Vikings @ Chargers
Final Score: Vikings 27, Chargers 20
Writer: Justin Herrera (@Semtexmex93 on Twitter)
The Minnesota Vikings came into Southern California to play one of the best young quarterbacks in the game, Justin Herbert, and the LA Chargers. This game was touted as one of the best of the week and it lived up to the hype. The Vikings were led by impressive outings from Dalvin Cook, Justin Jefferson, and their defense was able to outlast the Chargers in this game. The Game result was Minnesota Vikings 27, LA Chargers 20.
Minnesota Vikings
Quarterback
Kirk Cousins: 25/37, 294 yards, 2 TD | 4 carries, -3 yards
Justin Jefferson hauls in a 26-yard pass from Kirk Cousins pic.twitter.com/MsEGK35pbO
— Sean Borman (@SeanBormanNFL) November 14, 2021
Kirk Cousins had some early struggles in this game, namely a strip-sack that happened on the second drive of the game. Cousins came into his own on the next drive, completing four of five passes for 47 yards and helping the Vikings get into field goal position. After the Vikings’ defense took away the ball, Cousins lobbed it to Justin Jefferson for 21 yards, which led to a Tyler Conklin five-yard TD reception.
The second drive of the third quarter was where Cousins got on track, as he attacked the defense deep with a dart to Justin Jeffersons and short to Adam Thielen who stretched his catch to 19 yards. This set up a one-yard TD to Conklin, his second of the game. On the next drive, Cousins was perfect on his throw, completing 4 of 4 passes for 46 yards and setting up a one-yard rushing TD for Dalvin Cook. Cousins showed his experience in the final four minutes of the game, turning a third and six into a 27-yard pass to Jefferson. This play extended the drive. Cousins would face another tough third down and threw an 18-yard dart to Thielen down the middle. This set up a fourth and two that Cook took care of, essentially icing the game. Cousins looked clutch in this game and is someone who can win those all-important games for the Vikings and fantasy managers.
Running Back
Dalvin Cook: 24 carries, 94 yards, TD | 5 targets, 3 receptions, 24 yards
Alexander Mattison: 4 carries, 16 yards| 1 target, 1 reception, 24 yards
Stretching it across for the score@dalvincook
📺: @NFLonFOX pic.twitter.com/Dx4xUa8Ri0
— Minnesota Vikings (@Vikings) November 14, 2021
Dalvin Cook took full advantage of the worst run defense in the league. Cook did a great job running the ball up today, going for 94 yards on 24 carries. His best run was his goal-line run for a TD. It was stuffed at the line but Cook kept his feet going to push the pile into the endzone. Cook also caught three passes for 24 yards, including a 15-yard catch and run. The Vikings always seem to do better when Cook is on his game. Alexander Mattison on the other hand may have had the best catch and run of the game. He caught a dump-off pass and took it 24 yards while breaking four to five tackles in the process. It was beast mode-esque.
Wide Receiver/Tight End
Justin Jefferson hauls in a 26-yard pass from Kirk Cousins pic.twitter.com/MsEGK35pbO
— Sean Borman (@SeanBormanNFL) November 14, 2021
Justin Jefferson: 11 targets, 9 receptions, 143 yards
Adam Thielen: 7 targets, 5 receptions, 65 yards
Chris Herndon: 2 targets, 1 reception, 14 yards
CJ Ham: 3 targets, 3 receptions, 13 yards
Tyler Conklin: 5 targets, 3 receptions, 11 yards, 2 TD
KJ Osborn: 1 target
Justin Jefferson was the guy in this game, and no one could stop him in the Chargers secondary. Jefferson averaged 15.8 yards per catch and was all over the field in this game. His most impressive catch of the game came with 3 minutes left in the fourth as he laid out for a 27-yard pass along the sideline getting both feet in. Overall Jefferson took advantage of his matchup against rookie Asante Samuel, with his superior route running and excellent footwork he was able to handle one of the best secondaries. Adam Thielen on the other hand was pretty inefficient until the second half, as he had 2 catches for 12 yards in the first half and 3 catches for 53 yards in the second half. Thielen was forgotten in the game because Jefferson was so good today. Tyler Conklin got his first multi-TD (1, 5) week of the season, and KJ Osborn was a non-factor.
We don’t usually cover Defense in these writeups, but linebacker Eric Kendricks deserves some recognition in this game as a game-changer. He got to Justin Herbert on the very first drive for a 15-yard loss. Kendricks also claimed an interception while covering Keenan Allen. Topping off his impressive day with eight tackles, he was a real beast in this game.
Justin Herbert throws a pick to Eric Kendricks. https://t.co/PiroPhqJaZ
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) November 14, 2021
Los Angeles Chargers
Quarterback
Justin Herbert: 20/34, 195 yards, TD, INT | 2 carries, 22 yards
Justin Herbert fits it in there before the elevator closes pic.twitter.com/Qq7rLbZt9n
— Steven Ruiz (@theStevenRuiz) November 15, 2021
Justin Herbert started the game off rough, getting sacked for 15 yards on his first drive and three drives later getting picked off by Eric Kendricks. It looked like we were getting the Herbert that got beat by the Ravens and Patriots. After the interception, Herbert went to work, scrambling for 17 yards, and after getting the first down Keenan Allen drew a P.I. call that put the Chargers in the red zone. After a couple of short passes, the Chargers would score on a one-yard run by Larry Rountree III.
Herbert started the second half on fire, connecting with Allen for 22 yards, then hooking up with Donald Parham for 17 yards on the next play. Herbert would finish the drive completing five of seven passes for 62 yards and a TD pass to Austin Ekeler. The next couple of drives Herbert would find himself getting sacked and missing his receivers on third-down passes. The last drive showed us Herbert’s, arm talent by forcing a ball through the narrowest of windows to Allen for 26 yards. This led to a field goal, and unfortunately the end of the game for Herbert as they never got the ball back. Herbert still has to learn how to win consistently at this point in his career but is considered a rare talent at this point.
Running Back
Austin Ekeler: 11 carries, 44 yards | 6 targets, 3 receptions, 15 yards, TD
Larry Rountree III: 5 carries, 10 yards, TD
Joshua Kelley: 1 carry, 6 yards
Austin Ekeler managers are sick 🤢 pic.twitter.com/k75XPckbph
— PFF Fantasy & Betting (@PFF_Fantasy) November 14, 2021
Austin Ekeler ran the ball as well as he has all year long. His biggest crux all season has been that this offense has been hesitant to give him a 20 carry workload every game. If there was a game to bring out a bigger workload for Ekeler it might’ve been this one, as he was averaging four YPC and looked consistent. He wasn’t just breaking off big runs, his longest of the day was nine yards, he was just grinding the defense down. Ekeler did get six targets in this game and turned them into three receptions for 15 yards and a TD. The most frustrating thing about this game for Ekeler fantasy managers is that Larry Roundtree III scored the rushing TD in this game
Wide Receiver/Tight End
Keenan Allen: 11 targets, 8 receptions, 98 yards
Mike Williams: 6 targets, 4 receptions, 33 yards
Josh Palmer: 4 targets, 3 receptions, 22 yards
Donald Parham: 2 targets, 1 reception, 17 yards
Jared Cook: 3 targets, 1 reception, 10 yards
Jalen Guyton: 1 target
Justin Herbert dropping in an Over throw to Keenan Allen. The trajectory of his throws never make sense. pic.twitter.com/NzQvCxOdPG
— Nate Tice (@Nate_Tice) November 14, 2021
Keenan Allen was the Chargers’ version of Justin Jefferson in this game. He was everywhere in this game attacking all levels of the defense. Allen’s most impressive catch was a 26 yarder that was heavily covered, but somehow Herbert fit the pass in the right spot and Allen came up with it. Mike Williams, while he didn’t have impressive numbers, looked good running out there, and a lot of people forgot he’s been hampered by a knee injury since the Baltimore game and had been seeing fewer targets and less production since that game. This wasn’t a huge step up, but like I said he finally looked like he was running well out there which could mean he’ll be due for another big game soon. Josh Palmer got four targets in this game, not officially a viable number three wideout in this offense, but with Herbert as his QB, he can get fed going forward this season. Jared Cook and Donald Parham Jr remain in a tight end struggle for relevance in this offense.
— Justin Herrera (@Semtexmex93 on Twitter)