lions post game thread

[NodakPaul]

Very happy with the defense, special teams, and running game. Disappointed in the passing game. They were having success with the short, accurate passing game before, but it seems like they went away from it today. Maybe because Simpson was back... iDk. But they need to get back to it.

That is the only negative I have though, as we cruise to 3-1 and stay in first place in the division!

Its because Detroit knew they were coming and played for it. On one of the screen attempts Ponder threw it right at the defender because he knew what was coming.

I know, but we need to expect that. The brilliance behind the short, accurate passing game augmented by a strong run is that we should be able to execute even if the defense is ready for it. Against the Lions it seemed like we didn't even try - where were the quick slants? where were the zone beakers over the middle to Harvin?

I do like that we chose to throw it deep, and at least one of those would have been a nice long completion if not for the pass interference. Ponder was accurate deep, and that is promising.

I just don't want to see Musgrave screw with the offense too much now that we have a vertical threat. Simpson should augment the offense, not change it.

[LIVike]

To be fair Harvin was non existent in the second half. He was on the field but like you said no slants or anything I don't think they targeted him either. Same thing with Rudolph barely any targets. At least Carlson finally has a reception...

[digital420]

Percy was blanketed about as much as we did Johnson.. hence he was taken kinda out of the game.

that should open up for the rest, but i saw little from the TE's, and even simpson wasn't being overly targeted..

i'll rewatch what i can later to have a better view.

[Reignman]

Its because Detroit knew they were coming and played for it. On one of the screen attempts Ponder threw it right at the defender because he knew what was coming.

Yeah Detroit came in prepared for our short game and I'm disappointed we didn't seem to make any adjustments. This game would've been ugly if it weren't for special teams. There were 2-3 screen/swing passes that were nearly intercepted today. 0 interceptions on the season though and that's partly why we're 3-1.

Officially everyone on this forum has more receiving yards for the Vikings than does Carlson (-1). Where's my $25m? Hell I'm not greedy, I'll settle for a million.

Hats off to the defense for containing megatron and that offense. I have to admit, I got nervous after Walsh missed that FG and thought for sure we'd get ultra conservative and allow them to crawl back into it like we normally do. And finally some pressure from the front 4.

Dare I say it? Trap game against the Titans next week lol.

[ConnecticutViking]

Ponder is a young QB and he will have games like this, growing pains. What you don't see in the box score are the pass interference calls when Simpson went deep. I can't complain about being 3-1! A win is a win! Look, if our D keeps us in every game and if we can control clock with our running game, we have a good shot of winning a lot of games. Our special teams looked outstanding, Harvin is a beast!

[singersp]

I pretty much agree here.

I am impressed by Peterson coming back and being so strong.

I loved the Defense stepping up and shutting Detroit down series after series.

Special Teams was fantastic.

The O-line was solid.

Ponder was.....ummmmm......well.....Ponder was on the field and didn't throw any picks.

I spent years bagging on Jackson for riding the Defense and Peterson to victory...that's what Ponder did today.

111 yards passing. 3-12 third down efficiency. The vast majority of his completions were dink-n-dunk chip shots.

The Ponder-lead Offense was responsible for only 6 points. Special Teams and the Defense did all the heavy lifting.

I'm not throwing in the towel on Ponder, I'm simply being fair. It was exactly this type of play that soured me on Jackson. Ponder needs to step up and make plays if he is truly going to be the "Franchise" guy.

I thought some of the offensive play calling was moronic - quit trying the "cute" plays. We have a hard time making the basic ones work, let's not waste drives on trick plays that trick no one.

I thought the rest of the team did a GREAT job delivering a solid performance. Hats off to the D and Special teams. They get my "game ball" award.

Caine

Agree on everything.

The offensive play wasn't what it should of been outside of AD & Harvin. The 6 points our offense scored was thanks in great part to PI calls of about 30 yards each.

Today looked to me like Ponder was sometimes locking down on his intended target & missing other opportunities that were out there. The pass behind the LOS was a prime example when the defenders smelled it out, came after the receiver & left a wide open Jenkins heading downfield.

The "cute" play with Harvin at QB I hated as well. We should have been continuing to do what was working.

Other than Ponder's bad throws in the second half when we needed 1st downs, I thought the play calling was mostly horrible. It had typical Brad Childress conservatism all over it, trying to protect a not so generous lead, with his run, run, throw a 2 yard pass on 3rd & long, then punt mentality.

I could see the handwriting on the wall and thought we would be looking at a tie by games end. It was a nail biter that never should have been.

Thank God too, for all the dropped passes by the Lions, they played a big part in our win as well. Even my friend, who is a Lions fan, is saying his Lions cell phone is now dropping calls.

[NodakPaul]

Thank God too, for all the dropped passes by the Lions, they played a big part in our win as well. Even my friend, who is a Lions fan, is saying his Lions cell phone is now dropping calls.

That sounds like a Lions fan making excuses. There were a few dropped passes, but 3 drops over 50+ passes doesn't lose a game. Our D stepped up this game.

[KevinK]

Bill Parcells says u are..... what ur record is.....
I agree.

[singersp]

That sounds like a Lions fan making excuses. There were a few dropped passes, but 3 drops over 50+ passes doesn't lose a game. Our D stepped up this game.

Minnesota's defense was able to employ a bend-but-don't-break strategy all game. The Vikings took advantage of several dropped passes by Lions receivers and the complete lack of a Lions run game to hold Detroit to one score in three red-zone trips.

Postgame analysis: Vikings 20, Lions 13 - CBSSports.com

The Minnesota defense held the explosive Detroit offense in check for much of the afternoon, though the Lions helped out quite a bit by dropping numerous passes. One of those was a huge drop by Detroit tight end Brandon Pettigrew in the end zone near the end of the second quarter that forced Detroit to settle for a Jason Hanson field goal.

Vikings At Lions Final Score: Minnesota Holds Off Detroit, 20-13 - SB Nation Minnesota

[NodakPaul]

Postgame analysis: Vikings 20, Lions 13 - CBSSports.com



Vikings At Lions Final Score: Minnesota Holds Off Detroit, 20-13 - SB Nation Minnesota

I didn't say that there weren't any dropped passes - I said that they weren't as big of a factor as you or your lions friend are implying. I think the punt to the 2 yard line, the turnovers, or holding their rushing game to 40 yards, or holding Megatron to 54 yards, the defensive pressure, the punt return, the kick return, etc made more of a difference.

Why must you always blame the Vikings for any failures but credit their opponents for success? Good Lord, the Vikings D played a great game, as did the special teams. Can't you give them some credit? You didn't have a single positive thing to say in your post - not one. The closest you came was saying you agree with Caine's post (which did have some positives) but then you bolded everything in his post about Ponder and the offense and complained for the next six paragraphs. Did you miss the fact that this was a WIN?

I'll wait while you sputter some reply about being a realist or how you don't have enough faith in Ponder to be happy or how you are sure we are over performing or something like that... We are 3-1, are exceeding expectations, and are seeing a lot of promise out of some of our young players. I agree that the offense did not perform today. But the defense and special teams did, and I'm not going to brush off their performance by thanking God for "all the dropped passes by the Lions."