Hartman: Despite loss, more progress for Vikings

Getting to know Mike Zimmer as well as the media has, one thing we've learned about the first-year Vikings coach is that he is a great competitor and doesn't believe in moral victories.

Zimmer's reputation as a defensive wizard was enhanced Sunday, despite the Vikings' 24-21 loss to Green Bay. They held down the Packers after they had scored a total of 108 points in their past two games, a 55-14 victory against the Bears and a 53-20 win against the Eagles.

The Vikings also did a good job of holding the Packers to a 14-10 lead at halftime, compared to a 42-0 lead against the Bears and a 30-6 lead in the first 30 minutes against the Eagles.

To further compare how much the Vikings defense has improved, you have to recall that the score of the Vikings-Packers game in Week 5 was 42-10. Sure, the Packers are better performers at home, but to cut the scoring of one of the most dominant offenses in the NFL in about half is some type of achievement.

Furthermore, the Vikings defense did a good job against the No. 1 quarterback in the NFL when it limited Aaron Rodgers to some of his lowest statistics of the season — 209 yards on completing 19 of 29 passes, and only two completions of 20 yards or more. Rodgers was averaging 253.9 passing yards per game coming into Sunday.

The Vikings were in the game most of the way with quarterback Teddy Bridgewater having a great second half (completing 10 of 15 passes for 88 yards and one touchdown) and leading a 79-yard drive that cut the Packers' lead to three points on a 5-yard touchdown pass to former Packer Greg Jennings with 3:23 left to play. But unfortunately the Vikings' one defensive weakness in the second half was stopping running back Eddie Lacy, who finished with 125 yards rushing and two touchdowns (one running, one receiving) and kept the Vikings from getting the ball back when he rushed for 4 yards on third-and-2 and then 10 more yards for another first down to close out the game.

Bridgewater's first-half stats were 11-for-22 for 122 yards, only 5 yards short of Rodgers' numbers of 9-for-14 for 127 yards. Each passed for one first-half touchdown.

With the Packers' sweep of two games with the Vikings this year, Packers coach Mike McCarthy has a 14-4-1 record against Minnesota during his nine seasons as Packers coach and is 9-1-1 against the Vikings in his past 11 games against them.

Jennings, who played seven years with good Packers teams before joining the Vikings last season, had six passes thrown at him Sunday and caught four for 38 yards, said the Vikings still thought they could win after losing big at Green Bay earlier this season.

"I thought we fought, we played them a lot closer," Jennings said. "We came out with the mind-set that we needed to win the ballgame, we just came up short."

Jennings was asked if the team gained confidence from this game, even in a loss.

"I think we've played well the last few weeks," he said. "I thought last week we didn't play very well at all, but I think coming out here with the right mind-set, it's all about guys having the will to work and compete. One thing I admire about the guys in this locker room is when we're down and our backs are against the wall, you don't feel like that. You don't feel like you're 4-7, or whatever the case may be, because guys are going to come and work every single day as though we have a shot to do something great.

According to coach Jerry Kill, the Gophers football team will have to play its best game of the season if it is to beat Wisconsin on Saturday and win the Big Ten West Division title.

"We played the schedule now here at the end, playing Iowa, Ohio State and Nebraska and then going to Wisconsin," Kill said. "Physically I've worried each week: Are we going to be able to bring that physicality again?

"As I told the kids after the game, I think they know what's riding on it. We'll put them in the cold tubs and everything else this week to get them ready. But we played physical at Nebraska, and I don't think there's any question about that. We're just going to have to play those types, we have to get it out of them one more time and get us a win. Then we can continue to move forward. But you know what, I don't ever underestimate this bunch. They are relentless."

The Gophers limited Ameer Abdullah, the great Nebraska running back who is a Doak Walker Award finalist, to 20 carries for 98 yards and one touchdown.

But can they stop Wisconsin Heisman Trophy candidate Melvin Gordon, who has rushed for 2,109 yards and 25 touchdowns this season, including an NCAA-record (for one week) 408 yards against Nebraska?

Gophers running back David Cobb pulled a hamstring against Nebraska and is listed as questionable for the Wisconsin game. But for 30 years, Dr. Pat Smith has been a team physician for the Gophers football team and has pulled off some miracles. Look for him to do it again.

The Badgers are pumped up for Saturday, too. Following Wisconsin's 26-24 victory over Iowa on Saturday, senior linebacker Derek Landisch, a Nashotah, Wis., native, told the media that, "Growing up, I used to wait all day for Wisconsin-Minnesota. I couldn't wait. I'd wake up early and wait for that Axe game.

"To me personally, it means everything. And to have [higher] stakes, with going to the Big Ten Championship Game riding on that, it is exciting."

The Badgers could have clinched the West title if the Gophers had lost to Nebraska, but senior linebacker Marcus Trotter said: "I think we're happy with how it panned out. Because what better way [to finish] than the last home game [to go to] the Big Ten Championship?"