Vikings Head Coach Mike Zimmer
Big division game this week. Need the fans nice and loud. Make it difficult on their offense and let's go kick it off.
Q: Do you attribute the defensive improvements you've made since Los Angeles to the tweaks that you mentioned before that you made or the defense understanding and performing it better?
A: It's probably a little bit of both. Players are playing good.
Q: How does Tyler Conklin look in the second tight end role?
A: He's done well. I think he has a very good future as he continues to move forward. He's a good athlete, he's tough, he catches the ball well. I think the more playing time he gets, he'll continue to improve.
Q: Can Tyler Conklin do some of the things that David Morgan does?
A: Yes. Yes, he does.
Q: What does Aldrick Robinson bring to the wide receivers room? Has it been what you expected?
A: Yes, pretty much. Kirk [Cousins] knew him from Washington. He had speed, he's made some nice touchdown catches for us. Made some good plays when he's been in there so yes.
Q: How does Anthony Barr's skillset allow him to track down mobile quarterbacks?
A: I don't know so much about the mobile quarterbacks, but Anthony is a really good athlete. He can cover a lot of ground quickly. He's got good change of direction so those things help in that area.
Q: How does getting Anthony Barr back after a couple weeks help your defense?
A: It helps a lot. Eric Wilson did a nice job when he was in there. There are just more things we can do with Anthony that allow us to be a little bit more versatile I guess is the best way to say it.
Q: Have you seen officials figure out how they're going to call hits on the quarterback and have they become more lenient?
A: I don't know that they've been more lenient with it or if the players have been better with how they land on the quarterback is really what it amounts to. I don't see it being called in there as much. I have to report back on it, maybe a week ago or something like that, but it doesn't seem like it's being called in there as much. But I think it's mostly because players are not putting their full bodyweight on them.
Q: Are the Packers rushing the quarterback differently now?
A: A little bit. It's pressure-based. Multiple looks off of it. The guys that they have, [Nick] Perry and [Clay] Matthews and those guys, they are able to rush the quarterback pretty good.
Q: What has Kyler Fackrell added to that mix?
A: I think he's added a lot of athleticism to it.
Q: Do you make any changes to your approach when playing in a night game?
A: Not really. I know we haven't won any this year but we won three last year and it's the same routine. I think it just comes down to finishing the game. If you look at the New Orleans game, we fumbled the ball and threw an interception. This last week was kind of the same deal. Taking care of the football is big. Obviously, the turnovers and if you get a score on defense it's up to 78 or 87 percent now you are going to win the football game. Those kind of things are crucial.
Q: How much different does Aaron Rodgers look now compared to when you played him in Week 2?
A: A lot. He still ran on us, which I didn't think he would near as much. He tried to pull the ball one time on a zone read. He is much more mobile than he was. Way more mobile. It's not even close.
