Minnesota Vikings: 4 Steps to Beating the Lions
By Luke Sims
Oct 4, 2015; Denver, CO, USA; Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson (28) is tackled for a loss by Denver Broncos outside linebacker DeMarcus Ware (94) during the first half at Sports Authority Field at Mile High. Mandatory Credit: Chris Humphreys-USA TODAY Sports
2) Will the Minnesota Vikings guards please step up?
The big news for the Detroit Lions this offseason was losing Ndamukong Suh and Nick Fairley to free agency. Even with both of them gone, the defensive line is still playing pretty well.
That’s a problem for the Minnesota Vikings offensive line, who must step up if they want to be contenders, and especially for the guards.
Guard is an overlooked position in a lot of football analysis and tends to get the light shined on it only when something bad is happening. Well, something bad is happening with the Vikings guards. Usually that’s in the pass game, but in the case of the Vikings, it’s the run game.
Brandon Fusco and Michael Harris have been lackluster at best for much of the season when it comes to opening holes for the running game. Even the great Adrian Peterson has struggled to find running room behind these two and it makes picking a side or going up the middle incredibly difficult for the Vikings run game.
Of course, when Peterson is on a team he will find a way to break one or two for a big gain each week, but if the offensive line can step up a bit then he will be an even more effective runner and that won’t force the Vikings to pass over 30 times like last week’s game against the Kansas City Chiefs. That isn’t what the Vikings are built to rely on and in order to get back to the run game as the focal point, the two guards need to step up.
The offensive line has been a disappointment so far this season and this week it is especially important for the guard positions to step up and prove their worth.
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