Ben Johnson exposes Brian Flores' defense by gashing them in one key way
The Minnesota Vikings fought valiantly against the Detroit Lions on Sunday afternoon but couldn't quite get the win after falling down 21-10 with a 31-29 loss. It brings both teams to 5-1 on the season and sets up a wild chase for the NFC North crown. The game was a struggle for the Vikings' defense […]
The Minnesota Vikings fought valiantly against the Detroit Lions on Sunday afternoon but couldn't quite get the win after falling down 21-10 with a 31-29 loss. It brings both teams to 5-1 on the season and sets up a wild chase for the NFC North crown.
The game was a struggle for the Vikings' defense after the first quarter where they held the Lions to zero points but a 21-point second quarter was nearly debilitating. However, they climbed out of the hole to take a 29-28 lead. However, the defense showed some struggles which could be an issue long-term.
Ben Johnson exposed Brain Flores' defense
The one way you can end up beating the Vikings' defense is by preventing them from getting pressure. Going into this game, Flores' unit led the NFL in blitz rate by sending 5+ players at the quarterback. The Vikings are the best in the NFL at getting pressure which has been a huge factor in their success on defense.
With how Flores likes to call his coverages, there is one key weakness: in-breaking routes. The main group of coverages the Vikings like to use when not running cover-0 is Tampa 2. It sends the middle linebacker up the middle of the field as the pole runner splitting the two deep safeties to prevent deep passes from being completed. However, by voiding the zone, it creates a window on the hashes.
Lions quarterback Jared Goff attacked that spot consistently and made them pay. Yahoo! Sports' Nate Tice posted this graphic of Goff's passing chart and in breakers have been extremely successful.
That spot Tice circled is the biggest weakness of the style of coverage the Vikings like to play. If the Vikings get pressure on the quarterback, the offense can't take advantage of that space on the field, something they have done really well this season.
When you play a team that has an elite offensive line like the Lions have, it's very difficult to get pressure, especially with one of the best offensive tackle duos in the NFL.
The Vikings struggled to get home quickly despite having 16 pressures charted against the Lions during the game by Pro Football Focus. you need to make that pressure matter and they didn't do enough on Sunday to impact Goff.
