EAGAN, Minn. (AP) — Blake Cashman faked a blitz at the line before dropping a couple of yards into coverage for the Minnesota Vikings and darting to his right and lunging to break up a third-and-short throw, forcing the Indianapolis Colts to punt.
Cashman nearly picked off the first down pass by Daniel Jones on that drive, too, setting the tone for a remarkably productive afternoon by the eighth-year veteran linebacker who has been the heartbeat of the most dominant defense in the NFL this season. Cashman had 12 tackles, a career-high two sacks for a loss of 25 yards, three quarterback hits and four passes defensed in the 16-10 victory last week, the first player in the league to hit those thresholds for sacks and passes defensed since 2005.
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But Cashman, who’s in his third year with his home-state team, quickly identified the room for improvement when he reviewed video of that game, another sign of how driven this Vikings defense is toward overall excellence.
The Colts ran double slant routes on the left side of the formation on that third down play in the first quarter, and Cashman said afterward Josh Downs was the likely intended receiver. Had he moved toward Downs without hesitation instead of first checking on Laquon Treadwell, that pass could’ve easily turned into an interception return for a touchdown.
“I started looking at the film as, ‘OK, what are the good plays that we made, but how can they be great?'” Cashman said.
Finding flaws in his game — or any of his teammates on defense — is difficult these days. The Vikings, the only undefeated team remaining in the NFL, have allowed a league-low 74 points in six games. They also have the best interception rate, sack percentage and red zone touchdown allowance, among several other statistical highlights as defensive coordinator Brian Flores continues to cement his acumen in play-calling and player development.
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Cashman, who played for Eden Prairie High School in the Twin Cities area and in college for Minnesota, is second on the team with 10 quarterback pressures despite playing an off-the-ball position. He leads the Vikings with 54 tackles.
“Whenever you can be a player who spends time in the system now a third year and understanding not just what the scheme is but what ‘Flo’ is trying to accomplish in each situation, it allows you to just go play ball,” Cashman said. “It just allows you to play your best, play faster, play with a little bit more confidence.”
Cashman, who was voted by his peers as one of the team’s eight captains for 2026, wears the green dot on his helmet signifying the embedded headset that receives the calls from Flores before each play. His teammates marvel at how well he handles the traffic direction before the real chaos begins at the snap.
“Dudes are yelling at him all game, ‘What’s the call? What’s the call?’ What personnel?'” safety Harrison Smith said. “He’s got so much going on, and for him to be able to quiet that when the ball’s snapped and play with a lot of intelligence and a lot of violence all at one time, he’s playing lights-out.”
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Cashman is also playing on an expiring contract, as new teammate Kyle Van Noy noted after the game. Drafted by the New York Jets in the fifth round in 2019 and traded to the Houston Texans in 2022, Cashman was sidetracked by injuries earlier in his career before signing with the Vikings in 2024 and finally blossoming under Flores.
“I’m happy to see him continue that,” Van Noy said. “Hopefully he gets compensated correctly.”
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