Thoughts week 2

[dead_poet]

Worth the read for the other stats and commentary

Five Vikings stats that stand out after they stymied Stafford and the Lions

zero — quarterback hits allowed by Matt Kalil so far this season.

Kalil’s struggles last season are well-documented, and one of his toughest outings came against Lions defensive end Ziggy Ansah. This season has been a different story so far. In 24 snaps in pass protection Sunday, Kalil didn’t allow a single pressure to Ansah or any other Lions defender, according to Pro Football Focus. And through the first two games, he has surrendered only a couple of quarterback hurries and has yet to allow Bridgewater to get hit. Again, it’s early, but it’s been a promising start for the left tackle.

http://www.startribune.com/five-vikings ... /328833901

[fiestavike]

Golden Tate, whom played for the Seahawks, and currently plays for the Lions.. is calling another team dirty. (Facepalm)

Golden Tate is a whiny little girl.

Ya, Golden Tate plays for the LIONS! He might want to give it a rest.

[John_Viveiros]

I remember Ponder having similar numbers to Teddy's last outing, but with Teddy at QB, things just seem so much more in control. If the OL can continue their improvement, they could have a scary offense.

I know we have our doubts about Total QBR ratings, but Teddy was magnificent by this standard.
http://espn.go.com/nfl/qbr/_/type/player-week/week/2
Teddy rated 3rd in the league at 98.5 points. 100 is essentially perfect.

[Demi]

Looks like after week 1 Norv realized he can't run his ideal offense with this group of players.

Ugly game between two not so good teams. Hopefully Vikings continue to improve, the way the Lions played shouldn't have been as close as it was.

It will definitely be interesting to see which team shows up this week. And get a better idea where this defense stands.

AD didn't whiff at all this week, just got ran over a few times. Hear less about wanting him to stick to his rushing lanes and follow his blockers after a couple of those runs. I'll take 10+ yards and a couple negative plays over 2 yards and a cloud of dust into a blockers back any day.

Kendricks needs to start. Even when the guy got beat on a route, he seemed to be close to the receiver. And fast enough to get the edge on guys. His speed and athleticism more than make up for a missed tackle or mental mistake now and then.

[losperros]

Looks like after week 1 Norv realized he can't run his ideal offense with this group of players.

Agreed. A little less focus on his precious system and more focus on each player's abilities would do Norv some good.

[84BreaksAnkles]

...just got ran over a few times.

Show me the film. I dispute this.
Unless you disclaim this notion as figurative speech

[Mothman]

Show me the film. I dispute this.
Unless you disclaim this notion as figurative speech

There was at least one... a defender ran right through him on the play where he caught the quick dump-off from Bridgewater and took it 40+ yards. Peterson himself was frustrated with his block on that play.

I can't remember if there were others.

[84BreaksAnkles]

There was at least one... a defender ran right through him on the play where he caught the quick dump-off from Bridgewater and took it 40+ yards. Peterson himself was frustrated with his block on that play.

I can't remember if there were others.

If you're referring to Q3 6:05 3rd&1, where Adrian took the shovel after he whiffed on the block for 49 yds (which you are)
He did not get run over. He simply got pushed back..
In my book getting run over is the Al Harris play. Not whiffing a block

[84BreaksAnkles]

Kendricks needs to start. Even when the guy got beat on a route, he seemed to be close to the receiver. And fast enough to get the edge on guys. His speed and athleticism more than make up for a missed tackle or mental mistake now and then.

Totally agreed. Start rotating him into the base. Eric, Gerald, and Anthony should provide what we need in both the run and the pass. Growing pains would be a surety, but they each possess the capabilities to make game changing plays. You can tell Eric and Anthony are juiced when they play together. Experience and time will allow them to be an excellent tandem.

[Pondering Her Percy]

If you're referring to Q3 6:05 3rd&1, where Adrian took the shovel after he whiffed on the block for 49 yds (which you are)
He did not get run over. He simply got pushed back..
In my book getting run over is the Al Harris play. Not whiffing a block

There tends to be overreactions a lot on here if you haven't been able to tell Some make it much more drastic sounding than it actually was.

[84BreaksAnkles]

There tends to be overreactions a lot on here if you haven't been able to tell Some make it much more drastic sounding than it actually was.

Guilty as charged. Ha- I do it as much ad the next guy

But ya AD has not gotten quote unquote 'run over' at all this year..

[Mothman]

If you're referring to Q3 6:05 3rd&1, where Adrian took the shovel after he whiffed on the block for 49 yds (which you are)
He did not get run over. He simply got pushed back..
In my book getting run over is the Al Harris play. Not whiffing a block

Fair enough. I didn't think Demi was trying to make such a fine distinction.

[Cliff]

Lunch Break, 9/24: Teddy Bridgewater’s ‘Historically Great’ QBR vs. Lions

Full Article

Bridgewater’s passer rating was 120.6 (on a scale that maxes out at 158.3 in the NFL), the second-highest mark of his two-year career. His QBR was 98.5 on a scale that ends at 99.9.
Michael Rand of the Star Tribune writes that Bridgewater was “historically great” under that metric that was launched by ESPN in 2006.

I’ll admit I was surprised when I saw Bridgewater’s 98.5 number, but in retrospect it makes sense. (Conversely, he had a dismal 24.6 mark in last week’s loss to the 49ers, which also makes sense).
For Bridgewater, like so many other young players, the key will be establishing consistency. But if the keeps having games like the one he had Sunday — even without traditional stats that stand out — the Vikings will have no complaints, and neither should you.

[Mothman]

Lunch Break, 9/24: Teddy Bridgewater’s ‘Historically Great’ QBR vs. Lions

Full Article

Thanks for the link, Cliff.

The part I highlighted in bold is true enough because they won. However, to me, this sort of game and the accompanying ratings point out how deceptive such ratings can be rather than underscoring how great a player was in a given game. Bridgewater was basically an effective game manager on Sunday and I'm not using that term in the negative sense it's often used. I'm just saying that Peterson's performance keyed the offense, the defense had a strong game and Bridgewater did a nice, solid job in his role. If his performance appears "magnificent" or "historically great" by ESPN's QBR standard I think it just shows that Total QBR isn't an effective stat from which to draw such conclusions.

[Just Me]

However, to me, this sort of game and the accompanying ratings point out how deceptive such ratings can be rather than underscoring how great a player was in a given game. Bridgewater was basically an effective game manager on Sunday and I'm not using that term in the negative sense it's often used. I'm just saying that Peterson's performance keyed the offense, the defense had a strong game and Bridgewater did a nice, solid job in his role. If his performance appears "magnificent" or "historically great" by ESPN's QBR standard I think it just shows that Total QBR isn't an effective stat from which to draw such conclusions.

I couldn't agree more. I have long been a critic of the QBR simply because I don't know the specific process by which it is determined. Here is a link that describes in (very) general terms what factors are considered when calculating the QBR, but you'll note it was changed in 2012 and in 2013 (after first being used in 2011), So, basically, in its 4 years of existence, it's formula has been changed/modified twice already. I like using a passer rating for a better "feel" on how the quarterback is performing, not because it is "more accurate" but because it is more "transparent." I know how it is calculated, and therefore, know the weaknesses/biases in the calculation(s).

Here is a comment from the linked Wikipedia article:

Further controversy erupted when the Total QBR system gave the Denver Broncos' Tim Tebow a higher rating than the Green Bay Packers' Aaron Rodgers in their respective Week 5 contests in 2011. Noting that Rodgers completed 26 of 39 passes for 396 yards and two touchdowns in a win over the Atlanta Falcons, while Tebow completed four of 10 passes for 79 yards and a touchdown, and six rushes for 38 yards and a touchdown, in a loss to the San Diego Chargers, Mike Florio of Profootballtalk.com wrote that he'll "continue to ignore ESPN’s Total QBR stat."[12] Rodgers himself was surprised: "I saw the [QBR stats] and chuckled to myself. I played a full game, [Tebow] played the half. He completed four passes, I completed 26. I think it incorporates QB runs as well ... The weighting of it doesn't make a whole lot of sense"