Vikings Snap Counts vs. Cowboys: Starters Pulled in Fourth Quarter of Blowout
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It felt like the Vikings had been playing with fire over the course of their seven-game winning streak, needing multiple fourth quarter rallies to win one-score game after one-score game.
On Sunday, they got burned — and badly.
The Cowboys came into U.S. Bank Stadium and utterly dominated the now 8-2 Vikings in all three phases, winning 40-3 in a game that was functionally over early in the third quarter. After seven consecutive wins by a combined 36 points, the Vikings saw their streak end in stunning fashion with a 37-point loss. Only once, way back in 1963, have the Vikings ever lost by a wider margin at home.
"We got our butts kicked," Adam Thielen said.
The Vikings don't have much time to reflect on this one, as they have to get ready to face the Patriots — another team with a loaded defense — with just three full days of preparation. Minnesota's ability to respond to adversity will be put to the test on Thanksgiving night.
Before moving on to New England and the challenges Bill Belichick's team will pose, let's take our weekly look at the Vikings' snap counts to see what we can learn.
Vikings offensive snap counts vs. Dallas (out of 57)
- RT Brian O'Neill: 57
- RG Ed Ingram: 57
- C Garrett Bradbury: 57
- LG Ezra Cleveland: 56
- WR Justin Jefferson: 45
- QB Kirk Cousins: 45
- WR Adam Thielen: 44
- TE T.J. Hockenson: 44
- WR K.J. Osborn: 42
- LT Blake Brandel: 39
- RB Dalvin Cook: 34
- TE Johnny Mundt: 27
- LT Christian Darrisaw: 18
- RB Alexander Mattison: 16
- WR Jalen Reagor: 12
- WR Jalen Nailor: 12
- QB Nick Mullens: 12
- RB Kene Nwangwu: 7
- FB C.J. Ham: 2
- G Austin Schlottmann: 1
Coming off an 33-point, 83-snap outing in Buffalo, the Vikings' offense was nowhere to be found on Sunday. A strip sack on the game's third play set the tone for an evening where the offensive line was completely outclassed, giving Cousins no chance to mount any sort of comeback. The Vikings finished with 183 yards of offense, went 1 for 11 on third down, and punted seven times. Every offensive lineman except Cleveland gave up multiple pressures. The lone bright spot was Cook averaging 6.5 yards per carry.
Things got so ugly that Kevin O'Connell pulled most of his starters in the fourth quarter.
"With four days away being what it is, we wanted to make sure — we'll always try to continue to fight, we'll never give up on any game, but we've got to be smart about our team," O'Connell said, "understanding where we're at with eight wins and a tight turnaround here."
That led to Mullens, Reagor, Nailor, and Nwangwu getting some run in garbage time.
Darrisaw left the game for the second week in a row with a concussion and has already been ruled out for Thursday, putting Brandel in line to make his first career start. Schlottmann came in for Cleveland for one play.
Vikings defensive snap counts vs. Dallas (out of 72)
- S Camryn Bynum: 72
- CB Andrew Booth Jr: 68
- LB Eric Kendricks: 64
- S Harrison Smith: 64
- CB Patrick Peterson: 60
- LB Jordan Hicks: 56
- OLB Danielle Hunter: 50
- OLB D.J. Wonnum: 49
- DT Harrison Phillips: 46
- DT James Lynch: 39
- SCB Chandon Sullivan: 38
- DT Jonathan Bullard: 37
- DT Khyiris Tonga: 32
- OLB Patrick Jones II: 32
- OLB Za'Darius Smith: 25
- DT Ross Blacklock: 17
- LB Brian Asamoah: 15
- S Josh Metellus: 12
- CB Duke Shelley: 8
- LB Troy Dye: 8
The Vikings' offense wasn't the only unit that didn't show up in this game. Ed Donatell's defense allowed the Cowboys to score on each of their first seven possessions, offering almost zero pressure or resistance as Dallas opened up a 37-3 lead midway through the third. The final score could've been even worse had Mike McCarthy's team not let up on the gas at that point.
Booth made his first career start and struggled, allowing seven catches on eight targets and committing a penalty. The Vikings are hoping to get Akayleb Evans (concussion protocol) back for Thursday's game.
After averaging 8.25 pressures per game over the last four, Za'Darius Smith was limited to 25 snaps and one pressure on Sunday. He continues to deal with a knee injury, which is something to keep an eye on moving forward. In total, Dak Prescott was pressured on just 6 of 28 dropbacks, compared to 18 of 30 for Cousins.
With no Dalvin Tomlinson for the third consecutive game, the Vikings once again leaned on Phillips, Lynch, Bullard, and Tonga at DT.
Players like Blacklock, Asamoah, Metellus, Shelley, and Dye got some action after starters had been pulled.
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