Minnesota Vikings: 7 Things the Vikings Need to Do to Provide Hope for 2012

Heading into the game with the Lions, with a 2-10 record for the Minnesota Vikings, you would have thought that it couldn't get any worse.

Unfortunately for rookie quarterback Christian Ponder, after suffering a hip pointer against Denver that limited him in practice leading up to the Detroit game, they did.

Ponder opened the game against the Detroit Lions with a fumble that led to a Lions touchdown. He would finish the game 11-of-21 for 115 yards with two touchdowns and three interceptions—one that led to another defensive touchdown.

Unlike many of their games, the Vikings went into the locker room down 31-14 at the half.

Despite five turnovers against the Lions through just 56 minutes of the the game on Sunday, the Vikings were within six points and 80 yards of winning their third game of the season.

With 3:32 left in the game, second-string quarterback Joe Webb, who led the Vikings to 14 second-half points, was in position to lead the Vikings to their third win of the season.

Instead, the Vikings fell short on a 1st-and-goal from the one yard line with nine seconds left in the game. Webb would drop back and attempt a fade pass to tight end Kyle Rudolph. Instead, he was stripped of the ball for the sixth turnover of the game.

Final: Lions 34, Vikings 28.

Head coach Leslie Frazier indicated the last four games of the season will be used to determine the character of this team. If the Detroit game is any indication, the character of this team appears to be shooting themselves in the foot.

The continued  losing ways of the Vikings have them at risk of their first television blackout in the Twin Cities since 1997 as fans become more and more disinterested in this team.

The losing wouldn't be so bad if the Vikings gave us something that indicated the future holds some hope for a decent 2012. Instead, it continues to expose all of the Vikings' weaknesses that will need to be addressed.

Here are seven things that the Vikings need from their final three games of the season.  

Stop Running the out Pattern on Offense

Two of Christian Ponder's interceptions were on out pass patterns, one for a touchdown—enough said.

Run the Ball More Than Pass It

The Minnesota Vikings offense gives up on the running game a little too quickly.

Adrian Peterson has averaged only 18.6 attempts per game, the fewest since his rookie season in 2007—nowhere near enough for the best running back in the league.

Against the Raiders, the Vikings only rushed the ball 23 times with Peterson limited to six carries, and five by Christian Ponder as he was running for his life. 

In the games since then, without Peterson, they have rushed only 24 times against the Falcons and 27 against the Broncos. Every time the Vikings run the ball, it's one less chance for an interception to be thrown.

The Vikings only score in the third quarter against the Lions came on a nine-play drive that covered 88 yards, all of them on the ground.

The success came on the heels of the Christian Ponder benching, where Joe Webb ran the ball three times for 77 yards, all them converting third downs, the last going for 65 yards and a touchdown. 

The two-yard touchdown pass to Toby Gerhart in the fourth quarter with 7:57 left in the game was set up off the run.

The final play of the Detroit game should have been a run. With nine seconds left and the ball on the one-yard line, Bill Musgrave should have went with a spread formation with Toby Gerhart and Percy Harvin standing next Webb. A hand off to either of them, Gerhart into the line or Harvin around the edge, had a better chance of scoring than the fade pass that was attempted.

Get Rid of Lorenzo Booker

There's a reason this guy was playing in the UFL prior to the Minnesota Vikings signing him late in the 2010 season.

With two fumbles in the first half of the Detroit game, head coach Leslie Frazier should put Lorenzo Booker so far on the end of the bench that he never carries a football for Minnesota again.

Booker was fortunate on his first fumble against the Lions, when wide receiver Devin Aromashodu was able to scoop up a lucky bounce to maintain possession for the Vikings.

His second was not so fortunate. With the Vikings trailing by 14 points late in the first half and a chance to cut the Lions lead to seven points with a touchdown, Booker fumbled the ball at the Minnesota 16-yard line. 

The only good thing that came out of this was that the defense was able to limit the damage to three points, holding the Lions to a field goal and a 17-point deficit.    

Take Some Chances

Since the Minnesota Vikings continue to find ways to lose playing conventionally, Leslie Frazier should mix it up more.

One of the most successful plays for the offense this season has been running the reverse with Percy Harvin. 

Why stop there?

Take a page out of Sean Payton's book and throw in an on-side kick when it's not expected, or let Harvin, who has been so successful running and catching the ball, throw it on one of those reverses.

At 2-11, it doesn't make any difference, and it gives your team a chance to practice some of these plays in game situations. It might just come in handy sometime in the future. 

Have a Linebacker, Make a Play

Outside of Jared Allen and Brian Robison, the Minnesota Vikings defense has been extremely ineffective and vanilla.

I understand that the defensive backfield has been decimated with injuries, but the linebackers have been there all season, and they need to start making some plays.

The Vikings defense has only six interceptions, and none of them are by a linebacker.

Leave Percy Harvin on the Field

Percy Harvin leads the Minnesota Vikings in all-purpose yards.

Unless he needs a breather, he should not come off the field—especially while Adrian Peterson is out of the game.

A threat to score every time he gets his hands on the ball, Harvin is a matchup nightmare for defensive coordinators.

Harvin finished with 156 rushing, receiving and return yards against the Lions, and it came on only 15 touches. Imagine what damage could be done if he got the ball 20-25 times.

Put Christian Ponder on the Bench

Christian Ponder has shown some flashes of brilliance only to be followed by some of the most boneheaded plays of the season.

He continues to force passes to receivers that are double covered. Ponder is trying to do too much. With all of the talent the Vikings offense has, offensive coordinator Bill Musgrave needs to put together a game plan that prevents him from losing the game.  

If the hip pointer was affecting Ponder's play against the Lions, then put him on the bench until he is completely healthy. 

Leslie Frazier is using kid gloves with Adrian Peterson; he should do the same if Ponder is the franchise quarterback.

BONUS: Replace the Coordinators with Some Experience

Minnesota Vikings head coach Leslie Frazier is a rookie head coach in the NFL. Unfortunately, his coordinators are also rookies in the NFL in their roles.

Fred Pagac was promoted to defensive coordinator by Frazier to take over the Minnesota defense. Bill Musgrave was the Falcons quarterback coach last season.

Compare that to the Lions coordinators. Detroit offensive coordinator Scott Linehan had a chance to coach the St. Louis Rams over two-plus seasons to a 11-25 record.

Detroit defensive coordinator Gunther Cunningham coached the Kansas City Chiefs to a 16-16 record over two seasons.  

Both have returned to where they were successful in the past.

Frazier and the Vikings should look for some experienced former head coaches to help him next season.

I realize the Vikings staff includes former 49ers head coach Mike Singletary; that just means it needs to be the right former head coach that was successful as a coordinator.

The 2011 Vikings are heading for the worst record in franchise history. The problem is, this team has too much talent to be this bad, and Frazier and his coaches need to take the blame.