Teddy Or Not Teddy? Zimmer Has Tough Decision At QB For Rams Game
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- The Minnesota Vikings beat Washington 38-30 Sunday, extending their winning streak to five games.
Starting quarterback Case Keenum had a very productive game, throwing four touchdown passes.
Sunday also marked an emotional return to the sideline for Teddy Bridgewater. The quarterback spent the last year recovering from a devastating knee injury. He suited up as Keenum's backup, but didn't play.
Related: 'The Sun Came Up': A Timeline Of Teddy Bridgewater's Recovery
Bridgewater is back in uniform. But Keenum is hitting his stride.
Keenum threw four touchdown passes Sunday on the road in Washington and despite a couple interceptions, he is in step with this red hot receiving corp led by Adam Thielen.
Maybe it was because Keenum was hearing Bridgewater's footsteps, but he came out on fire -- his command in the huddle, his connection with all his wide receivers, in particular Adam Thielen, who is having an all-pro season -- eight more catches for 166 yards Sunday.
Zimmer has said that Bridgewater will be their quarterback at some point -- that he has a plan. Monday, Zimmer said he knows who will start at quarterback against the Rams, but he hasn't told the team yet.
There wasn't much fault he could find in Keenum's overall game, but he did have those two big blips.
"The two turnovers were bad, back to back and we got the game pretty much in hand. But the rest of the game he played pretty darn good," Zimmer said.
Vikings will face another tough opponent on Sunday. This is going to be another entertaining game -- the Los Angeles Rams are in town, also 7-2, the highest scoring team in the NFL and 4-0 on the road. When you face a team as explosive as the Rams, time of possession becomes all the more important.
And the formula which has worked so well for the Vikings all year has to continue -- running the football effectively, getting over that 100-yard mark with the combination of LaTavius Murray and Jerick McKinnon behind a revamped and much more effective offensive line.
The longer you can keep QB Jared Goff and that Rams offense watching from the sidelines, the better chance you have of beating them.
It would also be helpful to get pass rushing specialist Everson Griffen back in the lineup. He did not play Sunday with a foot injury and they missed him.
The Vikings defense has been really healthy this year and Griffen is a Pro Bowl talent who can change the complexion of the opposing team's game plan.
Don't underestimate the crowd noise factor. U.S. Bank Stadium will be, as the kids like to say, "lit" on Sunday. The Vikings don't play at home again until Dec. 17, two first place teams are facing off -- it's going to feel like a playoff game.