Then & Now: How NFC East has Changed Since Last Playing Vikings

Apr 25, 2016 at 07:05 AM

Lindsey Young

Writer & Editor

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Marcus Mariota threw 19 touchdowns for the Titans in 12 games played as a rookie in 2015.

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Tennessee's defensive unit ranked 12th in the NFL with 39.0 sacks last season.

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The Titans hired former Vikings tight end Mike Mularkey as the team's head coach in January of the offseason.

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Clay Matthews recorded 6.5 sacks and one interception in 2015.

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Eddie Lacy ran for 100 yards on 22 carries against the Vikings in Minnesota last year.

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Mike McCarthy is 49 games over .500 (104-55-1) in 10 seasons as an NFL head coach.

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Josh Norman had four interceptions and three forced fumbles in 2015.

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Cam Newton won his first NFL MVP award in 2015 and threw for 35 touchdowns and 3,837 yards.

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Ron Rivera has led the Panthers to a 47-32-1 record in five seasons as Carolina's head coach.

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Eli Manning threw for a career-high 35 touchdowns in 2015.

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The Giants defense ranked last in the NFL, allowing a total of 6,725 yards to opponents.

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Ben McAdoo was hired as the Giants 17th head coach in January after working as the team's offensive coordinator for the past two seasons.

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J.J. Watt has won the NFL's Defensive Player of the Year honor three of the past four seasons.

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DeAndre Hopkins was third in the NFL in receiving yards last season (1,521), trailing Antonio Brown and Julio Jones.

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Bill O'Brien has led Houston to two 9-7 seasons since taking over as head coach in 2014.

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Sam Bradford was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2010 NFL Draft.

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Malcolm Jenkins led Philadelphia with 109 tackles (90 solo), according to NFL.com.

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Doug Pederson enters his first season as the head coach of the Eagles. Pederson spent two stints with Green Bay (1996-98 and 2001-04) as a backup to Brett Favre.

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Pernell McPhee had 53 tackles, 6.0 sacks, one forced fumble and one interception last season.

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Alshon Jeffery had four receiving touchdowns in 2015 after compiling 17 collectively in the previous two seasons.

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The Vikings won at Soldier Field for the first time since 2007 last season.

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Matt Stafford had a career-high 67.2 completion percentage in 2015.

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Detroit's scoring defense ranked 23rd in the NFL last season, allowing 400 total points to opponents.

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Jim Caldwell holds an 18-14 overall record as the Lions head coach.

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Kirk Cousins compiled a 101.6 passer rating and threw for 4,166 yards in his first full season as a starter for the Redskins.

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Jay Gruden led Washington to the playoffs with a 9-7 record in his second season as head coach.

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DeAngelo Hall enters his 13 season in the NFL and his eighth year with the Redskins as the league's active leader with 43 career interceptions.

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Tyrann Mathieu returns for his fourth season with the Cardinals after tearing his right ACL in December.

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Carson Palmer is 16th on the all-time passing touchdown list (259).

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Bruce Arians holds a 34-14 regular season record in three seasons as the head coach of Arizona.

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Theo Riddick had five receptions for 41 yards against the Vikings in September.

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Golden Tate led the Lions with 90 receptions last season. He totaled 813 yards and six receiving touchdowns.

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The Vikings came back from a 14-3 deficit to win 28-19 at Ford Field last season.

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The Cowboys defense finished last in the NFL in turnover margin last season (minus-22) with 11 takeaways against 33 giveaways by the offense.

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Jason Garrett led Dallas to a 12-4 record in 2014, followed by a 4-12 record last season.

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Dez Bryant had 16 touchdowns and 1,320 receiving yards in his last full season played in 2014.

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Allen Hurns caught 10 touchdowns and had 1,031 receiving yards in his second season with the Jaguars.

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The Jaguars defense placed 31st in the NFL, allowing 28.0 points per game by opponents in 2015.

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Gus Bradley is 12-36 in three seasons as the Jaguars head coach.

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Andrew Luck battled injuries in 2015 and started seven games for the Colts.

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Chuck Pagano was 11-5 in his first three years as the head coach of Indianapolis. Last year he led the Colts to an 8-8 record.

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The Indianapolis scoring defense was 25th in the NFL in 2015, allowing 25.5 points per game.

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Aaron Rodgers had a career-high 572 attempts in 2015, throwing for 3,821 yards and 31 touchdowns.

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Julius Peppers is the active leader with 136.0 sacks in the NFL.

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The last time the Vikings played at Lambeau Field, Minnesota was crowned as the 2015 NFC North champion.

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Jay Cutler compiled the best passer rating (92.3) of his career in 2015.

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Tracy Porter had an interception and a forced fumble in the Bears secondary last season.

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John Fox enters his second season as the Bears head coach.

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Dallas Cowboys

Then

Matchup: Nov. 3, 2013 | Cowboys 27, Vikings 23

Cowboys Head Coach: Jason Garrett

Cowboys Offensive Coordinator: Bill Callahan

Cowboys Defensive Coordinator: Monte Kiffin

Starting QB: Tony Romo

Roster notables: RB DeMarco Murray, WR Dez Bryant, DE DeMarcus Ware

Recap:The Vikings entered halftime with the lead, but the Cowboys scored three touchdowns in the second half to pull out the four-point win over Minnesota. The Vikings recorded 149 rushing yards while limiting the Cowboys to 36 yards on the ground.

Now

Matchup: Dec. 1, 2016 | Vikings vs. Cowboys | Seats available

Cowboys Head Coach: Jason Garrett

Cowboys Offensive Coordinator: Scott Linehan [replaced Callahan in 2015]

Cowboys Defensive Coordinator: Rod Marinelli [replaced Kiffin in 2014]

Starting QB: Romo

Roster notables: RB Darren McFadden, RB Alfred Morris, LB Sean Lee, TE Jason Witten

Still there: Bryant

Summary:Marinelli served as the Cowboys defensive line coach in 2013 and was elevated to defensive coordinator in 2014. … Linehan joined the coaching staff in 2014 as the passing game coordinator and was elevated to offensive coordinator prior to the 2015 season. … After four seasons (2011-14) with the Cowboys, Murray played for the Eagles in 2015 and will suit up for the Titans in 2016. … After seven seasons with the Raiders, McFadden signed a two-year contract with Dallas in March 2015. McFadden led the team in rushing yards (1,089) and contributed three touchdowns during the 2015 season. … Bryant enters his seventh season with the Cowboys. In 2013, Bryant recorded 93 receptions for 1,233 yards and 13 touchdowns. Bryant played only nine games during the 2015 season after suffering a broken foot in Week 1 against the New York Giants. He underwent surgery on his ankle and foot in January 2016.

Outlook:After finishing the 2014 season 12-4, the Cowboys flipped their record in 2015, notching only four wins and suffering 12 losses. Romo played only four games due to a broken collarbone, and the Cowboys defense tied for 22nd in the league for rushing yards allowed (1,934). With Romo and Bryant both expected to return for the 2016 season, the Cowboys offense should regain some of its vitality. Dallas no longer has Murray but added running backs McFadden and Morris in 2015 and 2016, respectively. Last season, McFadden led the Cowboys in rushing yards with 1,089, his second-highest total since entering the league in 2008.

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Washington Redskins

Then

Matchup: Nov. 2, 2014 | Vikings 29, Redskins 26

Redskins Head Coach: Jay Gruden

Redskins Offensive Coordinator: Sean McVay

Redskins Defensive Coordinator: Jim Haslett

Starting QB: Robert Griffin III

Roster notables: RB Alfred Morris, WR DeSean Jackson, DB DeAngelo Hall

Recap:The Vikings have won four of their past five games against the Redskins, including their most recent matchup. After trailing through three quarters, the Vikings scored 15 points in the fourth quarter to seal the three-point win. Matt Asiata scored two of his three rushing touchdowns and a successful two-point conversion during the rally. * *

Now

Matchup: Nov. 13, 2016 | Vikings at Redskins

Redskins Head Coach:Jay Gruden

Redskins Offensive Coordinator: Sean McVay

Redskins Defensive Coordinator: Joe Barry [replaced Haslett in 2015]

Starting QB: Kirk Cousins

Roster notables: TE Vernon Davis, LB Ryan Kerrigan, WR Pierre Garcon, CB Josh Norman

Still there: Jackson, Hall

Summary:Barry was named the Redskins defensive coordinator in January 2015 after spending three seasons as the Chargers linebackers coach. Barry also has experience as defensive coordinator with the Lions (2007-08). … After four seasons with the Redskins, Morris will be suiting up for the division rival Cowboys in 2016. … Cousins started five games in 2014 after Griffin suffered a dislocated ankle. In 2015, Cousins became the team's full-time quarterback and started all 16 games. … In 2014, the Redskins ranked 26th in the league for points per game (18.8) and improved to 10th (24.3) in 2015.

Outlook:Cousins recorded 4,166 passing yards in his first season as a full-time starter for the Redskins in 2015. Cousins finished with a completion rate of 69.8 percent and a 101.6 passer rating. The Redskins finished with a winning record (9-7) for the first time since 2012 and, like the Vikings, lost in the Wild Card round of the playoffs. Washington will be without Morris in 2016 but retained Jackson, who tallied 528 receiving yards and four touchdowns in 10 games last season, and Garcon, who posted 72 receptions for 777 yards and six scores in 2015. The Redskins signed Norman this month as an unrestricted free agent shortly after Carolina lifted the franchise tag. Norman posted career-high numbers for the Panthers in 2015, recording 48 tackles, three forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries and four interceptions, returning two for touchdowns.

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