YOUR GUIDE TO THE TWIN CITIES
vikings/nfl
Before joining our Access Vikings team, Dan Wiederer covered Atlantic Coast Conference basketball for the Fayetteville (N.C.) Observer and was named North Carolina's top sports columnist in 2010. His previous reporting experience includes covering the Chicago Bears. Follow him on Twitter @StribDW.
Mark Craig has covered football and the NFL the past 20 years, including the Browns from 1991-95 and the Vikings and the NFL since 2003. Since 2008, Craig has served as one of the 44 Pro Football Hall of Fame selectors. He can be followed on Twitter at @markcraignfl.
Packers take a different approach
Posted by: under Vikings, Packers, Vikings offense, Bernard Berrian, Brett Favre Updated: October 8, 2009 - 9:25 AM
Some of this item appeared in the Vikings notebook this morning but I thought Berrian's explanation of how the Packers played him, not to mention his observations about Favre, were interesting.
Having gone against the aggressive man-to-man defense played by Green Bay cornerbacks Al Harris and Charles Woodson in recent seasons, Vikings wide receiver Bernard Berrian noticed a major difference when he watched film of the Packers last week.
Green Bay’s switch to a 3-4 scheme under new coordinator Dom Capers, also had brought changes to how Harris and Woodson approached receivers. The corners were no longer getting their hands on receivers coming off the line of scrimmage. That was a huge difference for guys who had played press coverage.
Berrian took advantage of this in the Vikings’ 30-23 victory on Monday night, catching six passes for 75 yards, including a 31-yard touchdown that was his first of the season. Berrian’s third-quarter touchdown came on a perfectly thrown ball from Brett Favre. Green Bay safety Derrick Martin played the wrong defense and thus wasn’t in position, but Berrian felt the key was his ability to get off the line so quickly.
"That’s what I’m talking about," he said. "They don’t get hands on you in their coverage, which we noticed in film study. It’s Cover-2 but the way they play it they’re not really forcing you to the sideline or anything like that. They are really clueing in on the quarterback to get a read on something else."
Berrian had caught 10 passes for 102 yards but had no touchdowns in the first three games entering Monday, leading to a feeling that he hadn’t gotten on the same page with Favre. But that might now be a dead issue.
Berrian is pleased with how things are going. "One of the things I like is just [Favre’s] ability to audible and give you routes that he sees fit," Berrian said. "We’ll come to the sideline and say, ‘We’ve got off coverage and we’re running go [routes], just give us a signal to run a little simple out.’ He’ll take that feedback and he’ll do that when he sees it."
Before anyone starts to think that Favre is completely changing things at the line of scrimmage, Berrian made it clear that is not the case. "I think the biggest things he's changing are individual routes," Berrian said. "A lot of times Sidney [Rice] is getting off coverage and he's getting Sidney just to run a simple comeback. Just to move the ball down the field and get the sticks moving. I think that's the biggest change right there."
ADVERTISEMENT
recent posts
- Vikings sign offensive lineman Pat Brown to one-year extension
- Craig: Vikings, not Rams, would seem to be likely trade partner
- Vikings open at 75-1 odds to win Super Bowl XLVII
- Roger Goodell vague on having a new NFL team in Los Angeles
- Suggs beats out Jared Allen for NFL Defensive Player of the Year
- Doleman is chosen for Pro Football Hall of Fame
- Doleman elected to Hall of Fame; Carter denied again
- Roger Goodell announces NFL plans for more Thursday night games
- Is the talk of an 18-game NFL season resurfacing?
- Can Vikings find a No. 1 receiver in free agency?
- Peterson considered number change -- then found out the cost
- Wiederer: Tuesday's Super Bowl XLVI snapshots
- Craig: Giants lineman has (really) walked in Favre's shoes
- Vikings add CFL linebacker Solomon
- Rams interview Vikings executive Paton for GM's job
- Browns hire Childress as offensive coordinator
- What does Frazier want to see at Senior Bowl?
- Jared Allen named Sporting News defensive player of the year
- Vikings staff continues to take advantage of 'week-long interview' process at Senior Bowl
Post By Category
- Craig: Vikings, not Rams, would seem to be likely trade partner
- Vikings sign offensive lineman Pat Brown to one-year extension
- Vikings open at 75-1 odds to win Super Bowl XLVII
- Roger Goodell vague on having a new NFL team in Los Angeles
- Can Vikings find a No. 1 receiver in free agency?
- Peterson considered number change -- then found out the cost
- Suggs beats out Jared Allen for NFL Defensive Player of the Year
- Vikings add CFL linebacker Solomon
ADVERTISEMENT
inside the StarTribune
-
425 Portland Av. S.
Minneapolis, MN 55488
(612) 673-4000
- Company
- Subscriber Services
- Website
- Buy Ads
- Store
- Connect with Us
© 2012 StarTribune. All rights reserved.
StarTribune.com is powered by Limelight Networks
Newspaper Subscriptions
eEdition
RSS
Newsletters