How do the Atlanta Falcons match up against the Minnesota Vikings?
The Minnesota Vikings started the train-wreck which was the first half of the Falcons’ 2019 season.
In the first game of the year, the Vikings trounced Atlanta in Minneapolis, winning 28-12, though the score didn’t fully reflect how lopsided this loss was for the Falcons. This year, Atlanta has a chance for a do-over when they travel to U.S. Bank Stadium mid-October.
Coming back to Minnesota this year is a very similar cast of characters on the offensive side of the football, including Kirk Cousins, Dalvin Cook and Kyle Rudolph, with one glaring departure: Stefon Diggs.
After being a mainstay in Minnesota since he was drafted in 2015, Diggs was traded to Buffalo this offseason. Replacing Diggs is former LSU wide receiver Justin Jefferson who the Vikings took in the first round of this year’s draft.
Besides Diggs, the same offense that ran circles around the Falcons’ defense a year ago is back.
The big win for Minnesota over Atlanta last season was typical for the ten victories the Vikings racked up over the course of the season. When the Vikings won in 2019, they did so handily--their average margin of victory was just over 14 points per contest.
Once Minnesota got rolling, opponents struggled to slow them down.
Their formula was simple: run the ball and keep opposing offenses out of the end zone by causing turnovers. Led by running back Dalvin Cook, the Vikings finished sixth in the NFL in rushing yards in 2019, averaging 133 yards per game on the ground.
On the defensive side of the ball, Minnesota kept explosive attacks at bay. Though they were in the middle of the pack in every defensive statistic a season ago, they finished with the fifth best scoring defense in 2019, allowing just under 19 points on average.
The key to this bend but don’t break Minnesota defense was turnovers--the Vikings finished fourth in the NFL with a turnover differential of 11.
In Week 1 against Atlanta, the Falcons put up 345 total yards, but turned the ball over three times and only scored 12 points. Five weeks later, the Eagles tallied 400 total yards against Minnesota, but turned the ball over three times and lost by 18.
This year, the Falcons will need to take care of the football and turn yardage into points if they wish to avenge last year’s loss to the Vikings.
Unfortunately for Atlanta, doing this was a struggle last season. The Falcons finished 24th in turnover margin in 2019 and 13th in scoring offense despite placing fifth in total yardage.
Unless the Falcons can flip the script on their turnover and scoring woes from last season, this year’s trip to Minnesota may be more of the same for Atlanta.
