Kenechi Udeze tried to run quickly off the field Sunday after the Vikings' 24-3 victory over the Atlanta Falcons. But a screaming mob of players and coaches -- including head coach Brad Childress -- wouldn't let him.
Udeze sacked Falcons quarterback Joey Harrington on the game's final play, his first sack in nearly two years. Childress -- who mentioned the sackless streak during a team meeting Saturday night -- rewarded him with a game ball.
"I take great pleasure," Childress said, "in telling [reporters] that you can't say that the guy didn't have a sack all year long. We put that to bed in Game 1, so that's why he got a game ball."
Udeze's last sack came against New Orleans on Sept. 25, 2005 -- the same game in which he suffered a season-ending knee injury. He returned to play in all 16 games last season but did not record a sack.
Udeze, however, went out of his way to downplay Sunday's developments and said he tried to run away from the mob because "I don't want anybody to praise me for something that I'm supposed to be doing."One in the bank is a great feeling," Udeze said. "But nobody should be applauding me for stuff I'm supposed to be doing. That's what I'm here for and that's what I'm supposed to be doing."
Childress, however, said: "I think it meant something to him, and it meant something to the guys. Our guys gave a hoot."
Win No. 1 for Jackson
Childress emphasizes "game management" with second-year quarterback Tarvaris Jackson, and Jackson managed to do enough to help the Vikings win Sunday.
He didn't throw downfield frequently or with much accuracy, but his swing pass to running back Adrian Peterson in the fourth quarter beat a blitz and led to a 60-yard catch-and-run touchdown.
Jackson turned the ball over only once, on a bad pass that skipped off the hands of tight end Visanthe Shiancoe.
Jackson went 13-for-23 for 163 yards with one touchdown and one interception. He didn't get sacked, and he ran twice for 10 yards en route to his first NFL victory as a starter.
"It felt good to win the first one, especially after last year when I went 0-2," he said. "It's a new season, and it's good to get the first one out of the way."
Childress said a "frequency" problem with the headsets made it difficult for Jackson to hear some play calls. "I thought he looked comfortable back there," Childress said. "I didn't see any jitteryness. I thought he slid in the pocket decently."
During the preseason, Childress said he wanted Jackson to avoid "long foul balls" -- deep sideline passes that don't give receives a chance to catch the ball inbounds.
Jackson threw two "foul balls."I think we saw one to Troy Williamson, who had his guy beat, and then the one to Sidney Rice down the sideline that we left out of bounds," Childress said. "We just have to command the football a little bit better. We'll get better and better on those throws up the field."
Man in the middle
E.J. Henderson made a successful return to the middle linebacker spot after two seasons of playing on the weak side. He tied for second on the team with eight tackles and also had two sacks and two quarterback hurries. Henderson, the first Vikings linebacker to have two sacks in a game since Ed McDaniel in 1999, seemed to embrace the leadership role that goes with his position, providing a vocal presence on and off the field.
"It's nobody's responsibility but mine to get guys lined up," he said. "Miscommunication is always going to be on me. Whatever you want to get across, you've got to stress it."
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