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Changes on offense and defense have helped Minnesota improve to 3-3 after starting the season 0-2.
By DARRELL FRY
© St. Petersburg Times, published October 26, 2001
All Minnesota coach Dennis Green needed was a little time. Time to add some beef, sprinkle in some flavoring and allow the pot time to stew.
You might not have recognized the 0-2 Vikings who hosted the Bucs on Sept.30, but in the four weeks since, Green has gotten them cooking again. Minnesota has won three of four, including its past two, to leap back into the NFC Central race at a time when the Bucs have done the opposite, losing three of four, including their past two.
All it took, Green said, was a little time.
"Keep in mind, we lost a lot of players (during the offseason)," he said. "So we had a lot of new guys we had to fit in. And it's not that easy to put that whole thing together early in the season."
The Vikings (3-3) appear to be putting it together now. Players no longer are bickering publicly. Superstar receivers Randy Moss and Cris Carter are again dangerous elements. And the Vikings are lighting up the scoreboard again.
The past four weeks, Green said, have allowed the team's replacements, particularly on the offensive line, to gain some continuity. And some tinkering with the defensive line, adding a former player and repositioning other players, is paying dividends.
Offensive tackles Brad Badger and Chris Liwienski and guard Everett Lindsay, first-time starters for the Vikings, are beginning to mesh well with established veterans Matt Birk and David Dixon. The unit has allowed 13 sacks in the past three games but only one Sunday in Minnesota's win over Green Bay.
They've been even better run blockers. Minnesota rolled up 145 yards on the ground two weeks ago against Detroit, averaging 5.4 yards, and 196 against the Packers for a 5.3-yard average with Doug Chapman playing in place of injured starter Michael Bennett.
Not coincidentally, the Vikings, who averaged 14.5 points in their first four games, scored 31 and 35 points the past two weeks, a sign that perhaps the Vikings' once-famed offense is again clicking on all cylinders.
"We've had a couple of good weeks. We feel like we're playing better than we were earlier in the season," Carter said. "Clicking on all cylinders? I don't know about that."
Defensively, Minnesota brought back left end Stalin Colinet through a trade with Cleveland, allowing Talance Sawyer to move to the right side. Minnesota also made 320-pound nose tackle Winfield Garnett a starter and rotates him with 313-pound tackle Fred Robbins, giving the line more beef to stop the run.
The Vikings held the Packers to 74 rushing yards, the lowest since Sept.23 against the Bears, and consistently pressured quarterback Brett Favre.
"It seems like they are playing more aggressively on defense," Bucs coach Tony Dungy said. "They're coming after people, blitzing a lot more, putting pressure on you. So I think they are playing better."
The Vikings, in fact, have been throwing a lot of new wrinkles at opponents, many of which the Bucs will see Sunday.
They are calling more designed run plays for quarterback Daunte Culpepper, running more draws instead of screens, and swapping the traditional routes of Moss and Carter, sending Carter deep more and Moss underneath the coverage.
The Vikings still are turning the ball over, though. They have 15, one shy of the league high, but Green said he hopes that will change in time as well.
"I think we're showing some signs of playing better football," he said.
As impressive as Minnesota looked in its 35-13 win over Green Bay, Green said it must be even better against a Bucs team that always plays it tough at home and is desperate for a win.
"I told the team, "Our game against Green Bay was great, but we were at home. It's going to be more difficult to beat Tampa on the road than it is to beat Green Bay at home."' he said.
"I think that's true."