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Oct 18, 2024 | 
zonecoverage.com | Tom Schreier |Cole Smith |Bert Bledso
T.J. Hockenson has described life away from football as a “dark place,” somewhere he’d like to escape. However, he doesn’t know when he’ll see the light at the end of the tunnel. He believes it may be sometime soon. Hockenson stayed late after practice to build chemistry with Sam Darnold. He’s been running routes on air for the past five months. However, the Minnesota Vikings opened his 21-day practice window before they practiced in London last week.
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Oct 17, 2024 | 
zonecoverage.com | Tom Schreier |Cole Smith |Bert Bledso |Matt Fries
Remember when we hyped up the matchup between Justin Jefferson and Jaire Alexander in Week 4? Jefferson had caught nine passes for 184 yards and two touchdowns in the Minnesota Vikings’ 23-7 victory in Week 1 of 2022. Alexander later called that performance “a fluke” and held Jefferson to one catch for 15 yards in Week 17 of that same season. They hadn’t faced off since then, setting the stage for an epic showdown between Jefferson and Alexander this year.
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Oct 17, 2024 | 
zonecoverage.com | Cole Smith |Bert Bledso |Matt Fries
The undefeated Minnesota Vikings will host the 4-1 Detroit Lions this Sunday, with the NFC North lead on the line. Even though the four NFC North teams only have a combined five losses, the Vikings hold the tiebreaker over the Green Bay Packers after their win at Lambeau Field in Week 4. Beating the Lions would give them another tiebreaker, unofficially giving Minnesota a 2.5-game lead over the rest of the division. However, a win would also be more significant than controlling the NFC North.
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Oct 16, 2024 | 
zonecoverage.com | Bert Bledso |Matt Fries |Chris Schad
The Minnesota Vikings learned a helpful — and thankfully not costly — lesson in their victory over the New York Jets in London. Without Aaron Jones, they need help at running back. They got it this week when they reunited with old friend Cam Akers. Minnesota’s struggles in the second half of the Jets game highlight why his return is so necessary. Minnesota’s offense got off to another great start in London.
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Oct 16, 2024 | 
zonecoverage.com | Matt Fries |Bert Bledso |Chris Schad |John Boyd
When J.J. McCarthy went out for the season with a meniscus tear, most national pundits wrote off the Minnesota Vikings’ season. The outside interest in the team lay in what the young future of the franchise could do. Immediately after his preseason game, before the injury, some even posited that McCarthy might force his way into starting Week 1.
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Oct 15, 2024 | 
zonecoverage.com | Bert Bledso |Chris Schad |John Boyd |Tom Schreier
The Minnesota Vikings’ defense is currently one of the NFL’s best units, dominating through the first five games of the season. Flores’ group is third in the NFL in points allowed, third in sacks with 26, second in turnovers forced, and third in points per game allowed. The group got a great burst from linebacker Ivan Pace Jr. in his return from injury against the New York Jets. Pace forms a dynamic duo with Blake Cashman, who excels in pass coverage from the linebacker position.
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Oct 6, 2024 | 
zonecoverage.com | Preet Mukesh Shah |John Boyd |Bert Bledso |Chris Schad
The Minnesota Vikings ended their trip across the pond like they started it: undefeated. They held on to win a sloppy game against the New York Jets, 23-17. It started with Minnesota’s defense dominating the Jets’ offense. After forcing a three-and-out, the offense worked down the field and got three points in a game that would be chock-full of penalties, slips, and drops from both teams. Minnesota’s offense turned the ball over on Ty Chandler‘s fumbled pitch.
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Oct 5, 2024 | 
zonecoverage.com | John Boyd |Bert Bledso |Chris Schad |Nelson Thielen
Dread it, try to run on it, doesn’t matter — Brian Flores’ defense arrives all the same. Don’t take the Green Bay Packers’ second-half explosiveness last week as a sign of Flores faltering. Neither team’s playcalling was conventional once Minnesota jumped out to a 28-point lead. The Packers were going for it on fourth-and-longs, the Vikings were conservative on fourth-and-shorts. Much of Green Bay’s success came when they went to tempo offense.
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Oct 4, 2024 | 
zonecoverage.com | Bert Bledso |Chris Schad |Nelson Thielen |Aidan Cummings
No weeks off in the NFL! The 4-0 Minnesota Vikings have no time to revel in their early-season success as they face off against an old nemesis in former Green Bay Packers QB Aaron Rodgers, who will lead the New York Jets against the Vikings in a game at Tottenham Stadium in London. The Jets enter the game 2-2 and haven’t gelled under head coach Robert Saleh’s leadership.
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Oct 4, 2024 | 
zonecoverage.com | Nelson Thielen |Aidan Cummings |Tom Schreier |Bert Bledso
Forgive me. I know the headline is a bit cliché. Sports are cyclical and a roller coaster of highs and lows. Unless you grew up a fan of the Tom Brady New England Patriots or the Patrick Mahomes Kansas City Chiefs, you’re familiar with the rise and fall that most franchises experience. The front office finally puts together a good team that exceeds expectations and begins to surprise the football world, and then the expectations for that team shift accordingly.
