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Vikings snap counts vs. Eagles: Theo Jackson, David Quessenberry step in

Originally posted on FanNation Inside The Vikings
By Will Ragatz | Last updated 9/15/23

Four days after a disappointing home loss against the Buccaneers to open their season, the Vikings dropped another winnable game against the Eagles on Thursday night. Turnovers and an inability to run the football were once again big stories for Minnesota, which sits in a difficult 0-2 hole to begin the 2023 campaign.

Several injuries over the course of Thursday's game caused the Vikings' depth to be tested. Let's take a look at their snap counts in Philadelphia to see what we can learn.

Vikings offensive snap counts vs. Eagles (out of 58)

QB Kirk Cousins: 58
RT Brian O'Neill: 58
RG Ed Ingram: 58
C Austin Schlottmann: 58
LG Ezra Cleveland: 58
WR Justin Jefferson: 58
WR K.J. Osborn: 56
TE T.J. Hockenson: 50
RB Alexander Mattison: 44
WR Jordan Addison: 40
LT Oli Udoh 39
TE Josh Oliver: 20
LT David Quessenberry: 19
FB C.J. Ham: 13
RB Ty Chandler: 7
WR Jalen Nailor: 1
TE Johnny Mundt: 1

Earlier this week, Vikings offense coordinator Wes Phillips said Addison's role will expand over the course of the season. That played out on Thursday, as the rookie out of USC went from a 56 percent snap share in the opener to 69 percent against the Eagles. He scored another long touchdown while Osborn had two drops, which suggests Addison's role will only continue to grow against the Chargers in Week 3.

This was another tough game for Mattison, who had 39 yards on 11 touches and lost a fumble. But at least for now, he's still an every-down player. Chandler only saw seven snaps and it was Mattison who played late in the game when the Vikings were in hurry-up, come-from-behind mode.

With Darrisaw not playing and Udoh suffering a serious injury in the fourth quarter, the Vikings turned to the veteran Quessenberry as their third-string left tackle. They're hopeful that Darrisaw will be able to play two Sundays from now in Minneapolis.

Lastly, here's an interesting stat:

Through two weeks, only 3 WRs have run a route for the #Vikings. Not sure I've ever seen that:

Justin Jefferson 93
KJ Osborne 88
Jordan Addison 67
Everyone else 0
— Adam Levitan (@adamlevitan) September 15, 2023

Vikings defensive snap counts vs. Eagles (out of 77)

CB Byron Murphy Jr: 77
S Camryn Bynum: 77
S Harrison Smith: 77
CB Akayleb Evans: 73
OLB Danielle Hunter: 72
LB Jordan Hicks: 72
LB Ivan Pace Jr: 61
DT Harrison Phillips: 60
S Josh Metellus: 56
OLB D.J. Wonnum: 52
DT Dean Lowry: 39
OLB Pat Jones II: 38
DT Jonathan Bullard: 28
S Theo Jackson: 21
CB Mekhi Blackmon: 14
LB Brian Asamoah: 14
DT Khyiris Tonga: 12
OLB Marcus Davenport: 4

The Pace hype train continues to grow. Like Addison, his role increased in his second game, as Pace went from playing 68 percent of the snaps against Tampa Bay to playing 79 percent against the Eagles. He had another outstanding game, recording three pressures and half of a sack while earning an 86.3 PFF grade. Asamoah's snaps went from 2 to 14, but he appears to be a rotational piece for the Vikings and not much more. Pace is clearly the starter alongside Hicks.

Metellus hurt his shoulder in the first quarter of the game, so the Vikings turned to Jackson — not Lewis Cine — in the third-safety role. Jackson, who used a strong training camp to make the 53-man roster, secured the Vikings' first takeaway of the season with an interception against Jalen Hurts. Cine, the 2022 first-round pick, is buried as the fifth safety on the depth chart.

Otherwise, this looked roughly the same as Week 1. Davenport tried to give it a go, but left after four snaps due to pain in his ankle. He'll try to get healthy to play a bigger role against the Chargers.

This article first appeared on FanNation Inside The Vikings and was syndicated with permission.

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