Dan Wiederer began covering the Vikings in 2011, enthusiastically delivering insight on the team across the Star Tribune's print and digital products. Prior to joining the Access Vikings team, he spent seven seasons covering ACC basketball at The Fayetteville (N.C.) Observer. He also covered the Chicago Bears in 2003 and 2004. Follow him on Twitter @StribDW.
Mark Craig has covered football and the NFL the past 20 years, including the Browns from 1991-95 and the Vikings and the NFL since 2003. Since 2008, Craig has served as one of the 44 Pro Football Hall of Fame selectors. He can be followed on Twitter at @markcraignfl.
Posts about Vikings offense
Peterson won't be the only top back on Sunday
Posted by: Kent Youngblood Updated: December 19, 2012 - 5:30 PM
Adrian Peterson’s quest for the NFL rushing record has taken center stage. But there is another pretty good running back to watch in this weekend’s Vikings game: Arian Foster.
Entering this week’s games Peterson has a league-best 1,812 rushing yards, and is within Eric Dickerson’s NFL-record 2,105. But Foster, who first came to the Texans as an undrafted free agent, has put up some strong numbers, too.
Foster is fourth in the league with 1,313 yards. Now, to show just how much Peterson has lapped the field this season, those 1,313 are precisely the same number Peterson has had since Week 7.
Still, Foster’s numbers are impressive. His 1,493 yards from scrimmage is fifth in the league – Peterson’s 2,023 is No. 1 – and if Foster scores a TD this week he will become the sixth player in NFL history to score 50 TDs in his first 50 NFL games.
“The scheme they run really fits what he does well,” Vikings linebacker Chad Greenway said of Foster. "He’s really patient, good at finding cut-back lanes. They throw the ball well out of the play-action game and bootleg game, and that serves Foster well in the run game as well.”
The Vikings have seen their share of good running backs this season, going up against five of the top 10 NFL rushers this season in Seattle’s Marshawn Lynch (second), Washington’s Alfred Morris (third), Tampa Bay’s Doug Martin (fifth), Tennessee’s Chris Johnson (seventh) and Frank Gore of San Francisco (ninth). Lynch ran for 124 yards, Morris had 57, Martin 135, Johnson 24 and Gore 63.
And now they get Foster.
Houston coach Gary Kubiak said he saw some similarities between Foster and Peterson.
“The thing about Adrian is that he has the home run speed,” Kubiak said. “Arian is one of those guys where it seems, the more he carries it, the stronger he gets. These are two guys who, the more they touch it, the more difficult it is to tackle them. Just two great players.”
(Almost) no comment
Christian Ponder’s marriage was not something many Vikings players wanted to discuss in the locker room.
Some, like center John Sullivan and guard Brandon Fusco, simply changed the subject.
“My focus right now is just going and grabbing some lunch and relaxing before practice,” safety Mistral Raymond said. “That should be dealt with somewhere else.”
Fullback Raymond Felton said he heard about it in the media like everybody else. Reaction? “I congratulated him,” Felton said. “Several people have congratulated him. So, obviously, whatever makes him happy we want that for him. It was a big day for him, and we’re happy for him.”
Of course, if anyone was going to have a little fun about the situation, it was punter Chris Kluwe, who wondered openly where he might find a gift registry. As for the present he planned on buying?
“Maybe a tea cozy,” he said.
Wins, not records
After winning NFC special teams player of the week honors for the second time this season, Vikings kicker Blair Walsh talked about winning, not records.
Specifically when he was asked whether he thought about making the Pro Bowl in this, his rookie season. “Yeah, it would be awesome, but that’s not my main goal right now.”
Walsh hit all five of his field goals last week, three in the 50-yards-plus range. He is now 8-for-8 from that distance, which ties him with Morten Andersen and Jason Hanson for most field goals of 50 or more yards in a season. He is one away from holding that record alone.
“I’m just wishing we win,” Walsh said. “I don’t’ care about the records. My whole deal with the records is that they’re meant to be broken. It would be nice to have, but I’d rather win.”
Walsh is 29-for-32 on field goals this season and is fourth in the NFC in scoring among kickers. He said the snap and hold has been perfect for every attempt this season, and that his three misses were entirely his fault.
So the question is, in a dome, in ideal circumstances, what does he think his limit is? “I think 65 (yards) and in I can at least give it a realistic shot,” he said.
Doing his part
Felton said he, along with the linemen and the rest of the team, are pulling for Peterson to break Dickerson’s record. But will he feel he earned a part of that record should it happen?
“A little bit,” he said. “I’ll be able to tell my grandkids about it. So, obviously, I think it’s important for our whole team. And the most important thing is getting wins. But when Adrian is successful that helps our team. That’s what we’re focused on.”
Meanwhile, it appears the work Felton has done has probably put to rest the question of whether Peterson prefers a fullback or running out of one-back sets. Felton said he’d seen a stat that indicated the Vikings gain better than 7 yards per rush with a fullback and 3-plus yards out of one-back sets.
Peterson wins Vikings' Ed Block Courage Award
Posted by: Chris Miller Updated: December 18, 2012 - 4:40 PMAdrian Peterson was chosen the Vikings' Ed Block Courage Award winner by his teammates.
Since 1984, each team names a winner of the award to recognize a teammate who overcomes great adversity.
Peterson has rebounded from major knee surgery to challenge the NFL's single-season rushing record.
Here is the team's release:
Vikings RB Adrian Peterson has been selected as the 2012 Ed Block Courage Award recipient by his teammates.
During Week 16 of the 2011 season, Peterson tore his ACL and MCL against the Washington Redskins. Eight months removed from the major knee injury, Peterson was true to his word and was in the starting lineup for Week 1 of the 2012 season. Peterson scored 2 TDs and rushed for 84 yards in the overtime victory versus Jacksonville. The 4-time Pro Bowler has appeared and started in all 14 games this season.
Peterson is in the midst of his greatest season as a member of the Minnesota Vikings. The 2-time All-Pro RB currently leads the NFL with 1,812 rushing yards and is tied for 2nd with 11 rushing TDs. Over the past 8 games, Peterson has rushed for over 100 yards 8 times and eclipsed the 200-yard mark twice. His 1,313 rushing yards since Week 7 ranks as the best 8-game stretch in NFL history. With 2 games to play, the 6-year veteran is 294 yards shy of breaking Eric Dickerson’s single-season rushing record of 2,105 yards set in 1984. He has tied Barry Sanders’ (’97) record of 7 50+ yard rushes in a single season. Peterson has 2 TD runs of 82 yards this season, a career long.
Since 1984 the Ed Block Courage Awards annually honors one player from every NFL team who exemplifies commitment to the principles of sportsmanship and courage. Recipients are selected by a vote of their teammates to recognize both on and off the field extra efforts and their ability to overcome great adversity, whether it be personal or professional. The Ed Block Courage Award is named in honor of Ed Block, the longtime head athletic trainer of the Baltimore Colts. Winners travel to Baltimore every March to receive their trophy at a gala in their honor and spend time at the local Courage House at St. Vincent’s Center, a facility specializing in working with abused children. This visit, and the time spent with the children, allows each recipient to fully comprehend the true meaning of the award.
For more information on the Ed Block Courage Award Foundation, visit www.edblock.org.
Vikings Ed Block Courage Honorees
Adrian Peterson…….2012
Anthony Herrera……...2011
Cedric Griffin............... 2010
E.J. Henderson........... 2009
Kenechi Udeze........... 2008
Chad Greenway......... 2007
Matt Birk....................... 2006
Koren Robinson.......... 2005
Corey Chavous........... 2004
Eric Kelly...................... 2003
Lewis Kelly.................. 2002
Daunte Culpepper..... 2001
Gary Anderson............ 2000
Robert Griffith.............. 1999
Randall Cunningham 1998
Robert Smith............... 1997
Scottie Graham........... 1996
John Randle................ 1995
Cris Carter................... 1994
Henry Thomas............ 1993
Darrin Nelson.............. 1992
Terry Allen................... 1991
Gary Zimmerman....... 1990
Jim Gustafson............. 1989
Leo Lewis.................... 1988
Scott Studwell............. 1987
Walker Lee Ashley..... 1986
Keith Nord.................... 1985
Steve Riley................... 1984
Ponder: Packers game 'a wake-up call'
Posted by: Chris Miller Updated: December 5, 2012 - 5:41 PMVikings quarterback Christian Ponder, coming off a 23-14 loss to Green Bay where he fell under heavy criticism, admitted Wednesday that his poor performance was a “wake-up call.”
“We’re in that game and some of the mistakes I made were very frustrating,” Ponder said. “I’m always critical of myself, but with such an important game and such costly mistakes, because of me, it was very frustrating. It was kind of a wake-up call that obviously I need to be doing some stuff differently and change my game and elevate my play so that, especially where we are in the season, with the goals that are in our hands, I have to make sure that I give our team a chance to be successful and achieve those goals.”
The Vikings play host to the Chicago Bears on Sunday.
Ponder, who confirmed that he became engaged this week to ESPN reporter Samantha Steele, had two critical interceptions against the Packers.
“The mistakes I made were pretty obvious and pretty dumb,” he said. “It’s not hard to eliminate those dumb mistakes. We still want to be aggressive; we just have to be so much smarter and try not to force things.”
“I still have my confidence. I think, with me, after a bad game I’m even more excited to come back to work the next week and the next day just so I can put it behind me. … Obviously, I want to play better and I know that I need to play better, but my confidence is still there.”
As far as his engagement, Ponder said, “We’re not going into the details of that. We’re excited. It was a fun experience this week, but we’ve moved on.”
Vikings coach Leslie Frazier said he has tried to encourage Ponder this week, reminding him “of some of the things he did very well when we were having success across the board as an offense and letting him know that we have confidence that he can get back to getting that done, and no greater time than right now.”
Wide receivers Jerome Simpson and Devin Aromashodu stood firmly in Ponder’s corner.
“I got a lot of confidence in Christian,” said Simpson. “He’s going to bounce back, he’s going to have a great game.”
Is Ponder being unfairly criticized?
“Yup,” Simpson said. “That guy, he’s a tough guy, man, and a lot of added pressure that’s put on him shouldn’t be, a lot of criticism shouldn’t be put on him. I guess that’s just the nature of being a quarterback, but a lot of this pressure stuff being put on him shouldn’t be, because that guy, he’s trying his heart out.”
Said Aromashodu: “You can’t blame it on one person. It takes everyone from the linemen to the receivers running the right routes to, you know, the quarterback to the protection with the running backs. So everything has to work together in the passing game.”
Injury report
Receiver Percy Harvin (ankle) and defensive end Jared Allen (shoulder, back) did not participate in the Vikings' practice Wednesday.
Huh? Vikings lead at Lambeau 14-10
Posted by: Mark Craig Updated: December 2, 2012 - 1:38 PMGREEN BAY -- What's this? A competitive Vikings game at Lambeau Field?
Who'd have thunk it? Not many, especially those who saw last week's debacle at Soldier Field. Or last year's debacles at Soldier Field and Lambeau Field.
Today's game started out with a similar feel to the blowouts mentioned above. The Packers took a 10-0 lead on a 32-yard touchdown pass from Aaron Rodgers to James Jones and a 30-yard field goal that Mason Crosby banked in off the left upright.
Two Cheesehead possessions. Ten points. The Vikings also trailed in first downs, 7-0, and total yards, 127-5.
But then something strange began to happen. The Vikings offense started moving the ball both on the ground and through the air (a little bit) to tight end Kyle Rudolph. Then they scored not one, but two touchdowns -- on offense -- in one quarter to take a 14-10 lead at the half.
A 14-play, 71-yard drive was capped with a 7-yard touchdown pass from Christian Ponder to Kyle Rudolph. Later in the quarter, Adrian Peterson broke two tackles and showed that his new left ACL might be faster than his old one en route to a career-long 82-yard touchdown run.
Two of Peterson's longest touchdown runs -- including a 74-yarder at Seattle on Nov. 4 -- have come in the last month.
Peterson has 13 carries for 126 yards, a team-record sixth straight game with at least 100 yards rushing. The 82-yard score also is the fourth-longest play from scrimmage in team history. Chester Taylor's 95-yard touchdown run against Seattle in 2006 is the record.
Ponder has completed 5 of 8 passes for only 36 yards, but all the completions came during the 14-play scoring drive. Ponder's wide receivers have a grand total of zero catches. Rudolph has four catches for 23 yards.
Not dwelling on dropped passes
Posted by: Kent Youngblood Updated: November 28, 2012 - 1:54 PMNo sulking allowed
As the Vikings prepare for the Packers this week, head coach Leslie Frazier made one thing clear. When it comes to what happened with the receiving corps last week in Chicago, there is no room for sulking.
So why did Jerome Simpson look so subdued in the locker room?
“I’m obviously down, because I’m used to making those plays,” he said.
Those plays would be those catches Simpson didn’t make last Sunday in the Vikings’ loss to the Bears. Simpson had three drops of Christian Ponder passes, three of the at least five dropped passes by Vikings receivers.
So, yes, Simpson was affected by a difficult day.
“We talked a little bit,” Frazier said of Simpson. “We’ve got to move on. We know he’s more than capable of making plays for us. We need him to do that this week. We don’t need nobody sulking or looking back or being down. We need everybody energized and ready to have their best game of the season.”
Since returning from suspension Simpson has dealt with leg soreness the team said was connected to a back issue. Simpson is sixth on the team with 12 receptions for 138 yards and no touchdowns. Simpson insisted again Wednesday that he is 100 percent healthy, but admitted he isn't playing up to his normal standards.
He had more drops {three} than catches {one} in Chicago.And while it clearly bothers him, Simpson said he wouldn’t let it affect him going forward.
“It’s a part of being in this profession,” he said. “Being a great player. If you just hold on to your mistakes, that’s when you start to fall. I always find a way to bounce back. So that’s what I’m going to do, and just get better this week.”
Simpson and rookie Jarius Wright both said the receivers would spend more time working with the Jugs machine that can send a football at a high speed towards a receiver. “We haven’t been doing as much gun work as we probably should have been doing,” said Wright, who also had a drop in Chicago. “So we’re getting back to it.”
As for Simpson, he said he also needed to get back to basics when it comes to catching the ball. “I let the ball get too close to my body,” Simpson said. “I’m always used to being a hands catcher, and so the ball was getting too close to me. I have to go out and reach and grab the ball.”
And going forward? Simpson hasn’t had the season the team hoped for when it signed him during the off-season. “We’ve still got a lot of football left,” he said. “It’s just a matter of time. I have to be focused and resilient.”
The elements, again
Sunday’s game at Green Bay will be the Vikings’ last game outside in the regular season. And punter Chris Kluwe is just fine with that.
“The Chicago game, the Green Bay game, those are kind of the ones you circle on your calendar," he said. "Once they’re past it’s all good.”
In Chicago Kluwe had a wind-affected 23-yard punt in the first quarter. The Bears took advantage of good field position to drive for a field goal.
Kluwe finished the game with four punts for 162 yards, a 40.5-yard average with a 39-yard net. Still, he was compelled to defend his 23-yard effort, taking to Twitter to do so.
“I approached that punt the same way I approached the first punt {which went 53 yards), the third punt {42} and the fourth punt {44}," he said Wednesday.
The problem was the wind. The Vikings were planning a kick to the right anyway because the wind was moving in that direction. But as the play unfolded, Kluwe said, there was a gust as he dropped the ball. “It was either go {more to the} right or miss it entirely,” he said. “I didn’t really want look like Sean Landeta.”
That was a historical reference to Landeta who, playing for the Giants in a playoff game in Chicago after the 1985 season, whiffed on a punt near his own end zone due to a gust of wind. The Bears recovered it and scored.
Kluwe said Lambeau Field is a much better venue, wind-wise, than Soldier Field. “The thing with Soldier is most of the time it’s an inconsistent wind,” Kluwe said. “In Green Bay, generally, if it is windy it will be a fairly consistent wind, so you can plan on what to do.”
Feeling good
Both safety Harrison Smith and tight end Kyle Rudolph have been cleared after sustaining concussions in Chicago, though Rudolph is still dealing with a shoulder issue. But Smith said he actually felt good enough to return to the Chicago game but was held out for precautionary reasons.
Smith got up after making a tackle early in the third quarter and clearly appeared to be having balance problems. He was taken into the locker room where, he said, he passed preliminary tests. “Once I got into the locker room I felt pretty normal,” Smith said. “Even the tests we did there, I passed. And I felt normal after the game. They just had to take the necessary precautions.”
Smith said he sustained one concussion while in college at Notre Dame. It came during the 2008 season, Harrison’s freshman year.
ETC.
--Cornerback Chris Cook said the rehab of the broken arm he sustained in the Vikings’ game with Tampa Bay Oct. 25. He said he still expects to be ready to return when he become eligible to be taken off injured reserve Dec. 23, the day the Vikings play at Houston.
ADVERTISEMENT
recent posts
- NFL calendar change could push draft into May, combine into March
- Vikings' Chris Kluwe to sign with Oakland Raiders
- Vikings sign three more draft choices; only first-rounders left
- Hold off on buying that Urlacher jersey ...
- Vikings sign three draft picks; Chuck Muncie dies; Urlacher "rumored" to Vikings ...
- Access Vikings blog: ESPN's Bayless, Smith debate whether Ponder was as responsible for playoff run as Peterson (really)
- Bar to be higher for Ponder, lower for Peterson in 2013
- Dayton, PTI hosts question Vikings over Kluwe cut
- Vikings sign Mankato receiver Adam Thielen, tackle Brandon Keith
- Vikings make it official: Punter Chris Kluwe has been cut
- Vikings searching for best development plan for Cordarrelle Patterson
- Rookie Locke could have punter's job locked up by Monday
- Erin Henderson stepping into new role with 'more lead in my pencil'
- Ponder talks: Cassel, Harvin and a scary visit to the emergency room
- Vikings announce signings of 16 undrafted free agents
- Vikings sign defensive end Jackson, cornerback Lacey
- Craig blog: Vikings to give Cris Carter's son, Duron, a tryout
- Spielman summarizes six Saturday selections
- Spielman: Drafting punter `has nothing to do with Chris Kluwe off the field'
Post By Category
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
inside the StarTribune
-
425 Portland Av. S.
Minneapolis, MN 55488
(612) 673-4000
- Company
- Subscriber Services
- Website
- Buy Ads
- Store
- Connect with Us
© 2013 StarTribune. All rights reserved.
StarTribune.com is powered by Limelight Networks
Newspaper Subscriptions
eEdition
RSS
Newsletters