3 matchups the Vikings should worry about in Week 3 vs. the Raiders
By Chris Schad
Vikings defensive line vs. Raiders offensive line
The Vikings defensive line is supposed to be the anchor of Mike Zimmer’s defense. Even as the back half has had its ups and downs through the first couple weeks of the season, the battle in the trenches has gone pretty well with Everson Griffen returning to form and Danielle Hunter remaining one of the league’s best edge pass rushers, ranking ninth in Pro Football Focus’ pass-rushing productivity rating with 12.1 snaps per pressure.
While the Vikings defensive line has been solid in the first two weeks, they’ll face one of their toughest tasks of the season on Sunday. The Raiders offensive line has been rebuilt over the past couple years under Jon Gruden and after selecting Kolton Miller in the first round of the 2018 NFL Draft, Oakland went out and paid Trent Brown to lock down the left side in free agency last spring.
Through the first two weeks, the results have been great as Just Blog Baby’s Sanjit T. pointed out that Miller and Brown are two of 15 offensive tackles who have not allowed a sack or pressure this season. Not only has that made life much easier for quarterback Derek Carr, but the ground game, as their 4.8 yards per carry ranks 10th in the NFL.
While those are pretty good numbers, the Raiders offensive line is just more than their bookends. In the middle, Oakland features Rodney Hudson as well as Richie Incognito, who will be making his Raider debut on Sunday after a two-game suspension to start the season.
While most of these numbers are a small sample size, the Vikings will have a challenge getting pressure on Carr and stopping Josh Jacobs on Sunday. If they match their Week 1 output, this should be a matchup that favors the Vikings.