Vikings’ fans were left doing their best “surrender cobra” in the stands at U.S. Bank Stadium.
In hindsight, the quick play call on second down and the even quicker timeout on third down are obviously parts of the game that Zimmer could have done differently. But his defense could have also stopped the Lions from driving 35 yards in 23 seconds.
So there is that.