Frazier’s Focus: Stopping The Run

Frazier Looking To Neutralize The Run Sunday Vs Dolphins

Throughout his 5-year NFL career, WR Brandon Marshall has developed into an elite WR capable of changing games and deserving of special attention from opposing defenses. His ability to dominate the competition manifests itself in his imposing size (6-4, 230 pound) and far above-average speed.



The Miami Dolphins, perceived as a run-happy offense, stepped out of the box a bit this past offseason to acquire Marshall in a move designed to bolster the aerial attack, which is led by 2nd-year starter Chad Henne. But there’s a funny thing about the Dolphins acquisition of Marshall; it might actually aide Miami’s run game as much as it improves the passing attack.



“Yeah, he will probably open up the run game even more,” Vikings assistant head coach/defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier said on Thursday. “It’s hard to play a lot of single coverage now with Brandon Marshall out there. He is a prolific receiver, well accomplished and he’s been to some Pro Bowls so you have to pay attention to him. It will be a challenge for our corners and we’ll have to rise to the occasion. He’s an outstanding receiver and he’ll probably help their run game.



Injuries to Chris Cook and Cedric Griffin along with a trade that sent Benny Sapp to Miami have left the Vikings a bit thin at CB in the early part of the 2010 season. But the Vikings secondary, including 2nd-year CB Asher Allen and 9-year veteran Lito Sheppard, stepped up to play well against the New Orleans Saints pass-happy attack last weekend. Based on the fact that Frazier’s defense held Drew Brees and Co. in check fairly well, it’s reasonable to think Allen, Sheppard and Winfield can do the same to Miami’s air attack.



With all of that said, Sunday’s contest between the Vikings and Dolphins will still come down to the ground game. Even with Marshall in the fold, Miami will try to establish the run first, through both traditional methods and also via the Wildcat offense. Regardless of what formation the Dolphins use to run the ball, they will employ a tandem of talented RBs to try and get the job done – Ronnie Brown and Rickey Williams.



“They are very good backs,” Frazier acknowledged. “Their offensive line does a very good job as well and they present a lot of problems for defensives the way they can run the ball. It will be a big challenge for our run defense. We will have to stand tall in this ball game in order for our team to be successful.”



The Saints ability to pick up key yardage on the ground last week led to their season-opening victory over the Vikings. It was a rather uncharacteristic development for Frazier’s run defense – giving up yardage late in the game and allowing the opposing team to run out the clock. With the New Orleans game serving as a reminder of how important it is for the Vikings defense to remain stout against the run, Frazier and his guys are looking forward to the challenge that Miami will bring on Sunday.



“We’ve played one game and this game will be a good barometer for us,” Frazier explained. “We need to play well in this ball game against the run, without question. It will tell a lot about our run defense going forward but it’s one game at a time and we need to play [well] from a run defensive standpoint this weekend.”

Dolphins Secondary Braces For Brett Favre

Dolphins Secondary Braces For Favre

   At one time, Brett Favre throwing against Vontae Davis would have been a laughable mismatch.
``I was probably a baby in diapers when he was first in the league,'' Davis said.
It's true: Davis was 3 when Favre made his NFL debut in 1991. Now, Davis is a second-year cornerback for the Miami Dolphins and part of a revamped secondary bracing to face Favre and the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday.
The pass defense was solid in a season-opening 15-10 win at Buffalo. Miami allowed only 116 yards through the air and had three sacks.
But that was against Trent Edwards, who has 25 career touchdown passes. Favre has an NFL record 498.
Favre also has started 286 games, compared with 70 for Miami's four starting defensive backs combined.
``It's a test for us,'' Davis said. ``We get to see where we're at when we go against Brett Favre.''
Where they're at is in transition. Davis and veteran strong safety Yeremiah Bell are holdover starters, but free safety Chris Clemons and cornerback Jason Allen won jobs in training camp, and Benny Sapp is the new nickel back after being acquired last month in a trade with the Vikings.
The secondary needed a shake-up after allowing 14 touchdown passes of 20 yards or more last year, second-most in the NFL. Early returns on the changes are favorable, with Miami 1-0 for the first time since 2005.
Minnesota is 0-1, and Favre is eager to get the offense in gear after throwing for only 171 yards in a 14-9 loss at New Orleans. After wavering on retirement, he joined the Vikings only four weeks ago, and rust showed.
``There's no doubt we have to get on the same page,'' Favre said, ``and we have to do it in a hurry.''
While cohesion might yet surface as an issue in the Dolphins' secondary, they had only one glaring defensive lapse at Buffalo - a blown assignment on fourth and 11 that resulted in a 31-yard scoring pass. Otherwise the Dolphins smothered the Bills' receivers.
``We played great as a whole,'' Clemons said. ``Everybody was getting to the ball.''
Open-field tackling was much improved over a year ago, and the Dolphins broke up seven passes. When Allen dropped a potential interception with only the end zone in front of him, he returned to the huddle grinning.
``That's all he could do, was laugh,'' Davis said. ``We joked around. We were having fun.''
Allen, a first-round pick in 2006, took a big step in shedding his label as a draft bust. He helped hold the Bills' Lee Evans to 34 receiving yards, playing so well that Sean Smith, who started all 16 games as a rookie in 2009, never got on the field.
``I probably should have played Sean,'' coach Tony Sparano said. ``The way it was going, we just didn't feel like it would be a good idea to mess around with that.''
Clemons, a fifth-round draft pick in 2009, was all over the field. He made one eye-popping tackle, blitzing from the left side and racing to the other sideline to chase down C.J. Spiller for a 1-yard loss.
``As good a play as I've seen,'' Sparano said.
``Chris was flying everywhere,'' Davis said. ``There were times I didn't even know where he came from.''
The front seven applied effective pressure, although the Dolphins did allow Edwards to scramble to the outside several times. That's a no-no against Favre.
``Those things, when you play against a guy like this, they'll kill you,'' Sparano said. ``He can take those plays and turn them into touchdowns, and everybody has seen him do it time and time again.''
Otherwise, the biggest knock on the Dolphins' defense is that the unit came up with no turnovers in the opener. That was a problem last year, when Miami's 21 takeaways were the fifth-fewest in the league.
Favre threw only seven interceptions in 531 passes last season, and it will be tough to wrest the ball from him. Still, the Dolphins' DBs look forward to the challenge.
``Him being 40 years old - that's like me playing against my father,'' Davis said. ``I would never have thought when I was watching Brett Favre at Green Bay that I would be lining up across from him. That's like a dream.
``It's also a dream to grab an interception from him.''

Percy Harvin Confirms Sleep Apnea

Percy Harvin Minnesota Vikings WR

Minnesota Vikings receiver Percy Harvin confirmed to reporters Monday that he is being treated for sleep apnea, a condition that might have triggered his increasing frequency of migraine episodes this summer. Harvin said the diagnosis came when he was hospitalized after an Aug. 19 collapse during a Vikings practice.

Harvin (via Jeremy Fowler of the St. Paul Pioneer Press): "They'd just barge in the room and be like, 'Harvin, you OK?' I'd say, 'I think so.' [They said] 'Well, your heart just wasn't beating.' I was like, 'What do you want me to do?'"

Indeed, doctors determined his heart was stopping and then re-starting during the night, a common symptom of sleep apnea. He now sleeps with an oxygen device and said he feels a "100 percent difference" when he wakes up in the morning.

Whether this cures his migraines, slows them down or merely helps him sleep better, Harvin appears to be in a better place than he was a month ago.

Continuing around the NFC North:

• Vikings owner Zygi Wilf's enthusiasm hasn't dampened following a Week 1 loss at New Orleans. According to Judd Zulgad of the Star Tribune, Wilf said: "We built a team that we expect to go all the way. We're not holding back right now. ... We pretty much feel that we're all in. We're going to try our best to fulfill our goal."
• Tom Pelissero of 1500ESPN.com: "Sidney Rice expects to remain on crutches for a couple more weeks, and the Minnesota Vikings' top receiver said on Monday he hasn't set a target date for returning to practice following last month's hip surgery."
• Lori Nickel of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel lists these veteran agent running backs as available if the Green Bay Packers look for outside help to replace Ryan Grant (ankle): Willie Parker, Ahman Green, Justin Fargas and J.J. Arrington.
• Because the Packers spent the entire game at Philadelphia in the nickel, A.J. Hawk did not receive a single defensive snap, notes Kareem Copeland of the Green Bay Press-Gazette. Inside linebackers coach Winston Moss: "If I was in that same situation, I would be upset if I didn't play and I was going into an opening game ... and I had a very good preseason. I would have wanted to play. I'm sure a highly competitive guy would have wanted to play. I would use it as -- if I have to do whatever it takes and do more to stay on the field as much as possible, I've got to do whatever it takes. That would be my attitude."
• The Packers plan to re-sign defensive lineman Jarius Wynn to replace the injured Justin Harrell (knee), confirms Jason Wilde of ESPNMilwaukee.com.
• The Detroit Lions agreed to terms with former Chicago Bears cornerback Nate Vasher, notes Tom Kowalski of Mlive.com. Vasher could replace injured nickelback Aaron Berry.
• Lions coach Jim Schwartz called backup quarterback Shaun Hill "one of our biggest offseason acquisitions," writes John Niyo of the Detroit News.
• Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford on his series of injuries in the NFL: "Pretty perfect hits. Guys dropped me on my shoulder pretty hard both times. I'd call them weird, freaky injuries more than anything." Michel Rosenberg of the Detroit Free Press has more.
• Bears quarterback Jay Cutler is willing to gain yards on the ground, notes Bob LeGere of the Daily Herald.
• Michael C. Wright of ESPNChicago.com questions the Bears' decision to match Lions receiver Calvin Johnson in single coverage on the play that nearly beat them Sunday.
• Bears offensive coordinator Mike Martz made a number of concessions Sunday for his still-developing offensive line, writes Dan Pompei of the Chicago Tribune.
• Sean Jensen of the Chicago Sun-Times: "Devin Aromashodu started the 2010 season the way he ended the 2009 season: as the Bears' hottest receiver."

Vikings Work Out Receivers, Chris Cook Returns To Practice

Chris Cook

The Minnesota Vikings began the 2010 season with only 4 wide receivers. At this same time a year ago, the Vikings roster boasted 6 receivers and the receiving corps was a strength of the team. In an attempt to bolster their battered wide receiver group, the Vikings will work out a number of players this week. However, head coach Brad Childress was vague when explaining whether or not the team would sign a new player this week.
“It’s a thing that we do every week,” Childress said. “We usually bring people in to try to get a look at them. We’ve had numbers of people through here to look at, whether it’s the offensive line [or] whether it’s in the secondary.”
According to Judd Zulgad of the Minneapolis Star Tribune, the players visiting Winter Park for a workout include former Patriot Sam Aiken, former Eagle Reggie Brown, former Packer Ruvell Martin, and former Raven Demetrius Williams. None of these options is great as there is good reason they all have “former” listed before their names.
Speculation remains that the Vikings are interested in disgruntled Chargers wide receiver Vincent Jackson, but that option becomes more unlikely everyday. Jackson’s contractual demands and pending suspension make him less attractive to a team looking for an immediate impact. A third option would be bringing back Javon Walker who was cut by the team after the preseason.
On the other side of the ball, rookie cornerback Chris Cook returned to the practice field on Monday. After injuring his knee in the team’s 4th exhibition game, the 23-year-old out of the University of Virginia is still not 100%, but he was able to participate in individual drills. Childress was hopeful the rookie will be back on the field soon.
“He just went through some individual periods,” Childress said. “He doesn’t look completely comfortable. As always, it’ll be how he comes back in and treats and how he shows back up tomorrow.”

Minnesota Vikings Starters Stil Uncertain But SuperBowl Chances Solid

John Sullivan

The Vikings haven’t made a final decision on whether or not to play their starters in Thursday’s preseason finale, but John Sullivan won’t be among them. Plus, Sidney Rice is officially out for at least six weeks, the first roster cuts are in and traffic could be snarled Thursday. Offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell said Tuesday that a final decision on the starters for Thursday’s preseason finale hasn’t been made yet. Most likely, the star players won’t be making an appearance, but a decision to sit the entire starting cast or a portion of it hasn’t been made yet. “Originally I think coach said that he wasn’t going to (play the starters) and then in the team meeting right before the game he said he reserved the right to put them in if he needed to, so I’m not sure he’s made a decision on that,” Bevell said. “He hasn’t told us yet. But the guys did perform pretty decent early in that game and he’ll end up making that decision, probably pretty quick.” Injuries have forced the Vikings make a number of adjustments to their starting lineup, most notably and consistently at center. John Sullivan hasn’t played yet this preseason and Bevell said he wouldn’t be playing again in the preseason finale Thursday night against the Denver Broncos. “I don’t think it’s at that point yet. We’ve got to get him back out here after this preseason game,” Bevell said. “We knew that we weren’t going to have him through this game. Pretty much just being able to see if it can handle pushing off, the physical strain. He’ll be fine conditioning-wise because they’re still working with that.” The Vikings have started 2009 rookie free agent Jon Cooper as well as Anthony Herrera, normally the starting right guard, at center in their first three preseason games. As for the regular-season opener, all three – Sullivan, Herrera and Cooper – are possibilities, Bevell said. Bevell said the team expected to have their five starting offensive linemen from last year all healthy when they started training camp, but “at some point we’ll get Sully back.” RICE MOVED TO RESERVE/PUP The Vikings placed wide receiver Sidney Rice on the reserve/physically unable to perform list, meaning he will officially be out for at least the first six games of the season. Rice had surgery on his hip last week and Vikings coach Brad Childress said it would be “at least” eight weeks before he could return. The Vikings can have him return to practice after the first six games of the season and make a determination about his future after that. Rice tweeted on Tuesday that he was working out in a pool with Timberwolves guard Jonny Flynn. CUTS COME HOME The Vikings got down to the NFL-mandated 75-player roster limit on Tuesday by making the move on Rice and releasing WR Marko Mitchell and OL Bill Noethlich. The team put LB J Leman on the injured-reserve list after he cleared the waived-injured process. He joins WR Jaymar Johnson on that season-ending designation. The Vikings will have to make a decision on CB Cedric Griffin, who is on the active physically-unable-to-perform list by Saturday. Griffin, who hasn’t practiced with the team since tearing his ACL in the NFC Championship Game on Jan. 24, could also be headed for the PUP list if trainers and doctors aren’t convinced he’s ready for action in the coming weeks. The Vikings will have to be down to the NFL-mandated roster limit of 53 players by 5 p.m. Central Saturday, meaning at least 22 players will be waived, along with a decision being made on Griffin. VIKINGS-TWINS SHOWDOWN The city of Minneapolis is warning Vikings and Twins fans of the potential for congested traffic on Thursday night. With the Twins now playing in the new Target Field, Thursday night will mark the first concurrent Twins and Vikings games and the city is projecting that as many as 100,000 people will attend the two games. The Vikings play the Denver Broncos at 7 p.m., with doors opening at 5 p.m., and the Twins host the Detroit Tigers at 7:10 p.m., with gates opening at 5:30 p.m. Additionally, the Orpheum Theatre is presenting the production “Wicked,” with doors opening there at 6:30 p.m. The City of Minneapolis is encouraging those who drive to the games to park as close as they can to that stadium and encouraging other forms of transportation. The Hiawatha Light Rail is expected to be full, but bus service will supplement that before and after the game, picking up passengers at the 28th Ave. Station and Fort Snelling Station and going to both the Metrodome and Target Field. The Northstar commuter rail is sending an eight-car train from the Big Lake Station with stops in Elk River, Anoka, Coon Rapids and Fridley, with arrival at Target Field Station at about 6:10 p.m. Fans headed to the Vikings game will make a free transfer to the Hiawatha light-rail line for the short trip to the Metrodome. After the games, separate sets of buses will depart both venues and deliver passengers back to their starting points. NOTES In addition to the roster moves, Sullivan, TE Garrett Mills, DT Jimmy Kennedy and S Jamarca Sanford weren’t at practice on Tuesday. CB Marcus Sherels and WR Logan Payne were at practice but not participating because of injuries. RB Toby Gerhart returned to practice after missing Monday. Pat Williams
The Vikings have had the best rush defense over the past three years, finishing second last year and first the previous two years. Avoiding four-game suspensions to Pat and Kevin Williams would help keep that important element intact. The recent court decision to delay the suspensions of Pat Williams and Kevin Williams may have a big influence in Brett Favre’s still-pending decision as to whether to come back for another year or to spend an autumn on the farm in Mississippi for the first time in his adult life. The conventional wisdom is that if Favre comes back, the Vikings will make a Super Bowl run. But, without the Williams Wall, those odds would take a hit. The Williamses have both been Pro Bowlers for a reason. With all the complicated offensive schemes designed to open up and exploit defenses, the basic premise of the game remains the same – run the ball effectively on offense and stop the run on defense. If you do that consistently, you stand a better chance to win consistently. With the Williams Wall in place, over the last three years, nobody has done it like the Vikings. In 2007, the Vikings finished 8-8, missing the playoffs thanks to a collapse at home against Washington that would have clinched a wild card berth. Their mediocrity wasn’t due to the run defense. It was rated No. 1 in yards allowed and No. 2 in average per rushing attempt. The problem was that the Vikings couldn’t consistently generate a pass rush and quarterbacks with any acumen (and even some without a lot of street cred) were able to pick them apart – the Vikings had the 32nd-rated pass defense in ’07, which was saying something considering there were six teams that lost 12 or more games and one (Miami) that lost 15 times. In 2008, Jared Allen came to the team and Ray Edwards was given the other full-time starting job and they helped vastly improve the pass rush and the overall defense. The Vikings went from 32nd in the league in pass defense to 18th. It wasn’t a meteoric jump, but it was good enough to help the team improve from 8-8 to 10-6. The run defense was still dominant. They again finished first in rush yards allowed and second in average per rush, leading the Vikings to a division title for the first time in eight years and giving hope that bigger things could be on the horizon. The arrival of Favre kicked expectations up a notch – make that 20 notches. The offense improved exponentially upon his arrival. In the two years previously referenced, the Vikings had started Tarvaris Jackson, Gus Frerotte, Brooks Bollinger and Kelly Holcomb. Favre brought immediate excitement – and more scoring – to the Vikings offense. It put pressure on the defense to keep up and the that side of the ball responded. The numbers slipped slightly – second in the league in rush yards allowed and sixth in average per carry – but the formula remained the same. If you stop them, the wins will come. Had the NFL been able to impose its four-game suspension on the Williamses – the odds of them getting it reduced by a game or two given the rancor of the court cases is unlikely – it might have been enough to keep Favre on the farm side of the fence. But with them back in the fold for the foreseeable future, things again look bright heading into the season, which could be a contributing factor in Favre making the decision so many fans, coaches and teammates are keeping their fingers crossed that he will make. MONDAY NOTES Pro Football Weekly said in its “NFC Whispers” column that Visanthe Shiancoe’s agent Drew Rosenhaus has been talking with the Vikings about a contract extension. Shank is under contract for two more years and, according to PFW, “we hear” Shiancoe would like to be paid among the top five tight ends in the league – a pretty exclusive neighborhood in the range of $5-7 million a year. Shiancoe switched agents a few months ago to hire Rosenhaus, who has several Vikings clients in his management stable. The NFL’s official website has weighed in on the NFC North race and columnist Vic Carucci is predicting hard times for the Vikings and the Saints. He picks both of them (along with Arizona) not to repeat as division champs. He has the Packers beating out the Vikings and Atlanta topping the Saints, leaving the teams from January’s NFC Championship Game battling for the two wild card positions. Adrian Peterson hosted a two-day youth football camp in Norman, Okla. that had more than 450 kids taking part in the camp. NFL rookies are spending the next three days at the NFL’s annual rookie symposium at the La Costa resort in Carslbad, Calif. The symposium got underway Sunday night with a one-hour speech from Commissioner Roger Goodell. The commissioner told the players that there is responsibility with being an NFL player and personal conduct is important to them – now and throughout their careers. Goodell also addressed the increased measures to address injuries. He tied the two issues together, saying his job was “to protect the integrity of the NFL and to make sure the game is as safe as possible.” Only three drafted rookies aren’t at the symposium, but one of them (New York Giants safety Chad Jones), couldn’t attend after suffering what may be a career-ending injury in a car accident in New Orleans. Goodell spoke with Jones Sunday at the hospital where he is beginning the recovery process. NFL Network will unveil its countdown of the 10 best regular-season games of 2009. They are letting fans pick the order of the top five, two of which are Vikings games. Two of the five nominees fans can vote for are the 27-24 Vikings win over San Francisco and their 36-30 overtime loss at Chicago in Week 16. The other nominees are the Colts 35-34 win over New England in Week 10, the “Game Nobody Ever Saw” – a 38-37 win by Detroit over Cleveland in Week 11 – and the Steelers 37-36 win over Green Bay in Week 15. Considering that four of the top five games all involved the NFC North and all four teams are involved in the voting, perhaps the division will get a little more credit than it has the last couple of years for having some quality teams in it. Former Cowboys chant-icon Darryl “Moose” Johnston did a radio interview in Dallas in which he was asked, “It’s late June and assuming Favre is coming back, because he will come back, the two best teams in the NFC right now?” Johnston was short and sweet, saying just “Dallas and Minnesota.” When asked why New Orleans wasn’t in the mix, Johnston said, “Minnesota is you don’t turn the ball over six times, you win that game.”