Minnesota Vikings vs. Miami Dolphins: Full Report Card Grades for Minnesota
In a football game full of wild and crazy plays, the Miami Dolphins made perhaps the craziest of all late in the game when Terrence Fede blocked a Jeff Locke punt out of the end zone for a safety with just 41 seconds left to give Miami a 37-35 win over the Minnesota Vikings.
How unusual is that?
"Earlier today: Dolphins became 1st team in NFL history to record a go-ahead safety in final minute of 4th quarter (via @eliassports)
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) December 21, 2014"
As you can see, pretty unusual. Like first-time ever unusual.
Ryan Tannehill carved up the Vikings defense all afternoon, throwing for 396 yards and four touchdowns. The Dolphins outscored the Vikings 23-18 in a wild fourth quarter that saw the late safety win the game for Miami.
The Vikings fall to 6-9 on the season and continue to find ways to botch games late. It's kind of hard to take a 14-0 lead in an NFL game and lose, but the Vikings have done it two weeks in a row.
While Teddy Bridgewater was good on Sunday, Tannehill was the best player on the field, and he picked apart a Vikings defense that had only given up one previous 300-yard passing game this year.
Most of the Vikings' season has been marked by games where the defense did enough to win and the offense let them down. Sunday was the opposite.
The Vikings scored two touchdowns just 11 seconds apart late in the fourth quarter to grab a 35-28 lead and looked to be in command. It didn't look that way for very long.
Tannehill marched the Dolphins 80 yards downfield in 11 plays, capped off by a three-yard touchdown pass to Damien Williams.
The Vikings did nothing on their next possession and set the stage for Fede's heroics.
Quarterback
1 of 10
In the long view for the Vikings, losing Sunday's game to the Dolphins doesn't really matter much. Sure, you would have liked to finish the season with a couple of wins and a .500 record, but if you're not making the playoffs, the wins and losses become less important than what you see on the field.
Sunday was another day of progress for the most important player on the Vikings roster, quarterback Teddy Bridgewater.
Numbers aside, Bridgewater had perhaps his best day as a pro, making several brilliant downfield throws that were tucked into very small windows. One of the knocks on Bridgewater so far has been his inaccuracy on downfield balls, but he was on the mark for most of the day on Sunday.
Playing behind a patchwork offensive line that seemed to wear down in the Miami heat, Bridgewater was under duress for much of the second half, but he put together some great drives without getting much pocket time.
Bridgewater finished 19-of-26 for 259 yards and two touchdowns. His passer rating was a very good 114.1 and would have been much higher if not for an interception that wasn't his fault.
Bridgewater continues to look the part of a good starting quarterback with a chance to be very good. The fact that he's doing that in his first year with no running attack, a below-average offensive line and below-average receivers gives the Vikings every reason to be bullish on his future.
Grade: A-
Running Back
2 of 10
Matt Asiata ran hard all day and scored two touchdowns. He also caught three passes for 19 yards.
We've said this all year long, and it continues to be the case: As dependable and likable as Asiata is, he's just not good enough to be a lead back. He had 16 carries for 58 yards, an average of just 3.8 yards per rush. Someone who can't get four yards a carry shouldn't be getting 16 carries.
None of this is Asiata's fault, he is what he is. He ran with great fire in the first half today and deserved his two touchdowns. His botched catch that led to an interception and eventual Dolphins touchdown was a huge momentum swinger and cost the Vikings dearly.
Joe Banyard rushed for 23 yards, including a 16-yard run that looked like a guy who should be getting more touches.
Jarius Wright continues to make big plays when he gets rushing attempts, picking up 27 big yards on his one attempt.
The Vikings have lost their best two running backs this season in Adrian Peterson and Jerick McKinnon. Asiata's turnover was costly, but his effort and tenacity were very good all day long.
Grade: B
Wide Receiver and Tight End
3 of 10
Vikings quarterback Teddy Bridgewater completed 19 passes in his hometown on Sunday and no single Vikings receiver caught more than three of them.
Nine different guys caught passes, with Greg Jennings, Jarius Wright, Charles Johnson and Matt Asiata all catching three. Jennings and Wright each had touchdown receptions.
Jennings led the way with 56 yards; Rhett Ellison had 47 yards on two catches; and Wright and Johnson each had 38 yards.
While nobody had a spectacular day, the Vikings receivers had a very good day as a group. Guys were getting open and making nice runs after the catch. Ellison in particular made a great catch and run of 40 yards that set up the Vikings' tying score late in the fourth quarter.
This was definitely a game where the group performed better than any single player. The ball was spread around nicely by Bridgewater and the receivers made just about every play they could get their hands on.
Grade: B
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Offensive Line
4 of 10
Minnesota's offensive line is being held together by duct tape at this point, and it sort of looked that way on Sunday.
It looked decent in the first half but certainly started dragging a little bit in the second half, particularly right tackle Mike Harris, who gave up two sacks to Cameron Wake.
While Asiata had a little room to run in the first half, the holes seemed to vanish as the game wore on. Minnesota averaged 4.3 yards a carry, a number that was helped out dramatically by Jarius Wright's 27-yard run.
Bridgewater wasn't given a ton of time to throw, but he did have some pockets to set up in. It was another good game for Matt Kalil, which is a great sign for the Vikings moving forward. It's gotten to the point where you love not hearing Kalil's name called during a broadcast, and he wasn't mentioned at all on Sunday. For an offensive lineman, that usually means you've done your job.
John Sullivan was once again his solid self. Sullivan remains a top seven center in the league and might be having his best season this year.
A decent day overall for the offensive line. Not great, but pretty much what you'd expect from a group that's missing three starters.
Grade: B-
Defensive Line
5 of 10
Dolphins quarterback Ryan Tannehill dropped back to pass 47 times on Sunday and was sacked just twice.
We'll go ahead and admit much of that was due to Tannehill's athleticism. He was great all day long at feeling the pressure and using his legs to extend plays when the Vikings rushers were getting close.
"Mike Zimmer called the personal fouls on Gerald Hodges and Sharrif Floyd "ridiculous" and "undisciplined." #Vikings
— VikingUpdate.com (@VikingUpdate) December 21, 2014"
You get the feeling that it's going to be a long day going over film at Winter Park on Monday. Floyd could have been ejected for throwing a punch and was lucky to stay in the game.
It was an odd game for Everson Griffen, who was super active early on and came close to getting a couple of sacks. In the end, he only ended up with one tackle, although he did have two QB hits.
Linval Joseph was good for the second straight week, getting four tackles and two quarterback hits as well.
Floyd had three tackles and shared a sack with Chad Greenway, but he took a very stupid penalty.
Tom Johnson had a very nice sack, his only tackle of the game. It was another quiet performance from Brian Robison, who had just two tackles.
One of the worst games of the season for Minnesota's defensive line.
Grade: D
Linebacker
6 of 10
It had to be a tough day for Chad Greenway, whose father passed away on Friday at just 56 years old, as reported by Chris Tomasson of the Pioneer Press.
Greenway is always a gamer, though, and he played well in the first half before hurting his knee and missing most of the second half. Greenway finished with half a sack and three tackles.
Gerald Hodges, like Floyd, had a personal foul penalty to go with six tackles. Jasper Brinkley pitched in with five tackles as well.
The Vikings missed Greenway in the second half and clearly missed Anthony Barr all afternoon. Barr brings size and speed to a position where the Vikings lack it. The Dolphins were picking apart the Vikings with checkdown throws to their running backs all afternoon.
Lamar Miller and Damien Williams combined for 11 catches and 108 yards.
Audie Cole and Brandon Watts both made rare appearances, with Cole making two tackles and Watts one.
Grade: D+
Secondary
7 of 10
Harrison Smith had a ridiculous interception on a play where he blitzed Ryan Tannehill, jumped and blocked an attempted pass and then reeled in the ball for his fifth pick of the season. Smith also had five tackles on the day, each delivered with his brand of fiery competitiveness.
While Smith was clearly not happy with his dropped interception, he more than made up for it with another very good game.
"Harrison Smith will find himself named to the Pro Bowl late this week.
— Chris Tomasson (@christomasson) December 21, 2014"
That tweet came after Smith's interception from the beat writer for the Pioneer Press.
Robert Blanton had another strong day tackling, leading the team with 11, nine of which were solo.
Xavier Rhodes gave up some plays on Sunday, which he hasn't done in over a month. He took a pass interference call in the end zone on Mike Wallace, who ended the day with five catches for 58 yards and two touchdowns. Not a huge day, but damage was done.
Captain Munnerlyn was once again below average, and the Dolphins picked on him for most of the afternoon. Tight end Charles Clay caught six passes for 114 yards and was targeted a team-high 10 times.
All in all, it was not a good day for Minnesota's secondary. Tannehill passed for 396 yards and four touchdowns, which are huge numbers, but not all of them can be placed at the feet of the secondary. They weren't great, but Tannehill was able to extend too many plays with his legs.
The Dolphins boast Wallace, Jarvis Landry, Clay and a pair of backs who are both very good out of the backfield. That's a group of both quick guys who can kill you when given a little bit of extra time to get open. They were getting that on Sunday.
The best player on the field was Tannehill. That falls on the all three of the defensive positional units, including the secondary.
Grade: D+
Special Teams
8 of 10
What was going to hit the books as punter Jeff Locke's best day of the season went up in flames with the blocked punt for a safety, which proved to be the difference in the game.
Before that, the Vikings' kicking game had played at an "A" level.
Locke had three punts for 151 yards, a 50.3 average that included two kicks downed inside the 20.
Blair Walsh made both of his field-goal attempts and had a beautiful kickoff (where are you ever going to read that again?).
After the Vikings' successful two-point conversion try, Walsh pooched the kick from the 50-yard line right to the goal line, where Jarvis Landry was forced to field it and get what he could. Minnesota's coverage team was all over him and forced a fumble at the 6-yard line that was recovered by rookie safety Antone Exum.
It led to Matt Asiata's go-ahead touchdown. It was the big kind of play from your special teams that usually wins ball games. It looked like it was going to win this one.
It didn't.
After the Dolphins had a long drive for a touchdown, the Vikings quickly went three-and-out and were forced to punt from their own end zone. Cullen Loeffler's snap was low, and Locke took way too long with the ball in his hands before having it blocked by rookie Terrence Fede. It went out of the end zone for the deciding safety.
You could probably give 60 percent of the blame to Loeffler, 35 percent to Locke and the other 5 percent to the blocking.
The Vikings were reminded once again that there are three phases to every football game, and sometimes special teams play the biggest part. This was just two points in a game where 72 were scored, but they were the deciding two.
It was a good game by Locke and company, but then they skipped the final exam.
Grade: F
Coaching
9 of 10
You kind of wish the Vikings' film session on Monday was televised. It would certainly have to be on cable if it was, or all you would here is bleep.
Talk about a ragged effort.
All season long, we've talked about the defense playing well enough to win but being let down by the offense. It went the other way on Sunday.
Minnesota took eight penalties for 74 big yards on Sunday. Too many were just undisciplined, which has been very rare for the Vikings in 2014. Both Sharrif Floyd and Gerald Hodges took personal foul penalties.
The pass defense, which has been good all season, was abysmal on Sunday. It would be easy to toss all the blame at the secondary, but the pass rush just couldn't get to Ryan Tannehill, who extended too many plays for too long. Nobody can cover an NFL receiver when the quarterback is allowed to get out of the pocket and extend a play for three seconds.
Miami's running backs killed Minnesota by catching passes out of the backfield. The first three or so completions to Lamar Miller looked like he was uncovered, which had to be some sort of scheme breakdown.
It was a pretty bizarre football game. It was another game Minnesota should have won but found a way to lose. The grade for the Vikings coaches probably shouldn't be a final one until you see how they handle it and how they coach their players through the film session. They have to learn from all the mistakes they made on Sunday, and there were a lot of them.
Grade: C-
Overall Grade
10 of 10
| Positional Unit | Grade |
| Quarterback | A- |
| Running Back | B |
| Wide Receiver and Tight End | B |
| Offensive Line | B- |
| Defensive Line | D |
| Linebacker | D+ |
| Secondary | D+ |
| Special Teams | F |
| Coaching | C- |
Overall Grade: C-
Okay, before anything else, we're going to address the elephant in the room. The Vikings got jobbed out of a touchdown at the end of the first half. Replays clearly showed that Chase Ford scored a touchdown. He was called out of bounds at the 1 on the field, but replay showed quite clearly that he had stayed inbounds.
The replay officials didn't see it that way, and it cost the Vikings four points. They lost by two.
It was a wild football game that, in the end, the Dolphins probably deserved to win. They out-gained Minnesota by a 493-357 margin and ran 19 more plays, which added up to nearly six minutes more of possession time.
The Dolphins converted nine of 13 third-down attempts, a number that is surely going to make Zimmer's skin crawl.
For the first time this season, we'll say the Minnesota offense did enough to win, but the defense let them down.
The Vikings will finish the 2014 season next week at home against the Chicago Bears.
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