After a loss to the Packers on Monday night, the Minnesota Vikings will miss the playoffs for the 3rd time in 4 years. An even more telling stat is the fact that the Vikings haven’t been above .500 since 2019. Minnesota fans have every reason to be upset. Yet, there seems to be to many people to blame. Kirk Cousins, Mike Zimmer, and Rick Spielman all deserve criticism for Minnesota’s failings. Many fans are calling for all 3 to lose their jobs in the 2022 off-season.
But completely blowing up an organization rarely works. The New York Jets, Houston Texans, and Jacksonville Jaguars are the perfect example of that. So how do the Minnesota Vikings move on from this disappointing season? Who deserves most of the blame? It’s a complicated answer. Let’s take a look at the people responsible for Minnesota’s failings and how the Vikings can move on from them.
Kirk Cousins
Kirk Cousins has been a polarizing figure since being signed by the Vikings in 2018. Cousins was signed after the Vikings lost in the NFC Championship game and was meant to be the final piece of a Super Bowl caliber team. Many people had high hopes for the Minnesota Vikings after the signing. But, the 2018 season would end in bitter disappointment after Minnesota failed to make the playoffs. After Cousins led the team to a 2019 playoff victory, the Vikings extended him for another 2 years.
After the extension, the Vikings missed the playoffs in 2 back-to-back seasons. Cousins’ extension puts the Vikings in a tough spot. Minnesota can either trade Cousins, extend him, or take $45 Million in dead cap. The Vikings aren’t likely going to let Cousins account for that much money, so that leaves a difficult choice ahead; extend or trade Cousins. But is Kirk Cousins really worth extending?
By the numbers, Cousins looks well worth the extension. Kirk consistently puts up strong numbers every year. Despite his flashy numbers though, Cousins win-loss record reveals more. Even more telling is Cousins’ losing record against winning teams. After spending 4 seasons with Minnesota, Cousins will have only led the Vikings to the playoffs once. Cousins puts up flashy numbers against inferior teams but is incapable of winning against tough opponents. This might be the easiest decision to make this off-season for the Vikings. Trade Kirk Cousins and try to get a quarterback with some potential. Cousins simply just can’t get the job done.
Mike Zimmer
The Vikings hired Mike Zimmer in 2014. Zimmer was a good hire at the time, as a defensive minded head coach. Zimmer’s defenses continually improved until the 2017 season, when the Vikings’ defense peaked. Since then, Zimmer’s defenses have steadily declined. In 2021, the Vikings’ defense was horrible. A lack of quality cornerbacks and defensive ends has hurt the Vikings over the last 2 years. While Zimmer has a winning record as the head coach, his playoff record leaves much to be desired. Since 2014, the Vikings have made the playoffs 3 times. They only have 2 playoff wins to show for it. Would the Vikings be better off letting Zimmer go?
Zimmer’s tenure as Vikings’ head coach will be defined as what happened before and after Minnesota signed Kirk Cousins. Before Cousins, Zimmer was much better at beating winning teams. After Cousins, Zimmer has struggled when it’s mattered the most. Cousins’ signing also falls in line with when Minnesota’s defense took a dip. After Kirk was signed, Minnesota’s defense gradually got worse. Mike Zimmer predicted as much back in 2018.
At it’s best, Zimmer and Cousins’ relationship has been distant. At it’s worse, it’s been downright explosive. The two getting in a shoving match earlier this season says enough. Zimmer has often showed a willingness and even a desire to work against the offense. He’s famously called out quarterbacks Case Keenum, Kellen Mond, and even Kirk Cousins himself. Back in 2016, Zimmer called his offensive line “soft”. But whenever Zimmer has been asked about his struggling defense, he has no shortage of excuses or stats to back them up.
There is no doubt that Mike Zimmer is a great defensive mind. Zimmer has often proven he only cares about defense though. Hiring a defensive head coach made sense in 2014. But it’s not 2014 anymore. High flying offenses rules the NFL. Having a strong defense is starting to matter less and less every year. If the Vikings want to stay relevant in the NFL, they need to let Mike Zimmer go.
Rick Spielman
Rick Spielman became the general manager of the Vikings in 2012, but he’s been with the organization since 2006. Spielman has proven excellent at 2 things: acquiring draft capital and putting together excellent roasters. On paper, the current Vikings’ roaster looks like it has top 5 offense potential. Over the past 2 years, Spielman has made 26 picks in the 2020 and the 2021 drafts. However, there’s more to unpack here.
What looks like a great offense on paper has often failed to win games. Coaching can take the blame for some of that. But you still have to examine the person who put it together to begin with. Spielman was the person who decided to sign Cousins in 2018. Cousins has proven he isn’t an effective leader and that he can’t build chemistry in an offense. In 2018, signing Cousins made sense. Extending Cousins in 2020 however was a puzzling decision, considering Kirk had already showed his flaws.
Spielman’s draft picks reveal even more. How useful is having 26 draft picks if only 4 of them work out? From the 2021 draft, only Christian Darrisaw stands out as a potentially great pick. From the 2020 draft, Justin Jefferson, KJ Osborn, and Ezra Cleveland are the only stand outs. Having a lot of picks is great, but Spielman may be missing potentially great talent in the 1st round by trading back. Most recently, the Vikings passed on a chance to get Justin Fields because trading up would be to costly. A franchise quarterback could be a game changer for Minnesota. Spielman decided his draft picks were more important than that possibility.
Now it’s time to address the elephant in the room. Spielman consistently puts together one of the worst offensive lines in football. Players like Dakota Dozier, Oli Udoh, Dru Samia, and Mason Cole are great rotational back up offensive linemen. Yet, players like this always find a way to start on Spielman’s offensive line. Despite the struggles, the Vikings haven’t signed a big name offensive linemen in years. Considering Kirk Cousins plays best when protected, it sometimes seems like Spielman is setting Kirk up for failure. Building a consistently terrible offensive line with a quarterback that needs protection is a fireable offense alone.
How Do The Vikings Move On?
Kirk Cousins and Mike Zimmer need to go. Cousins has proven who he is as a quarterback far to many times. Leading the Vikings to 1 playoff appearance in 4 seasons in inexcusable. Minnesota needs real leadership and Cousins can’t provide that.
Mike Zimmer has proven to many times he’s out of touch in today’s offensive league. High flying offenses excel, yet Zimmer insists on conservative play calling that focuses on running the ball. The defense is now Minnesota’s biggest liability and Zimmer isn’t able to fix it. An offensive head coach might be able to do great things with an offense packed with talent.
Despite Spielman’s flaws, the Vikings should look to keep him for another year. Blowing up a whole front office rarely works and can often lead to a state of limbo where a team is constantly cycling through new general managers. Spielman has been able to put together a good roaster and draft some decent talent. However, Spielman needs to rebuild the offensive line. There’s no excuse for the offensive line to be this consistently awful. If no improvements are made to the offensive line, Spielman should be gone in 2 years.
The Minnesota Vikings have a lot of difficult decisions to make in the 2022 off-season. This roaster has to much great talent to waste. If the Vikings can get it right in the upcoming off-season, they stand a chance at being a contender in 2022.
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