“The Vikings are 2-0 and along the way they beat the defending NFC Champions coming off a primetime win”. Uttering that phrase a few weeks ago would have been met with ridicule, even by the Vikings faithful. But that’s where we find ourselves after a start to the NFL season full of surprises. Sam Darnold and the work Head Coach Kevin O’Connell has done with him to date is receiving a lot of the national credit, and rightfully so. An equal driving force behind the Vikings fast start has been a tenacious defense that has been led up front by two defensive linemen that nobody had circled as key difference makers coming in, Patrick Jones II and Harrison Phillips.
Shocking Vikings Defensive Lineman Headlines Early Season Success
Patrick Jones’ Sudden Emergence
Patrick Jones sitting in second on the NFL sack leaderboard through two games might be a bigger surprise than even what Sam Darnold has accomplished to date. To put it in perspective, Jones’ 4 sacks are one fewer than his career total before this season. It’s not due to a small sample size. Because of injuries and depth issues, Jones has played plenty of snaps across 42 appearances in his first three years.
These haven’t been cheap sacks either. Sure, one of them was an unblocked sack on a missed assignment on Sunday against the 49ers, however, his other sack happens to be credited against All-World Left Tackle Trent Williams whom Jones overpowered on a straight bull rush. That’s not something most of even the NFL’s most elite pass rushers can say they’ve managed. Jones similarly beat another former All-Pro in Giants Tackle Andrew Thomas for a pair of sacks in Week 1. The level of player he has been performing against sure makes this feel a bit more real than fluky.
The answer to how Jones has managed to up his game might be as simple as limiting his snap count. Last season due to injury, Jones was relied upon to play most snaps for a team that blitzed heavily. As you would deduce by his meager career sack production, he was often invisible during those games. Perhaps by dialing back his game-to-game snaps, it’s helped unlock the explosiveness in Jones he hasn’t shown since college. Some guys are just better suited to be role players, and that’s totally fine. Many solid players have made long careers out of playing a limited role effectively. With the Texans coming to town this week, Minnesota will have to hope that Jones’ breakout as a pass rush specialist continues.
Harrison Phillips Reemergence
Unlike the sudden rise of Patrick Jones, Harrison Phillips is a veteran with a history of solid production. However, 2023 was not his best season. Phillips battled through lingering injuries, and like Jones, was a nonexistent presence rushing the passer. It was assumed that because Phillips didn’t miss any time due to his bad back it wasn’t that serious. The production drop looked like it might have just been one from a player getting to the end of his prime. Phillips is well on his way to putting that notion to bed with the way he’s started this season.
Despite only being credited with a single sack thus far, the tape shows a return to dominance in the middle. He routinely wrecked play after play against the Giants, not allowing them to run the ball with any consistency and not allowing Daniel Jones any room to step up in the pocket. His rush on the interior has played a role in numerous sacks beyond the one he’s credited with.
Phillips’ return to form hasn’t been lost on the Vikings front office either. It took all of one game for them to decide the time was right to finalize an extension. If the Vikings had a glaring hole on defense, it was the interior of the defensive line. Beyond Phillips, they’re relying on a combination of unproven players and cast-off journeymen. If Phillips can stay healthy and keep this return to form going, the Vikings interior may actually end up being a strength. If that happens, this defense could keep Minnesota in playoff contention a lot longer than would have been believed a few weeks ago.
Main Photo: [Matt Marton] – USA Today Sports
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