Vikings need to get back to being boring on offense

Through the first three weeks of the 2018 season, the Minnesota Vikings shift to a pass-first offense has not led to great results.

For the first four years with Mike Zimmer as their head coach, the strategy to getting a win each week for the Minnesota Vikings was usually centered around having a solid rushing attack and playing tough defense.

After the Vikings’ first game against the San Francisco 49ers this season, it seemed like that strategy would remain the same for 2018. However, Minnesota has shifted to more of a pass-first offense in each of their last two games and the results have not been that great.

Yes, the Vikings were able to put up 22 points in the fourth quarter against the Green Bay Packers in Week 2. But take that 15 minutes away and Minnesota has only scored a total of 13 points in their last eight quarters (including overtime against Green Bay).

Minnesota Vikings

This is not the scoring that the Vikings were hoping for when they signed free-agent quarterback Kirk Cousins last March. But perhaps Minnesota is putting too much pressure on Cousins’ shoulders.

In Week 1 against the 49ers, the Vikings quarterback did not have to be perfect. Minnesota was able to get decent production from running backs Dalvin Cook and Latavius Murray (82 yards on 27 carries) which then allowed for the team’s play-action passes to be more effective.

In their win over San Francisco, the Vikings ran a total of 39 pass plays and 32 run plays. A good balance to have and one that Minnesota normally shoots for since Zimmer took the lead in 2014.

Despite the success of their balanced attack on offense against the 49ers, for some reason the Vikings centered their offensive strategy in Week 2 versus the Packers around their passing game. It led to a touchdown in the first quarter, but then Minnesota didn’t find the end zone again until the beginning of the fourth quarter.

Through the first three quarters of their matchup against Green Bay, the Vikings had run a total of 30 pass plays and just 12 run plays. Far from the balanced offense Minnesota displayed in Week 2.

During the first three quarters of their win over San Francisco, the Vikings scored 24 points. When they put more emphasis on their passing attack in Week 2, Minnesota only scored a total of seven points in the first 45 minutes of their matchup with the Packers.

Yes, the Vikings had to rely on their passing game more when they had no other choice when trailing by double digits in each of the last two weeks. But Minnesota has also come out early in each of their last two games with a less-balanced offensive game plan.

During the first half against the Buffalo Bills on Sunday, the Vikings ran 17 pass plays and only four run plays. Double-digit deficit or not after one quarter, Minnesota should have still been making some sort of an effort to establish any kind of rushing attack.

At the very least it would have taken more time off of the clock and allowed the Vikings’ defense to catch their breath.

Time of possession is another aspect of Minnesota’s game that has taken a hit recently with their emphasis on throwing more.

The Vikings finished second in the NFL last season in time of possession per game and that played a huge part in their success. Through three weeks this year, Minnesota ranks 21st in the league in average time of possession.

Passing more during the last two games has definitely been a big factor in the Vikings’ lack of possession on offense this season.

Heading into their big matchup against the undefeated Los Angeles Rams on Thursday, the Vikings need to get back to a more balanced attack on offense.

When they played the Rams last season, Minnesota ended up rushing for 171 yards and that production played a big role in the Vikings coming out with a win. It shouldn’t be a surprise to find out that in that game, Minnesota’s offense attempted 38 passes and rushed 35 times.

Now no one is asking for the Vikings to rush for over 150 yards against Los Angeles on Thursday like they did last season. But putting more of an emphasis on their run game and taking some of the pressure off of Kirk Cousins’ shoulders is a strategy Minnesota needs to strongly consider this week.

If not, then Thursday’s results could be even worse than what just happened to the Vikings in Week 3.