Maybe Ty Chandler should've been the Vikings' RB1 all year long, pass protection be damned.
Making his first career start on Saturday due to Alexander Mattison's ankle injury, Chandler put up the best performance of the season by a Vikings running back. The second-year pro finished the day with 23 carries for 132 yards and a touchdown, plus another 25 yards on three receptions. Not only was it Minnesota's first 100-yard rushing game of the season, Chandler became just the ninth Viking ever with 130 rushing yards, 25 receiving yards, and a rushing TD in a single game.
"We wanted to feature Ty," Kevin O'Connell said. "I think he had every carry but one from the running back position today. Great cuts a couple times on some unblocked crack force corners. He made a great cut on the long run to get us down there for the last touchdown. He's finding it, he's seeing it, he's getting better and better, and he had some really nice protection pickups on some of those play passes as well. Huge growth day for him, I look forward to keeping him going. Love where Ty Chandler is at right now."
The pass protection part is a key one. That has ostensibly been the biggest reason why Chandler has been behind Mattison — and also Cam Akers for a while — on the depth chart this year. He had some notable struggles in that area earlier this season. But Chandler earned an 84.5 PFF grade on his ten pass-blocking snaps against the Bengals, allowing zero pressures.
If he can consistently be above average in that area of the game, there's no reason why he shouldn't be the Vikings' No. 1 RB for the rest of this season and into 2024. Mattison will have a role once he's healthy, but Chandler brings a big-play ability that the Vikings need out of their ground game. His burst and shiftiness are obvious every time you watch him play — and his vision was also excellent in Cincinnati.
Chandler's breakout performance against the Bengals made it clear that he needs to be the main guy in this Vikings backfield moving forward. We'll see if O'Connell agrees.
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