Monday Open Thread: September 20, 2021

Happy Monday, everyone!

Alright, that loss sucked. Two weeks in a row, the Vikings have been in a position to secure a win on the road, and two weeks in a row, it hasn’t happened. It’s tough, and the team is now 0-2 when they could very easily be 2-0, but they aren’t. Winning on the road in the NFL is always tough, but to lose in the manner in which they’ve lost is gut-wrenching. I’ll give my quick analysis.

The offense: Hey, they looked good. The O-line did their job against a tough pass rush for much of the game, and they opened holes so that the running game could get yards. Kirk Cousins had a damn good game, and he put the team in a position to win the game. I’ve been critical of Cousins when it’s warranted, and I’ll give him praise when it’s warranted, as it is today. The offense scored 26 points, this loss isn’t on them.

The defense: They looked good at times, but they looked ungood at times. The Cardinals got some lucky bounces at times, but the defense has to get off the field on 3rd down, and they didn’t do that enough. I did like that they generated a couple of turnovers, and I was encouraged by certain aspects of the defense that showed improvement, but they gave up too many points, and the team lost.

Special teams: It’s hard to pin this loss on Joseph, as he nailed two 50+ yard field goals, but it’s hard not to pin the loss on him, at least somewhat, because he missed a PAT and missed an easy field goal that would have won the game.

At the beginning of the season, my thoughts were that the team’s defense would be improved, but it would take a few weeks for them to get running on all eight. I still believe that to be true. I think the Vikings will defeat the Seahawks next week.

One more bit of housecleaning, and this does not apply to 99.9% of you. Trolling is something we’ll do away with, as we always have. It drives away our audience, and it makes the site an unpleasant place to visit, so this is why we eliminate trolling, and sometimes, why we eliminate trolls. This is nothing new. If you’re trolling, don’t cry if you’re eliminated. We love disagreements, we’re here to discuss the team that we love. We don’t love trolling, so don’t do it. Thanks! Oh, and SKOL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Around the DN since our last open thread:

wludford posted the Vikings Stock Market Report.

Chris brings you Vikings Report Rewind LIVE: Vikings at Cardinals.

Chris posted the post-game wrap-up.

Other Vikings/NFL news and random oddities and annoyances:

Here are all of the NFL week 2 scores and highlights, courtesy of CBS Sports.

At Vikings.com, see all of the highlights from yesterday’s game, and there is a ton more to look through in the media vault.

Again, we all know the rules, but in case someone is new:

-No discussion of politics or religion
-No feeding of the trolls
-Leave the gender hatred at the door
-Keep the bad language to a minimum (using the spoiler tags, if you must)
-Speaking of which, if discussing a newer show or movie, please use spoiler tags
-No pictures that could get someone fired or in serious trouble with their employer
-If you can’t disagree in a civil manner, feel free to go away
-While navigating the open thread, just assume it’s sarcasm.

With that, the beer light is on and the bar is open. Belly up & tie one on. Don’t forget to tip the cows, and try the lutefisk. Oh, and most importantly, Welcome Aboard!!!!!