Vikings coverage teams decidedly not special

Carlos Gonzalez, Star Tribune

A scenario that had Chris Kluwe fearing for his job: needing to chase after Saints star Reggie Bush time and time again Monday night. Kluwe remains the Vikings punter.

Chris Kluwe kept his job, but the Vikings still have special teams issues to address.

By JUDD ZULGAD, Star Tribune

Last update: October 11, 2008 - 8:31 AM

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VIKINGS WEEK 6

Sunday: Noon vs. Detroit, Metrodome • TV: Ch. 9 (1130-AM, 100.3-FM)

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Chris Kluwe incurred the wrath of coach Brad Childress on Monday and was just getting ready to head home Wednesday from Winter Park as the Vikings tried out four potential replacements at punter.

But as the sun rose Thursday, Kluwe still found himself employed by the Vikings. "I'm still wearing the clothes," Kluwe said. "It looks like I made it another day."

Kluwe stands to survive much longer -- provided he can execute what the coaching staff wants from now on.

"Chris Kluwe is our punter," special teams coordinator Paul Ferraro said. "I've got great confidence in Chris. He needs to do better in the situation that he was put in Monday night, and I need to do a better job of helping him do that. We are going to do that together and get it done."

Kluwe's well-documented miscues in the Vikings' 30-27 victory Monday night at New Orleans involved his failure to punt the ball out of bounds and away from Saints standout return man Reggie Bush.

Bush had scored on a 71-yard third-quarter return when the order was given. Ferraro said Kluwe had worked on putting the ball outside the field of play in pregame warmups and was successful. Nonetheless, Bush got his hands on the next two punts after his touchdown. He nearly broke the first one, getting to the Vikings 49-yard line before tripping, and then he went 64 yards for a touchdown early in the fourth quarter.

After the game, a fuming Childress said if Kluwe couldn't do what he was told, "I will find somebody who can kick the ball out of bounds." Childress and Kluwe met to discuss the situation on Wednesday morning, and Kluwe was informed four punters would be in later that day.

Kluwe took the news extremely well, at least publicly. "It's a tough position for [Childress] because he's the head man and it all comes down on him," Kluwe said. "If I don't put it out of bounds, it makes him look bad because obviously we don't want them to return it for touchdowns."

Childress admitted he brought in the four punters "somewhat" as a result of Kluwe's failures, but he also attempted to downplay the situation. "We're working out guys all the time," Childress said. "I don't quite take it as high drama as you guys do."

The high drama will come if the Vikings punt and kickoff coverage units don't show vast improvement Sunday against Detroit. The Vikings rank last in the NFL in punt-return coverage and 30th in kickoff coverage.

While Bush's exploits against the Vikings have been the primary focus -- the Saints averaged 35.2 yards on five punt returns -- New Orleans also averaged 25.4 yards on seven kickoff returns. This included a 56-yard return by Pierre Thomas that opened the game and set up a Saints touchdown.

"From what I've seen from the punt game, I think we're kind of getting bottled up too much, and people are just squeezing to the ball too much rather than dispersing and being an even playing field," said linebacker Vinny Ciurciu, who was signed as a free agent in 2007 primarily because of his abilities on special teams. "On kickoffs it's just like one or two guys making the wrong decision or missing tackles."

Not surprisingly, the Vikings have made the coverage units a focus in practice this week. There also could be some changes in the personnel on those units with starters playing a bigger role, although Childress noted several starters already contribute on special teams.

The Vikings also are exploring their options outside the current roster. Veteran linebacker and special-teams player Tracy White was believed to have gotten a look on Thursday, two days after being released by Green Bay.

The Vikings are thin at linebacker -- Ciurciu (concussion) has been limited in practice this week and Erin Henderson (concussion) has been held out -- and backups at that position are often key contributors on special teams. It also doesn't help that special-teams standout Heath Farwell was lost to a knee injury in the preseason.

But Ferraro can't concern himself with missing players; he must make the most of the situation with those he has, and that includes Kluwe.

"We need to be better. We will be better this week," he said. "Chris Kluwe's got a job to do, but we have got 10 other guys that have a job to do, and they need to pick it up also."