EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. – Vikings Head Coach Mike Zimmer didn't like what he saw on tape any more than the live version of Minnesota's loss at Philadelphia.
"This is a gut-check day," Zimmer told Twin Cities media members on Monday.
As disappointed as Zimmer was with the team's performance, however, he said one thing he didn't wake up questioning the next morning is its attitude.
"I'm not worried about this team's mentality," Zimmer said. "We had a pretty tough loss at San Francisco last year, and we fought back. I'm anxious to see the determination that this team has going forward."
Added Zimmer: "I think I have a pretty good feeling on these players, typically, and with this football team."
Zimmer said he has faith in the Vikings.
"Faith is belief without proof," Zimmer said. "Right now I don't have any proof, so I have to have faith that we'll get it done. And I think we will."
Here are three other topics covered by Zimmer during his podium session:
Missing the mark
In the two-plus years that Zimmer has been in Minnesota, he's been working to – and succeeding in – building a football team that plays smart football.
He didn't recognize the squad in purple at Philadelphia.
"Some of the things we did were so uncharacteristic in this ball game," Zimmer said. "We jumped offsides inside the 5-yard line; we get the ball, first-and-goal on the 2; we get first-and-goal on the 8; we had first-and-10 on the 17; and I think we come away with three points and an interception. We don't go out of bounds twice, with two different people, in the two-minute drill."
Zimmer later referenced Pat Elflein receiving an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty, costing the team 15 yards, inside the final two minutes of the game. The flag was one of seven penalties called against Minnesota, accounting for 56 total yards.
"Those are all dumb things," Zimmer said. "We did several dumb things in this football game that we characteristically [don't do]. We kind of pride ourselves on trying to be a smart football team, and we didn't do a lot of smart things in this game."
Return TD on tape
After reviewing the 98-yard kickoff return for a touchdown by Philadelphia's Josh Huff, Zimmer walked through a handful of mistakes that occurred on the Vikings coverage team to allow the return and score.
"Well, one guy was getting double-teamed, and he didn't fight back into the double team – he took the easy way," Zimmer said. "Then one of the guys that was going to the ball got tripped and fell down. Then we had a poor effort on the other side."
Zimmer said the issues that occurred on that special teams play would be addressed during the week.
Concern with overall offense
In his return to Philadelphia to face his former team, quarterback Kyle Rudolph finished 24-of-41 passing (58.5 percent) for 224 yards. In addition to one touchdown pass to Cordarrelle Patterson, Bradford also threw his first interception of the season.
Zimmer emphasized that there were a number of issues offensively – the problem was not isolated to Bradford or to the offensive line.
"There are a whole bunch of things offensively that we didn't do well," Zimmer said. "Some of it was getting the protection turned the right way; some of it was getting beat 1-on-1; sometimes it was not getting the ball out."
Zimmer also said that missed connections between quarterback and receiver were not always the fault of Bradford.
"It looked like he made a bad throw on an over route to [Stefon] Diggs; well, Diggs was 10 yards short on the route," Zimmer said. "So, that's what I'm saying. It was a combination of things offensively that irritated me more so than one particular thing."
