The Minnesota Vikings still have playoff aspirations, but they currently sit with a 2-2 record and have some big questions heading into their Week 5 showdown against the New York Giants. Let's break down three burning questions that are surrounding the Vikings.
3. Can the defense get out to a fast start
The Vikings defense is the strength of the team and there really shouldn't be many complaints about what they have been able to do so far this year.
There is one place that they could really improve though, getting off to a fast start. Against the Green Bay Packers in Week 2, they gave up 14 points before settling down and finished up the game giving up only 21 points.
Against the Bears, they gave up seven points in the opening drive before the defense really locked it down and gave the team a chance. The two games the Vikings have lost, they have gotten out to slow starts on defense, so can the team turn that around and come out of the gates strong?
2. Will the offensive line play better?
The offensive line was a big question mark heading into the season and after their game against the Bears, it's still a big issue.
For the most part, the offensive line has done a good job of opening up holes with the run game, but in pass protection, there have been some struggles.
Cousins has proven to have success, but he needs time in the pocket and last year when he didn't get it he started to have happy feet and make poor decisions. This is a run-first team, but when they pass the ball they need to give Cousins time to find his receivers.
1. Will Kirk Cousins start to see open receivers?
It was clear after the Chicago Bears loss that Stefon Diggs and Adam Thielen were frustrated with the offense and for good reason. Diggs and Thielen are doing their job getting open, but Cousins instead is throwing check-downs to the fullback. There has also been a couple of deep throws that should have been hit that Cousins overthrew that could have changed the outcome of the last game.
Courtney Cronin of ESPN points out one play against the Bears where Cousins didn't let Thielen's route develop when he ended up wide open. Instead, he checked it down to fullback C.J. Ham for a four-yard gain.
A lot of the quick throws might be because of the pressure he felt the rest of the game, but when the play is there and he has the time in the pocket, he needs to be making the right throws.
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