4 biggest takeaways from the Vikings loss to the Saints in Week 16
By Adam Carlson
The Minnesota Vikings have no pass rush at all
Last season, the Vikings had 48 sacks. 2018 saw them bring the quarterback down 50 times. Minnesota has a history of creating havoc in the backfield of opposing offenses but the 2020 NFL season hasn’t kept that trend going.
With only one game remaining in this year, the number of sacks this team has accumulated is a disappointing 22. It is hard to imagine any defense led by Mike Zimmer struggling so badly to generate a pass rush, especially one as dismal as the Vikings have been putting on the field for the last 15 games.
To add insult to those statistics, Minnesota’s leader in sacks so far this season is the departed Yannick Ngakoue (traded away, not deceased…thank goodness) with five. The closest to him is Ifeadi Odenigbo, who has 3.5 quarterback takedowns in 15 games played with Eric Wilson and D.J. Wonnum right behind him with three each.
It doesn’t look like Odenigbo will catch Ngakoue, which should make fans of Minnesota even more sad that Danielle Hunter spent all of this season sidelined with an injury. The only hope is that the Vikings can return to their defensive glory next season, whether that means leaning on Hunter or finding someone new to get the job done.
Minnesota can’t repeat a game like their contest in Week 16. Not only did the Vikings not register a single sack on Drew Brees or Taysom Hill but they only had one hit in the entire game on the New Orleans quarterbacks.