Vikings Snap Counts and PFF Notes, Week 3: Tyler Conklin, Oli Udoh Shine vs. Seahawks

The Vikings are finally in the win column.

They didn't panic after an unlucky 0-2 start, but instead kept doing what they've done well all month and improved in some areas that had been issues. Kirk Cousins, Alexander Mattison, Justin Jefferson, and basically the entire offense were fantastic in Minnesota's 30-17 win over the Seahawks at U.S. Bank Stadium. And after an ugly start, the Vikings' defense stepped up on three second-half possessions, holding Russell Wilson and Seattle scoreless for the final 41 minutes of game time (with plenty of help from the offense's ability to generate lengthy drives that kept Wilson off the field).

It was a highly encouraging performance that the Vikings will now try to build off of in upcoming games against the Browns, Lions, and Panthers before their bye week.

Let's dive into the snap counts and some other observations, with help from Pro Football Focus's grades and tracking stats.

Offensive snap counts

Total offensive snaps: 75

• QB Kirk Cousins: 75
• LT Rashod Hill: 75
• LG Ezra Cleveland: 75
• C Garrett Bradbury: 75
• RG Oli Udoh: 75
• RT Brian O'Neill: 75
• WR Adam Thielen: 72
• WR Justin Jefferson: 62
• TE Tyler Conklin: 54
• RB Alexander Mattison: 51
• WR K.J. Osborn: 44
• TE Ben Ellefson: 30
• FB C.J. Ham: 22
• RB Ameer Abdullah: 22
• TE Chris Herndon: 12
• WR Dede Westbrook: 6

Analysis

One of the interesting trends to track in the Vikings' offensive snap counts so far this season has been the playing time of Conklin and Osborn. In Week 1, with the Vikings trailing for much of the game and using a ton of 11 personnel (three wide receivers), Osborn out-snapped Conklin 67 to 59. But over the past two games, Conklin has 103 snaps to Osborn's 80.

That's probably around where Klint Kubiak wants to be. The tight end is still very important in this offense, but at the same time, Osborn has earned a significant weekly role with his play. The two can co-exist as the No. 3 and 4 non-RB pass-catchers behind Thielen and Jefferson.

The other thing that stands out is the playing time of the backup tight ends. Ellefson, a fairly unheralded waiver claim from the Jaguars, has now out-snapped Herndon 46 to 24 over the past two weeks. That makes the decision to send the Jets a fourth-round pick for Herndon (and a sixth) seem like an overreaction to Irv Smith Jr.'s injury. However, it's worth being patient to see if Herndon can earn his way onto the field more. Ellefson is a blocking TE in the David Morgan mold, while Herndon is primarily a receiver — and it's easier to pick up the schemes and responsibilities as a blocker than a receiver when coming to a new team.

"We’re using him a little differently," Mike Zimmer said. "Kind of depends on what we’re trying to do offensively at that point. But I do like the way Ellefson has been feisty, staying on blocks and doing things. He’s been a little bit better that way.”

At the very least, Herndon gives the Vikings depth if Conklin were to miss any time. And when you consider that the Jets' sixth-rounder will likely be at the very start of the sixth round, the trade looks a little less bad.

Defensive snap counts

Total defensive snaps: 53

• S Xavier Woods: 53
• S Harrison Smith: 53
• LB Eric Kendricks: 53
• LB Nick Vigil: 53
• CB Patrick Peterson: 53
• CB Bashaud Breeland: 53
• DE Danielle Hunter: 51
• CB Mackensie Alexander: 44
• DE D.J. Wonnum: 34
• DE Everson Griffen: 34
• DT Sheldon Richardson: 26
• DT Dalvin Tomlinson: 25
• DT Michael Pierce: 21
• LB Blake Lynch: 9
• DE Stephen Weatherly: 8
• DT Armon Watts: 8
• S Camryn Bynum: 5

Analysis

There are a lot of interesting things here regarding the Vikings' defensive line rotation against Seattle. Tomlinson and Pierce saw their playing time fall significantly from the first two weeks, but it wasn't punitive. The Seahawks were running a lot of no-huddle on offense, preventing the Vikings from making substitutions. So instead of having the two big defensive tackles get stuck out there on third downs, Zimmer went to his third-down personnel with Griffen and Richardson on some early downs.

"Early in the game, I panicked a little bit because they weren’t allowing us to get our group in there on third downs, so we played some of those guys on first and second down a little bit more than we normally would," Zimmer explained.

Tomlinson and Pierce played quite well in their limited action, combining for five pressures. It just happened to work out that they weren't able to be on the field quite as much.

Richardson and Griffen wound up setting their season highs in snaps. Griffen had exactly as many as Wonnum, who is the other starter at defensive end, but was more productive with his opportunities. Griffen had three pressures and a sack, while Wonnum didn't record any pressures for the second time in three games.

After playing 46 snaps in the first two games, Weatherly found himself without much of a role in this game.

Lastly, Bynum saw his first playing time on defense late in the game, making him just the second Vikings rookie to see time on offense or defense this year (Ihmir Smith-Marsette played a handful of offensive snaps in Week 1).

Pro Football Focus notes

Here are the Vikings' highest and lowest grades on offense and defense against the Seahawks, via PFF, for players with a minimum of 15 snaps played.