Offensive player rankings Week 5 Thielens frustration justified

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Offensive player rankings, Week 5: Thielen's frustration justified   Published: Oct 01, 2019 at 06:18 AM           NFL.com Analyst                               wide receiver didn't hold back his frustration in the locker room Sunday after to the .     "At some point, you're not going to be able to run the ball for 180 yards, even with the best running back in the NFL," Thielen said after the game, . "That's when you have to be able to throw the ball. You have to be able to make plays. You have to be able to hit the deep balls. You have to do that."         You don't often see a receiver critique his quarterback in public like that, but he's not wrong. On Monday, Thielen , but I don't blame him and fellow receiver -- who when the media entered after the game, ultimately declining any interviews -- for being frustrated. They have every right to be, given the way Minnesota's offense has performed.      On Sunday, the stymied the run game, holding -- who was coming off three straight C.J. Miles Jersey  100-yard games -- to just 35 yards and a garbage-time touchdown on 14 carries. With the ground game not going anywhere, as he had completed 9-of-14 pa s attempts for 53 yards with two minutes remaining in the third quarter. The ' offense had 59 total yards in the first half, and its first seven drives ended in either punts or fumbles.     Thielen caught just two pa ses for 6 yards on six targets, and one of the few deep throws the $84 million quarterback attempted came on a first-half heave to Thielen. Unfortunately, the ball was overthrown by several yards. Diggs finished with seven catches for 108 yards, but the vast majority of that production came late in the second half when the game felt like it was out of reach. Though the never had more than a two-score lead, it felt more like a 40-point advantage, because Minnesota's offense never really threatened the ' defense -- until it was too late.      The bottom line is Minnesota (2-2) has lost each of its games against division opponents this season and now sits at the bottom of the NFC North a quarter of the way through the season. When you're a proven player (Thielen/Diggs in this case) and you don't get opportunities to help your team win, that's when frustration boils over. I think that's what happened on Sunday. A comparison between Thielen and Diggs' production through four games last season, when the receiving duo set multiple records, and this year shows just how far they have fallen.        Thielen in 2018: 55 targets, 40 receptions, 473 yards, two TDs.Thielen in 2019: 21 targets, 13 receptions, 179 yards, two TDs.     Diggs in 2018: 39 targets, 27 receptions, 311 yards, three TDs.Diggs in 2019: 19 targets, 13 receptions, 212 yards, one TD.     The thing is, I'm not sure things are suddenly going to get vastly better for the duo, Avery Bradley Jersey  given the type of team Mike Zimmer wants to put on the field. Zimmer wants to win with a dominant defense and run game, but if the threat of throwing the ball downfield is so small, like it was against the , it's easy for teams to load up the box and take away the run. To be fair, the ' pa s rush, led by , was all over Cousins. Yet, five of the Killian Tillie Jersey  ' six sacks came after the QB had more than 2.5 seconds to throw, per Next Gen Stats. Cousins had the among Week 4 pa sers (2.8%), and he tied for the second-lowest average intended air yards. The have to find a way to generate offense even when the run game is not clicking. Cousins has the weapons to do it, but he's just not getting it done.     Thielen and Diggs aren't the only players who have been a victim of their circumstances this season, though. Here are a couple more offensive players that have the right to be frustrated right now:      RB Le'Veon Bell: With mi sing the last couple games due to mononucleosis, Bell has been the sole focus of opposing defensive coordinators. He's doing everything -- no, really, EVERYTHING -- for an 0-3 team that doesn't have clarity as to when its franchise QB . Bell has 76 touches in three games (25.3 per game) -- 55 more than the next-closest skill-position player, (21 total touches) -- and recorded a touch on 46 percent of his offensive snaps this season, per NGS. It doesn't take a genius to see that he's asked to do in Adam Gase's system (and wants the responsibility). in Week 2, Bell chipped to give more time to throw, caught the pa s in space, made several defenders mi s, which included a hurdle over safety , and picked up a first down. There's not much more Bell can do at this point, and yet, his team is winle s and Gang Green's offense ranks dead last in the NFL.      RB Austin Ekeler: The have utilized Ekeler appropriately in the run game and have been able to get him in space, where he does a lot of damage. He has been very productive as the starter (220 rush yards, 270 receiving yards, six total TDs) in four games. That's the good news. The bad news for him is that head coach Anthony Lynn said that , who joined the team last week after a lengthy holdout, when he is ready. It's not all that surprising, considering Gordon is a better back who will run hard inside the tackles and close games out, but Ekeler has performed well in the role and has been with the since the team reported back in July. Losing the job under these circumstances doesn't sit well if I'm Ekeler.           Arrows reflect changes .           Rank   1         Kansas City Chiefs    QB      looked human for much of Sunday's contestby playing far below his usual standard. He had his third career game with zero pa sing touchdowns, but proved why  Jae Crowder Jersey he should still be in this spot withlate in the fourth quarter to improve theto 4-0.        Rank   2         Seattle Seahawks    QB      After signing a big contract in the offseason, Wilson is having a career year, one worthy of MVP mentions. He has had a 100-plus pa ser rating in each of the four games this season -- three of those at 110.0 or better -- and has yet to throw an interception on 133 pa s attempts, his longest such streak to start a season in his career. His ability to extend plays and come through in big moments has thesitting at 3-1 at the quarter mark, a big deal considering they have made the playoffs the last seven times when starting 3-1.            Rank   3   1           Carolina Panthers    RB      McCaffrey jumped to the top of the rushing ranks after last week's performance and now edges Minnesota'sby 1 rush yard. TheRB1 put the team on his back in Sunday's win by racking up a whopping 179 scrimmage yards. The rest of theoffense had 147 scrimmage yards .        Rank   4   4           New Orleans Saints    RB           My hat's off to Kamara for what he's done the last two games without. He punished the' defense in Week 3 and did the same against thein Week 4. According to Pro Football Focus, Kamara forced a career-high nine mi sed tackles on 17 carries Sunday night, bringing his season total to 23 (five more than any other player this season). As impre sive as he was in his first two seasons as a complementary back, 2019 feels like the beginning of a bust-worthy career.        Rank   5   2           Dallas Cowboys    RB      No matter how wellplays, Zeke will be the focal point of the offense as long as he's in auniform. He has been one of the most consistent running backs since entering the league four seasons ago, and this season is no different.        Rank   6   3           Minnesota Vikings    RB      Cook has been great in 2019 as the centerpiece of  Kyle Anderson Jersey the' offense, which is the reason he's moved up to No. 6. (Remember, I am looking solely at this season now.) And though he ran into some trouble against the, who held Cook to 90 rushing yards below h
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