The shutout was great. But can Carolina Panthers defense Cook again vs. Vikings?
What the Carolina Panthers defense did a week ago against Detroit was spectacular, unexpected and just about perfect.
Their reward after that 20-0 shutout win: A game against the NFL offense that gains more yards per play compared to any other team in the league.
The Minnesota Vikings are only 4-6, but their offense bulges with talent. They average 6.55 yards per play, No. 1 in the NFL; Patrick Mahomes’ Kansas City juggernaut is No. 2, at 6.34 yards per play.
So here’s another enormous test for a young Panther defense that has already seen Mahomes, Tom Brady (twice), Kyler Murray, Drew Brees and Matt Ryan (twice) this season, with Aaron Rodgers still on the horizon.
Minnesota has four big weapons, and at least three will be on display Sunday in Minneapolis. Quarterback Kirk Cousins directs the attack. Running back Dalvin Cook has scored 14 touchdowns already this season, including seven TDs and 750 total yards from scrimmage over the past four weeks. Wide receivers Adam Thielen and Justin Jefferson form one of the best combos in the league.
Thielen, maybe the best red-zone receiving threat in the NFL with 11 TDs, is iffy to play because of a positive COVID-19 test. Jefferson, a rookie headed toward a 1,000-yard season, will get more targets if Thielen can’t go.
In other words, this will be an offense more like Tampa Bay’s weaponized group instead of Detroit’s injury-ravaged crew. And we know what has happened against the Buccaneers, who plastered Carolina with 31 and 46 points in two games.
What remains clear, though, is the Panther defense’s promise. Defensive end Brian Burns is putting together a year worthy of the Pro Bowl. Safety/linebacker hybrid Jeremy Chinn leads all rookies in tackles. Rookie defensive tackle Derrick Brown has buttressed the middle of the D-line.
But can the Panthers stop Dalvin Cook?
With Christian McCaffrey missing more than half of the 2020 season already due to two injuries, Cook and Tennessee’s Derrick Henry have become the best two running backs in the NFL. Of Cook, Panthers coach Matt Rhule said earlier this week: “He’s certainly one of the best players that we’ve faced, and he’s one of the best players I’ve seen.”
The Panthers have made significant progress in stopping the run compared to 2019, when they were horrid at the task. But Cook is a steep challenge. So is Jefferson, whose 848 receiving yards through 10 games is the most in Minnesota rookie history, topping Randy Moss’s start.
Carolina should be able to score on the Vikings — Dallas put up 31 on Minnesota recently. But to avoid a shootout, the Panthers’ D will have to show last week wasn’t a fluke, but was instead a street sign pointing toward better things ahead.
Panthers-Vikings features three 800-yard receivers
Entering Sunday’s games, only 10 NFL players have 800 or more receiving yards. This game will feature three of them — not only Jefferson, but also Carolina’s DJ Moore (863) and Robby Anderson (818). Moore has surged in front of Anderson in receiving yardage over the past several weeks. Anderson scored on a 75-yard TD against Las Vegas in Week 1, but he hasn’t scored since and is overdue to get back into the end zone again.
Before they were stars
Back when Minnesota wide receiver Adam Thielen was mostly a special-teamer, he scored his first-ever NFL touchdown against Carolina by blocking a punt and returning it 30 yards in 2014.
Back when wide receiver Steve Smith — who topped my list of the best all-time Panthers — was mostly a special-teamer, he scored his first-ever NFL TD against Minnesota by returning the opening kickoff of the 2001 season 93 yards for a touchdown. The Panthers won that game, then lost 15 in a row.
My Panthers-Vikings prediction
I misfired on last week’s pick, unable to forecast Carolina’s win over Detroit. That dropped me to 6-5 picking Panthers games this season, which is a poor record and really no better than a coin toss.
A coin toss? Hmmm.
Perturbed with my fizzling prognostications, I broke down and actually resorted to tossing a coin to make my pick this week. Minnesota won the toss, and I’m picking the Vikings to win the game. If I miss yet again, I’m open to your suggestions on other ways to make these decisions.
My email is sfowler@charlotteobserver.com if you have a picking suggestion. And my pick this week is:
Minnesota 29, Carolina 27.
