Which Minnesota Vikings were the biggest cause for concern during their season-opening loss at the hands of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers?
The Minnesota Vikings kicked off their 2023 season with a heartbreaking loss at home to Baker Mayfield and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
If the boxscores determined outcomes, the Vikings would have walked away with a pretty lopsided victory at U.S. Bank Stadium. Instead, mishaps led to quite a shocking defeat before they head to Philadelphia for a difficult Week 2 road test.
It is unfair to place blame on any one player or coach for the team's loss, but there were plenty of parties that need to improve if Minnesota wants to win important games this season. These next four Vikings, in particular, need to step up after Sunday's disaster.
Viking No. 1
Ed Ingram - RG
Year after year, the Vikings have struggled with protecting Kirk Cousins, which exposes a lot of his flaws. On Sunday, sophomore guard Ed Ingram was the weak link on the offensive line throughout the day, and he kept Cousins in panic mode with pressure constantly in his face.
Ingram was a pretty high-value asset for the Vikings as they selected him with a second-round pick, and he has not even come close to returning that value on the field. He has been one of the worst pass protectors in football since he stepped in, and Sunday was no different.
One major issue with Ingram has been his spatial awareness. During his rookie season, Ingram was susceptible to stepping into Cousins' space and tripping him up, or forcing him into miscues. On Sunday afternoon, Ingram took it a step further by swinging his arm into Kirk's path and punching the ball loose for a crucial second quarter fumble that killed their first promising drive of the season.
The online discussions of Dalton Risner have already picked back up. If Ingram does not improve drastically over the next few weeks, it may be too late to salvage the offensive line, and, thus, the season.
Viking No. 2
Alexander Mattison - RB
Minnesota failed to get anything going on the ground, which forced Kirk Cousins to chuck it 44 times against an experienced secondary. Tampa Bay eventually figured things out and found ways to limit Cousins in the second half, which led to the ultimate demise of the Vikings offensively.
Following the departure of Dalvin Cook, Alexander Mattison has been heralded as the new starting running back despite never really proving that he was capable of taking on such a role. Unsurprisingly to some, Mattison was absent in the run game, rushing 11 times for just 34 yards.
Don't get me wrong, Mattison made some good plays and finished through contact a lot, which was a good sign for the type of player he is. However, Mattison also struggled in pass protection and did not give Cousins a safety blanket as a runner or receiver. On Minnesota's first drive of the game, Mattison whiffed on a block as Antoine Winfield Jr. crushed Cousins in the backfield and forced an incompletion.
Ty Chandler looked good in his limited role, and it would make sense to use him more on third downs to create after the catch if things are not open down the field. In his first true start without the threat of Dalvin Cook taking his job back, Alexander Mattison left a lot on the table.
Viking No. 3
T.J. Hockenson - TE
After finally reaching an agreement on his contract extension, T.J. Hockenson was basically a no-show in his season debut. Sure, some things were out of his control, and there's only so much a tight end can do when the quarterback is facing pressure, but Hockenson was silent.
He hauled in eight catches, which is usually remarkable for a tight end, but he only racked up 35 yards on those eight catches and failed to make plays with the ball in his hands.
A lot of Hockenson's touches came on underneath throws and designed dumps, which I'll get to shortly, but the league's highest-paid tight end should have been a better weapon for his quarterback.
In Week 2 against the Eagles, Hockenson needs to really step up and take advantage of a clear weak spot for Philadelphia. Their linebackers are a bit shaky, and injuries have struck already. Given last season's nightmare performance in Philly, the Vikings will need someone to take the pressure off of Justin Jefferson in the passing game.
Backup tight end Josh Oliver was able to carry the load a bit, hauling in three catches for 32 yards despite not being much of a receiving threat.
Viking No. 4
Kevin O'Connell - Head Coach
Kevin O'Connell has done a lot of things well in his short tenure as the head coach of the Vikings, but he's also had a few hiccups. On Sunday, O'Connell really dedicated his offense to the tight end screens despite zero evidence that they would work.
On multiple occasions, the offense opened drives with major losses thanks to O'Connell's play-calling which made any sort of attack hard to come by. To make matters worse, C.J. Ham was targeted on three of the team's first six attempts.
I'm all for a fullback leading the way in the rushing attack - and I do think Ham is one of the best in the business - but he has always been far too involved in the passing game. On clear passing downs, there really isn't much of a reason for him to be on the field.
Between Justin Jefferson, K.J. Osborn, Jordan Addison, T.J. Hockenson, and Mattison/Chandler, the Vikings have far too many options in the passing game to be using Ham in that capacity. If the running backs are so poor in pass protection that the Vikings feel they need to use Ham as an extra blocker, that is a completely different level of unpreparedness.
Ultimately, this is just a blemish on an otherwise stellar start to O'Connell's career. I expect him to bounce back and have plenty of masterpieces throughout the next several years.