Viktor
Well-known member
- Mar 19, 2019
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Frelund opined that a strong draft class — especially up front along the offensive line — could be what pushed the Vikings to have a consistently lethal attack when the ball is in their hands.
She wrote:
Don't sleep on the Vikings this season. The addition of Christian Darrisaw with the No. 23 pick last month addressed a real problem that matters for this style of offense and how Kirk Cousins executes it. Minnesota ranked 23rd last season when it came to its rate of sacks per pass attempt (7.6 percent). Basically, when defenses had a good sense the Vikings were passing, pressure increased and Minnesota's efficiency went down.
One way to see this is that the Vikings ranked 16th on third down (40.9 percent conversation rate) despite having the third-most earned first downs per game (23.9). With a rushing average of 4.9 yards per attempt (fourth in the NFL) and a passing figure of 8.3 yards per attempt (second), the Vikes were creating the right opportunities and making the most of them, just not keeping the sequencing efficient enough.
Put another way, Frelund's explanation is based off the notion that if the Vikings can improve their third-down offense, or even get in more manageable situations, Cousins and crew could stay on the field more and put up even more points.
Frelund also included a note about wide receiver Justin Jefferson, who took the league by storm by setting a Super Bowl-era rookie record with 1,400 receiving yards. He also compiled 88 catches (a Vikings rookie record) and seven touchdowns.
Frelund wrote that in most data models, Jefferson is more likely than not to exceed his touchdowns total from his rookie season.
Justin Jefferson, who scored seven touchdowns in a prolific rookie season, hits paydirt nine-plus times in 58.9 percent of simulations.
While the Vikings offense landed in the top 10 on Frelund's list, so did a handful of units that Minnesota's defense will see in 2021.
Besides the Cardinals (No. 9), the Vikings will also play the Browns (No. 7) and Cowboys (No. 4), along with a pair of Border Battle games against the Packers (No. 3).
Besides Cousins and Jefferson, Minnesota's offense also returns key names such as Dalvin Cook, Adam Thielen and Irv Smith, Jr., plus starting linemen such as Brian O'Neill, Ezra Cleveland and Garrett Bradbury.