Ben Goessling, ESPN Staff Writer 9y

Minnesota Vikings film review: Defense

MINNEAPOLIS -- As a longtime defensive coordinator who still is largely responsible for the Minnesota Vikings' operations on that side of the ball, Mike Zimmer seems more peeved when shortcomings arise with the Vikings' defense than he does when they occur with any other facet of the team. And despite the Vikings' victory in dramatic fashion over the New York Jets on Sunday, the defense's performance against a 2-11 club would explain Zimmer's somewhat dour mood after the 30-24 overtime win.

The Vikings' defense spent nearly 36 minutes of the 64:29-contest on the field, giving up 410 yards and allowing the Jets to convert eight of their 17 third-down attempts. The Jets ran for 168 yards on 42 carries, pounding the middle of the Vikings' front seven, and found big plays with wide receivers Percy Harvin and Eric Decker throughout the day, erasing a 21-12 deficit and forcing overtime.

"That's not the kind of performance I want to have," Zimmer said on Sunday. "Quite honestly, I think we should have won that game handily. I expected us to win it that way."

Here are some observations about the Vikings' defense after a film review of Sunday's game:

  • The Vikings have allowed 639 rushing yards in their four games since the bye week, and while the Jets have found success against the ground plenty of times -- their rushing attack is ranked second in the league -- the Vikings did plenty of things to concern Zimmer. The Jets tried 33 of their 42 runs between the tackles, according to ESPN Stats & Information, with vaunted center Nick Mangold getting the better of tackles Linval Joseph and Shamar Stephen. Chris Ivory's long run of the day -- 15 yards -- came on a weak-side play where Chad Greenway couldn't set the edge and Harrison Smith missed a tackle.

  • The Jets wanted no part of Everson Griffen; of the nine times they tried running to the left side, one was an end around from Percy Harvin, two were on Wildcat snaps to Bilal Powell and two were on Geno Smith scrambles. Griffen was too much for D'Brickashaw Ferguson all day, getting a sack and a hurry after he used a spin move to get by the former top-10 pick. Griffen, who has 12 sacks for the year, was close to registering a couple more, and should have had an interception on Brian Robison's batted pass in the fourth quarter. Like several teams have done recently, the Jets sent extra help to Griffen's side of the field in passing situations.

  • Robison had a solid day, setting the edge on Captain Munnerlyn's first-series stop, chasing Smith out of bounds for a sack, drawing a holding penalty and helping Harrison Smith overwhelm tight end Jeff Cumberland on the safety's sack.

  • Zimmer turned up the heat on Geno Smith, blitzing on 13 of his 36 dropbacks and sending his heaviest pressure of the year at the end of the game. The coach dialed up a pair of seven-man rushes, sending Munnerlyn and Harrison Smith after the QB in overtime. According to ESPN Stats & Information, Zimmer blitzed a defensive back more often on Sunday (six times) than he has all year. The absence of linebacker Anthony Barr because of a knee injury also likely forced the coach to trot out some new tricks.

  • Zimmer's summation of his secondary was as sharp as it was succinct after the game -- "We didn't cover anybody," the coach said -- and for players other than cornerback Xavier Rhodes, it's hard to argue with that assessment. The Jets burned Munnerlyn on a pair of crossing routes, rekindling a problem from earlier this season, and he was flagged for two penalties. Josh Robinson had another tough day, giving up Harvin's touchdown pass, allowing a 26-yard completion to Decker in overtime and losing inside leverage in man coverage against Harvin on a 17-yard completion in the second quarter. Both Robinson and Munnerlyn had a good day in run support; Robinson's hard hit on Geno Smith's third-down scramble in the fourth quarter was one of the bigger plays of his career.

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