Marcus Mariota, Aaron Rodgers and Cam Newton all have one thing in common: They were battered and bruised by the ferocious Minnesota Vikings defense.
The defense has been impressive enough through three games to get Carl Eller to tell the New York Post that this year’s defense reminds him of the Purple People Eaters he was a part of in the 1960s and 70s.
“Hey, bring lots of band-aids!,” Eller told the Post when asked about advice for opposing quarterbacks.
“I think they’ve kind of taken a sense of pride in their responsibility that they have a tremendous challenge ahead of them and they’re accepting that charge; I think that’s exciting,” Eller added.
Vikings defense is loaded with fast, physical players and Mike Zimmer knows how to manipulate pass pro better than anyone. Fun to watch.
— Daniel Jeremiah (@MoveTheSticks) September 27, 2016
The Purple People Eaters of old were led by a defensive line that crushed the competition. Eller, Alan Page, Gary Larson and Jim Marshall are considered one of the all-time great front fours, but this year’s Vikings defensive line is off to a dominant start of their own.
Everson Griffen leads the team with 4 sacks; Linval Joseph and Danielle Hunter each have 3 sacks and Brian Robison has 2. Overall, the Vikings lead the NFL with 15 sacks through three games.
The rest of the defensive numbers:
- Total defense: 6th
- Pass defense: 9th (211 yards/game)
- Rush defense: 7th (84 yards/game)
- Scoring defense: 3rd (13.3 points/game)
- Sacks: 1st (15)
- Interceptions: 2nd (5)
- Forced fumbles: 3rd (5)
- Fumble recoveries: 1st (4)
There’s a good chance Eli Manning joins Mariota, Rodgers and Newton on Monday Night Football. And remember, like we mentioned Tuesday – Manning sucks against the Vikings.
Through Week 3, the #Vikings defense has recorded:
5 INTs
15 sacks
13.3 PPG allowed
3.4 YPC allowed
2 touchdowns
1 safety— Drew Mahowald (@DrewMahowald) September 25, 2016
