4 important Minnesota Vikings stats to watch for in 2020
By Dustin Baker
Run vs. pass ratio as an indicator of Kubiak’s philosophy
The 2019 Vikings ran the football more than most teams in the NFL. Only the Baltimore Ravens, Tennessee Titans, and San Francisco 49ers ran more than Minnesota last season. Mike Zimmer enjoys establishing the run and playing staunch defense to effectively run out the clock. It’s a Bill Parcells-like attitude.
Semi-new Vikings offensive coordinator Gary Kubiak has a history of throwing the football more so than running it. Therefore, the run-pass split in 2020 will be extremely fascinating. Minnesota offensive coordinator John DeFilippo in 2018 even got fired for not running enough among other things.
The prognosis for the run-pass ratio will be particularly telling because Kubiak probably won’t be leaving the team in 2021 as other Vikings offensive coordinators have recently. In their defense, most of those who have departed have deservedly earned their way into a head coaching opportunity.
Overall, continuity at the offensive coordinator position will assuredly be a breath of fresh air as Minnesota never seems to achieve such longevity. At least not lately.
light. Must Read. Why the Vikings will be better in 2020 than last season
Kubiak’s run-pass split in 2020 will tell Vikings loyalists two things. One, how much control he has over the team’s offense as he likes to pass more than Zimmer probably urges. And two, what the offense will look like for the next few seasons.