4 most disappointing Vikings in the Week 13 loss to the Lions

Bashaud Breeland – CB

Bashaud Breeland was a regular on the disappointing list for the first part of the season. The guy was horrible in coverage and was the most picked-on member of the Vikings’ secondary as he consistently gave up receptions and yardage to opposing receivers. He was also a major liability in run support and rarely made a tackle on a ball carrier.

Breeland’s play did get better as the season wore on and there was a stretch where he actually had some solid performances. Against the Lions, the old Breeland resurfaced and things were ugly.

The Vikings allowed 20 points to Detroit in the second quarter and a major part of that was the inability of Breeland to cover his man. He was constantly beaten as the Lions moved quickly down the field on back-to-back scoring drives. Breeland also whiffed on tackles and looked very deserving of the disgustingly low PFF grade that has cursed him all year.

Breeland did bounce back a bit in the second half and seemed to be playing with much better technique. The Lions weren’t getting the yardage they were early in the game, and whatever adjustments the Vikings’ defense made appeared to be working.

Breeland could’ve gotten himself off this list late in the game but fell short. He had a chance to go up and pick off a Jared Goff pass on that final and ill-fated drive, but couldn’t come down with it. Had he done that, the Vikings would be 6-6 and talking playoffs. Instead, there’s talk of a rebuild and the search for a new head coach.