Even though the Minnesota Vikings failed to defeat the Carolina Panthers in Week 14, there were still some great performances that deserve to be recognized.
The Minnesota Vikings had a lot riding on their Week 14 game against the Carolina Panthers. With a win, they could have solidified a spot in the playoffs, won the NFC North, extended their win streak to 9 games and stay on top of the NFC in the playoff picture.
Sadly, they weren’t able to leave Charlotte, North Carolina with a victory, but there were still some great performances from the game that deserve to be recognized and some others which may have gone under the radar.
Here are the grades from Week 14 against the Carolina Panthers as shared on an article from Pro Football Focus titled ‘Refocused: Carolina Panthers 31, Minnesota Vikings 24’:
- Xavier Rhodes, cornerback – 89.4 overall grade
- Case Keenum, quarterback – 87.2 overall grade
- Trae Waynes, cornerback – 82.2 overall grade
- Linval Joseph, defensive tackle – 81.6 overall grade
- Everson Griffen, defensive end – 81.4 overall grade
The surprising name on the list is quarterback Case Keenum, who tabbed the three turnovers during the game (two interceptions and one fumble). Despite that, there are plenty of great reasons for Keenum’s performance and he still managed to make some great plays.
"“The stat line might not be the most eye-popping but Keenum was evasive when pressured and accurate when throwing, only to be consistently let down by his receivers (five drops including one that was intercepted) and his protection (24 plays under pressure on his 55 dropbacks).”"
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Another player who made a big impression on the game was Xavier Rhodes, who ended the contest with 4 total tackles and 2 passes defended. In fact, his efforts were amazing during one drive in particular.
"“If there was a sequence that summed up the talents of Rhodes, it came with 10:01 left in the second quarter. He broke up passes on first and second down, before tackling Chris Manhertz for a short gain on third down that brought the Panthers punting unit out on the field.”"
Also notable from this game is wide receivers Stefon Diggs (59.3) and Adam Thielen (66.9) both brought in some of their worst scores of the season after games where they struggled to haul in passes thrown their way.
Next: Ups and Downs from Week 14 vs Panthers
Next week, the Minnesota Vikings finally return home to U.S. Bank Stadium to host the Cincinnati Bengals and hopefully come away with a win and some better grades in front of their hometown fans in Minneapolis!