"Worst One I've Ever Had" - Mike Zimmer on his Defense

The Vikings gave up 21 points in the 4th Quarter against the Saints. That's bad. But it also points to the fact that game was pretty close up through three quarters - 27-31, after three, to be exact. 

And then the 4th Quarter disaster happened. Let's be clear about this - the Vikings couldn't stop Alvin Kamara, at all. Their offense was rather moribund, as well. 

But I want to get to that Zimmer quote, and what it portends. I don't know if anyone in the Twin Cities or National media is going to talk about this, but here's what I heard when I read that quote: an attack on Vikings GM Rick Spielman. 

During the game, Joe Buck and Troy "Heckuva" Aikman talked about Mike Zimmer's honesty and forthrightness in interviews; how he "tells it like it is." 

I don't have the access of Fox's Top NFL Team (duh), but I rolled my eyes at that, pretty hard. Zimmer has always struck me as a passive-aggressive asshole who will never take the blame. 

And I think that quote in the headline tells me I'm right - note the passive voice. Zimmer is the head coach, but somehow this defense is not his fault. It's the worst one he's had - he talks about it like you or I might talk about a bad taco. 

And he went on to talk about all the injuries and could have discussed all the free agents who departed last year, if he wanted to. But he doesn't need to do that, because everyone knows the secondary is a bunch of rookies who may or may not be better in a year or two, but are prone to bad mistakes now. Though, hard to blame the rookie secondary for 7 rushing TD's. 

I think this is Zimmer putting a marker down. He never wanted Kirk Cousins - he certainly didn't want him at the price that the Vikings paid. It is a bit odd that this gone down the memory hole a bit, but at the time, it was clear Zimmer wanted to reinvest in his defense, and use a cheap QB. 

As a misbegotten fan of the WFT, I can point to many instances in which Cousins' costly brainfarts belied his statistics. Note the time, for example, when he took a knee instead of spiking the ball. I told my friends who were Vikings fans - "You'll love him, until you absolutely hate him." Apparently, Zimmer was in that camp. 

Zimmer, by declaring his defense to be the "worst one I've ever had", isn't being a straight-shooter. He's setting up a battle between himself and the man who ruined his defense, GM Rick Spielman. Spielman ruined his defense to get Cousins, and Zimmer is making it clear that what is happening to his team, on his watch, isn't his fault. Now, Spielman is also the guy who hired Zimmer, so this is some Civil War type shit. It is gonna get ugly in the offseason for the Vikings, and Zimmer has done his best, with his honest comments, that either he or Spielman will be gone by the start of next year. But at the same time, they both signed contracts. They are tied together. The Wilfs don't like spending dead money. 

 

I'm Ready to Start Writing Folk Songs about Gio Reyna

 He's gonna be real good, y'all. 

https://twitter.com/espn/status/1337778519254790145

Ignoring What's Happening in Big Ten Country is Being Complicit

 No offense, hip ESPN show. 

https://twitter.com/CollegeGameDay/status/1319979627134201859

YEAH, there are talking about fucking cake. 

Bad Ass Ladies #2: Geraldine Fibbers

 

Permit Us to be Absolute Bummers about the Big 10 College Football Opener

Perhaps, you remember, all the way back to August, when the Big 10 Conference announced they were cancelling the 2020 Season. Some said they were being pussies - mostly idiots like Clay Travis. Some critics were a bit more measured, but also suggested that the Big Ten was overreacting to a pandemic that had done as bad as it was going to do. Then there was a good chunk of folks (like myself) who breathed a sigh of relief that somehow, the moral imperative of keeping students safe was winning out over the motivation to make a buck. 

That decision lasted just about a month. 

But plenty of folks scratched their heads at the Big Ten's plan of starting the season right about when the flu season kicks in - late October. People with a cynical bent (like me!) noted articles about how the Big Ten decided it was safe enough to play football, but not any other fall sports. Read between the lines of this article, and the subtext pretty much punches you in the face. Big Ten Commissioner Kevin Warren says things that are just blatantly nonsense. 

Like this quote:  “We figured once we got (football) solved, being able to apply the same policies, procedures, and protocols to other sports would be straightforward.” That's nonsense. It would be much easier to figure out policies, procedures and protocols with a smaller team sport, with more built-in social distancing. Cross-Country running, for example, might be the best place to start experimenting with student-athlete health. Small teams, spacing, etc. 

And so now, the Big Ten Football season is about to begin. No other Big Ten fall sport has started up, and they won't. That should tell you everything about how safe this actually is, and how much of this is about the cash. As Michigan State Soccer Coach Damon Rensing said in the article linked above, "You've got to be realistic. Football funds a majority of our athletic department."

The Badgers of Wisconsin rolled up Illinois tonight to the tune of 45-7. Graham Mertz is a breakout QB star for the Badgers! Fantastic. 

But also, from the New York Times:  At least 46 new coronavirus deaths and 4,626 new cases were reported in Wisconsin on Oct. 23. Over the past week, there have been an average of 3,547 cases per day, an increase of 39 percent from the average two weeks earlier.

I promise I will be a bummer about this very ill-conceived cash grab the Big Ten has decided to embark on. 

Happy World Wombat Day to Those That Celebrate

Between his farts, and his savage love of sweet corn, it is possible that this Wombat will be writing for this blog in the next couple of weeks. 

NFC East Showed OUT on Thursday Night Football

 There were a lot of dumb moments in this game. A LOT of them. 

But this one is damn historic. Longest QB run in the last 25 years that did not result in a touchdown. Daniel Jones exemplifying the metaphor of "out over your skis" in perfect fashion. In many ways, the NFC East could not have demonstrated the brand better.