The Minnesota Vikings led the NFL in blitz rate in each of Brian Flores' first three seasons as defensive coordinator, so continuing this season is no surprise. What is shocking is how much the Vikings are blitzing, including an 85.2 percent blitz rate in their Week 7 win over the Indianapolis Colts, which set a single-game record dating back to when the NFL began the Next Gen Stats era in 2016.
Blitzing at a heavy rate comes with advantages. But it also leaves coverage vulnerable. Since Week 1, when the Green Bay Packers hit some chunk plays in a 39-22 Vikings win, they haven't been burned much for blitzing. But Jameson Williams presents a different challenge in a Week 8 matchup against the Detroit Lions.
Williams is the one who can really make Flores pay for his aggressiveness. His route tree has expanded over the last couple of seasons, but he is still the unique, clear-cut downfield threat among the Lions' pass catchers.
In the most cliched football parlance, Williams is a "it only takes one play" guy. He might get only one or two catches in a given game, but they could both be big plays that change a game and how a defense has to play the Lions' offense.
Minnesota Vikings have had the answer for Jameson Williams before, and they can have it again
Williams has topped 1,000 yards in each of the last two full seasons, but because the Lions' offense has so many mouths to feed, consistency isn't his forte. He is currently on an upswing, though, with two touchdowns in back-to-back games and a 100-yard outing prior to that.
Williams has played in five games against the Vikings since Flores became the defensive coordinator. Here's what he's done in those games.
- Week 16, 2023: 5 catches for 43 yards on 6 targets; long reception of 12 yards
- Week 7, 2024: 1 catch for -4 yards on 1 target
- Week 18, 2024: 6 catches for 34 yards on 8 targets; long reception of 14 yards
- Week 9, 2025: 4 catches for 66 yards and a touchdown on 6 targets; long reception of 37 yards
- Week 17, 2025: 2 catches for 37 yards on 3 targets; long reception of 22 yards
All in all, holding Williams under 50 yards four times and to just two 20-plus-yard catches across five games is a big win for Flores and the Vikings' defense. And it's not as if he hasn't been involved, with at least six targets three times in the five contests.
For whatever reason, things did get looser for the Vikings when it came to defending Williams last season, as he averaged 17.2 yards per catch against them. But take out the 37-yard touchdown in Week 9 and the 22-yarder in Week 17, and he averaged 11 yards per catch on his other four receptions.
Overall, across the five games with Flores calling the Vikings' defense, they've kept Williams' YAC in check pretty well.
The Lions' offense will present a challenge the Vikings' defense hasn't quite seen yet this season, and Williams presents a unique challenge on his own. But Flores has pretty much had the answers for Williams before, and there's no reason to think he won't again on Sunday.
Add us as a preferred source on Google