When a team loses two games in a row, everyone turns into Sherlock Holmes when it comes to looking for trouble. The hard part is figuring out which issues are truly causing problems going forward and which are nitpicky overreactions.

Let’s dive into some of the things that went wrong and see how they can approach fixing what ails them against Detroit and Los Angeles…

Problem:

The Lions and Rams employed similar strategies to open up receivers and get the ball out of their quarterbacks’ hands against the Vikings defense, which led the league in pressure percentage through the first five weeks of the season. Detroit QB Jared Goff targeted the middle of the field, going 10-of-10 for 127 yards, while Matthew Stafford completed 8-of-11 over the middle for 75 yards. Both quarterbacks had a snap-to-throw time of 2.5 seconds (per PFF).

Detroit and Los Angeles used extra blockers to slow down attacks. Goff vs. The Vikings offense went 15-for-16 for 165 yards and a touchdown, and Stafford went 10-for-13 for 128 yards.

Led by elite attacking players, the two clubs have also found ways to dribble the ball while other opponents have previously struggled to move the ball effectively on the ground. The Lions gained 144 yards and the Rams gained 107 yards rushing. The 49ers were the only team to surpass 100 yards rushing prior to the last two weeks.

Can it be fixed?

The biggest solution to the Vikings dealing with the “scheme” is to get Blake Cashman back. Entering this week, he was rated as PFF’s ninth-best defender. He is rated as a top-notch run defender, a quality blitz player, and has gained a lot of ground in coverage. Cashman also acted as the play caller. He spent the entire summer learning Brian Flores’ language, and by the season he was fluent in the language. Cashman’s changes to the offensive line sent QBs crazy and caused a lot of confusion. Getting him back must have a big impact.

The Vikings also have play-callers as good as Ben Johnson and Sean McVay every week, or Super Bowl-qualified QBs like Goff and Stafford, or St. Louis. Brown won’t be facing receivers or running backs as good as Kupp and Nacua. Gibbs and Williams or their offensive line is as good as the Lions.

When the Vikings make the playoffs, they will face teams that can exploit some defensive weaknesses. But it’s hard to find an opponent who can play at the same level as the Lions or a healthy Rams offense in the coming weeks. They play against the Colts, Jaguars, Titans, Bears and Cardinals; None of them rank higher than 15th in points per game.

Problem:

Following their loss to the Los Angeles Rams, the Vikings ranked 22nd out of 23 teams with at least seven plays on offense (397) and the third-most plays on defense (465) in the NFL. This equates to more defensive moments in an entire game than offense on the field.

The Vikings rank 28th in average drive time and 32nd in plays per rush.

There’s a trickle-down effect of the Vikings offense not getting a lot of plays, quarterbacks not always getting enough touches. For example, Jordan Addison dropped from 4.1 to 2.8 receptions per game, but his catch percentage relative to his actual receptions per game is no different. The Vikings are completing 18.2 passes per game and Addison is intercepting 15.3% of them. Last year they completed 24.9 completions per game and Addison completed 16.4% of them. As successful as Justin Jefferson is, his 1.6 catches per game remains below his career high.

Can it be fixed?

Part of the reason the Vikings run so few plays is because they are a downfield offense that relies on explosive plays. Darnold entered Sunday ranked second in average depth of target. When they score, they score quickly, but when an explosive play doesn’t materialize, drives result in punts or field goals.

Additionally, as they spent the majority of the season in leading matches, the passing rate was much more balanced than in previous years when they often played in penalty shoot-outs. Before Sunday’s competition they 20th place Percentage of plays with a pass. There should be more plays going back and forth and leaning on the quarterback as the season progresses.

Passing first is something the Vikings could lean more into. Darnold completes 74% of his passes on first down and averages 9.3 yards per pass attempt, but has only thrown 62 first down passes on 116 rushing attempts. When the score was only separated by one score, they still ran first (58 runs from 36 passes).

Over the last two games, Darnold has proven that he can be an effective takedown. On passes of under 10 yards, Darnold was 11-of-13 for 107 yards against the Rams and 14-of-15 for 68 yards against the Lions.

Problem:

Make no mistake, Aaron Jones has been a revelation for the Vikings in the backfield. He has 22 receptions, averaging 4.8 yards per carry and 10.3 yards per catch. Not to mention, Kevin O’Connell can be deployed in pass protection whenever he needs to. But using it at its current speed would be a tall order. Jones is on pace to carry the ball 253 times and catch 53 passes. Both of those numbers would surpass Jones’ career highs by a pretty significant margin. He had 272 touches (running + catching) in 2022 and 285 touches (running + catching) in 2019. Other than those two seasons, the star running back has never hit more than .250 in a season.

Can it be fixed?

The Vikings likely traded Cam Akers to give them another option beyond Ty Chandler, who had 20, 19 and 22 snaps in the first three weeks but has dropped to just 11 and 8 snaps in the last two games. This is even more striking when you consider that they played these two games in four days and, according to O’Connell, Jones “wasn’t 100 percent” in the game against the Lions.

Before his injury last season, Akers made 27, 17 and 23 appearances for the Vikings alongside Alex Mattison. Coming off back-to-back games on short notice could be a tall order for Akers, but with the mini-bye week he could adapt to a regular role to reduce Jones’ workload.

Problem:

On the defensive side, there are concerns that players will get tired all over the field. Andrew Van Ginkel and Jonathan Greenard rank in the top five in snaps among forward rushers. Greenard played 697 last year and has already appeared on the field 378 times in seven games. Harrison Phillips is the 15th player with the most snaps on defense. Harrison Smith is ranked 13th at safety. Stephon Gilmore ranks 23rd among cornerbacks.

In terms of rotations, Brian Flores frequently called on situational pass rushers, with Pat Jones playing 254 snaps and Jihad Ward receiving 160 reps, but the secondary rarely changed. Reserve linebackers Theo Jackson, Jay Ward, Bobby McCain, Akayleb Evans and Fabian Moreau took 41 snaps throughout the year.

Can it be fixed:

This needs to start with the offense staying on the field longer. If they can’t, then there’s only one obvious answer: Trade.

If the Vikings are willing to spend their remaining draft capital (the first and two-fifths), they could aim to acquire a star player or add role players who would add depth, especially on the inside linebackers and/or defensive backs. .

Flores could also rely a little more on some of the players on the bench. Players like Evans, Moreau, McCain and Jackson have plenty of past experience. They may need to be mixed. Interior depth includes Taki Tiamani and Jalen Redmond. They took 111 photos in total, but may see more work going forward.

Dallas Turner is another factor. If the Vikings have more faith in their first-round pick, they could give Van Ginkel or Greenard some rest. Whether this will happen remains to be seen.