Vikings vs. New Orleans (preseason) ... thoughts

[J. Kapp 11]

Kind of surprised no thread for this first preseason game. I know it's preseason, but it's our first look at the 2019 Vikings.

Here's what I saw.

• Kirk Cousins looked sharp. He gets knocked for not being mobile, but I've said since we signed him -- he's not a scrambler, but he's very good on planned rollouts. He consistently hurt us that way when he was with the Redskins. Interestingly, John DeFilippo almost never used him in this way.
• There's hope for the running game. Obviously the big runs in the second half were against 2s, 3s and deeper, but I also liked the way our starters looked, especially the O-line.
• Penalties ... ugh. I know that Zimmer HATED what he saw there, and who can blame him? First preseason game or not, that's gotta change.
• Linebackers looked really quick out there.
• Wish we could have seen Dalvin Cook.
• Jalyn Holmes played A LOT last night. Seemed to play pretty well. What was up with that?
• Last night was my first real look at Alexander Mattison. I like him. His pad level is good, he's got some burst, and it appears he's going to be an asset in the passing game.
• First-team defense looked a little ragged, especially against the run. Having Linval and Stephen should help.
• Kick coverage was terrible. One thing Priefer did ... he had his units ready to cover. Not sure about the new guy.
• No missed kicks! Woo hoo! Impossible to trust our kicking game yet, but it's a start.

What did you all see?

[cogitator]

Didn't get to see the game, but I was wondering how Sloter looked. A lot of people here in Denver felt the Broncos should have kept him.

[cogitator]

Didn't get to see the game, but I was wondering how Sloter looked. A lot of people here in Denver felt the Broncos should have kept him.

[J. Kapp 11]

Didn't get to see the game, but I was wondering how Sloter looked. A lot of people here in Denver felt the Broncos should have kept him.

Honestly, by the time Sloter got in the game, I was sort of asleep. He did throw a short TD pass.

[S197]

Bisi Johnson made a nice double move then a great catch for a TD. He was really the only receiver that flashed (other than Thielen but we know what we have w/ our top two). Would have liked to have seen something from Bebee, Zylstra, Dillon, Treadwell, Taylor, Badet... I mean c’mon, the first string played one series, where the heck was everyone?

DL looks pretty deep. There’s going to be some tough decisions on cut day, which is a good thing.

Secondary depth looks a bit iffy. Bene Benwer... whatever had a tough outing. He’s new to the team so he should probably get a pass but the drop off is noticeably large after the top 3. I really hope Hughes is good to go week 1. Also who was the guy who got trucked on the Saints TD in the 2nd half? May have been Epps. Whoever it was has some very embarrassing tape on them now. Anyone know why Boyd didn’t play?

I thought Boone looked very good as did Blasingame. Abdullah had a nice run but then fumbled untouched, which is something he’s always struggled with. If Hughes can KR, I’d prefer they keep Boone over Abdullah.

Thought all the TEs looked good and are definitely featured in this scheme.

Overall a pretty typical first preseason game. A little sloppy, kinda vanilla, but a few people helped (and hurt) their cause.

[J. Kapp 11]

Bisi Johnson made a nice double move then a great catch for a TD. He was really the only receiver that flashed (other than Thielen but we know what we have w/ our top two). Would have liked to have seen something from Bebee, Zylstra, Dillon, Treadwell, Taylor, Badet... I mean c’mon, the first string played one series, where the heck was everyone?

DL looks pretty deep. There’s going to be some tough decisions on cut day, which is a good thing.

Secondary depth looks a bit iffy. Bene Benwer... whatever had a tough outing. He’s new to the team so he should probably get a pass but the drop off is noticeably large after the top 3. I really hope Hughes is good to go week 1. Also who was the guy who got trucked on the Saints TD in the 2nd half? May have been Epps. Whoever it was has some very embarrassing tape on them now. Anyone know why Boyd didn’t play?

I thought Boone looked very good as did Blasingame. Abdullah had a nice run but then fumbled untouched, which is something he’s always struggled with. If Hughes can KR, I’d prefer they keep Boone over Abdullah.

Thought all the TEs looked good and are definitely featured in this scheme.

Overall a pretty typical first preseason game. A little sloppy, kinda vanilla, but a few people helped (and hurt) their cause.

Wasn't there an argument on another thread about whether Bisi Johnson can catch? He made two great grabs last night, especially the TD. Maybe he's the kind of guy who shines when the lights are on.

Agree about the D-line. When you consider that neither Linval nor Shamar Stephen played at all, the depth there is really good. Mata'afa looked great except for the rouging penalty, which wasn't actually that egregious a play. Holmes played well, and Jaleel Johnson had his moments. Another guy who really flashed was Eric Wilson. He's playing with a lot of confidence.

Abdullah looked great carrying the ball, but it was against the shock troops. And that fumble ... just inexcusable.

Good comment about the tight ends. Conklin, in particular, flashed some wheels on that long gain. And while Smith looked a little lost at times, there is no doubt ... that guy can flat-out run.

Don't know why Kris Boyd didn't play. He was listed on vikings.com as "not expected to play."

[Texas Vike]

Pretty fun game to watch, for preseason.

* Kirk went 4/4 with a nice TD and a nice long ball to Thielen. His first pass to Diggs, which got nullified by a holding penalty (first of two) on Hill, was a laser.

* I liked the offensive play calling and overall scheme. Things just look and feel different, in a good way. OL held up throughout. No major pressure getting through, and the Saints are known for deep DL. TEs look like they will have a large role and will be used intelligently.

* Run D (especially inside), penalties, and coverage teams were all things we need to improve.

* Bisi Johnson had a couple of nice catches. He ran a great route on the TD. Zimm has praised him for being a smart kid who learns fast. Looking forward to charting his progress throughout the preseason.

* Both Abdullah and Boone had nice long runs. Boone didn't fumble, though, and that's an important knock on Abdullah, who has the advantage of contributing to ST, so he's probably safe unless he gets fumblitis, which was an issue for him @ DET.

* Sloter's first pass: the Saints' commentators all gasped at how strong and precise his ball is. They thought he was a rookie. I went to training camp a week ago and Sloter looked bad. He's continuing his pattern of doing better in game situations than in practice, it seems.

* I love to beat Sean Payton's team. Fun to see Teddy play solid FB (yet not beat us). Good for him.

[Purple Martin]

Didn't get to see the game, but I was wondering how Sloter looked. A lot of people here in Denver felt the Broncos should have kept him.

Terrific pass out of the gate. He was very mobile. His TD was about his worst pass. It was way underthrown but thanks to poor coverage it worked. But then they had him roll out left and dive for the pylon on what was one of the silliest 2 point calls I've ever seen. He didn't get it. I mean he's athletic but he's not a rocket. Overall I thought he made a good case for being #2. 6 of 7 for 62 yards and 1 TD. I was disappointed they didn't give him more playing time.

[Maelstrom88]

Liked what I saw from the offense for sure. Kubiak is a huge addition. Brock Osweiler looked good under his tutelage. I think the offensive coaching staff will really competent each other and Zimmer well. Slotter deserved to play with the second team offense in the future. He has an impressive arm. I see Treadwell getting cut soon.

[halfgiz]

Way to many penalties. Rashod Hill had 3 I think. There was a couple face-masks.
Another concern was I saw some missed tackles by the D.That was kind of a problem last season.
I was impressed with the TE and RB groups. Boone had a nice run.
QB's I liked what I saw from Sloter and Browning, I didn't think Mannion throws looked as crisp.
Another question is how much is David Morgan hurting himself missing all this time?

Overall a win over the Saints is good

[Passepartout]

Yeah just too bad it was not a real game! But still so far so good. A lot of room to improve.

[PurpleMustReign]

Holton Hill looked lost. Benwikere was awful.
Really other than that, I thought they looked good for the first preseason game. All of the QBs led scoring drives, Bailey made all of his kicks, and the OL looked OK.

[Pondering Her Percy]

Kind of surprised no thread for this first preseason game. I know it's preseason, but it's our first look at the 2019 Vikings.

Here's what I saw.

• Kirk Cousins looked sharp. He gets knocked for not being mobile, but I've said since we signed him -- he's not a scrambler, but he's very good on planned rollouts. He consistently hurt us that way when he was with the Redskins. Interestingly, John DeFilippo almost never used him in this way.

First of some good points here Kapp. Cousins looked very sharp. The fact that flip didn’t use him like that just shows yet another poor move on his part.

• There's hope for the running game. Obviously the big runs in the second half were against 2s, 3s and deeper, but I also liked the way our starters looked, especially the O-line.

Agreed. I think Kubiak is going to have a huge influence here and whether the run game is working or not, he’s going to stick to his guns. Something else flip never did.

• Penalties ... ugh. I know that Zimmer HATED what he saw there, and who can blame him? First preseason game or not, that's gotta change.

Yeah that wasn’t promising at all. Hopefully we get them cleaned up.

• Linebackers looked really quick out there.
• Wish we could have seen Dalvin Cook.

Agreed on both

• Jalyn Holmes played A LOT last night. Seemed to play pretty well. What was up with that?

Also agreed. I said during the off-season that I thought he would be a sleeper for us.

• Last night was my first real look at Alexander Mattison. I like him. His pad level is good, he's got some burst, and it appears he's going to be an asset in the passing game.

I defended this pick for quite some time but for this exact reason. The kid is a player and built like a truck. I think he’s going to fill that Murray role just fine.

• First-team defense looked a little ragged, especially against the run. Having Linval and Stephen should help.
• Kick coverage was terrible. One thing Priefer did ... he had his units ready to cover. Not sure about the new guy.
• No missed kicks! Woo hoo! Impossible to trust our kicking game yet, but it's a start.

Agreed on all counts here. Run defense will be hard to judge until those guys get back but it should be solid with those two

Also FWIW,

Top 5 defense grades from this game:

CB Nate Meadors 85.2
DT Jalyn Holmes 81.2
DT Armon Watts 74.7
LB Ben Gedeon 74.7
S Anthony Harris 72.2

I really really like Watts. Someone is going to emerge from Watts, Holmes and Hercules. I thought Hercules played well also. He’s an excellent pass rusher for a DT. So is Watts. I’m starting to wonder if Zim will just to a rotation at 3 tech this year. Because Stephen isn’t much of a pass rusher so he’ll play mostly on early down and let Watts, Holmes and or Hercules loose on 3rd down.

[J. Kapp 11]

Kind of surprised no thread for this first preseason game. I know it's preseason, but it's our first look at the 2019 Vikings.

Here's what I saw.

• Kirk Cousins looked sharp. He gets knocked for not being mobile, but I've said since we signed him -- he's not a scrambler, but he's very good on planned rollouts. He consistently hurt us that way when he was with the Redskins. Interestingly, John DeFilippo almost never used him in this way.

First of some good points here Kapp. Cousins looked very sharp. The fact that flip didn’t use him like that just shows yet another poor move on his part.

• There's hope for the running game. Obviously the big runs in the second half were against 2s, 3s and deeper, but I also liked the way our starters looked, especially the O-line.

Agreed. I think Kubiak is going to have a huge influence here and whether the run game is working or not, he’s going to stick to his guns. Something else flip never did.

• Penalties ... ugh. I know that Zimmer HATED what he saw there, and who can blame him? First preseason game or not, that's gotta change.

Yeah that wasn’t promising at all. Hopefully we get them cleaned up.

• Linebackers looked really quick out there.
• Wish we could have seen Dalvin Cook.

Agreed on both

• Jalyn Holmes played A LOT last night. Seemed to play pretty well. What was up with that?

Also agreed. I said during the off-season that I thought he would be a sleeper for us.

• Last night was my first real look at Alexander Mattison. I like him. His pad level is good, he's got some burst, and it appears he's going to be an asset in the passing game.

I defended this pick for quite some time but for this exact reason. The kid is a player and built like a truck. I think he’s going to fill that Murray role just fine.

• First-team defense looked a little ragged, especially against the run. Having Linval and Stephen should help.
• Kick coverage was terrible. One thing Priefer did ... he had his units ready to cover. Not sure about the new guy.
• No missed kicks! Woo hoo! Impossible to trust our kicking game yet, but it's a start.

Agreed on all counts here. Run defense will be hard to judge until those guys get back but it should be solid with those two

Also FWIW,

Top 5 defense grades from this game:

CB Nate Meadors 85.2
DT Jalyn Holmes 81.2
DT Armon Watts 74.7
LB Ben Gedeon 74.7
S Anthony Harris 72.2

I really really like Watts. Someone is going to emerge from Watts, Holmes and Hercules. I thought Hercules played well also. He’s an excellent pass rusher for a DT. So is Watts. I’m starting to wonder if Zim will just to a rotation at 3 tech this year. Because Stephen isn’t much of a pass rusher so he’ll play mostly on early down and let Watts, Holmes and or Hercules loose on 3rd down.

I didn't know much about Hercules until this telecast, when PA, Pete and Leber gave us some background. I just thought he had an interesting name. But he was actually considered very talented coming out of college, but because he was a little big for a linebacker and a little small for a D-lineman, he didn't have a position. The Vikings asked him to bulk up and become a 3-tech, and it looks like he's on the way to doing that. The quickness of a "smaller" DT is evident, and he can really wreck havoc as an inside pass rusher. This is another one of those signings that goes under the radar but could end up being a real bonus for the Vikings.

It was interesting with Mattison. His first couple of carries were bottled up for short gains, but even in the limited amount of time he played, by carries 7, 8 and 9, he was gaining momentum. If we can establish the running game, he can become more than just a short-yardage guy. He can become that guy you don't want to face when you're trailing by 10 and the Vikings want to eat clock. That guy you just hate tackling. He runs with his pads low, and he appears to be a tough guy who delivers punishment when he's tackled.

You and I are in agreement on Cousins. Use him correctly, and he can do a lot of good things. I liked his quotes after the game, where he praised Stefanski for getting production out of the entire depth chart. KS was putting guys in position to succeed. We'll see how he does when defenses are actually trying to adjust, but that was a good performance by our OC for a first preseason game.

[Cliff]

The penalties don't bother me at all. In my opinion preseason is somewhat for seeing what refs will let you get away with.

Kirk Cousins did well but it's preseason. In my opinion he always plays really well against weak teams (which is basically most teams in preseason as they're using a limited playbook, trying things, etc.). I still think he's a .500 QB. He'll beat the average-to-bad teams and then look like a different (and not great) player against better defenses.

Also - game day threads don't really happen anymore. People were using the chat though; Starts on the middle of this page mchat/archive?start=50