Last Meeting: It’s been four long years since the Pats last saw the Vikings on Halloween 2010. The Patriots won 28-18, knocking Brett Favre from the game in the process. Adrian Peterson had just 92 yards on 25 carries, something the Patriots will hope to repeat this weekend.
Early Outlook: The Vikings won on the road in St. Louis last weekend and with two explosive playmakers in Adrian Peterson and Cordarrelle Patterson, but with old friend Matt Cassel at the helm they have their limitations.
Notes: It’s hard to get the stink of the Miami game off and the challenges that the Vikings present are the perfect opportunity to bounce back, but their tackling will be critical.
The Vikings had major success handing the ball off to Patterson, where his speed is on display. It will be on edge players Hightower and Ninkovich to keep him contained.
Mike Zimmer had success against the Pats as the defensive coordinator of the Bengals last year. Doesn’t look like they do anything too exotic which helps in preparation for playing them. I expect him to try to bring pressure up the middle at Brady, something that was a little easier when he had Geno Atkins though the Vikings front seven is still pretty good.
Everson Griffen should be a good challenge at defensive end, but Brian Robison might be the bigger problem.
Sharrif Floyd was one of my favorite players coming out a couple years ago, he was the pre-Easley Easley and he also went to Florida.
Cassel’s arm doesn’t scare me, but his ability to run does. This game should be won in the trenches, not downfield. Though Norv Turner’s offense relies on downfield shots, the back end will have to be ready.
Siliga and Wilfork look like the best combo at DT in this one. Try to prevent the Vikings from running it up the gut every play, which I’m sure they’ll be tempted to do after the Miami tape.
With fairer conditions I think the Pats can pull back on the heavy rotations on both sides of the ball. Would prefer to see them build some continuity with one group.
How about Solder-Cannon-Wendell-Connolly-Vollmer for the whole game and see how it goes?
It was reinforced for me last week that BB will only have Revis follow a receiver if he thinks shutting that one guy down is key. He’ll certainly pick his spots, but a good defense balances man and zone, and with the Vikings’ threats on the ground I think the CBs stay on their respective sides this week as they did in Miami.
This game seems out of the Pats’ comfort zone defensively as they’ve evolved to be more of a pass-stopping defense. Thus it’s a good test and good experience to balance their game.
It sounds simple but if they just tackle they should be fine. They are the more talented team.
