Vikings’ offense has one key advantage against the Eagles and Kevin O’Connell will find a way to exploit it in a big way

The Eagles don’t have the manpower to stop both Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison.

Tyler Forness — NFL & College Football News Writer
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Sep 14, 2023; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson (18) makes a catch in front of Philadelphia Eagles cornerback Mario Goodrich (31) during the second quarter at Lincoln Financial Field.
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The matchup between the Minnesota Vikings and the Philadelphia Eagles is a fascinating one on many levels.

On the defensive side of the football for the Vikings, defensive coordinator Brian Flores‘ scheme is a difficult one for Jalen Hurts to contend with. He struggles mightily against zone coverage, especially against the blitz.

On the other side of the football, the Vikings have a multitude of questions on offense. We don’t know who the starting quarterback will be as of Thursday night. J.J. McCarthy has been limited in the first two days of practice on the injury report, with Carson Wentz being a full participant. No matter who plays quarterback on Sunday, they will have a very key area of the defense to attack.

Vikings can attack Eagles’ cornerbacks

Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell has so much respect for Eagles defensive coordinator Vic Fangio that he hired his longtime right-hand man, Ed Donatell, to run the same scheme. It didn’t work the way he imagined it would, but it wasn’t O’Connell’s fault that Donatell didn’t run the scheme in the way it was intended.

Fangio does blitz significantly more than everyone of his protegees, which is a relatively normal amount. His coverage structures are relatively simplistic in nature, but he shifts them based on the formation. Justin Jefferson is going to see a lot of that on Sunday, but the cornerback situation isn’t what you would consider good, especially on the outside.

Cooper DeJean has proven himself to be one of the league’s best nickel defenders in just his second season, and Quinyon Mitchell is growing into a shutdown cornerback on the outside, allowing a completion percentage of 48.6% on 37 targets. However, Mitchell isn’t a certainty to play on Sunday with a hamstring injury, but he was a full participant in practice on Thursday.

Where things get really interesting is who plays on the outside other than Mitchell. It’s been a struggle for the Eagles, especially when Mitchell has missed time. To put it bluntly, they have been a disaster

  • Adoree’ Jackson: 25 targets, 16 receptions, 190 yards, 1 penalty, 46.2 PFF coverage grade
  • Kelee Ringo: 13 targets, 8 receptions, 125 yards, 3 penalties, 48.8 PFF coverage grade
  • Jakorian Bennett: 9 targets, 6 receptions, 50 yards, 1 penalty, 29.4 PFF coverage grade

With Jefferson and Jordan Addison being route-running savants, taking advantage of cornerbacks who struggle on the outside is something of a specialty. Ringo is especially someone they can take advantage of, as he moves like the Titanic and cannot flip his hips quickly to save his life. They will be ready to attack multiple variations of coverage and take advantage of the Eagles’ defense en route to a win.

The big thing about having a duo like Jefferson and Addison is simple: you can’t stop them both without the manpower.

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