Viktor
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- Mar 19, 2019
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Battle in the trenches | By @LindseyMNSports
As Eric mentioned above, the Jaguars may have an inglorious record, but the Vikings aren't taking the AFC South team lightly.
One of the areas I'll be watching Sunday is Minnesota's defensive line versus Jacksonville's offensive line, a unit which has helped fuel Robinson's success in the run game. The Jaguars o-line is anchored by center Brandon Linder, who has drawn praise from analytics site Pro Football Focus. A third-round draft pick in 2014, Linder has started all 78 games he's played for Jacksonville. On either side of Linder is right guard A.J. Cann and left guard Andrew Norwell. The Jaguars tackles are Cam Robinson, a 2017 second-round draft pick, on the left and Jawaan Taylor, a 2019 second-round selection, on the right. Taylor is listed as questionable.
The offensive line has been a fairly consistent piece for a Jacksonville team that's seen plenty of instability this season, and it's helped the Jaguars average 4.6 rushing yards per play, which ranks ninth in the NFL.
Vikings Head Coach Mike Zimmer commented earlier this week about the Jaguars starting five up front.
"They're big and physical. They pound the double teams really good," he said. "The back (Robinson) has good vision. Runs hard. They use a lot of the RPOs and the wide zones and then cut it back. The other thing is they'll have some hardball runs in there, too. It looks like to me that this offensive line loves to be physical."
He added that "every week" is a good test for the Vikings defensive line, which this season has relied on a rotation of younger players after the departure of Everson Griffen and Linval Joseph in free agency and the absence of Danielle Hunter (Injured Reserve).
"They're getting better," Zimmer said of Minnesota's d-line. "Each week is a different week trying to figure out exactly how we have to play a different team and the scheme we have to use. But we're hopeful that we continue to roll guys in there and they continue to do the job we're asking them to do."