Vikings Head Coach Mike Zimmer
Q: Will Trae Waynes and Tashawn Bower be out Sunday?
A: The injury report will come out here in a little bit.
Q: Do you anticipate using Anthony Barr in more pass rushing situations if Tashawn Bower is not available?
A: Possibly. I don't know, we'll have to see. I'm not going to tell you guys what we're going to do in the game, so it's kind of silly to ask.
Q: Can you talk about how Mike Hughes has done filling in at left cornerback throughout the season, and how you would feel if he has to start Sunday?
A: I feel good about Mike. Mike is a good football player, he's tough, he's smart. I feel good about it.
Q: What do you think about the Eagles' third down defense? Is it a product of how good they are at stopping the run?
A: The big thing is that they get a lot of third and longs, so that makes it more difficult. But a lot of it is stopping the run, they're aggressive up front, their pass rush is really good. They got waves of it. They do a good job with their blitz package as well.
Q: From the first time you saw Carson Wentz in 2016 to what he put on tape in 2017, where has he grown the most?
A: Probably everywhere. We played him his rookie year, and they kind of kept things pretty basic. Now he's scrambling and running, a big-time arm, throws the ball well, sees the coverages.
Q: How do you stack up Alshon Jeffery as one of the premier challenges in the NFL?
A: He's always been tough to defend. He's got great size, hands, goes up and catches the ball a lot of different ways. I'm not ranking guys, but he's a really good player.
Q: What are the challenges that Zach Ertz presents to your defense?
A: Ertz is really good. He's sneaky, catches the ball well, runs great routes. Dallas Goedert, they're using him a lot. Sometimes they're using three tight ends. It's a tough matchup.
Q: In what area of Stephen Weatherly's game have you seen the most improvement as his playing time as expanded?
A: I think the biggest thing that Stephen has done, he's playing more free and just reacting and playing. I think he feels like he belongs, and so he goes out there with confidence. I think that's the biggest thing.
Q: Did you talk to the team much this week about the NFC Championship game last year in Philadelphia, or did you mostly dismiss it because that was last season?
A: It was last season.
Q: What did you see from Dallas Goedert coming out of college? Was he in consideration to be drafted here as well?
A: Everybody that was in the draft was under consideration. We had him for the top 30.
Q: What did you like about Goedert's game?
A: He catches the ball well, he's got great size, runs fast. He was one of the better tight ends in the draft.
