Mike Zimmer vows to give Matt Asiata the ball more.

I hope this isn't one of those weird times when a football coach is telling the truth.

Last week, when the Vikings weren't falling backward as if facing an industrial-strength wind machine, they got the ball to rookie running back Jerick McKinnon 17 times. They gave it to Asiata, the veteran who apparently has lost his starting job to McKinnon, three times.

Zimmer is correct. A 17-to-3 ratio isn't ideal.

It should be more like 25-6.

Zimmer calls Asiata "dependable," which is about right. The last time someone called a Vikings back "dependable," you could count on Naufahu Tahi to give you 1 yard on third-and-2.

McKinnon is the future, and given the recent past at the position, the future can't get here fast enough.

McKinnon could replace the absent Adrian Peterson. He could also help replace a couple of gold stars on General Manager Rick Spielman's résumé.

For all of his good picks, Spielman is currently best known for drafting the fallen Christian Ponder and the struggling Matt Kalil with first-round picks. Spielman also traded the problematic Percy Harvin to Seattle for picks that turned into top cornerback Xavier Rhodes and McKinnon.

In a span of five days, McKinnon became a starter and Seattle traded Harvin to the Jets for a conditional draft pick, a virtual admission that the Vikings were right to dump him in his prime. McKinnon could make that trade look even more lopsided, and add to the stable of promising youngsters in the Twin Cities.

Mikael Granlund and Jonas Brodin are rising stars for the Wild, and they may be joined in that category by rookie Matt Dumba.

Andrew Wiggins is a unique athlete who will be given every opportunity to become one of the three best players in Timberwolves history.

Byron Buxton and Miguel Sano, though slowed by injuries, should rival the heydays of the M&M Boys and Hrbie & Kirby.

Teddy Bridgewater should become the Vikings' best homegrown quarterback since Daunte Culpepper looked like a franchise player.

McKinnon is more of a sleeper than the rest, but he's fast, powerful and versatile. At 5-9, he won't remind anyone of Peterson, and it would be wrong to compare him with the remarkable Darren Sproles, but McKinnon could become a typical modern back — one who can handle the ball 20 times a game without being asked to frequently thump between the tackles.

Asiata has averaged 3.5 yards per carry this season. In his one game, Peterson averaged 3.6. McKinnon is averaging 5.0. Despite limited playing time, McKinnon ranks fourth on the Vikings in receptions.

"I see myself as an every-down guy," McKinnon said. "I think their intention, with me coming into the league, was to find a way to use my versatility. I've watched a lot of Sproles, and Jamal Charles and LeSean McCoy.

"I know I have a lot to learn."

McKinnon grew up in Marietta, Ga., and began playing football when he was 4. In high school, he played cornerback and slot receiver until his senior year, when his coach needed a quarterback. "I hadn't played the position since middle school," he said. "I just did what our coach asked."

He signed with Georgia Southern, which used him as a triple-option quarterback, tailback, receiver, fullback and even occasionally at cornerback. He, like Bridgewater, led an upset of Florida.

Whose victory over the Gators was more impressive — McKinnon leading little Georgia Southern or Bridgewater dissecting them in the Sugar Bowl?

"Teddy and I joke around a lot," McKinnon said. "But I haven't really hit him up on that topic yet."

"Ours," Bridgewater said with a smile. "Bigger game."

The Vikings began the season with Matt Cassel at quarterback and Peterson as the focal point of their offense. Now two rookies will attempt to salvage the season, or at least set the Vikings up to succeed next year.

As a small-school player with little experience running between the tackles, McKinnon is more of a project than Bridgewater — or Wiggins, Buxton or Granlund.

You can, though, say the same thing about McKinnon as his more celebrated peers around the Twin Cities:

The kid is going to be good.

Jim Souhan can be heard weekdays at noon and Sundays from 10 to noon on 1500 ESPN. @SouhanStrib • jsouhan@startribune.com