Zimmer Looking For Sharrif Floyd To Make Next Step In Year 3
MANKATO, Minn. (WCCO) -- Minnesota Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer likes big guys. On defense, that means people who can stop the run.
Sharrif Floyd is a 300-pound defensive tackle that they want to just that. As Mike Max reports, this is a season he needs to take that next step.
It's year three for Shariff Floyd in the NFL, and he understands the game. He also understands why he enjoys it.
"Contact. Yeah, I'm a contact guy. You put your face in there, you have to get in there. Experience is everything," Floyd said.
But there is a cerebral side to it as well. Learning a new system with a new coaching staff a year ago might be just as important.
"Oh yeah I'm in tune with it. I understand everything that has been thrown at me. Any question I have can get cleared up quick. I've got now worries about what's going on or how we're running it," Floyd said.
Floyd has developed a comfort level by playing in the Vikings' system for a couple of years and getting used to a new coaching staff. It also helps that the person next to him is a veteran, and they seem to share the same personality.
Floyd and Linval Joseph need to take the next step together.
"Playing next to somebody, playing next to Shariff, it's good because that's my guy. You have to play off each other just like all the other D-linemen," Joseph said. "Right now from last year to this year, we've bonded a lot more and we know exactly what we have to do."
What he knows is that this is his element, his comfort zone. Because he is on a football field.
"It's been fun for me since day one for me. I'm just out here to enjoy the game, so I'm just having fun," Floyd said.
