Climbing The Pocket

Episode 21: Fifteen Minutes with @Flipmazzi [Stand Ground]

In this episode:

@Flipmazzi reviews the 6-4-1 Minnesota Vikings and the must have win in Week 12 over the 4-6-1 Green Bay Packers. The Vikings are hanging tough and they’re gonna scrap it out with all these other NFC contenders. Are you strapped in?

Good Morning Gjallarhorn Episode 034 - It's Packers Week

Good Morning Gjallarhorn Episode 034 – It’s Packers Week!

 

Good morning Horners! We hope that your Thanksgiving was an exceptionally happy one, that everyone survived, that the food was good and the conversation was even better. Drew, Ted and I did our best to have the same. We recorded the show the evening before, still with the memories of last week's loss in our heads. We are looking forward to the Packers game, but first an epic rant.

 

All week across the Vikings Twittersphere, on the web, amongst your favorite podcasts, and even here on GMG – In The Raw, there has been debate over why the Vikings are 5-4-1 and fighting desperately to secure a wildcard playoff spot. At the beginning of the season, most fans had Super Bowl aspirations for this team anticipating another decent season, and by decent we mean double-digit win totals and being one of the best teams in the NFL. As of right now, however, the squad does not fit into that category and there seems to be a hint of dysfunction or disarray.

 

The show opens with an epic rant. Debates about player performance, coaches calls, and more come down to the question of who was held responsible. With the offense not living up to fans expectations, the questions of why abound, but there should be one person responsible enough to affect change for the positive. That person is head coach Mike Zimmer. Though he is a noted defensive guru, we watched him make proper decisions when guiding Pat Shurmur as his offensive coordinator last season. We are fully expecting, anticipating, and now demanding that he does the same thing with John DeFilippo. We want to maximize the effectiveness of Kirk Cousins, the run game featuring Dalvin Cook and LaTavius Murray to go along with a dynamic passing attack. All of this being done by attacking places on the field where you have an advantage in numbers or position.

 

This transitioned nicely into Sunday night’s game against the division rival Green Bay Packers. Discussion ensued over key players not named Aaron Rodgers like Devante Adams, the state of the defense and cheesehead coaching. Looking at the statistics, the Vikings should take advantage in this game and win in prime time. Ted called it but also left open a gut-wrenching Mason Crosby spoiler. You can listen and decide for yourself. Do the Vikings have what it takes to win tonight, win enough games to squeak into the playoffs, or even get lucky enough to steal the division from the Chicago Bears?

 

We are interested to hear what you think. Like, subscribe, and ring that damn bell! Then shout SKOL!

 

As always, enjoy the watch!

 

The show's theme music is licensed through AudioJungle, the song is Stylish Powerful Energetic Rock.

 

(All rights go to The National Football League, the Minnesota Vikings, and all their broadcasters. I do not own any of the music and the footage used in this video. No copyright infringement intended. We do not gain any profit from our videos, and they are for entertainment and educational purposes only) "Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing. Non-profit, educational or personal use tips the balance in favor of fair use."

034 - Skoldiers [Packers Preview]

In this episode:

• KC v LAR
• Mahomes is Great
• Alex Smith Injury - Weird Coincidences
• Trubisky Hurt His Shoulder Apparently
• Defensive Keys
• Aaron… No Not That One… Jones
• Rodgers - How To Contain His Impact
• Offensive Keys
• TURNOVERS!
• Mike Daniels Injured
• Simplify Offense?
• Predictions

Episode 20: Fifteen Minutes with @Flipmazzi [Pretenders]

In this episode:

@Flipmazzi reviews the 5-4-1 Minnesota Vikings and their no show loss in Week 11 to the 7-3 Chicago Bears. The Vikings look like Pretenders, not Contenders after this lackluster effort on Soldier Field.

Good Morning Gjallarhorn Episode 033 - Waiting on the Mistake

Good Morning Gjallarhorn Episode 033 – In The Raw: Waiting On The Mistake

 

Good morning Horners! Here is your post game reaction show where coming out of the bye week, the Minnesota Vikings went into Soldier Field to battle the Chicago Bears. The problem with that, was that it really wasn't much of a battle. Our beloved Vikings were not favored to win, and as usual Vegas was correct. Join me, Drew Bunting, and Ted Glover as we discussed, or should it be disgust, the action of the evening.

 

This game put many Vikings fans expectations in doubt. Ted and Drew both discuss the frustration that comes from watching the purple underperform and make mistakes, and especially in critical situations in a way that just rips at one's fandom. The three of us are called the Grampa Division because of our age and the fact that we have followed this team for over five decades, or nearly that. I guess there is an honor to the what seems like futility of being a Minnesota fan. There are only a few fan bases, like the Buffalo Bills, or even the Detroit Lions in the NFL that no such pain. Not to offend anybody else, like Cleveland Brown fans, and there are probably a couple others, but with the team playing in its 58th season it can wear on you.

 

Mike Zimmer and his coaches had plenty of opportunity to plan for this game. The Vikings came off their bye week and basically had two full weeks to prepare for Mitch Trubisky and his scrambling abilities, along with Khalil Mack and Akiem Hicks rushing skills. It wasn't until the second half however, that any adjustments appeared to be made to spy on the Bears quarterback and none made to slow down the rush. In looking at the game logs, it appears that tight end Kyle Rudolph only assisted Riley Reiff once on a chip block. A team in its fifth year under the same head coach, Mike Zimmer, even with a new offense of coordinator, shouldn't make these repeated poor strategic decisions. Especially, when you consider they had two weeks to prepare. That now makes a record of 2-3 for Mike Zimmer coming out of the bye. I do not recall Dennis Green or even Mike Tice having an issue playing after a bye week.

 

Kirk Cousins did not look sharp, in fact he was compared to Christian Ponder in his throws and some of his decisions. His throws were off target too many times, and then there was the inexplicable interceptions. He wasn't the only one on the offense that failed to live up to expectations either. Dalvin Cook had another game with a fumble and other than about one decent run, was bottled up most of the day. We attribute most of this to the offensive line play, but a good chunk goes to John DeFilippo’s poor game calling of plays. He joined the Vikings with all the hype of being a one-year wonder that would go on to be a head coach next year, but yet that type of offensive play calling and in game adjustments have yet to be consistently seen, and not just game to game, but from quarter to quarter. Questionable play calls, especially when trying to come from behind, instill no-confidence in a fan base that is thirsting for the success that was promoted and anticipated by the organization.

 

We talked about the moral victories, not that they're worth a W in the win column, but are still nice to hear. Anthony Harris had another very good game with two interceptions and overall good play. He very much looks to have won the starting spot opposite Harrison Smith even once Andrew Sendejo gets healthy. Stephen Weatherly had another good game as a rotational player and is continuing to show his improvement, especially when it was him that stretched out plays towards the sideline so they could be stopped. The other moral victory of the night came from the best wide receiver tandem in the league, where Stefon Diggs had over 100 yards receiving, and Adam Thielen became only the second player in Minnesota Vikings history, tying Randy Moss,  to getting to 1,000 yards the quickest in a season. Both Adam and the GOAT did it in 10 games.

 

Not to worry, this isn't a completely "woe is me" show. We do have our laughs, especially when I get a phone call in the middle of recording. I guarantee you'll watch and laugh at that point. We also ask you to give us your thoughts about the Vikings need to do for the rest the season.

 

Like, subscribe, and ring that damn bell! Then shout SKOL!

 

As always, enjoy the watch!

 

The show’s theme music is licensed through AudioJungle, the song is Stylish Powerful Energetic Rock.

 

(All rights go to The National Football League, the Minnesota Vikings, and all their broadcasters. I do not own any of the music and the footage used in this video. No copyright infringement intended. We do not gain any profit from our videos, and they are for entertainment and educational purposes only) "Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing. Non-profit, educational or personal use tips the balance in favor of fair use."

033 - Skoldiers [Couldn't Bear It - Chicago Recap]

In this episode:

• Cousins Was Less Than Ideal
• Panic At The Disco - Uncommon Panic From Cousins In Clean Pockets
• John DeFillippo - Needs To Do Better
• Questionable Play Calling
• Defense Did Enough To Win
• Stupid Penalties
• Trubisky Was Lethal Scrambling
• Everything Is Still Possible, But Time Is Running Out

032 - Skoldiers [Bears Preview]

In this episode:

• Around The League
• Bye Week - Getting Healthy
• Defensive Keys
• Contain RBs
• How To Pressure Trubisky
• Offensive Keys
• How To Handle Khalil Mack
• Dalvin Cook Makes The Offense Dynamic
• Keep Kirk Clean
• Rudy Breakout Game?
• Special Teams
• Predictions
• Name That Viking

Climbing The Pocket: Episode 120 [Build Da Bears]

In this episode:

Question of the day - What did you do over the bye week?

Vikings Talk

• What are you hoping to see down the stretch?
• Vikings Injury Report

 

Bears Game Preview with @AaronLemingNFL

• How'd you get started in the industry?
• Tell us about the Bears season to date
• How confident in the fan base right now?
• How much did the addition of Khalil Mack change the franchise?
• What are your thoughts on Trubisky's development?
• Are the new weapons in Chicago really as good as the stats?
• Keys to victory for the Bears
• Bold Prediction/Score Prediction
  • Aaron - No turnovers for Trubisky; 27-23 Bears
  • Yinka - 5 turnovers between the 2 QBs; 18-16 Vikings
  • Myles - Dalvin Cook over 150 all-purpose yards; 23-20 Vikings
  • JR - Latavius and Cook go for 200 rushing yards; 17-13 Vikings
  • Jayson - Kirk Cousins over 300 yards and 3 TDs; 22-21 Bears

Recent/Upcoming Projects

• Catch up on all the latest from CTP here.

031 - Skoldiers [State of The Union: NFC Edition]

In this episode:

• NFC East
• Superbowl Hangover / Surprise Leader In Washington
• NFC South
• Saints On A Tare
• Carolina Has Potential
• Matt Kalil Contract Talk (P.S. That Contract Is HORRIBLE For The Panthers)
• NFC West
• LA Rams In Dominant Control - Can Clinch Week 11
• NFC North
• Detroit Is Dead
• Packers Have Sneakily Easier Schedule After Week 13
• Bears Have Mack And Trubisky, But Are They Enough?
• Vikings Defense Returning To Form
• Next Two Weeks Will Clarify North Picture
• Mid-Season Playoff Predictions
• Seriously… Bet The Over On LAR v KC In Mexico (Skoldiers Podcast and its affiliates are not responsible for any lost money on betting)

030 - Skoldiers [State of The Union: AFC Edition]

In this episode:

• AFC East
• East Still Runs Through New England
• AFC North
• Pittsburgh Still In Control
• AFC South
• Houston Is A Dangerous Team
• AFC West
• KC and LAC will make the AFC Playoff Picture Interesting