While Minnesota Vikings Pro Bowl edge rusher Andrew Van Ginkel took issue with what he deemed a “dirty play” from Detroit Lions wide receiver Kalif Raymond, defensive coordinator Brian Flores has a differing opinion.
After a 27-24 win over the Lions in Week 9, Van Ginkel went public with his criticism of Raymond for his block on the play below.
“I kinda thought it was a dirty play…Obviously, getting hit on the side, I’m just going to pass rush and all of a sudden I get whiplash because a guy blindsides me,” Van Ginkel said. “I’m not gonna go into too much detail about it, but I wasn’t too pleased with it, and I think that it’s something that the league should look at, if it’s something they need to take out of the game. Because we can’t be doing that.”
Linebacker Eric Wilson echoed his displeasure with the play.
“I think that play is absolute bulls*** by them honestly,” Wilson said. “I think it was a cheap shot.”
Despite how his players feel, Flores preached a message of fairness: that Raymond was operating within the rules. However, he did support Van Ginkel in urging the league to look at the play, which could prompt a rule change in the future.
“I didn’t think it was malicious. I think it was kind of a bang-bang situation. I see kind of both sides of it. I do think it’s something that maybe [the NFL] take a look at. I’ll leave it there,” Flores said. “Thankfully, there was no big injury and he’s OK. So we’ll chalk it up to football and then we’ll let the league kind of look at it and see if they want to take a harder stance or anything like that.”
What is a Blindside Block? Andrew Van Ginkel’s Case Against Khalif Raymond’s ‘Dirty Play’
Returning from a neck injury that forced him to miss five games, Van Ginkel was rightfully prickly about the play that could have reaggravated his injury.
Raymond’s block falls within a grey area of the NFL’s blocking rules after the league voted to prohibit blindside blocks in 2019.
The rule states that a blindside block is “it is a foul if a player initiates a block when his path is toward or parallel to his own end line and makes forcible contact to his opponent with his helmet, forearm, or shoulder, unless the contact occurs in close-line play prior to the ball leaving that area.”
Raymond is moving slightly upfield when he makes contact with Van Ginkel. The ball also wasn’t moving toward the right side, but there was some initial helmet-to-helmet contact that is open to debate.
Vikings Andrew Van Ginkel Earns PFF Award for Week 9 Performance
Despite falling on the play against Raymond, Van Ginkel recovered to tackle Lions running back Jahymr Gibbs for a loss.
It was one of several highlights for Van Ginkel, whose return bolstered the Vikings defense beyond his presence as a pass rusher.
In Week 9, Van Ginkel earned the highest run-blocking grade among edge rushers by Pro Football Focus (PFF).
“Andrew Van Ginkel came back from injury in a major way. While typically known for his ability as a pass rusher and dropping into coverage, Van Ginkel finished as the highest-graded run-defending edge rusher in Week 9,” PFF’s Nick Ackridge wrote. “Van Ginkel was a huge factor in stopping the Lions’ vaunted run game, helping propel the Vikings to a massive win.”
Van Ginkel finished with a 75.1 overall defensive grade, 80.6 run defense grade, and a 73.2 tackling grade. He totaled two pressures and three stops.
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