Sports Then and Now

Sam Bradford was a key addition following the injury to Teddy Bridgewater.

In 2015, the Minnesota Vikings surprised a lot of people, finishing 3^rd in the NFC with a record of 11-5. In the process, they upended archrival Green Bay for the NFC North title. Coming into the 2016 season, they were given a reasonable chance of making the playoffs, though no one was really predicting a repeat conference win over the Packers.

The teams chances of making another run for the playoffs took a serious hit early in the pre-season when starting QB Teddy Bridgewater went down with a season-ending injury. This was already an offense that struggle last season, finishing 4^th worst in the league with 321 YPG. The fact is receiver corps was young and inexperienced coming into the season didn’t figure to help matters much.

The one person the Vikings knew they could count on was All-Pro RB Adrian Peterson, who led the league in rushing in 2015 with 1,485 yards and 11 TDs. The ability to count on him lasted exactly five quarters as he too would go down with a season ending injury.

With two big blows to its playoff hopes for the season, Head Coach Mike Zimmer was called upon to begin doing damage control. The first thing the team did was go out and trade with the Philadelphia Eagles for veteran QB Sam Bradford. Often injured, Bradford was at least able to bring some starting expense to the table, something the Vikings couldn’t find internally.

Next up was to simplify the offense and try to limits mistakes. The thought was the defense was certainly good enough to keep games close, which could result in a few wins if the offense didn’t shoot itself in the foot. While this notion and winning with Bradford at QB seemed a long shot at best, a 5-0 record speaks volumes about never underestimating good defense in the NFL.

Heading into week #6, the Vikings still struggle on offense, ranking 3^rd worst in the league with 303 YPG. The really good news is they haven’t turned the ball over yet. That’s right. Bradford has thrown 6 TDs with no interceptions and no one has fumbled the ball. That’s an NFL record of zero turnovers in the first five games.

As for the defense, they are making Zimmer and Defensive Coordinator George Edwards look like geniuses. Currently, they lead the league in scoring defense with 12.6 PPG and turnovers with 13. They are also ranked 2^nd in the league in sacks with 19 and 4^th in the league with 287 yards allowed per game.

For anyone who might be wondering about the level of competition to this point in the season, the Vikings have already defeated the Packers (4-1), the Houston Texans (3-2) and the defending NFC Champs Carolina Panthers.

There’s no doubt the Vikings need to stay healthy from this point on. They would be devastated with the lost another starter on offense. With that said, this is the second year in a row that the defense has loaded the team on its shoulders and led them to one win after another. Some things in the NFL will never change, and a good defense will almost always beat a good offense. Kudos to Zimmer and his staff.

This article was written by Tony Samboras who is an expert sport and economic predictor. Tony is also a football fanatic and English Premier League follower. Check out his recommended mobile betting apps before you start your betting.