10 Questions Left Unanswered for the Minnesota Vikings After Week 1

The Minnesota Vikings are in first place in the NFC North.

All right, I realize that while the statement is technically correct, and it's been 2009 since it's been true, it's still only one game, and one game doesn't make a season. 

Still, it was a good way to start the year. It ended a two-year streak of losing the opener. It was doubly sweet that the rival Packers lost on the same day.

The bright spots were Adrian Peterson with with 84 yards on 17 carries and two touchdowns, Christian Ponder completing 20 of 27 passes for 270 yards with no interceptions, Percy Harvin with six receptions for 84 yards and Blair Walsh converting all four of his field goal attempts, including one from 55 yards as regulation expired, along with a 38-yard field goal to win the game in overtime. 

Yet, if this is to be a season that the Vikings climb out of the cellar of the division, they will need to address some concerns that were apparent through the preseason and continued in the game against the Jaguars.

Can the Defense Stop the Run?

For three consecutive seasons, from 2006 to 2008, the Vikings had the top-ranked defense against the run.

They allowed an average of 70.9 yards per game. 

In 2009 that number climbed slightly higher to 87.1 yards per game, still good for second in the NFL.  

Then the bottom fell out.

The last two seasons the rushing defense has averaged more 104.5 yards per game. They finished 11th in the league in 2010 and 9th last season.  

The Jaguars ran the ball effectively against the Vikings' defense, amassing 113 rushing yards. 

Can the Defense Pitch a Three-and-Out?

The Jacksonville Jaguars had 11 possessions on Sunday, 12 if you include the one-play drive when Blaine Gabbert took a knee to close out the first half. 

Only one of those drives resulted in a three-and-out.

Jacksonville's first possession lasted 17 plays, took 9:22 off the clock and resulted in a field goal.

They also had a 11-play touchdown drive that lasted 7:09.  

Jacksonville held onto the ball for more than 10 minutes than the Vikings with a total of 37:49 in time of possession.  

The Jaguars were able to extend their drives by converting nine of 18 third downs—an incredible 50 percent rate. 

Last season the Vikings were 30th in the league in third down percentage, allowing the opposition to convert 44.2 percent of their third downs.  This number needs to be in the 30 percent range in order for the Vikings to be successful. 

Too many times over the past two seasons the Vikings defense has spent too much time on the field. 

How Long Do We Have to Wait for an Interception?

The Vikings set an NFL record last season by going nine games without an interception. They finished tied for last in the NFL with eight interceptions in 2011.

The NFL average last season was 15.8 interceptions per team. That means for the Vikings to be average they need about an interception each game. 

Although the Vikings opened the season with the same starting cornerbacks as last year in Chris Cook and Antoine Winfield, they started two new safeties — Mistral Raymond and Harrison Smith.

On paper, the depth at cornerback is much improved with third-round pick Josh Robinson and newly acquired A.J. Jefferson as the backups. 

Now it needs to be proved on the field. An interception or two would really help.  

Where Was A.J. Jefferson?

Since I mentioned A.J. Jefferson on the previous slide...

After the Vikings set the 53-man roster on August 31, they acquired cornerback Jefferson from the Arizona Cardinals the very next day. 

The deal resulted in the Vikings releasing veteran Zack Bowman to make room for Jefferson. 

Jefferson, who started seven games for the Cardinals last season, is an immediate upgrade in the defensive backfield.

The current Vikings' depth chart has him listed as Chris Cook's backup. Some people speculated that he might push Cook or Antoine Winfield as the starter. Rotoworld.com sees Jefferson getting significant snaps on defense. 

So where was Jefferson on Sunday? 

He was not listed on the Vikings injury report last week, and I could not find any information that explained why he was inactive for the game. 

Who Will Be the First Player to Score a Touchdown Besides Adrian Peterson?

Adrian Peterson has a nose for the end zone. 

Since being drafted by the Vikings in 2007 he has not finished a season with fewer than 10 rushing touchdowns. With two more touchdowns on Sunday he has 66 in his career—the most in Vikings' franchise history.

Second place on the list is Robert Smith with 32, and it took him eight seasons to achieve that. 

It makes sense when you're that close to the goal line to give him the ball. But if the Vikings don't find another scoring threat defenses will scheme to stop him.

Good luck with that.

How Many Carries Will Toby Gerhart Get?

This looked like the break that backup running back Toby Gerhart might have been waiting for.

The best running back in the league was coming off a devastating knee injury.

Head coach Leslie Frazier had been indicating a bigger, more active role for Gerhart. Back in January, Tom Pelissero from 1500espn.com quoted Frazier as saying that "he really did a great job for us and showed us that he is worthy of more carries. We want to be able to get him more involved in our offense going forward."

I suppose that is the company line when your superstar is less than a month removed from major reconstruction surgery, and the season opener is only eight months away. 

Last year Gerhart finished with 109 carries, a 35 percent increase from his rookie season. 

In Monday's game he had six as Adrian Peterson finished with 17. 

With a healthy Peterson there's no reason to change what has been the strongest part of the Vikings offense. 

Sure, Gerhart will get more carries, but look for the split between Peterson and him to be 75-25 percent. 

When Will We See the Dynamic Duo at Tight End?

The Vikings biggest expenditure in the offseason was the signing of free agent tight end John Carlson to a five-year contract for $25 million. 

An MCL strain prevented Carlson from playing in the preseason after he missed all of last season with the Seahawks with a shoulder injury.

A second-round draft pick out of Notre Dame in 2008, Carlson had more than 50 catches in his first two seasons.

If he can produce those kind of number this season it would be more than Visanthe Shiancoe had the last two seasons.

Along with second-year tight end Kyle Rudolph, the Vikings could have a very good tight end receiving duo.

Rudolph had five catches for 67 yards against the Jaguars. 

How Many Sacks Will Jared Allen Get This Season?

The Jacksonville Jaguars shut out Jared Allen on Sunday, something that only happened three times last season. 

His 22 sacks last season puts him among only eight players with at least 20 sacks in a season. No player has ever reached that plateau twice in their career. 

DeMarcus Ware has come the closest. In 2008 he lead the NFL with 20 sacks. Last season he finished second to Allen with 19.5.

The good news is that the Vikings play the Lions twice, a team that Allen recorded six sacks against last season. 

The sacks will come, but the odds are against him from reaching 20 this season. Look for him to match his average of 16 since joining the Vikings in 2008. 

Has Christian Ponder Turned the Corner?

Christian Ponder had the best game of his short career. He was 20-of-27 passing for 270 yards, a decent 105.5 passer rating. His previous best start was his second one last season against the Panthers. He led the Vikings to a 24-21 victory, completing 18 of 28 passes for 236 yards with a touchdown for a 102.7 passer rating.  

Although it would be unrealistic to expect Ponder to continue playing this well, it was a very good sign that he has a pretty good understanding of the Minnesota offense. 

He completed passes to seven different receivers, with Percy Harvin leading the way with six catches and Kyle Rudolph with five. Ponder definitely understands who to target with his passes.

Last season he finished with a 2-8 record, recording 13 touchdowns and 13 interceptions. His 70.1 passer rating was the lower than Joe Webb's and Donovan McNabb's.

How Many Games Is This Team Capable of Winning?

The Vikings cannot depend on their rookie kicker, Blair Walsh, to save the day every week. 

They also cannot expect to allow 355 yards to the opposition, as they did on Sunday, and expect to win. 

The odds in Las Vegas have established the Vikings' win total at six games. According to gambling911.com, 75 percent of the bets are being placed on Vikings to win less than that.

If the defense doesn't isn't capable of playing better than they did on Sunday, that will be a safe bet.

From an article I wrote the week before the opener, a poll had 51.5 percent of respondents having the Vikings win total between five and seven.  

That still seems about right.