Offensive Line

It was a dream game for Mike Zimmer as the Vikings ran more than twice as much as they threw, and pounding the rock resulted in a win in Green Bay. Dalvin Cook gets plenty of the credit, and the offensive line produced their top PFF run-blocking grade of the season, but the success wouldn’t have been possible without blocking contributions from Irv Smith, Kyle Rudolph and C.J. Ham. Here’s a look at those unsung heroes from Minnesota’s Week 8 win at Lambeau.

With both Pat Elflein and Dru Samia out, the Vikings tossed second-round selection Ezra Cleveland into the right guard vacancy against Atlanta. Given the performance of his predecessors this season the bar was set pretty low, but while Cleveland’s performance was far from All Pro caliber he flashed enough ability to earn more looks — at guard and potentially tackle as well — as the Vikings use this lost season to figure out how to upgrade their offensive line.

For the second straight week the Vikings’ overall O-line play was in the C-/D+ range. With a typical Mike Zimmer defense that might be enough; with the defense's current level of play, it’s nowhere close. Here's a look at the positives — yes, there were some — and negatives of life without Pat Elflein along the Vikings' offensive line, with a glance ahead to what's in store next (spoiler: it rhymes with "Jadaveon Clowney").

If you limited yourself to selected areas of the box score without knowing the final score, you might think the Vikings offensive line acquitted itself well in the season opener. But breakdowns from the top on down — questionable decisions by the coaches, lack of communication between the experienced starters, and little from the unit's only new member — ultimately added up to a disheartening Week 1 loss.