AP Cost the Vikings

[crestmount]

I know many have focussed on Blair Walsh, and the laces being out on that last FG attempt for Minnesota losing yesterday, but I reckon the major play that led to their loss was AP fumbling the ball.  Seattle only scored a FG from the resulting drive, but that 3 points made all the difference.  IF AP holds onto the ball the missed FG isn't even a factor.  All in all, AP probably had one of his worst games ever, and wasn't even a factor in the Minnesota offence.

[oldunclemark]

Seattle has the No.1 rush defense in the NFL

[Jules]

I am glad they are out. I wanted Seattle in Carolina for a better game.

[tvturner]

It was Jeff Locke's fault.

[BOTT]

He has a history of fumbling in the playoffs.....ask a Saints fan (just not Boogie).

[Malakai432]

1 hour ago, crestmount said:

I know many have focussed on Blair Walsh, and the laces being out on that last FG attempt for Minnesota losing yesterday, but I reckon the major play that led to their loss was AP fumbling the ball.  Seattle only scored a FG from the resulting drive, but that 3 points made all the difference.  IF AP holds onto the ball the missed FG isn't even a factor.  All in all, AP probably had one of his worst games ever, and wasn't even a factor in the Minnesota offence.

 

Peterson played like dog excrament but that missed kick was ludicrous and I'm not talking about the rapper.

[NFLfan]

1 hour ago, crestmount said:

I know many have focussed on Blair Walsh, and the laces being out on that last FG attempt for Minnesota losing yesterday, but I reckon the major play that led to their loss was AP fumbling the ball.  Seattle only scored a FG from the resulting drive, but that 3 points made all the difference.  IF AP holds onto the ball the missed FG isn't even a factor.  All in all, AP probably had one of his worst games ever, and wasn't even a factor in the Minnesota offence.

 

I agree. Not only did he have the fumble that led to Seattle's go-ahead FG, he did not do anything in the run game. He tries to get a home run when all we need on each down is a few yards. Many of us (Vikings fans) thought the offense looked much better when McKinnon was in the game in place of AP. 

[Jules]

Peterson also fumbled a few times in the NFCCG against the Saints in 2009. Despite cries of BOUNTY......Peterson kinda sucked a few times in that too.

 

He isn't always Mr. Clutch.

[southwest1]

I was stunned when RW retrieved that botched snap of the ball, threw it to Baldwin, & made something out of nothing. I don't even blame AP or Walsh. Weird stuff always happens in the Playoffs man. It just does. Routine actions you've down a million times before takes on monumental significance in the 4th qtr in January. 

 

I'm proud of Mike Zimmer, his staff, & his players. They had an incredible year. Z-ims will use this crippling loss as fuel & motivation for future seasons. The Vikings & that smothering defense are for real. 

 

Nice season Minnesota! You & your fanbase have nothing to be ashamed of. Hold your head high. You beat Aaron Rogers at Lambeau Field to win the NFC North crown. Remember that. 

 

I know I'm tough on special teams players especially FG kickers since they never have full practices & they are paid to make clutch kicks in crunch time. I feel bad for Walsh & I hope he doesn't receive any death threats over his miss. He doesn't deserve that. He's a human being & we all screw up every now & then. Generally after 2 hours I can calm down & be reasonable & rationale. The Vikings aren't my favorite squad, but I love me some Zimmer man.  

[-JJ-]

It wasn't AP, it was the Vikes game calling. When a fan knows from the formation look and down/distance that AP will get the ball and probably everyone in the stadium never mind the opposing defense then that is a recipe for stopping him. He is a good RB but that's not enough. You have to mix it up enough so that his runs are less determined in advance. That and the Oline has to create the holes.

[southwest1]

I was watching 'the Rich Einsen Show' today on the Audience Channel on Direct TV & he showed You Tube clips of Minnesota fans freaking out after the FG miss. 1 guy threw his cane & Santa hat, 1 woman broke her remote slamming it down hard, 1 kid smashed his surround sound speaker thru a glass table, 1 guy hid in his bathtub, & 1 guy told Walsh "thanks for killing my childhood dreams." 

 

I've been there man. It's a crushing blow. Just like when the Colts lost to New Orleans in 2009. I couldn't breath & I felt like Suh just kicked me in the family jewels. It was awful man. 

 

Hang in there Vikings fans. It will never go away, but this incident will make your team tougher, tested, & more resilient down the stretch next year. 

[amfootball]

Seattle was the more experienced team and made all the plays at the end. Wilson's scramble and throw on the botched snap was THE play of the game along with the missed FG. It was not a weak fumble by AP. Two guys grabbed each of his arms and made him into a wishbone and ripped the ball out.

[SteelCityColt]

AP didn't have his best game certainly, but he didn't exactly have an awful season and did somewhat contribute to them being in the playoffs in the first place. 

[NFLfan]

 

2 hours ago, SteelCityColt said:

AP didn't have his best game certainly, but he didn't exactly have an awful season and did somewhat contribute to them being in the playoffs in the first place. 

 

I don't agree, SCC and I rarely disagree with you.  Anyone who followed the Vikings this year could tell you that his impact was not as great as his numbers would seem to indicate. If you subtract the "home runs", you will see that he was just ordinary, IMHO. (I can compile the numbers and share them to you later.) You know me -- I am not reactionary.  It is not the fumble that bothers me. It is AP's lack of attention to detail and understanding of what the team needs from him that bothers me. Many of us Vikings fans are saying the same thing. 

 

The Vikings won because of their defense and coaching. We were the least penalized team. Zimmer had the team prepared to face some of the best teams in the NFL and nearly beat Denver and Arizona, two teams that may play in the SB.  Many people said they did not beat anyone but there were not too many teams with winning records. The last time the Chiefs lost it was to the Vikings.... Anyway, that's it for now.

[Narcosys]

16 hours ago, crestmount said:

I know many have focussed on Blair Walsh, and the laces being out on that last FG attempt for Minnesota losing yesterday, but I reckon the major play that led to their loss was AP fumbling the ball.  Seattle only scored a FG from the resulting drive, but that 3 points made all the difference.  IF AP holds onto the ball the missed FG isn't even a factor.  All in all, AP probably had one of his worst games ever, and wasn't even a factor in the Minnesota offence.

This is true, but the Vikings had the chance to win.  It is no guarantee that they won if AP held on to the ball.  It is a guarantee they would have won if Walsh hadn't missed the field goal.  The laces were in btw.

 

Laces...OUT.....daaannnnn.

[SteelCityColt]

40 minutes ago, NFLfan said:

 

 

I don't agree, SCC and I rarely disagree with you.  Anyone who followed the Vikings this year could tell you that his impact was not as great as his numbers would seem to indicate. If you subtract the "home runs", you will see that he was just ordinary, IMHO. (I can compile the numbers and share them to you later.) You know me -- I am not reactionary.  It is not the fumble that bothers me. It is AP's lack of attention to detail and understanding of what the team needs from him that bothers me. Many of us Vikings fans are saying the same thing. 

 

The Vikings won because of their defense and coaching. We were the least penalized team. Zimmer had the team prepared to face some of the best teams in the NFL and nearly beat Denver and Arizona, two teams that may play in the SB.  Many people said they did not beat anyone but there were not too many teams with winning records. The last time the Chiefs lost it was to the Vikings.... Anyway, that's it for now.

 

I of course bow to your superior Vikings knowledge as you've certainly watched them more than me. 

 

However...

 

I've never liked the "if you take away his X runs" school of analysis. Once you start cherry picking stats then you're devaluing them somewhat. But ok let's take away his longest run from each game:

 

 

Still not too shabby.

 

Put it this way, Colts fans would be willing to sacrifice kittens for a runner with those numbers.

 

Not necessarily disagreeing with you, but if your a team that's won games off the back of your D a running game is going to be important and he's made up a large chunk of it. 

[NFLfan]

1 hour ago, SteelCityColt said:

 

I of course bow to your superior Vikings knowledge as you've certainly watched them more than me. 

 

However...

 

I've never liked the "if you take away his X runs" school of analysis. Once you start cherry picking stats then you're devaluing them somewhat. But ok let's take away his longest run from each game:

 

 

Still not too shabby.

 

Put it this way, Colts fans would be willing to sacrifice kittens for a runner with those numbers.

 

Not necessarily disagreeing with you, but if your a team that's won games off the back of your D a running game is going to be important and he's made up a large chunk of it. 

 

Too many people rely on stats to determine how well someone played.  If AP ran for 80 yards on one carry and for 40 yards total on 30 carries the rest of the way, he would have 120 yards for the game which looks good on paper but does not help the offense much. When you need to sustain drives, you don't need someone looking for the home run. If you watched the games, believe me, he would frustrate you too. 

 

I do think he would have played better if the play calling was different. I agree very much with JJ's earlier post.  Norv Turner did not mix up the plays well enough.  Almost every first down was a run play, followed by another one, leaving the offense in third and long in most sets of downs. So, I don't put all the blame on AP... There is a poll on one Vikings site asking who do we want to keep, Norv or AP.  I voted AP.

[amfootball]

17 minutes ago, NFLfan said:

 

Too many people rely on stats to determine how well someone played.  If AP ran for 80 yards on one carry and for 40 yards total on 30 carries the rest of the way, he would have 120 yards for the game which looks good on paper but does not help the offense much. When you need to sustain drives, you don't need someone looking for the home run. If you watched the games, believe me, he would frustrate you too. 

 

I do think he would have played better if the play calling was different. I agree very much with JJ's earlier post.  Norv Turner did not mix up the plays well enough.  Almost every first down was a run play, followed by another one, leaving the offense in third and long in most sets of downs. So, I don't put all the blame on AP... There is a poll on one Vikings site asking who do we want to keep, Norv or AP.  I voted AP.

I think your personnel is limited on the offensive side which is why Norv's play calling can seem vanilla. Also Teddy takes a lot of sacks so Norv is more for positive gains then negative downs. Maybe this off-season you get more play makers for Teddy.

[ColtRider]

 

I get the AP point & fumble. However, missing that chip shot FG to move on was devastating. I feel extremely bad for Walsh, the fans, and the entire Vikings organization. 

 

Keep on keepin' on, Minnesota. Mike Zimmer & Co. will represent the NFC in a SB some day.

[LJpalmbeacher2]

14 hours ago, -JJ- said:

It wasn't AP, it was the Vikes game calling. When a fan knows from the formation look and down/distance that AP will get the ball and probably everyone in the stadium never mind the opposing defense then that is a recipe for stopping him. He is a good RB but that's not enough. You have to mix it up enough so that his runs are less determined in advance. That and the Oline has to create the holes.

 

Exactly. You have a great rb that's not getting the holes because Seahawks D is good and their gameplan is to stop him. 

Whoever is calling the plays Failed to take advantage of Seattle`s vulnerability to the pass. Bridgewater is more than capable of throwing the ball. It's hard to win without scoring a td.

[-JJ-]

7 minutes ago, LJpalmbeacher said:

 

Exactly. You have a great rb that's not getting the holes because Seahawks D is good and their gameplan is to stop him. 

Whoever is calling the plays Failed to take advantage of Seattle`s vulnerability to the pass. Bridgewater is more than capable of throwing the ball. It's hard to win without scoring a td.

yes I failed to mention Seattle defense- sometimes you just have to give credit where due.

I think I saw 1, maybe 2, cases with QB under center with AP 8 yards back and it was a play action pass.

And then 1 or 2 cases in shotgun with a handoff to AP. The rest were so obvious.

[amfootball]

8 minutes ago, -JJ- said:

yes I failed to mention Seattle defense- sometimes you just have to give credit where due.

I think I saw 1, maybe 2, cases with QB under center with AP 8 yards back and it was a play action pass.

And then 1 or 2 cases in shotgun with a handoff to AP. The rest were so obvious.

Minny had done enough to win the game. The last drive was beautiful. Right to the 10. And then the kicker ... sigh.

[NFLfan]

47 minutes ago, amfootball said:

I think your personnel is limited on the offensive side which is why Norv's play calling can seem vanilla. Also Teddy takes a lot of sacks so Norv is more for positive gains then negative downs. Maybe this off-season you get more play makers for Teddy.

 

Maybe, but you clearly don't watch the Vikings. When Norv mixed up the playcalling as in the Arizona game, the offense looked much better against a very good Arizona defense. You were the same person who said we matched up so poorly against the Packers and how we would be crushed in Week 17, but when we beat the Packers,  there was not a word from you. That was not a surprise because you rarely admit when you are wrong. However, had the Vikings lost, I can almost guarantee that you would have said something. You also said Seattle would annihilate us and we were a missed 27-yard FG from winning. So, 

 

[amfootball]

1 minute ago, NFLfan said:

 

Maybe, but you clearly don't watch the Vikings. When Norv mixed up the playcalling as in the Arizona game, the offense looked much better against a very good Arizona defense. You were the same person who said we matched up so poorly against the Packers and how we would be crushed in Week 17, but when we beat the Packers,  there was not a word from you. That was not a surprise because you rarely admit when you are wrong. However, had the Vikings lost, I can almost guarantee that you would have said something. You also said Seattle would annihilate us and we were a missed 27-yard FG from winning. So, 

 

I never said I watched the Vikings. I was commenting on the playoff game which I did watch. You were limited by personnel and the match up with Seattle and it being below zero did not help either. I though overall the game was managed perfectly by Minny even with APs fumble. The last drive was brilliant but foiled by the kicker. Playoff games often come to just a play or two.

 

Minny played great verse the Packers. Limited their offense much better and made enough plays to win. I think Seattle would have won more easily if the game was not below zero. Both offenses were not able to do much through the air because of it. All and all though a tremendous season from the Vikes. As I have told you before, I like Teddy a lot. He has the IT factor. Once he learns to get rid of the ball quicker and not take the sacks he will be on the same level as Wilson and Cam IMO.

[21isSuperman]

It's a team game.  Very rarely does one guy win or lose a game for you.  The offense didn't score a single touchdown all game, so there's plenty of blame to go around.

[SteelCityColt]

2 hours ago, NFLfan said:

 

Too many people rely on stats to determine how well someone played.  If AP ran for 80 yards on one carry and for 40 yards total on 30 carries the rest of the way, he would have 120 yards for the game which looks good on paper but does not help the offense much. When you need to sustain drives, you don't need someone looking for the home run. If you watched the games, believe me, he would frustrate you too. 

 

I do think he would have played better if the play calling was different. I agree very much with JJ's earlier post.  Norv Turner did not mix up the plays well enough.  Almost every first down was a run play, followed by another one, leaving the offense in third and long in most sets of downs. So, I don't put all the blame on AP... There is a poll on one Vikings site asking who do we want to keep, Norv or AP.  I voted AP.

 

Oh sure, no one stat or even an entirety of stats can tell the full story of a football game, but they can be good tools for analysis. To the point you were making I was just showing even with taking away his biggest run each game (which is the normal pattern for a RB IMO - grind,grind,grind, bust one etc.) he still had a fairly decent season by any standard.

 

Don't disagree though that the fumble contributed as much to you losing as the missed kick. Ahh Blair Walsh... only he'll know how he missed that one. 

[jet1968]

Blair Walsh missed an important field goal. But he is also the only Vikings player that scored any points. So if I was to place blame then it would be with the offense as a whole.