Daily Norseman - 2016 NFL Week 1: Minnesota Vikings at Tennessee TitansThe Purple and Gold Standardhttps://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/48653/dailynorseman_fave.png2016-09-14T09:47:35-05:00http://www.dailynorseman.com/rss/stream/125623692016-09-14T09:47:35-05:002016-09-14T09:47:35-05:00Eric Kendricks named NFC Defensive Player of the Week
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<img alt="NFL: Minnesota Vikings at Tennessee Titans" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/jPtJW7jLmrzYAlp8XRb6j_T56K0=/0x301:4211x3108/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/50837297/usa-today-9536185.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>The Vikings linebacker earned the honor after scoring his first career touchdown in Tennessee.</p> <p id="8XVy4D">Turns out that <a href="http://www.dailynorseman.com/2016/9/13/12904834/eric-kendricks-listens-to-his-mother">listening to your mother</a> pays off.</p>
<p id="XYV99w">After racking up seven tackles, one tackle for loss, and returning his first career interception 77 yards for his first career touchdown (just like his mother instructed him to do), Vikings linebacker Eric Kendricks has been named NFC Defensive Player of the Week.</p>
<p id="WN2UUY">The pick-six was a huge turning point in Sunday’s victory over the Tennessee Titans. In fact, NumberFire called it the <a href="https://www.numberfire.com/nfl/lists/10451/the-10-most-impactful-plays-from-week-1/1-eric-kendricks-steals-the-show-6">most impactful play of the entire slate of Week 1 NFL games</a>. Their numbers said the interception increased Minnesota’s win probability by a whopping 40.57%.</p>
<p id="hpgoq8">Defensive players stepping up when the Vikings need it the most isn’t anything new. Minnesota technically has a two-game streak of having a player named NFC Defensive Player of the Week. Everson Griffen was the last player to earn the honor after the Vikings’ division-clinching victory in Week 17 at Lambeau over the Packers.</p>
<p id="iAPtyQ">Let’s make it three in a row on Sunday night, shall we?</p>
https://www.dailynorseman.com/2016/9/14/12914272/eric-kendricks-named-nfc-defensive-player-of-the-weekEric Thompson2016-09-12T11:15:49-05:002016-09-12T11:15:49-05:00Who Gets The Week 1 Game Ball?
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<figcaption>Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>It’s a victory Monday here in Viking-land, ladies and gentlemen. Who was the standout player of Sunday’s victory over the Titans?</p> <p id="a8gfkJ">With this being a new season, I want to bring back something that we’ve done in the past. It’s time to start handing out Game Balls to the players that had the best games in a given week for the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.dailynorseman.com/">Minnesota Vikings</a>. We have a pretty decent number of candidates this week, so let’s go ahead and get to them, shall we?</p>
<p id="gumPSr"><strong><span>Stefon Diggs</span>, WR</strong> - The passing game didn’t have a lot of big moments on Sunday, but the ones that did materialize mostly included <span>Diggs</span> on the receiving end. Diggs picked up the third 100-yard game of his career yesterday, reeling in seven catches for 103 yards. He was <span>Shaun Hill</span>’s most reliable target by a good margin on Sunday afternoon, and Diggs is now to the point where we have to wonder just how bad this passing game would be without him.</p>
<p id="XdSCwi"><strong>Shaun Hill, QB</strong> - Laughable? Not really, I don’t think. Sure, Hill didn’t put up video game numbers or anything. . .he completed 18-of-33 passes for 236 yards and no scores. But, for the most part, Hill did exactly what he was supposed to do. He played smart football and, most importantly, didn’t turn the ball over. Given how quickly the game turned when <span>Marcus Mariota</span> started turning the ball over for Tennessee, and given how ineffective the run game was for the Vikings, Hill’s stat line doesn’t tell the whole story of his performance.</p>
<p id="G8jBJ8"><strong><span>Danielle Hunter</span>, DE</strong> - Yes, <span>Brian Robison</span> is still the starter, and he played well yesterday, but <span>Hunter</span> showed yesterday exactly why the Vikings are so high on him as a player. He had a fumble recovery that he took to the end zone for his first career touchdown, and also threw in a sack where he just planted <span>Mariota</span> at the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.musiccitymiracles.com/">Titans</a>’ 5-yard line. He’s really developing into a very good player for the Vikings. . .and he doesn’t turn 22 years of age until November.</p>
<p id="OYR75c"><strong><span>Eric Kendricks</span>, LB</strong> - After missing the entire preseason, you would have thought that <span>Kendricks</span> needed to knock off the rust prior to the first game of the regular season. He knocked it off pretty quickly, and he made the play that truly turned the game around with his 77-yard pick-six early in the third quarter. He threw in five tackles as well, and played a big role in the Titans’ offense pretty much being non-existent in the second half of play.</p>
<p id="GnT5kq">So, ladies and gentlemen, who do you think deserves the game ball for this week? Is it someone that I didn’t list above? Let us know what you think!</p>
https://www.dailynorseman.com/2016/9/12/12889626/who-gets-the-week-1-game-ball-for-the-vikingsChristopher Gates2016-09-12T04:19:53-05:002016-09-12T04:19:53-05:00The Morning After: Vikings Win Despite Issues
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<figcaption>Jim Brown-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>A victory on the field is always a good thing, but there’s no denying that the Vikings have some issues to resolve.</p> <p id="URLYLo">It's always nice to open the regular season with a victory, particularly when that victory comes away from the friendly confines of home. For the <a href="https://www.dailynorseman.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Minnesota Vikings</a>, they managed to shake off a sloppy and lethargic first half of football to take down the <a href="https://www.musiccitymiracles.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Tennessee Titans</a> by a score of 25-16. While we'll always celebrate Vikings victories, there's really no denying that the team has some issues they're going to have to hammer out going forward. This is probably going to sound like a lot of gloom and doom, but addressing the issues a team has is something we do here, so let's have at it.</p>
<h4>No Offense. . .Seriously, No Offense</h4>
<p>Yes, the Vikings' side of the scoreboard had a 25 under it when the final gun sounded at Nissan Stadium on Sunday. Yes, it was awesome seeing <span>Eric Kendricks</span> and <span>Danielle Hunter</span> making some big plays and finding the end zone on defense. But those things, in hindsight, serve to mask the fact that the Vikings' offense continues to sputter when they get close to the goal line.</p>
<p>The Vikings have not scored an offensive touchdown since the third quarter of last year's regular season finale at Lambeau Field. That's just under ten quarters of football that have been played without the offense finding the end zone. This is thoroughly unacceptable, and it's something that needs to change very rapidly if this team is going to have any sort of success. After all, you're not going to get two defensive touchdowns in <i>every</i> game, and when your kicker has developed the football equivalent of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Blass" target="_blank">Steve Blass disease</a>. . .more on that in a bit. . .constantly settling for field goals isn't the answer.</p>
<p>The issue on offense on Sunday was <i>not</i> Shaun Hill. Sure, Hill wasn't perfect, but he didn't allow himself to be sacked all afternoon and, more importantly, didn't turn the ball over. The issue on offense was how utterly pathetic the running game looked. Tennessee has a solid defensive front, but an <span>Adrian Peterson</span> stat line of 31 yards on 19 carries shouldn't happen. The revamped Vikings' offensive line just got thrashed by the Titans' front in the run game, and given that fact, Hill's performance was definitely more impressive than it looks on paper.</p>
<p>I'm not an offensive coordinator, so I'm not sure if I have the answer to the Vikings' red zone issues. But somebody that's paid to do that sort of thing needs to come up with an answer, and quickly.</p>
<h4>Kicking Themselves</h4>
<p>Seeing the Vikings go to fourth down and call on Blair Walsh to come and attempt a field goal is now every bit as scary as <i>The Blair Witch Project</i>, because Walsh is somehow even more shaky than the camera that was used to make that film. Walsh had a rough first half, missing a 37-yard attempt that would have tied the game and missing a 56-yarder at the end of the first half so badly you might have thought he was doing it on purpose.</p>
<p>To his credit, Walsh came in and drilled second-half attempts of 50, 33, 45, and 30 yards. . .while throwing in a missed extra point after <span>Eric Kendricks</span>' pick-six. . .and maybe that's what he needed to get himself going again. I'm not inside <span>Blair Walsh's</span> head or anything, but it certainly seems like that last field goal attempt from last year's playoff game is living there rent-free at the moment. There could be issues with some of the holds as well. . .I haven't examined things closely enough to know for sure.</p>
<p><span>Jeff Locke</span> also continues to be erratic. He was called on to punt three times on Sunday, averaging just 37.7 yards and placing one of those three punts inside the 20-yard line. His longest punt, a 51-yarder on the Vikings' first drive, was returned for 14 yards, keeping in line with his day's average. His other two punts were 36 yards (fair caught at the 27-yard line) and 26 yards (fair caught at the 15).</p>
<p>If the Vikings are going to be serious contenders, the special teams need to get better, at least as far as the kicking and punting games are concerned. . .the return game seems to be doing alright for itself.</p>
<h4>Mularkey Ends Titans Chances</h4>
<p>I had to break this down on social media yesterday, and I'm not quite sure why it was so hard to understand, but I'm going to do it again here.</p>
<p>Titans' head coach (and former Viking) Mike Mularkey pretty much ended the game for his team on Sunday with his decision to go for two points after the Titans' last touchdown. DeMarco Murray's catch made the score 25-16, and Mularkey elected to go for 2 in an attempt to get within seven rather than attempting the extra point to get within eight.</p>
<p>Yes, if the Titans wanted to win, they needed to get a 2-point conversion at some point. In a vacuum, it might have been a good move. However, given that there were only 28 seconds left in the game when the Titans scored, the decision seems absolutely ridiculous. Had the Titans made the extra point to make it 25-17, they could have had an opportunity to win with an onside kick recovery, a touchdown, and a two-point conversion.</p>
<p>However, as they went for two and failed, they still found themselves down by nine. . .and, as we know, you can't score nine points on one possession in the NFL. So, the Titans would have needed to recover an onside kick, score a touchdown, recover <i>another</i> onside kick, and make a field goal, all in the space of 28 seconds with no time outs left.</p>
<p>I'm happy that Mularkey made the decision he did. I can't imagine that many Titans fans are.</p>
<h4>DEEEE-FENSE</h4>
<p>See, I told you this wasn't going to be all negative, because we have to talk about the performance of Minnesota's defense, particularly in the second half.</p>
<p>Despite the pre-game loss of cornerback <span>Xavier Rhodes</span>. . .and we're hoping like heck his knee issue isn't anything serious. . .the Vikings went out and did what they were supposed to do. Yes, they spent a lot of the first half getting pushed around, but coming out of the locker room after the half. . .no doubt on the heels of a hellacious reaming by Mike Zimmer. . .they remembered who they were and bludgeoned the Titans into submission.</p>
<p>Minnesota forced three turnovers in the second half and took two of them to the end zone. Again, this method of winning football games definitely isn't sustainable, but damn it's fun to watch, isn't it? Yes, there should have been a fourth turnover courtesy of an interception by <span>Harrison Smith</span>, but after <span>Everson Griffen</span> pushed <span>Marcus Mariota</span>, causing him to fall to the ground and cry like Nancy Kerrigan (™ Eric Cartman), it was negated. I couldn't tell when the shove occurred in relation to the pick, but as Griffen said after the game, he has to know better. Still, in the second half, the Titans had <strike>seven</strike> eight (because counting is hard sometimes) offensive possessions. Here's how they went.</p>
<p>-Punt<br>-Interception touchdown<br>-Punt<br>-Fumble touchdown<br>-Fumble<br>-Punt<br>-Punt<br>-Garbage time touchdown</p>
<p>What we saw in the second half is what the Vikings need to continue to do going forward. Over the course of the next two weeks, when the Vikings will host the <a href="https://www.acmepackingcompany.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Green Bay Packers</a> and travel to take on the <a href="https://www.catscratchreader.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Carolina Panthers</a>, they're going to have to continue to be the aggressors on defense.</p>
<p>We'll probably talk about this game a bit more over the next day or two, and then turn our attention to the home opener this coming Sunday night.</p>
https://www.dailynorseman.com/2016/9/12/12886590/the-morning-after-vikings-win-despite-glaring-issuesChristopher Gates2016-09-11T18:11:48-05:002016-09-11T18:11:48-05:00Vikings at Titans: Stock Market Report
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<img alt="NFL: Minnesota Vikings at Tennessee Titans" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/_0QlNdOdDGrhEnW22BriEqM7wMI=/0x0:1791x1194/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/50788921/usa-today-9536186.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>The defense was the main reason the Vikings are 1-0. | Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>Winning ugly > losing pretty. Every time.</p> <p id="Wc1Not">NEVER IN DOUBT, AM I RIGHT?!</p>
<p id="nOPLOC">OK maybe there was a little doubt.</p>
<p id="wZwEqj">OK, a metric ton of doubt, especially after that first half.</p>
<p id="BisZKB">But after one game, your Minnesota Vikings are 1-0, and that’s all that matters.</p>
<p id="XYvZYX">For the first 30 minutes, Vikings fans were getting flashbacks of all the worst parts of the 2015 season. Getting shoved around by an inferior team on the road in Week 1? Check. The kicker shanking easy field goals? Check. An inept offense sputtering, especially when they got near the red zone? Check and check. The season was less than 90 minutes old and the doom and gloom on #VikingsTwitter was already reaching 2013 levels.</p>
<p id="23iPZY">But the second half was a different story. The defense came alive, turning the game around with three turnovers and two defensive touchdowns. The Vikings fought back and ended up winning 25-16 behind a familiar formula: dominating on defense and limiting mistakes on offense.</p>
<p id="exBSEk">It was undoubtedly an ugly win. But if the Vikings keep winning like that? Let’s get ugly.</p>
<div id="NPLWB5"><iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/S2lgnitdPdc" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe></div>
<p id="mudJh1"><em>Get ugly</em><br><em>Get ugly, baby, woo hoo</em><br><em>And everybody say la la la</em><br><em>Get ugly</em><br><em>You're too sexy to me</em><br><em>Sexy to me</em><br><em>You're too sexy to me</em><br><em>Sexy to me</em><br><em>So sexy</em><br><em>Damn, that's ugly</em></p>
<p id="lg2SG7">Time for the Week 1 stocks.</p>
<h4 id="Q9prlS">Blue Chip Stocks</h4>
<p id="emxlt6"><strong>Stefon Diggs:</strong> With zero running game going and a quarterback nearly twice his age, all Diggs did was rack up a career-high seven catches for 103 yards, including a couple crucial catches like this one:</p>
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<p id="SrIhKk">No sophomore slump so far for Diggs. He’s the clear #1 receiver on this team regardless of who’s throwing to him.</p>
<p id="1LXxK8"><strong>Danielle Hunter and the defensive line depth:</strong> Brian Robison had a pretty good game, particularly with a two-play sequence where he followed a batted pass with a tackle for loss. But it’s going to be extremely difficult to keep Danielle Hunter on the sidelines this season. Hunter scored the first touchdown of his career on a fumble return, but I was more impressed with this sack of Marcus Mariota in the fourth quarter:</p>
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<p id="VnGWTC">I mean, how do you even stop that? Hunter has a chance to be one of the better pass rushers in the league, and it might happen sooner than you think.</p>
<h4 id="RrubNQ">Solid Investments</h4>
<p id="HzNflV"><strong>Adam Thielen:</strong> This guy wasn’t even supposed to make the team three years ago. Now he’s one of the main targets in the passing attack. Thielen had four catches for 54 yards and made a couple really big contested grabs. Thielen is one of the easiest players on the team to root for; he makes it even easier with performances like this.</p>
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<p id="fI329l"><strong>Cordarrelle Patterson:</strong> Flash had a great kick return to give the team a much-needed spark to start the second half, which allowed the Vikings to score their first points of the game. (On a three-and-out, naturally.) And he actually made a couple meaningful contributions to the offense! OK, so it was only two touches for 14 yards. But hey, it’s a start! If Thielen and Patterson can keep contributing to the offense and Diggs can keep tearing it up from the slot, this probably won’t be the last time Jarius Wright is a healthy scratch. (And sadly, this might not be the last time Laquon Treadwell doesn’t get a snap. Sigh.)</p>
<p id="Fd3xvA"><strong>Shaun Hill:</strong> Did Hill light it up today? Nope! He missed an easy touchdown to Diggs and got lucky not to be intercepted in the first half.</p>
<p id="X99GUO">But did Hill play poorly today? Also nope! The extremely veteran quarterback acquitted himself quite nicely for the most part, ending up with 236 yards passing and zero turnovers.</p>
<p id="dWljrq">Hill’s game management means that the Vikings can start Sam Bradford only when he’s ready and not rush into anything. If Bradford still doesn’t quite have a grasp of everything by the time the Packers come to town next week, we won’t be filled with dread if Hill starts.</p>
<p id="8gqjpH"><strong>Pass blocking:</strong> One reason why Hill had a solid day: he wasn’t sacked at all. The much-maligned pass blocking was impressive for the most part against a respectable Titans pass rush. Did you hear Matt Kalil’s name mentioned at all during the broadcast? No. No you did not. That’s a good sign. It was a pleasant surprise to see Hill have a clean pocket as often as he did, especially against a defense led by Dick LeBeau.</p>
<h4 id="k9P8cY">Junk Bonds</h4>
<p id="knSWAG"><strong>Adrian Peterson and the run blocking:</strong> This was supposed to be a game that featured all sorts of rushing yardage. Adrian Peterson! DeMarco Murray! Derrick Henry! Ground & Pound all day errr day!</p>
<p id="MK66wh">Well, there was plenty of ground on Sunday, but barely any pound. We ended up with 129 rushing yards TOTAL. Between both teams. TOTAL. Peterson didn’t have a good game by any stretch of the imagination, but he didn’t have any help either. Thirteen of Peterson’s 19 carries went for two yards or less. You’re always going to see a lot of packed boxes when AP is in the backfield and Hill is under center. I get that. But Vikings often had big packages to block all those defenders in the box—they simply didn’t do so most of the time. The running game will need to be <em>much</em> better next Sunday night.</p>
<p id="Q8TGGk"><strong>Blair Walsh:</strong> Putting someone that went 4-for-4 on field goals in the second half in the Junk Bonds might be harsh, but there’s no getting around the fact that Walsh missed three more kicks today. The 56-yarder at the end of the first half is excusable, but both of his attempts (Tennessee tried to “ice” him...why you try to ice someone that was already 0 degrees Kelvin is beyond my comprehension) were laughably off target. He also shanked an extra point to nullify some of the joy from Eric Kendricks’ go-ahead pick six. Making the field goals in the second half probably salvaged his job—for now. But we’re still going to flinch every time Walsh steps on the field for the foreseeable future.</p>
<p id="Ekqmq9"><strong>Andre Smith:</strong> Smith stood out as especially poor on Sunday. Smith was beaten often on both pass and run plays and had a couple bad penalties that prevented the offense from getting anything going in the first half. The perceived upgrade over T.J. Clemmings hasn’t shown up much yet.</p>
<h4 id="hgQ7qg">Buy/Sell</h4>
<p id="rWNTpn"><strong>Buy: The Bend-Don’t-Break defense in the first half.</strong> The Vikings trailed by ten points at halftime, but to be honest it could have been much worse. The Minnesota defense made some key plays to keep the Titans out of the end zone and prevented them from putting the game out of reach before the third quarter started.</p>
<p id="QeJPeI"><strong>Sell: The first half defensive pass rush and run defense.</strong> The Titans were marching up and down the field between the 20’s for most of the first two quarters, giving us all PTSD flashbacks of the Week 1 San Francisco game from last year. Obviously things changed in the second half but they sure had us worried early on.</p>
<p id="LL8feO"><strong>Buy: A disciplined performance.</strong> The Vikings committed zero turnovers and only three penalties, which is very impressive for Week 1. The Titans were even more impressive with penalties, committing just two penalties for ten yards, but their three turnovers (which should have been four, EVERSON) were the difference in the game. The Vikings didn’t beat themselves. That’s why they’re 1-0.</p>
<p id="NdqClx"><strong>Sell: Griffen’s dumb roughing the passer penalty.</strong> It didn’t matter in the end result but Griffen owes Harrison Smith after taking away his interception. The defense had earned a second half shutout and Griff’s silly shove canceled an otherwise great effort.</p>
<p id="YXQFl2"><strong>Buy: Playing against Mike Mularkey.</strong> In my <a href="http://www.dailynorseman.com/2016/9/10/12872518/minnesota-vikings-tennessee-titans-preview-mularkey-marcus-mariota-demarco-murray-derrick-henry">Q&A with Jimmy Morris of Music City Miracles this week</a>, Morris expressed his displeasure with the Titans retaining Mularkey’s services. After watching this game, I can see why. Tennessee got way too cute on a lot of their third and short plays, killing a couple crucial drives when the game was still in the balance. His inexplicable choice to go for two at the end of the game made the ensuing onside kick an exercise in futility. (If you don’t get why his choice to go for two on the first touchdown doesn’t make sense, please go play some Madden. I don’t think I need to explain it here.) The loss isn’t totally on the head coach, but Mularkey is now 18-40 in his career for a reason.</p>
<p id="b4uVni"><strong>Sell: Knees.</strong> Xavier Rhodes was a gametime scratch because he “heard something pop” in his knee. Ugh. Seriously?! ENOUGH WITH KNEES. I’M SO DONE WITH KNEES. KNEES SUCK. Hopefully this won’t be anything long term.</p>
<p id="18WZaL"><strong>Buy: Finding a way to win.</strong> This obviously wasn’t a comprehensive performance by the Vikings. They didn’t bring their “A” game for 60 minutes by any stretch of the imagination. But in true Mike Zimmer fashion, they fought, they battled, they leaned on their defense, and they persevered. Cliché alert: this was a real “blue collar” win for the Vikings.</p>
<p id="RWqRtL"><strong>Sell: Thinking a performance like that will cut it the next two weeks.</strong> The Titans will probably be better than their 3-13 record from 2015, but they’re still very much a work in progress. The opposition is about to get much better in Weeks 2 and 3: home for Green Bay and then at Carolina. The Vikings will need to build on this performance in a lot of areas going forward.</p>
<p id="JVUNbh">I’m just glad we get to build on a victory. SKOL, Vikings faithful.</p>
https://www.dailynorseman.com/2016/9/11/12881442/minnesota-vikings-tennessee-titans-recap-week-1Eric Thompson2016-09-11T15:07:18-05:002016-09-11T15:07:18-05:00Vikings Dominate Second Half In 25-16 Victory
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<figcaption>Frederick Breedon/Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p>It certainly wasn't the way the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.dailynorseman.com/">Minnesota Vikings</a> drew it up on Sunday afternoon in Tennessee, but in the end it wound up being effective.</p>
<p>After falling behind 10-0 at halftime, the Vikings stormed back behind their defense and put up 25 unanswered points. . .without scoring an offensive touchdown. . .and defeated the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.musiccitymiracles.com/">Tennessee Titans</a> in their 2016 regular season opener by a score of 25-16.</p>
<p>The Titans got on the board first in this one, as they pushed deep into Minnesota territory on their second drive of the game. They had to settle for a 28-yard field goal by Ryan Succop to stake themselves to an early 3-0 lead. Those were the only points of the first quarter, but the Vikings ended the quarter at the Tennessee 13-yard line. Minnesota had to settle for a field goal attempt of their own, but <span>Blair Walsh</span> came out and missed a 37-yard field goal wide to the left and kept the Titans ahead by that 3-0 score.</p>
<p>The game remained at that score until the very end of the first half, as the Titans pushed deep into Minnesota territory and ultimately set themselves up with first-and-goal at the Minnesota 6-yard line. On second-and-goal, <span>Marcus Mariota</span> hit running back <span>DeMarco Murray</span> from six yards out, with <span>Ryan Succop's</span> extra point making the score 10-0. The Vikings got themselves into position for another field goal, but Walsh badly missed a 56-yard attempt to send the Vikings into the locker room looking at a 10-0 deficit.</p>
<p>Minnesota got on the board on their first possession of the second half. <span>Cordarrelle Patterson</span> started the half with a big 61-yard kick return to put the Vikings into Tennessee territory, but the drive stalled and Blair Walsh came out again. This time, Walsh knocked it home from 50 yards out to cut the Tennessee lead to 10-3.</p>
<p>The Vikings forced the Titans to punt on their next possession, and Minnesota pushed into Tennessee territory once again. Unfortunately for the Vikings. . .say it along with me. . .the Vikings' drive stalled and the Vikings had to call on Walsh once again for a 33-yard attempt. Walsh connected on the kick, cutting the deficit to just 10-6 with about six minutes left in the third quarter.</p>
<p>The big play of the game came on the next drive. On a 2nd-and-3 from the Minnesota 24, <span>Everson Griffen</span> got pressure on <span>Marcus Mariota</span> and forced him to throw a short pass to his left. <span>Eric Kendricks</span> stepped in front of the receiver for his first career NFL interception. He then turned it into his first NFL touchdown, as he took it 77 yards for a score, giving the Vikings a 12-10 lead after Blair Walsh. . .of course. . .missed the extra point.</p>
<p>After another Walsh field goal, this one from 45, made the score 15-10 in favor of Minnesota, the defense stepped up again in a big way. There was some miscommunication in the backfield between Mariota and his running back, and the ball wound up on the ground. Defensive end <span>Danielle Hunter</span> picked it up and rumbled 22 yards for <i>his</i> first NFL touchdown! Walsh drilled the extra point, and suddenly the Vikings were ahead 22-10 with eleven minutes left in the game.</p>
<p>Minnesota's defense forced another turnover on Tennessee's next possession, as <span>Shamar Stephen</span> stripped DeMarco Murray and <span>Andrew Sendejo</span> recovered at the Tennessee 46-yard line. They didn't convert that turnover, but on their next possession they added to their lead with another field goal from Walsh, as he connected from 30 yards out to make the score 25-10.</p>
<p>Tennessee got a late touchdown pass from Mariota to DeMarco Murray to cut the score to 25-16. For some reason, the Titans attempted to go for two to cut it to seven rather than cutting it to eight with an extra point, but failed. Minnesota recovered the ensuing onside kick, and went to the victory formation to go to 1-0 on the season.</p>
<p>For all the controversy about the quarterback situation in this one, <span>Shaun Hill</span> didn't play a bad game. He completed 18-of-33 passes for 236 yards and, most importantly, didn't turn the ball over. <span>Stefon Diggs</span> had a big game, leading the Minnesota receivers with seven catches for 103 yards. The Titans stymied <span>Adrian Peterson</span> all day, as he gained just 31 yards on 19 carries and didn't have a run longer than nine yards.</p>
<p>For the Titans, Mariota completed 25-of-41 passes for 271 yards, two touchdowns, and an interception. The Titans' running game didn't do much, as Henry and Mariota combined for just 45 yards on 18 carries. <span>Tajae Sharpe</span> led the Titans in receiving with seven catches for 76 yards, while DeMarco Murray had both of Tennessee's touchdowns on the afternoon, catching both of Mariota's scoring throws.</p>
<p>The big story in this one, however, was the Minnesota defense. After looking lethargic in the first half and going into the locker room 10-0, they came roaring back, forcing three turnovers and contributing Minnesota's only two touchdowns of the afternoon.</p>
<p>The Vikings move to 1-0 on the season, and will open up the first regular season at U.S. Bank Stadium next Sunday night against the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.acmepackingcompany.com/">Green Bay Packers</a>. The Titans go to 0-1, and will play another NFC North team next week when they make a trip to the Motor City to take on the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.prideofdetroit.com/">Lions</a>.</p>
<p>The Minnesota Vikings win a bit ugly to start the regular season, taking down the Tennessee Titans by a score of 25-16. Thanks to everyone that got their coverage of this week's contest right here at The Daily Norseman!</p>
https://www.dailynorseman.com/2016/9/11/12878346/minnesota-vikings-tennessee-titans-final-scoreChristopher Gates2016-09-11T14:17:12-05:002016-09-11T14:17:12-05:00Vikings at Titans: Fourth Quarter Open Thread
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<figcaption>Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>Coming out of the locker room at halftime, the <a href="https://www.dailynorseman.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Minnesota Vikings</a> needed a spark as they found themselves trailing the <a href="https://www.musiccitymiracles.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Tennessee Titans</a> by a score of 10-0. They got one in the form of <span>Cordarrelle Patterson</span>, who broke out a big 61-yard kick return to put the Vikings into Tennessee territory at the 34-yard line. Sadly, the Vikings couldn't do much with it, as they gained just two yards in three plays and set up <span>Blair Walsh</span> for yet another field goal attempt, this one from 50 yards out. In a shocking turn of events, Walsh drilled the kick from 50 yards out to get the Vikings on the board, though they still trailed 10-3.</p>
<p>Minnesota forced Tennessee to punt on their first possession of the half, and once again pushed into Tennessee territory. However, the drive stalled and Walsh had to come in for another attempt, this one from 33 yards. Walsh put this one through as well, and the Titans' lead was down to just 10-6.</p>
<p><span>Marc Mariani</span> returned the kickoff to the Tennessee 34-yard line for the Titans' next possession. <span>Linval Joseph</span> collected the Vikings' first sack of the afternoon, a 9-yard drop of <span>Marcus Mariota</span>, to get the drive started off. The Titans converted, though, thanks to a pass to <span>Tajae Sharpe</span> and a pass to <span>Andre Johnson</span>. . .yes, that Andre Johnson. . .to put the Titans into Minnesota territory at the 42-yard line. A couple of plays later, and the game turned right around in Minnesota's favor. <span>Everson Griffen</span> got pressure on <span>Mariota</span>, who threw a fairly awful pass to his left and into the hands of Eric Kendricks. Kendricks had nothing but green in front of him, and took it 77 yards for the score! The Vikings took a 12-10 lead. . .</p>
<p>. . .so, naturally, Blair Walsh came in and missed the extra point to <i>keep</i> the score at 12-10. Because why not?</p>
<p>As we move to the fourth quarter of play, the Vikings have the football and are looking at 3rd-and-15 from their own 26-yard line, nursing a 12-10 lead. Can the Vikings hold on for the victory? Let's find out together!</p>
https://www.dailynorseman.com/2016/9/11/12878342/minnesota-vikings-tennessee-titans-fourth-quarter-open-threadChristopher Gates2016-09-11T13:31:39-05:002016-09-11T13:31:39-05:00Vikings at Titans: Third Quarter Open Thread
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<figcaption>Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>To start the second quarter of play in Nashville, the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.dailynorseman.com/">Minnesota Vikings</a> found themselves looking at a 3rd-and-1 from the 13-yard line, trailing the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.musiccitymiracles.com/">Tennessee Titans</a> by a score of 3-0. <span>Adrian Peterson</span> picked up the first down on the ground to keep Minnesota's drive going, but Peterson then promptly lost two yards on first down. . .and then he lost two more on second down to set up 3rd-and-14. A holding penalty on <span>Andre Smith</span> then pushed the Vikings back ten more yards. Minnesota ran a draw with <span>Jerick McKinnon</span> on 3rd-and-24, and set up <span>Blair Walsh</span> for a 37-yard field goal attempt. Walsh pushed the attempt to the left, and the Titans remained on top by a score of 3-0.</p>
<p>Tennessee started their next drive at their own 27-yard line, and quickly found themselves near midfield again on a pass from <span>Marcus Mariota</span> to rookie <span>Derrick Henry</span>. <span>DeMarco Murray</span> then carried the ball over midfield for the Titans, but a false start on <span>Taylor Lewan</span> pushed them back again. The Vikings' defense held on a third down play, and the Titans were forced to punt again. Brett Kern's effort was fair caught by <span>Marcus Sherels</span> at the Minnesota 10-yard line.</p>
<p>After a short run by Peterson, <span>Shaun Hill</span> found <span>Kyle Rudolph</span> for a nice 16-yard gain. Unfortunately, the Vikings shot themselves in the foot with a face mask penalty on <span>Rhett Ellison</span> to push them back to the 14-yard line and giving them 2nd-and-22. Hill then found <span>Adam Thielen</span> on third down for 21 yards, but it was just short of the line to gain thanks to a nice tackle by Tennessee safety Rashad Johnson. Jeff Locke came in to punt, and Locke's punt was fairly bad. It traveled just 36 yards, and was fair caught by <span>Marc Mariani</span> at the Tennessee 26-yard line.</p>
<p><span>Mariota</span> started things off with a short pass to <span>Delanie Walker</span>, and then found <span>Tajae Sharpe</span> for 12 yards to the Tennessee 45. The Vikings forced Tennessee into a third down, but Mariota found veteran receiver <span>Harry Douglas</span> for a 16-yard gain down to the Minnesota 30-yard line at the two-minute warning. Tennessee converted another third down on a throw from Mariota to Sharpe to get to the Minnesota 20-yard line. Mariota then converted another third down, finding Murray to get the Titans down to the 6-yard line. The Titans capped the drive with a touchdown, as Mariota found Murray once again for a 6-yard score, and <span>Ryan Succop</span> hit the extra point to make the score 10-0.</p>
<p>Hill got Minnesota into field goal range. . .sort of. . .as the Vikings got down to the Tennessee 38-yard line and the Vikings brought out Walsh for a 56-yard field goal attempt. Unfortunately, Walsh once again pushed the kick to the left. . .and "pushed" is a generous assessment. . .and the two teams went into the locker room trailing by a score of 10-0.</p>
<p>Looking at the stat sheet, Shaun Hill hasn't been that bad this afternoon. He's completed 11-of-19 passes for 124 yards through one half of play. Adrian Peterson has done next to nothing so far, collecting just 20 yards on nine carries. <span>Stefon Diggs</span> has carried the load for the receiving corps, as he's brought in four catches for 46 yards, while Kyle Rudolph has 47 yards on three catches.</p>
<p>For the Titans, the rushing game has picked up 48 yards on 14 carries, with DeMarco Murray leading the way with 32 yards on nine carries. Mariota has completed 13-of-21 passes for 146 yards and a touchdown, while Tajae Sharpe and Derrick Henry each have 41 yards receiving to lead the way for the Titans.</p>
<p>The Vikings will get the ball first coming out of the locker room, and they need to get something going as they find themselves down by a score of 10-0. Join us here for the third quarter of play!</p>
https://www.dailynorseman.com/2016/9/11/12878332/minnesota-vikings-tennessee-titans-third-quarter-open-threadChristopher Gates2016-09-11T12:35:17-05:002016-09-11T12:35:17-05:00Vikings at Titans: Second Quarter Open Thread
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<figcaption>Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>At Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tennessee, the 2016 season for the <a href="https://www.dailynorseman.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Minnesota Vikings</a> got started with a <span>Blair Walsh</span> kickoff, as the <a href="https://www.musiccitymiracles.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Tennessee Titans</a> won the toss and elected to take the ball first. <span>Marc Mariani</span> returned a short kickoff to the 29-yard line, and the game was underway. The Titans got across midfield thanks to a trio of run plays and a pass from <span>Marcus Mariota</span> to rookie Tajae Sharpe. DeMarco Murray then blasted over the left side for 12 yards to the Minnesota 35-yard line, and the Titans were threatening. However, <span>Brian Robison</span> put a stop to that, deflecting a pass on first down and getting a tackle for loss on second. The Titans couldn't convert on third down, and the Titans were forced to punt. <span>Brett Kern</span> put the ball into the end zone for a touchback, and the Vikings' first drive of 2016 started at their own 20-yard line.</p>
<p>Minnesota's drive started with. . .get this. . .a handoff to <span>Adrian Peterson</span> for a gain of one. <span>Shaun Hill</span> then found <span>Charles Johnson</span> for a gain of five, and that was all the Vikings could get as Hill's third-down pass for <span>Stefon Diggs</span> fell incomplete. The Vikings brought <span>Jeff Locke</span> in to punt, and Jeff Locke got a decent kick away. The punt went 57 yards in the air, and Mariani returned it to the Tennessee 37-yard line to set up Tennessee's second possession.</p>
<p>The Titans got things going early on the second drive, as <span>Mariota</span> found rookie running back <span>Derrick Henry</span> for a big gain down to the Minnesota 30-yard line. Henry caught the pass short on the right side of the field, and came all the way back to the left to get the big gain. Mariota then found <span>Rishard Matthews</span> to get the Titans into the red zone, and then ran one himself to get down to the 8-yard line. But, the Vikings' defense tightened, with <span>Eric Kendricks</span> picking up a tackle for loss to help stymie the Tennessee drive. The Titans called on <span>Ryan Succop</span> for a 28-yard field goal attempt, and he knocked it through to give Tennessee the first lead of the game at 3-0.</p>
<p>Succop's kickoff resulted in a touchback, and the Vikings started their second possession from their own 25-yard line (thanks to the new NFL rule). Hill started the drive off with an 8-yard pass to <span>Diggs</span>, and Peterson picked up a first down on his second carry of the day. Hill then found Diggs again for 12 more yards to get the Vikings a first down to near midfield. Peterson then picked up seven more to get the Vikings into Tennessee territory at the 46-yard line. The Vikings then found themselves facing 3rd-and-2, and Hill converted with a 10-yard pass to <span>Kyle Rudolph</span> to move the chains. Hill then found Diggs for another 12 yards down to the Tennessee 22-yard line. Peterson then hit a 9-yard run to finish the quarter.</p>
<p>As we move to the second quarter of play, the Vikings are looking at 3rd-and-1 from the Tennessee 13-yard line, trailing 3-0. Can the Vikings get some points on the board? Join us for the second quarter of play!</p>
https://www.dailynorseman.com/2016/9/11/12878316/minnesota-vikings-tennessee-titans-second-quarter-open-threadChristopher Gates