Vikings offense stuck in low gear

The Vikings spent much of the offseason retooling key parts of their offense.

Tarvaris Jackson was made the starting quarterback; running back Adrian Peterson arrived as the seventh pick in the draft; tight end Visanthe Shiancoe signed as a free agent to replace Jermaine Wiggins; and the receiving corps was turned over.

Draft picks were used on Sidney Rice and Aundrae Allison. Bobby Wade came via free agency and fellow veteran Robert Ferguson joined in training camp after being let go by Green Bay. Troy Williamson is the only receiver from 2006 on the roster, and he did not play Sunday at Kansas City because of a hamstring injury.

Coach Brad Childress even handed over the play calling in this West Coast system to offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell.

And despite all of these moves, little has changed. An offense that underachieved in Childress' first year as head coach has three touchdowns and ranks 26th in the NFL through three games with an average of 289 yards per game. The Vikings (1-2) are 28th in passing offense with a 160.7-yard per game average; the rushing offense is ranked 10th thanks in large part to Peterson, but more and more teams are going to stack the box to defend this.

Despite the success on the ground, the bottom line is points, and the offense is averaging only 10 per game. A telling statistic is the fact the Vikings have been in the red zone four times; only Buffalo, which has three trips inside the 20, is worse.

"We are not finishing drives and we need to be able to finish drives," Childress said.

As the Vikings prepare to face the 3-0 Packers on Sunday at the Metrodome, Wade said it's a must the passing game gets going.

"We definitely need to start to put some balls down the field, stretch the field a little bit," he said. "Obviously, we're going to be able to rush the ball well if we continue to do [what we've been doing]. ... But we're going to have to stretch the field to be able to let these teams know, 'You're not going to be able to stack the box and stop this run game."

Childress pointed to two second-quarter plays in the Vikings' 13-10 loss to Kansas City on Sunday as ones that could have made all the difference. This included an incomplete pass call on what would have been a touchdown catch for Shiancoe and quarterback Kelly Holcomb overthrowing Ferguson at the goal line.

The reasoning would be sound if this was an isolated incident, one poor game for the offense. But that isn't the case. The scheme remains the same, many of the players have changed. So what gives?

"Good players, I have said before, make good coaches, but yet it's about creating those opportunities for those good players to get their hands on the football," Childress said. "Whether it be a run scheme and how you are going to hand Chester [Taylor] or Adrian or Mewelde [Moore] the football or whether it be a pass scheme and trying to get your wide receivers up the field or get the tight ends involved in the pass game. That's up to us as coaches and putting those good players in those positions."

Etc.

• The Vikings will wear throwback uniforms Sunday against Green Bay as the team celebrates Chuck Foreman's induction into the Vikings Ring of Honor as part of Alumni Weekend. Foreman played for the Vikings from 1973 to 1979 and the uniforms and helmets the team dons will be from that era.

• Spencer Johnson's two sacks this season are tied for second most among defensive tackles in the NFC, trailing Arizona's Darnell Dockett (2½). Johnson is a backup but sees plenty of time in the wave system the Vikings use on the line.

• Peterson is tied with the Colts' Joseph Addai for 10th in the NFL in rushing with 271 yards.

Judd Zulgad • jzulgad@startribune.com