Vikings at Eagles: 3 things we learned
By John Buhler
The Philadelphia Eagles defeated the Minnesota Vikings in Week 7, 21-10. Here are the three biggest takeaways from this NFC showdown.
In the marquee game of the 1:00 PM ET slot in Week 7, the Philadelphia Eagles handed the Minnesota Vikings their first loss of the season, 21-10. It wasn’t particularly close, as the Eagles defense devoured the Vikings offense.
Entering Week 8 of the 2016 NFL season, every team in the NFL has now suffered at least one loss on the season. Philadelphia improves to 4-2, while Minnesota falls to 5-1. Here are the three biggest takeaways from this NFC showdown.
1. Bye weeks are the worst for momentum.
More than any season in recent memory, bye weeks are absolutely ruining teams’ momentum in 2016. The Vikings were looking like world-beaters at 5-0 before their Week 6 bye. Minnesota came out in Week 7 and lost to the Eagles on the road badly.
The same bad bye week juju got in the way of the Eagles’ hot start. Philadelphia was 3-0 entering their bye in Week 4. The Eagles would then proceed to lose their next two games before beating the Vikings to move to 4-2.
Teams are going on their byes every week now. Don’t be surprised to see a team playing well lose its luster after their bye week. Will this 2016 trend have an adverse affect on the 5-1 Dallas Cowboys?
2. Carson Wentz is still a work in progress.
Now that NFL teams have gotten tape on him, rookie starting quarterback for the Eagles Carson Wentz has crashed back to earth. His team won on Sunday, but he was terrible for Philadelphia. The Vikings have a great defense, but his stat line was atrocious.
Wentz completed 16 of 28 passes for 138 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions. He also fumbled the ball three times, losing one of those hiccups. His quarterback rating as an awful 52.4. Most terrifying, his yards per pass attempt was a weak 4.9.
Eagles head coach Doug Pederson will gradually bring his rookie signal caller along, but he’s not showing that he can carry this team in 2016. That would be a huge get for the 2016 Eagles, but it’s jut not happening.
3. The Vikings offense has its limitations.
It was only a matter of time, but the Vikings have shown us that they have limitations with their offense in 2016. Sam Bradford isn’t going to do more than dink and dunk in Norv Turner’s offense. His 5.5 yards per attempt isn’t good enough for the Vikings to lean on this season.
Well, much of that has to do with the Vikings just not having great offensive personnel. Their offensive line is mediocre at best. Frankly, it’s bad most weeks. The Vikings struggle to run the football without Adrian Peterson in the backfield. Also, their receivers are middle of the pack.
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Can the Vikings still win the Super Bowl? Yes, their defense is that good. However, if they are going to bring the Lombardi Trophy to Minneapolis for the first time, this team will have to be the 2000 Baltimore Ravens, the 2002 Tampa Bay Buccaneers, or the 2015 Denver Broncos. All defensive teams, predominantly hindered by their offenses.