ESPN’s Alex Smith: Don’t Blame Vikings’ Offensive Struggles Entirely on Kyler

Alex Smith has watched two months of Minnesota Vikings offense, and his first reaction to Rich's question was a laugh and a gasp. "Well, they're struggling," the ESPN analyst said. "They're struggling on offense, Rich, right?"

But Smith refused to hang it on one person, and especially not on the quarterback.

"I don't think you can pin it on any one thing," Smith said. The offensive line hasn't been playing great. The Vikings haven't been able to get any consistent run game going. It didn't help that Kyler got hurt in Week 1, missed games and then came back. And third down has been a problem, which Smith called "a reflection of their poor performance on first and second down." He added that from a scheme standpoint, there are things Minnesota could potentially be doing better.

His conclusion: "I kind of think there's enough to spread around. I don't think we can pin this on the quarterback."

The key point for Smith is how little the offense actually needs to do. "The reality is, Rich, they only kind of just need to be okay, right? With this defense," he said. "This doesn't have to be an offense that puts up 30 a game." What Minnesota does need is to be better situationally, in the red zone and on third down.

That is where Smith thinks Kyler can help, if the Vikings let him. He said there has been a lot of structure in Kevin O'Connell's offense, built to get Kyler to play within it. Smith wants to see more. "Let's get this guy in some QB run situations. Let's let him use his legs. Let's spread it out at times and let him be dynamic," he said.

He called Minnesota's division maybe the best in football, and certainly the most complete. "Just need to be kind of average, and I think this is a team that competes with anybody," Smith said.

Rich then raised the elephant in the room. With Carson Wentz starting on Monday night against the Bills, the conversation all weekend, including on ESPN's pregame shows, will be: what if Wentz plays well? Is there any fairness to that?

"No, I mean, that's the reality. You're dead on," Smith said, calling it "a monster matchup on Monday night." He repeated that this offense doesn't need to be electric for Minnesota to compete. "This defense is that good."

If Wentz does play well, Smith said, it begs the question of whether the Vikings try to make something happen before the trade deadline, though he isn't sure Wentz is the guy to take them to the promised land. That is something the team has to evaluate in house.

Smith's bottom line was a defense of Kyler. "To pin this all on Kyler at this point is kind of crazy when you watch the film and turn it on," he said. "I think there's a lot of times he's playing really well." There just isn't much there within the structure, with an offensive line that has struggled and no dynamic run game.

Still, Smith acknowledged how the NFL works. "If Carson goes and plays well," he said, "certainly the noise will get louder."