Episode 614

The City of Chicago's Fault

Hosts	Arif Hasan, James Pogatshnik
Guests	None
Type	Regular Season

Norse Code Episode 614: The City of Chicago's Fault was the week two recap episode following the Vikings' 9–3 win in Chicago. The episode covered the Vikings' historic blitz rate, Dallas Turner's pace to shatter PFF records, Caleb Williams' hamstring injury and the discourse surrounding his face, Jalen Redmond's coming-out performance, Carson Wentz's limitations made explicit, and a mailbag that included the Wagner corner, the GOAT of blocked kicks, the trap game debate, and which upcoming opponent could most plausibly crack Brian Flores. The episode closed with the return of the "this is not sustainable" stinger.

Overview

The cold open covered the Oops All Punters league, in which James lost because a Giants punter kicked one 78 yards in the air with no bounce, and because Jameis Winston was the Bears' backup and generated zero punting. Jackson Dart had bent his knee the wrong way in the game, with the injury suspected to be an MCL — concerning but not catastrophic. The main episode ran shorter than usual: the game was a 9–3 defensive shutdown played in driving rain with a backup quarterback, which left limited material to cover on offence, and the mailbag reflected it.

Game Recap: Vikings 9, Bears 3

The Caleb Williams Injury and Discourse

Caleb Williams suffered a non-contact hamstring injury and left the game on a cart, giving a thumbs up. The image generated a significant meme cycle — best entries identified were "me sleeping on the uncomfortable couch in the hospital after my wife gives birth" and "my dog after we spent $500 at the vet and it turns out nothing is wrong." The discourse was separately assessed as nuts: Will Compton of Bussin' With the Boys posted that Williams' pain face was inappropriate; Kyle Long responded "you posted what you posted"; Compton deleted and reposted a retraction speculating that if he and Caleb were friends they would laugh about it together. Arif's take: quarterbacks who get hit for a living have extraordinary pain tolerances; there was a hit earlier in the same game where Williams visibly folded in half, then stood up and threw a 20-yard strike; getting a face about potentially missing games because you love playing football is permitted.

The Blitz Rate

Arif published a piece at Wide Left Football on the Vikings' blitz rate and where it sits in NFL history. Key data points:

No team had exceeded a 61% blitz rate before Brian Flores with the Vikings. Last year, Flores broke that record with 63.3% — leading second place by 21 percentage points, a gap equal to the difference between second place and 18th. The 2026 Vikings, through two games, are blitzing at 83%. The dot representing this on Arif's box-and-whisker chart is in the title card of the image — it cannot coexist on the same canvas as the rest of the data.

Against the Bears specifically, the blitz rate was 84.4%, with 27 of Caleb Williams' 32 dropbacks involving a blitz. Arif identified this as likely the most blitz-heavy defence in NFL history, with the caveat that tracking data only goes back to 2006 via PFF. The unique structural feature of the Flores defence: it is the only team running split-safety two-high coverages (Cover 4, Cover 6, Cover 2) behind the blitz, sometimes blitzing six while keeping four deep defenders in quarters. Arif described this as "truly psychotic behaviour."

Caleb Williams — who entered the game with a reputation for performing well against blitzes — finished with 2.5 adjusted net yards per attempt, one interception, zero touchdowns, three sacks, and a 29% success rate. Second-largest offensive point swing in the Super Bowl era, after a 1973 Falcons game. The largest recent comparable was the 2023 Vikings–Raiders game, also a Brian Flores defence.

Dallas Turner

Turner led all defenders in week two with 11 pressures. Andrew Van Ginkel had five; Jalen Redmond had four. Turner now leads the league with 20 pressures across two weeks and is on pace for 170, which would be a PFF record by a substantial margin. Arif contextualised the scepticism: Turner is generating many of these pressures against tight ends and on unblocked assignments created by the scheme, not through double teams against true pass sets in the manner of J.J. Watt or Aaron Donald. His assessment: Turner has a unique value to this specific defence, his athleticism slots perfectly into the blocking angles Flores creates, and the correct framing is a good player meeting a great system — which is fine to say without needing to claim he is the best defender in the league.

A post on the Vikings subreddit extrapolated Turner's pressure pace to its logical absurdity. A representative line: "In week 13, his sack rate will surpass one per second of game clock. By week 16 or 17, the vast majority of sacks recorded since it became an official statistic in 1982 will have been by Dallas Turner in 2026." Both hosts found this beautiful.

Jalen Redmond and the Blocked Field Goal

Redmond had four consecutive plays at one point in the game during which the announcer noted he could not stop saying his name. He forced the fumble at the goal line; Isaiah Rogers recovered it and performed the hot-diggity-dog dance. The blocked field goal was credited to Isaiah Rogers, but Arif flagged that the Bears' field goal protection (specifically Sam Rauch) was the worst he had ever seen — the protector's elbows were on his knees before the snap, and he did not move. Byron Murphy had a better game than week one, assessed as not yet playing at his contract level but functional. Christian Darrisaw was outstanding. The safeties were not particularly notable, which was taken as a positive given the Vikings only surrendered three points.

Caleb Banks

Banks had the worst PFF grade of either team at 30.1, with 29.6 in run defence despite four run stops. One pressure on 18 pass-rush snaps. Arif's assessment: he had positive plays that were real and worth seeing in the Brian Baldinger breakdown clips, but the negative plays outweighed the positives. Should not be starting or playing 60 snaps. Not a reason to panic — a reason to manage deployment.

The Offence

Carson Wentz finished with 63.2% accuracy (ninth percentile), passes located poorly for yards after catch or receiver protection, inconsistent pocket management. Arif's framing: thinking of him as a backup quarterback who performed above the average backup, not as a starting quarterback who played adequately. Jordan Mason's eventual return will change the calculus. Aaron Jones carried 23 times for 105 yards at 4.5+ per carry (80th percentile yards before contact, two explosives) and was reportedly very sore after the game. Jordan Addison caught his first ball of the season on a behind-him throw he had to reel in. Will Reichard's field goal struck the upright and bounced through. Arif speculated he was bored and aimed for the upright. The offence ran at a 26% success rate — contextualised by rain, a backup quarterback, and a deliberate heavy-run game plan, but not a standard to maintain.

Garrett Bradbury had multiple penalties and gave up pressures, finishing with the worst PFF grade among offensive linemen — described as "back to his antics" and "nice to see the hits, good to hear from an old friend."

Bears backup Jack Strand — a Minnesota native — entered after Williams' injury. Framed as a Tom Clancy protagonist: the one who is slightly racist but it's okay because he is American. Also described as the season three villain on Paradise, which was corrected to protagonist. Cooper Rush was benched for a man named Jack Strand, which both hosts found funny.

Mailbag

Tank B — How will the Bears spin Caleb's injury as the city of Chicago's fault, and what will Indiana offer to help? Arif: the city of Chicago's fault is obvious — outdoor stadium, natural grass, rain, no billion-dollar roof because the city declined to fund one. Indiana will offer the entire city of Gary, which is worse than Chicago in most measurable respects but does have the potential for a roof.

Skolobites — Was Garrett Bradbury the best Vikings offensive lineman on the field? Arif: he was doing significant work for Minnesota — multiple penalties, multiple pressure giveups, worst PFF grade on the offensive line. Christian Darrisaw was great. Also from Skolobites: given the Baldy tape breakdown, how good should Vikings fans feel about Caleb Banks after Sunday? Arif: the positive clips are real and the plays happened. The grade reflects that negative plays outweighed positives. He should not be playing 60 snaps. Continue to be excited about potential, do not expect him to start.

Arif's Midlife Crisis — Can Flores be the first to blitz 100%? Arif: 27 of 32 dropbacks were blitzes against the Bears. What was he thinking on the other five? There has to be a game at some point where an opponent simply does not drop back to pass often enough to give Flores the opportunity to be tested, and every single dropback becomes a blitz.

Wentz Messiah Complex — Were the Bears just le tired from scoring too many points last week? Arif: the emotional hangover is documented. The Dolphins scored 70 in week three of 2023, then gave up 48 to the Bills in week four. The Vikings' 2-0 record reflects getting the right side of two coin flips with a backup quarterback. With Kyler, these are not close games.

Wentz Messiah Complex (also) — Which punter won the head-to-head, Thorson or Taylor? Taylor: two punts inside the 20 vs three for Thorson; 50% return rate conceded. Thorson: better hang time, 25% return rate conceded, 100 more pure punting yards. Thorson probably had the better game. Taylor is still probably the better punter. He probably should not have been called a weapon when they drafted him in the fourth round.

Paul — Reasons for optimism given that two first wins felt like coin flips? Arif: the Vikings defence is very good, probably heading toward a top-three finish. The quarterback situation is improving with Kyler's return. They are likely favoured in the next two games. Getting the right side of two coin flips is not a bad starting position. This is not a team that deserves to be 0-2.

Raul — Pick your defensive mind: Zimmer or Flores. Is 2017 still the gold standard? Arif: the 2017 Vikings defence had the best third-down conversion rate allowed on record going back to 1991, and is legitimately in the conversation for one of the better defences of the decade — behind the 2013 Seahawks, 2015 Broncos, and arguably 2019 Patriots. In his head, peak Zimmer is probably better. In his heart, Flores is what is happening right now and it is insane. Also from Raul: who is the GOAT of blocked kicks? Pro Football Journal's data historian lists Ted Hendricks first in combined punt and kick blocks (22.5 with seven punt blocks). Alan Page is second with 27 combined, 26 of which are kick blocks — the most straight kick blocks on record. Of modern players: Sean Rogers (17), Julius Peppers (13), Calais Campbell (10). Three Vikings in the top 30: Carl Eller (28th), Matt Blair (5th), Alan Page (2nd).

Damian Barrett — Tampa or Miami: which is the bigger trap game? Arif: Miami, easily. They are bad at nearly every position. The Vikings will be emotionally relaxed going in, which is dangerous. The 2018 game — Vikings were 18-point favourites, lost the biggest regular-season upset in NFL history at that point — was invoked as mandatory reminder. Harrison Smith is the ideal messenger for that warning. Tampa has real players: Baker is volatile but capable of going off, Mike Evans is Mike Evans, Vita Vea and Antoine Winfield are legitimate. Miami is just bad.

Antatek — Which upcoming opponent is most likely to crack the Flores blitz? Arif: Brock Purdy (highest EPA per play against the blitz over three years, week 11, Shanahan can scheme it) and Josh Allen (highest success rate on deep balls against the blitz, second or third best scrambler in the NFL, can outrun the secondary if the edge is unblocked). Weeks 8 (Goff), 9 (Allen), and 11 (Purdy) flagged.

Nolan Kehler — Wagner corner: Is Carson Wentz more of a Siegfried, a Parsifal, or a Lohengrin? Arif: Parsifal passed purity tests including virginity, which may be how Wentz sees himself, not how the evidence suggests he should. Lohengrin has superhuman charisma and fighting ability — antithetical. Siegfried, per Wagner's own letter to Uhlig: "a boy so stupid, he had never learned to be afraid." Case closed.

Room Temperature — Same Name, Different Job corner: averaging love for the player and celebrity of the same name — Harrison Smith (safety) vs Harrison Smith (InfoWars host), Paul Allen (play-by-play) vs Paul Allen (Microsoft co-founder), Jay Ward (cornerback) vs Jay Ward (Rocky and Bullwinkle creator and also a baseball player), Fran Tarkenton (quarterback) vs Fran Tarkenton (host of That's Incredible, loan company shill, Tony Robbins associate). Arif's clarification: those are all the same Fran Tarkenton. Winner: Jay Ward — his Wikipedia page has no controversy section, and mild anti-Russian sentiment during the 1960s compares favourably to co-founding Microsoft and running InfoWars. Jay Ward, Jay Ward, Jay Ward.

Key Bits & Lore

The Vikings' blitz rate through two games is 83% — the Flores chart dot is in the title card of the image because there is no scale on which it and the rest of the data can coexist
The second-largest offensive point swing in the Super Bowl era: the Bears went from 59 points in week one to 3 in week two. The only larger recent comparable is also a Brian Flores defence (2023 Vikings–Raiders)
Dallas Turner is on pace for 170 pressures, which would be a PFF record. By week 16–17 of that trajectory, the majority of sacks recorded since 1982 will have been Dallas Turner in 2026
Jalen Redmond forced a fumble; Isaiah Rogers recovered it and performed the hot-diggity-dog dance. Peak fatherhood
Sam Rauch's field goal protection was the worst Arif has ever seen — elbows on knees, no movement before or during the snap
Jack Strand (Bears backup, Minnesota native) is a Tom Clancy protagonist — slightly racist, definitively American, starring this fall on Fox
The "this is not sustainable" stinger returned in the episode outro
Arif has had one hour of sleep since Sunday morning. He will sleep before editing the college notebook
Carson Wentz is Siegfried: a boy so stupid he had never learned to be afraid
Jay Ward (Rocky and Bullwinkle) is also a baseball player. No controversy section on Wikipedia. He wins