Sam Bradford perhaps made the play harder than it needed to be, but the play was made.
He had time, a rare commodity behind this Vikings offensive line, and a wide open Cordarrelle Patterson about 15 yards downfield on his left. But on the first snap, Bradford bought more time shuffling his feet for 5.8 seconds, an NFL eternity, and was hit while launching the 44-yard completion to Kyle Rudolph.
Bradford's right arm is responsible for the Vikings offense and he added two feet to the equation during Sunday's 25-16 win in Jacksonville. That's one of a handful of things I think I saw during the game, which I'll break down below in lieu of the standard player-driven post. Also check out Mark Craig's five takeaways from the game and Matt Vensel's Upon Further Review.
Sam Bradford's feet were an asset. As an organization, breaths should pause the few times Bradford takes off to run into a field of defenders capable of ending their season with a hit. "He's the most awkward slider I've ever seen," guard Alex Boone said. Though he can get moving, dodging defenders and picking up four yards on this first-and-10 below. Bradford moved in the pocket well behind some improved protection, but again missed an open target in Adam Thielen near the 35-yard line. Bradford was good, not great, with his day carried by three well-placed throws for 40-plus yard gains. And his feet were part of the reason the Vikings did not allow a sack.
The Vikings missed Harrison Smith, even as second-year safety Anthony Harris played a decent game in his first start of the season. Harris was caught too close to Jags' top target Allen Robinson when Blake Bortles found Bryan Walters for a 14-yard touchdown on a post route from the opposite side of the field. Harris' highlight came on an excellent open-field tackle of T.J. Yeldon to force a field goal. He blitzed, doubled Robinson with Xavier Rhodes and filled many of Smith's duties, though the plays weren't fully coming together in his third career start. Harris was one of two defenders to miss a tackle on Marqise Lee's 39-yard catch and run.
Everson Griffen and the Vikings defensive line are still a wrecking crew. There were times Allen Robinson was left wide open because Bortles was scrambling away from Griffen, who would've had three sacks had his grip not slipped in the second quarter when Bortles evaded for a five-yard scramble. Griffen's repertoire of pass rushing moves has grown tremendously in three years under this coaching staff and he owned the matchup with Kelvin Beachum on Sunday. Shamar Stephen, the 2014 seventh-round pick, hasn't received enough attention for his improvement as a run defender. He had another strong day in Jacksonville on 27 snaps [41%]. Brian Robison led the defensive line with 57 snaps [86%]. The 33-year-old team captain is on pace to surpass 75-plus percent of snaps for the sixth consecutive season. On the second-and-18 play below, watch Robinson get open on the out route near the 30-yard line. Griffen beats Beachum so quickly he's on Bortles' back before Robinson can make his cut.
