It is fun to win. Defeating the Lions in Detroit was a joy. They are a dysfunctional franchise, and the fact that they fired a few offensive coaches immediately after Minnesota's 28-19 win should come as no surprise.
Minnesota battered quarterback Matthew Stafford like a bucket of fried chicken.
Considering the Vikings' defense had seven sacks along with 26 passing attempts from Stafford, about 27% of the time that they tried to throw, Minnesota sacked them. Detroit ran a total of 50 plays in the game. So 14% of their plays, or one in seven, ended with a sack.
"Mr. Stafford you are wanted in x-ray".
Linebacker Eric Kendricks was the catalyst. He had two sacks and made six definitive tackles. His quickness was apparent. His equal in intensity, safety Harrison Smith totaled nine tackles with his sack. Linebacker Chad Greenway also blitzed his way to a sack.
Four sacks from outside the front four. The blitz is back.
Defensive end Everson Griffen added another 1.5 to his team leading total of 4.5. But Kendricks is now only 0.5 back and coming on fast. The front office decision to draft and promote Kendricks (at the expense of Gerald Hodges) appears to be a good one. His ball hawking speed, combined with Anthony Barr, Smith, and a growing confident crew has catapulted the purple defense to a new respectability.
We can win with defense. But we may not always need to if..
