What did we learn about the Minnesota Vikings from their disappointing loss to the Chicago Bears on Sunday night?
For a team that had two weeks to prepare for their Week 11 matchup with the Chicago Bears, the Minnesota Vikings looked very lost on Sunday night. The Vikings struggled on both sides of the ball during the first half and a surge of points in the second half was just too little too late.
Minnesota ended up losing to the Bears by a final score of 25-20 this week and the defeat has the Vikings now sitting with a record of 5-4-1. A record still good enough for the No. 6 seed in the NFC playoffs currently, but not one Minnesota should be happy with.
With six games remaining on their 2018 schedule, including road matchups against the New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks, Minnesota’s path to get to the postseason this year just got even more difficult with their loss to Chicago on Sunday.
With the way the NFC is currently looking, it’s even possible that the Vikings could end up missing out on the playoffs this season. For a team that had Super Bowl aspirations heading into the year, missing the postseason would be incredibly disappointing for Minnesota.
As for their most recent defeat, there is plenty that can be taken away from the Vikings’ performance on Sunday night against the Bears. What are the top three takeaways from Minnesota’s Week 11 loss to Chicago?
Harris has earned a starting gig
After sitting out Sunday night’s matchup with the Bears, Vikings starting safety Andrew Sendejo has now missed a total of five games this season due to a lingering groin injury.
At first, Minnesota used a combination of players to fill Sendejo’s spot out on the field. But more recently, it has been Anthony Harris that has taken hold of the role as the Vikings’ second starting safety next to Harrison Smith.
With Harris out there, Minnesota’s defense hasn’t missed a beat. Since the reserve safety was moved into the starting lineup in Week 8 against the New Orleans Saints, the Vikings have been giving up an average of just 155.7 passing yards per game to their opponents.
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In coverage this season, Harris has three interceptions and he has allowed just one catch for eight yards on five targets. The 27-year-old safety also has zero missed tackles this season.
Even if Sendejo is healthy enough to return to the field next Sunday against the Green Bay Packers, keeping Harris in the starting lineup seems like a better option for Minnesota.
DeFilippo has no idea how to use Cook
Prior to their game against the Bears on Sunday night, it was revealed that Vikings running back Dalvin Cook would not be on a pitch-count during the matchup. Minnesota had been easing Cook back into the offense as he recovered from a hamstring injury, but he was apparently good to go for Chicago.
It didn’t seem to really matter how healthy he was though on Sunday. The young Vikings running back finished with just 10 total yards on 12 touches against the Bears.
A lot has been said over time about how versatile of a player Cook is out on the field. He can not only gain tough yards up the middle, but he can line up on the outside as a receiver and get open downfield.
Despite this, Cook’s involvement in the offense on Sunday was pretty bland. The plays called by Minnesota offensive coordinator John DeFilippo didn’t really take full advantage of the running back’s abilities.
Cook has the skills to easily get past a defender in coverage and instead, DeFilippo had him running up the gut or trying to make something out of poorly timed screen passes.
Cook is a tremendous weapon to have in an offense. But his value to the Vikings will just continue to be wasted until the team’s offensive coordinator can figure out how to properly utilize him.
Beebe and Robinson deserve more snaps
Adam Thielen and Stefon Diggs give the Vikings arguably the best receiving duo in the NFL right now. But behind Diggs and Thielen on Minnesota’s wide receiver depth chart is a group of unknowns.
For some reason, the Vikings continue to give Laquon Treadwell chance after chance to do something out on the field. But nothing good has ever come out of Minnesota quarterback Kirk Cousins throwing in the direction of Treadwell this season (and that’s not a coincidence).
Minnesota Vikings
In limited opportunities this year, Vikings receivers Aldrick Robinson and Chad Beebe have shown glimpses of hope. Especially Robinson, who has four touchdowns on 15 targets this season.
Beebe was promoted to the active roster a few weeks ago and Minnesota head coach Mike Zimmer has mentioned a number of times about how impressed he has been with the undrafted rookie this year.
With the way the Vikings’ offensive line has been protecting Cousins lately, the Vikings quarterback needs receivers who can get open quickly. Beebe and Robinson both possess this quality while Treadwell does not.
Minnesota needs to move on and go with the players that help their offense the most instead of trying to hope their 2016 first-round pick will finally have a performance worthy of his draft selection.
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