Through the Receiver's Eyes: Jordan Addison

Breaking down Addison's game-winning 12-yard TD reception vs. the Browns

Jordan Addison was benched for the first quarter of Minnesota’s game on Sunday for missing a walk-through during the week. Three hours later, he was the hero, hauling in the game-winning touchdown pass in the closing seconds.

Here was the situation. The Vikings had the ball at the Browns’ 12-yard line and trailed 17-14 with just 30 seconds remaining. They didn’t want to settle for the field goal and run the risk of losing this game in overtime. A touchdown meant victory.

Facing a 2nd-and-5, Minnesota aligned in a 2x2 formation with reduced splits to both sides. According to Addison, he had “an Omaha route.”

You can see the “Omaha” concept illustrated below. The inside receiver runs a stick route and the outside receiver runs a speed out. Here, the concept was mirrored, meaning it was being run to both sides of the field:

The Browns would end up playing cover-2 to Addison’s side, however:

As Addison said afterwards:

It converts vs. cover-2. They went cover-2.

“Converts” means that against press-man, cover-2, or any type of cloud corner, the speed-out changes to a go-route:

According to Addison, he “made a good release.”

You can see that release here. Addison recognized the coverage, quickly changed his route, and Wentz hit him for the touchdown:

According to Carson Wentz:

“It was […] just a […] simple route, simple concept, but he […] saw the coverage and converted his route. And the ball had to come out. I wasn’t going to take a sack in that situation given where we are on the field, so I just tried to put it high and give him a chance, and he made a heck of a play.”

Reading between the lines there, given the situation and the need to not take a sack (and the fact that it was a mirrored concept), Wentz was picking a side and making a decision to get the ball out of his hands quickly. He was likely throwing whatever route Addison was running (the speed out or the conversion), and if it wasn’t there, he was throwing it away.

But with Addison open, he was able to hit him for the touchdown:

That’s a heck of a throw.

If it looked like Wentz was ready for that coverage and ready to make the right throw to beat it, it’s because he was. According to head coach Kevin O’Connell, this was something they had talked about on the sideline:

“You gotta have somewhere to go with it if they do try to play cloud, and Carson was ready for that. It was kind of a coaching point we gave early on in the game that showed up in a gotta-have-it situation.”

The Vikings escaped with the win and avoided an 0-2 trip overseas that may have derailed their season. They’re now 3-2 and very much in the mix in the NFC North.