Preseason Week 3 Preview: Vikings vs Chargers
The Minnesota Vikings’ first home football game will be played at U.S. Bank Stadium and comes this Sunday, August 28th at noon Central Time, when the San Diego Chargers come to town. Although it may only be preseason, it is the Vikings’ third week and most fans consider it to closely resemble a regular season football game. Even so, most of the focus and attention will be directed towards U.S. Bank Stadium, the Vikings’ new home, with the game taking a back seat. Who they play will be of little consequence as fans will be more interested in checking out the new facility and concessions.
The Vikings are coming off one of the more dominating preseason defensive performances in recent memory, after defeating the Seattle Seahawks 18-11 in a tough rematch of last years’ Wild Card loss.
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The Chargers (1-1) are coming off a decisive defensive victory, 19-3, versus the Arizona Cardinals and limiting Pro Bowl quarterback, Carson Palmer, to just four of eight for 27 yards passing and one interception. The Chargers are thought by many to be much more improved this season with a healthy offense and a defense that could surprise many.
The Vikings hope this preseason matchup goes as well as the meeting between these two teams during the regular season last year. The Vikings came away with a 31-14 win, in which Adrian Peterson ran for 126 yards and two touchdowns. Chad Greenway also added a 91-yard interception returned for a touchdown off of a deflected pass from quarterback Philip Rivers.
What to Expect
As far as the game is concerned, expect the starters to play most of the first half. Otherwise, fans can expect many shots of the new stadium and plenty of interviews with past Vikings’ players. If Mike Zimmer sits Teddy Bridgewater for this one, he may have to find a much better reason this time around.
With Rivers at the helm, the Chargers have one of the premiere passing attacks in the NFL. Rivers ended 2015 second in passing with 4,729 passing yards. If Rivers plays on Sunday, look for them to pass the ball early and often.
What to Look For
The Chargers had the 27th ranked rushing defense in 2015. If the Vikings want to control the game and keep the Charger’s electrifying offense off of the field, they will need to run the ball effectively. Look for the Vikings to come out running in an effort to settle the offensive line in quicker than they were able to in the first two games.
Like the Vikings, the Chargers also had their share of injuries along the offensive front in 2015. Look for Everson Griffen to continue his dominance in the preseason versus the outmatched and inexperienced front five of the Chargers. San Diego’s offensive guards should also have their hands full with Linval Joseph as he continues to be the Viking’s “cookie monster” in the middle.
Essentials to Winning
Much like last year’s game, the Vikings have to run the ball efficiently and get after the opposing quarterback. Their defense needs to continue to play with the same the intensity in which they displayed in their first two preseason contests.
Keenan Allen crushed the Vikings defense in last season’s matchup, recording 12 grabs for 133 yards and two touchdowns. Stopping him may be impossible even though he is coming back from major injury. Limiting Allen’s big plays deep down field is the best chance the Vikings have to keep this one in check.
The kicking game will be essential to the team’s success in this one. The Chargers have two of the younger, yet more talented kicking specialists in punter Drew Kaser and kicker Josh Lambo. Blair Walsh and Jeff Locke will have to outduel the youngsters to not only help their team win but to ease the anxiety of the Vikings’ fanbase.
Possible Downfalls
If the Vikings are unable to run the ball, they could be in for a long night. As of this writing, Bridgewater and Hill have yet to throw a single pass since the Seahawks game.
Zimmer was also so fed up with practice yesterday that he called it nearly half an hour short, right after a bad snap sailed above the quarterback’s head. The Vikings will have to avoid this type of lackluster effort in order to win this preseason matchup.
Players to Spotlight
A major reason the Chargers are considered a defense on the rise is the play of inside linebacker, Denzel Perryman. Perryman was all over the field on Friday versus the Cardinals and nearly added a safety to his stats.
If Bridgewater sits this one out again, get ready to hear the name Brad Sorensen. Sorensen is a recent signee of the Vikings to provide some depth at the quarterback position. Sorensen finished his college career at Southern Utah with 9,445 passing yards and 61 touchdowns. As mentioned above, Hill and Bridgewater both have been sitting out practices with the first team reps going to Joel Stave.
Although the Chargers defeated the Cardinals handily Friday night, the only touchdown was scored by cornerback Brandon Flowers on a 25-yard pick-six. Flowers teams up with fellow defensive backs Jason Verrett, Jahleel Addae and Dwight Lowery to comprise an underrated ball-hawking secondary.
Kentrell Brothers has been receiving plenty of snaps this preseason and has yet to disappoint. According to Ben Goessling of ESPN, the rookie linebacker was a player that stood out in his mind in Thursday night’s game against Seattle.
Game Projection
Should the Vikings run the ball much like they did in last year’s contest, they could cruise to a victory handily. However, they have yet to prove to fans that they can amass large chunks of yardage running the ball. The Chargers as a defense allowed 288 yards rushing to the Tennessee Titans in their first preseason matchup, yet only gave up 63 yards to the Cardinals last weekend.
Look for the Vikings to continue to stick with the running game, especially if Stave and Sorensen see extended time at the helm. Stave regressed from week one to week two; his success will be determined by his ability to lean on the running game. Jerick McKinnon has been the focal point of the first-team rushing attack, yet has rushed 14 times for an underwhelming total of 29 yards.
The Viking defense will be licking their chops once again as their talent should be on display against a much maligned offensive line. The Chargers also lost second string tight end, Jeff Cumberland, to a season ending achilles injury that will have rookie, Hunter Henry, who is getting some added time. Henry was selected in the second round of the 2016 draft and considered by many a star in the waiting. It will be interesting to see how the Vikings defense matches up against the talented rookie and vice versa.
The third preseason game is usually considered a dress rehearsal and one the fans look forward to most as the team’s starters tend to see extended playing time. As tight lipped as Zimmer has been regarding the team’s injury situations, it is anybody’s guess as to who starts and who could potentially sit come kickoff.
Expect a close game yet again as both teams will try to run the ball in an effort to get their starting offensive lineman some much needed quality looks. In an unusual attempt to stay positive by this writer, the Vikings win 18-15 in an old fashioned kicker’s duel as these two grind it out on the field this Sunday.
Justin Ekstrom can be followed on Twitter @thesportscrib21 and be sure to follow and comment about vikings32 on Facebook and Twitter.
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