Sedale Threatt wrote:Worm Guts wrote:We’re going to need figure out our secondary. I can’t believe we won when we couldn’t seem to stop them at all. Still it’s a road win against a quality team, I shouldn’t complain.
More on our secondary, specifically our corners, from Bill Barnwell. I knew Rhodes wasn't playing all that great, but I didn't grasp the full extent to which he's fallen off. Borderline shocking.Cornerback has typically been a source of strength for the Vikings, but it has been a major weakness this season. Rhodes has been a shell of his former self. He has allowed opposing quarterbacks to complete 84.3% of their passes when he has been the closest defender in coverage, per NFL Next Gen Stats. That's nearly 17 percentage points ahead of what NGS estimates as the expected completion percentage (67.4%) on those passes. Among players who have been targeted 50 times or more, Rhodes ranks last in both completion percentage and completion percentage above expectation.
Waynes hasn't been much better; he ranks third in completion percentage above expectation and has the sixth-worst passer rating as the nearest defender in coverage this season. He missed the win over the Cowboys on Sunday with an ankle injury, which turned a starting job over to Hughes, who looked impressive as a rookie last season before tearing his ACL. The Cowboys ruthlessly targeted Hughes throughout the night, including repeated attempts on what was to be the ill-fated failed drive in the fourth quarter. Nobody in the stadium was more relieved that the Cowboys ran the ball twice in a row on the final series of that drive than Hughes, who was targeted on five straight attempts for four completions and 39 yards.
A limited Amari Cooper finished with 11 catches on 14 targets for 147 yards and a touchdown, and it wasn't the first time the Vikings have struggled against the opposing team's top wideout. There just isn't anybody on this roster who can cover top-tier wideouts at this point. Last week, even with Matt Moore at quarterback for the Chiefs, Tyreek Hill had six catches for 140 yards and a touchdown. Minnesota quieted Lions wideout Kenny Golladay, but Marvin Jones had 10 catches for 93 yards and four touchdowns. Alshon Jeffery had 10 catches on 12 targets for 76 yards and a score for the Eagles. Davante Adams had seven catches for 106 yards for the Packers.
The secondary may have past the offensive line at this point as the limiting factor to how far the Vikings can go. One of the Vikings strengths has always been not giving up 3rd and long, it happened 3-4 times against Dallas.
