Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Pictures. The final two video games provided an abrupt fracture abet down to earth for a Minnesota Vikings defense that bought all the plaudits over the first five video games. Amongst the defensive struggles, Jonathan Greenard has shone because the vivid spark to offer some self assurance. Amongst Vikings’ Struggles, Jonathan Greenard Has Thrived. The Vikings’ defense started the season on fire, terrorizing opposing quarterbacks. The Vikings’ defense ranked first per EPA/Play rating and defense passing EPA/Play at some level of the first five weeks. That dropped to 28th and 32nd, respectively, over weeks 6-8, which is rather a topple. It has left the Vikings in 4th and 10th draw, respectively. Kirby Lee-Imagn Pictures. The easy thing to insist is that the Vikings must win abet to the Week 1-5 defense, but there are causes for the dropoff in the final two video games that must be solved. The largest hiss Brian Flores has to search out is how to generate a journey chase without his exotic blitzes. The Lions and Rams possess two of the excellent offensive play callers in the league and outdated quarterbacks who were ready for what the Vikings defense used to be about to narrate. The blitzes weren’t working, as every groups bought the ball out hasty and accurately for huge gains. Having to resort to dashing dependable four, the Vikings’ journey chase couldn’t win home, and the secondary wasn’t in a draw to quilt recoveries adequately sufficient. This ended in 61 parts conceded — in the first two video games, the Vikings allowed 30 parts — and the first two losses of the season. Greenard Provides The Intelligent Light Despite the negativity of the final two defensive performances, Greenard has been balling. He used to be credited with 5 pressures, 3 tackles, 1 type out for loss, and 1 journey deflection in opposition to the Rams. His performance used to be sufficient to imprint him named to the Reliable Football Level of interest Week 8 workers of the week. Over the previous two weeks, Greenard has a 92.2 overall grade, the excellent in the NFL of any defensive player to play 50 or extra snaps. That's elite-stage play in the eyes of the PFF graders. Nonetheless, Greenard handiest has one sack from the final four video games. He has five for the season, three of which came in opposition to the Houston Texans in Week 3. His tally of 5 for the season ranks a reliable 14th at some level of the league, where he's tied with several players, including teammates Andrew Van Ginkel, Patrick Jones, and ragged Viking Za’Darius Smith. Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Pictures. Greenard has 43 pressures to this level this season and is on run for 107 pressures, which could maybe per chance be the top single-season total since JJ Watt’s 119 in 2014 (the most recorded since PFF started monitoring pressures in 2006. So why isn’t Greenard getting extra success in attending to the quarterback? The easy reply is he can’t discontinue it on his cling. His 43 pressures are extra than double the subsequent man — Van Ginkel with 19 — and the interior journey chase is nonexistent. If the rigidity comes handiest from one draw, it’s no longer advanced for a handsome quarterback to handbook certain of it. Vikings Should Catch Extra Methods to Again The Circulate Hurry The exotic blitzes and advanced opposing QBs helped the Vikings assemble their journey chase in the early video games. Nonetheless, we’ve seen what happens when that doesn’t work, and it’s no longer handsome. Flores wants to search out a type to assemble it work when the Vikings handiest chase four and wait on Greenard out somewhat. Vikings followers are hopeful for a Dexter Lawrence substitute, but I will’t look that materializing. A Lawrence-style player in the midst of the DL must quiet certainly be at the close of the Vikings’ wants list for subsequent season if they'll’t pull a substitute-off in the subsequent few days. There looks to be a probable reply already on the roster: first-spherical edge defender Dallas Turner. After a promising debut that noticed Turner win his first profession sack, he had a minor knee hurt and has since seen his role on the defense diminish to almost nothing over the final two video games. With, fairly frankly, far too rash claims of “draft bust” and media inquiries to the instructing workers about Turner’s role. Kevin O’Connell stood firm in his belief that Turner will doubtless be a worthy player for the Vikings. Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Pictures. It’s time to imprint some substance to these remarks. There looks no sense in leaving a first-spherical abilities who is outwardly extremely rated by the instructing workers marinating on the sidelines whereas the Vikings’ defense struggles to assemble a journey chase. The Flores defense is a advanced one who takes time to master, but he must completely be in a draw to search out a type to win Greenard, Van Ginkel, and Turner on the world together extra continually in a expose to assemble some journey chase. Greenard is playing well, but he wants extra aid.