Miracle Mode
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Head coach Mike Zimmer must be thinking ... how in the
heck did my team just get destroyed ... and why was it so easily done?
Coach has got to be wondering about this hemorrhage and its right there staring
him in the face.
You see, a man will betray himself in his own words every time & we just
handed Buffalo the blue print on how to dismantle this team.
Maybe you didn't notice it, but coach Flip & Kirk Cousins started this game
in that Miracle Mode. It was like they were starting this game by trying
to find that winning score against Green Bay.
Babe Ruth stuck out his tongue just before delivering that curve ball ... not
knowing that he was broadcasting his tell. Kirk did the same, except in a
much more subtle manner. He announced, "I just throw the ball where
my reads take me". So how do you get a gun slinger like Kirk Cousins
to swing for the fences on a 3rd & 3. You massage his ego by messaging
his reads ... forgoing Tom Brady's dumps just a few yards within & from the
Line of Scrimmage. If we can just get Cousins to forgo the high percentage
in favor of threading the needle going for that low percentage Miracle Mode play
... then we just might get them. After all, what they preach in Minnesota,
for us all to hear is, "We have to have a fast start". Does that
mean we must forgo sanity for insanity? Well now we all know the answer to
that question.
Does it now seem like a distance memory where head coach Mike Zimmer preached
... "Every offensive drive is going to end in a kick". Of course
he was hoping for a touchdown, where he'd settle for a field goal, or at the
very least a punt to flip the field on the opposing offense.
Sometimes we forget that Flip is not only brilliant ... he's new. He's got
a firm mind set that doesn't include an understanding that chunks of yards on
the ground must be secured in the 3rd quarter. Sure, it sounds great ...
but how do you achieve that goal. Every team that understands this axiom
... and doesn't abandon that mind set ... even if your behind at the time ...
has essentially guaranteed themselves a victory. The answer lies in the
word "Depletion".
So ask yourself. Were the Vikings one dimensional for the entire
game? If you answered yes, then ask yourself how Coach Zimmer might feel
about facing a one dimensional offense. Especially having to face an
offense in the Miracle Mode of forgoing positive yards for low percentage needle
thin miracles.
So who lost today's game. Was it Coach Zimmer's stellar defense?
After watching them getting carved up today, you might say yes but the cause
goes so much deeper than that simple statement. The personal foul
penalties called on the defense were unforgivable ... that is simply not
disciplined ball. Having receivers running free is most certainly
attributable to not having Trae Waynes on the back end but the communication was
definitely lacking. Was it a rookie mistake by Mike Hughes or was it a
repeat of last week by Mac Alexander. Really, much of this can be
tightened up but that's really not the cause.
Between Flip & Kirk Cousins, they have to realize that they don't live in a
bubble. This loss lies directly at their feet. Kirk cousins can't be
throwing a 25 yard down the field pass on a 3rd & 1 or 3rd & 3.
They have to commit to the grind no matter the situation. If you want to
take that shot, maybe it might be there on a 2nd & 3 or less but certainly
not on 3rd & short when you need to keep your defense off the field.
Methodical movement means we control the sticks & most importantly the field
position.
Depletion can win a championship. If on the first drive, I have your
defense on the field for eight plays before I punt, your defense depletes to 70%
on that first drive. If they have time to recover, when they next take the
field that defense might be at 92%. If I then take another 8 plays on the
next drive, flowed by a field goal, that defense might deplete to 45%. If
they get sufficient rest waiting while their offense works, they might take the
field for that 3rd drive at 81%. On the other hand, if their offense does
a 3 & out, they might have to take the field at 59%. What's happening
to the defense is they are depleting & they simply can't recover. The
human body is nothing more than water & chemical electrolytes ... much
like a lead acid battery. Leave your car lights on for a couple hours
& see how reliable your car battery becomes --- in time. This is why
ground yards are so much easier to achieve in the 3rd & 4th quarter.
Of course, this analogy falls apart if the offense takes on a 1 dimensional
run-only mode which is why the knowledge of a 1-dimensional team should never be
gifted to any defense.
Now tell me. Do you think either Coach Flip or Kirk Cousins have even
consider depletion of an opposing defense or are they just in one mind set ...
quick strike ... "We have to start fast". To be direct, that is
not what got us here .. is it?
You have Cook, you have Rudolph, you have Murray & you have Roc
Thomas. Taking a page out of Bill Walsh's West Coast Offense that went
something like this. "Around here we pass the ball to set up the
run" Just when you cast your ever widening net to stop this dink
& dunk offensive distribution ... only then will everything open up to run
the ball down your throat". Sure, you have to run early but we are
ultimately after the chunks.
It's not about Kirk Cousins pin-point rocket arm. Let's not recreate Dan
Marino's one dimensional holocaust are Kirk has to fit within a scheme of never
ending pincers. Danny boy was his own worst enemy ... just like John Elway
... that is until number 30 came knocking down the door.
Don't let any defense
dictate where they want you to throw the ball. To win the game ... all we
need is a single ... not the breeze of a big bat.
Sorry Denny! Every
day, someone new will learn of your brilliant ways.
The Viking Ghost Writer
http://MyVikingBlood.org
Date: September 23, 2018
