Minnesota Vikings: Grading the first quarter of the 2018 season

This may actually be the first time under head coach Mike Zimmer that the Vikings’ offense could end up having a better season than their defense. Coming off a year when they were arguably the NFL’s best defense, the unit’s performance has gotten off to a bumpy start in 2018.

Minnesota has already allowed three of their four opponents this year to score 27 points or more. Something that only happened twice during the 2017 regular season.

After Thursday’s debacle against the Los Angeles Rams, the Vikings are also giving up an average of 277.5 passing yards per game this year (26th in the NFL). That’s certainly been a bit surprising, especially since Minnesota finished with the league’s second-best pass defense last season.

One of the few aspects of the Vikings’ defense that has been impressive in 2018 has been the performance of their pass rush. Led by defensive lineman Danielle Hunter and Sheldon Richardson, Minnesota has generated a total of 72 pressures (12 sacks, 13 hits, 47 hurries) on opposing quarterbacks this season.

The Vikings’ defense has not been known to perform very well on the road during games on grass fields recently, which they have already done twice this year. So that could be part of the explanation for the start the unit has had this season.

Luckily, Minnesota plays three of their next five games on their home field inside U.S. Bank Stadium. So the defense should be able to turn things around and get back to actually being reliable.