Vikings Keys: T.J. All the Way
Credit: Jamie Sabau-Imagn Images
The Minnesota Vikings last played on Thursday in Week 8, and it’s been a wild 10 days between games for them. They got the extreme lows in finding out they lost Christian Darrisaw for the season, then swung a move to get Cam Robinson from the Jacksonville Jaguars to replace him. Now they’ll also be welcoming back T.J. Hockenson, who is finally recovered from last season’s knee injury.
So what do the Vikings have to do to snap their two-game losing mini-skid against the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday?
Let Sam Darnold Play With His New Toy
Sam Darnold has averaged 230 yards and two touchdowns per game in his tenure as the Vikings’ QB, and he’s done all of this with having Josh Oliver and Johnny Mundt as his top tight end options. Now, Hockenson’s back as one of the most dynamic threats at the position in the NFL.
Since arriving in Minnesota, Hockenson has averaged 59.1 yards per game with eight touchdowns in 25 contests. Over the past three years, only Travis Kelce, George Kittle, and Brock Bowers average more yards per game. The Colts get a lot of ink for how poor their run defense is, but they’re also giving up the ninth-most yards in the NFL to tight ends.
This is the perfect opportunity for Darnold to build chemistry with his latest weapon, and Hockenson’s presence should unlock a new level for the offense.
Robinson Must Vibe With Vikes
The Vikings went out and got Robinson after Jared Verse and the Los Angeles Rams pass rush spent all night flustering Darnold, particularly in the second half, once Darrisaw exited the game. He doesn’t have a lot of time to get acclimated to Minnesota’s offensive line, but he needs to be effective to allow the Vikings to do what they want to do on offense: Take deep shots.
Especially to Jordan Addison, who inadvertently caused some panic this week after posting “FREE 3” on Instagram this week, which the receiver worked to debunk as a sign of discontent. Addison has the third-highest average depth of target in the NFL among receivers with 10 or more targets, getting thrown to at an average of 17.4 yards downfield. It might be a good idea for Darnold to give a little bit of extra love Addison’s way this week, just in case. But that can’t happen if the QB is constantly under fire, and Robinson must prevent that from happening.
Get To the Statue
Likewise, it would be a very good idea to get in the face of Joe Flacco, who is less than three months away from celebrating his 40th birthday. Flacco was never a mobile quarterback even in his heyday, but since leaving Baltimore in 2019, he’s taken 56 sacks in his 24 starts — a pace of about 40 over the course of a 17-game season.
That’s a huge change of pace for Anthony Richardson, whose career sacks would amount to about 27 per 17 games, and comes with rushing upside Flacco could never dream of. Flacco’s made big plays between last season with the Cleveland Browns and this season with the Colts, throwing 20 touchdowns to 9 interceptions, including a 7-to-1 rate in Indy. Still, Brian Flores’ defense can and should be able to get to a near-quadragenarian quarterback and make his life miserable on Sunday.
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