EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. —Vikings Interim Offensive Coordinator Pat Shurmur has had a little more than a week in his current role and a full week to game plan for Sunday at Washington.
Shurmur said some things went well last week against Detroit, but added, "we've got to do better in, certainly, critical situations."
The Michigan native lamented two red zone possessions that ended without any points for the Vikings against the Lions.
Consecutive penalties followed by a negative run and a sack backed the Vikings up from starting a possession at the Detroit 18 to the 40 and forced a punt in the second quarter.
The Vikings also were stopped on third-and-2 from the Detroit 6 and fourth-and-1 from the 5 midway through the fourth quarter.
"We had a couple chances to get points," Shurmur said. "This game is about points, and we had a couple chances to get points, and we didn't. That helped contribute to the outcome. But, in terms of the second week, we've got a little bit more time to put the plan in, kind of be able to look at the things we're doing and try to run the plays that we feel are going to work the best."
The Vikings offense did, however, put together a touchdown drive to take a 16-13 lead with 23 seconds left, going 79 yards on 13 plays in 3:51.
Mixing and matching
The Vikings implemented a bevy of quick passes last week for multiple reasons. Minnesota wanted to get drives moving in the right direction early to set up shorter distances needed on second and third downs.
Stefon Diggs, for example, caught 13 passes, which is tied for the most in an NFL game this season, but totaled 80 yards.
Shurmur said completing the short passes — Kyle Rudolph was 31-of-40 passing for 273 yards with a touchdown and no turnovers — doesn't mean the Vikings won't look for opportunities to make a deep pass.
"We feel like we can throw the ball deep. I think everybody has kind of tied [the offense] to the West Coast roots, but there's a controlled passing game element to that," Shurmur said. "But there's also the ability to throw the ball deep when shots provide. We actually did throw the ball deep a couple times the other night. We just didn't connect on them. So, we're just going to try to do what we can to score points, and sometimes you're able to get the ball down the field a little better against some teams and not so much against others."
Reed's threat
Vikings Defensive Coordinator George Edwards opened his session with the media by covering the multiple threats that the Redskins offense poses. Washington is averaging 410.3 yards per game (fourth in the NFL), including 111.5 on the ground (14th in the NFL) and 298.8 through the air (third in the NFL).
Tight end Jordan Reed leads Washington with 42 receptions (tied for 21st in the NFL) for 415 yards and three touchdowns. Edwards was asked about the biggest challenge in covering Reed.
"I think his ability to get in and out of cuts. He does a lot of things as far as stemming on his route where you've really got to be disciplined with the leverage on him," Edwards said. "Whether it's in the short area or if it's down the field, he does a good job of stemming players and breaking out of the cut the opposite way."
Covering the slot
Edwards also was asked about second-year pro Jamison Crowder, who leads Washington with 498 yards and four touchdowns on 40 catches. Crowder is only 5-foot-8 and 182 pounds but has worked well in the slot.
The matchup with Crowder could be a little more complicated this week because nickel cornerback Mackensie Alexander (ankle) was unable to practice for a second straight day.
"He's another that does a great job with his short-area quickness, getting in and out of breaks," Edwards said. "Again, they get the ball out quick, so when he's coming out of his break that ball is coming out. He's done a good job of run after the catch. That's been a big thing that we've tried to emphasize this week, is run after the catch. As a slot receiver, he does an excellent job of that. Where he gets free off of the leverage and then the next thing you know if you miss a tackle, he's getting a big play out of it."
On the block
Vikings Special Teams Coordinator Mike Priefer opened his session by crediting the kick coverage and punt coverage units that forced Detroit to begin every possession at or inside the Lions 25, except for one that occurred after a blocked field goal.
"A lot of times people look at special teams and say it's just the kicker or just the punter or just the returner or whatever," Priefer said. "It's encompassing everybody, it's six different phases. The only reason I say that is because I want to give credit to the guys who played really well for us in the coverage phases and in the return phases."
The Lions block of a 46-yard field goal attempt by Kevin McDermott led to a six-point swing after Detroit returned the ball 32 yards to the Minnesota 42. The Vikings defense didn't allow a first down, but the Lions were able to get a 53-yard field goal by Matt Prater to take a 13-9 lead with 12:38 remaining.
"It was a combination of a low kick, and we did not do a good enough job on the left side in protection," Priefer said. "Like I told the guys in the meeting today, I've seen plenty of lower kicks go through the uprights because protection has been perfect, and I've seen plenty of kicks that were high enough that got blocked because protection was so bad. It was a combination of the two."
Backing Blair
Priefer said six players the Vikings put through workouts on Tuesday did a good job, but said, "I'm a glass half-full guy, so going forward I'm thinking that Blair is going to be the guy the rest of the season."
Priefer said Walsh got "ticked off in a good way" when the Vikings held the workouts and "came out focused" this week for practices.
"He hit the ball really well today. He was 8-for-8 today out here when we backed him up, I think, to about 48 yards," Priefer said. "A little bit of wind, not bad, beautiful day. I thought he did a really nice job that past two days, kicked off well today.
"Now he just has to go out and do it on game day. He's had plenty of practice weeks where he has been phenomenal, and he's had plenty of games where he has been phenomenal," Priefer said. "We just have to put a bunch of kicks together. Not just one game but each kick, put a game together. Then put the next week, each kick in that game together. Really kind of get out of his funk here to help our team win games."
