4 keys to victory for the Vikings against the Colts in Week 2

Put the game in Philip Rivers’ hands

The Colts seem to have a player of enormous potential in Jonathan Taylor. The rookie running back showed glimpses of promise in the Week 1 reverse to the Jaguars and he will be their bell cow going forward after Marlon Mack suffered a season-ending injury.

Taylor has the chance to do some significant damage behind a gifted offensive line. Nullifying his threat is going to be critical for the Minnesota Vikings and would put Indianapolis’ fortunes squarely in the hands of veteran quarterback Philip Rivers.

There is little doubt that Rivers is one of the most talented signal-callers of his generation. But he is far from the player of old and if the last few years have taught us anything, it’s that the former first-round pick is prone to making errors of judgment when the pressure is on.

Rivers finished his Colts debut with 362 passing yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions, which is further evidence to the above point regarding consistency. He will be without the services of tight end Jack Doyle, who provides a nice target across the middle and is a reliable catching presence.

It is a case of pick your poison for the Vikings. The smart move would be to make Taylor ineffective and take their chances on Rivers producing the goods despite their obvious concerns regarding their secondary, who were torched by the Packers last weekend.