Here’s an interesting nugget from the aftermath of the Week 13 game between the Vikings and the Cardinals.
On Monday, Dan Patrick (via Rick Alonzo of the St. Paul Pioneer Press) shared an interesting tidbit regarding one of the age-old techniques for securing an advantage in football.
Patrick said that former NFL tackle Tony Boselli, who was working the game for Westwood One radio as a sideline reporter, pointed out that the Cardinals knew when a pass was coming from the Vikings because of the manner in which left tackle Bryant McKinnie would line up prior to the snap.
Specifically, McKinnie puts one of his legs in a different position when preparing to pass block.
This doesn’t completely account for the 30-17 loss, since McKinnie missed a portion of the game with an injury. (Also, McKinnie doesn’t play defense for the Vikings.)
But if it’s true that McKinnie has a “tell,” the Vikings coaches need to tell him to stop doing it.
And kudos to the Cardinals for catching it.
Of course, the Vikings should have caught it before it ever became an issue in a game against an opponent. This is one of those details that a very good coaching staff catches before anyone else does, and it again makes us wonder whether the Vikings might have been a little premature in their decision to extend the contract of coach Brad Childress.