EAGAN http://www.arizonacardinalsteamonline.com/zach-allen-jersey , Minn. (AP) — championship game appearance by signing the most accomplished quarterback on the market and adding a premier defensive tackle. They put themselves squarely in the offseason conversation about legitimate contenders for the Super Bowl.That turned out to be just talk , for many reasons that were perhaps part of the mystery and unpredictability of major sports.“This football team through four years that I’ve been here had that ‘nasty, we’re going to win regardless of what the situation is’ mentality, and I don’t know that we had it this year,” Zimmer said. “I talked to a couple people during the season around the building, and I actually said to them, ‘It’s just kind of a different vibe with this football team, and I can’t figure out why.’ Because we had a lot of the same guys back. We have good football players. I wasn’t really different than I normally am. But for some reason we didn’t finish the games like we’d finished before.”The Vikings went 8-7-1, missing the playoffs when defending champion Philadelphia, the team that beat them so soundly in the semifinals a year ago, leapfrogged them on the last day of the season. Losing 24-10 at home on Sunday to division-rival Chicago , with a mostly lethargic offense, a couple of critical lapses on defense, and special teams lacking a momentum-changing play, was a fitting conclusion.“But we’re going to get that mentality back,” Zimmer said on Thursday at his wrapup news conference. “I can promise you that.”If not, there’s no guarantee Zimmer will last in Minnesota past 2019. Asked whether he’d be comfortable working on the final year of his contract without an extension in place Cullen Gillaspia Jersey , Zimmer didn’t flinch.“Sure, I’ve got no problem with that,” he said. “Free agent after that, right?”One of only 11 current head coaches in the NFL who would have five or more years of tenure with their team, Zimmer is now the dean of the NFC North with Green Bay firing Mike McCarthy last month and Chicago and Detroit making their changes after last season. This much, at least, was certain surrounding the 62-year-old Zimmer’s status: He didn’t consider retiring or resigning.“I’m not a quitter,” he said.The sudden death of beloved offensive line coach Tony Sparano took quite an emotional toll on Zimmer and his team three days before training camp began. Sparano’s absence was clearly felt intangibly throughout the season. The rift that developed between Zimmer and offensive coordinator John DeFilippo, for one, could have been bridged by Sparano, who was a friend to both.“This guy was a type-A personality. He was very innovative in the running game and had a strong voice in that room and a strong voice with me,” Zimmer said. “Yeah, I do feel like we lost a bit of our identity. We’re going to get that back.”Zimmer vowed a thorough evaluation of all that went wrong for the Vikings this season, including his own decisions and performance. He didn’t have to wait to acknowledge Thursday his responsibility for the deterioration of his relationship with DeFilippo, who was fired with three games to go after less than a year on the job . Zimmer wanted the Vikings to run the ball more, and DeFilippo’s play calls didn’t always strike the balance he sought.“I still think Flip is a good football coach. I just didn’t like the direction that it was going at the time, and I was trying to make something to get us going again Rock Ya-Sin Jersey ,” Zimmer said, adding: “I’ve learned a lot about the questions, the interview process, about things that I probably should do a lot better than what I did, and hopefully I’ll do better this next time.”The first order of business for Zimmer, just like last year, will be to hire his top assistant.Interim offensive coordinator Kevin Stefanski’s contract will expire on Tuesday, and he’s a candidate for other open jobs around the league, including the head coaching vacancy in Cleveland, according to multiple reports. Zimmer valued Stefanski enough to block him from moving on last year.“I’m looking at all kinds of options there. We’re sitting down and evaluating everything. I think Kevin’s a really good football coach, a very smart guy. I thought he did a good job for the three weeks, in a tough situation that we had to do,” Zimmer said. “It’s fair to the organization, to myself, to the fans, that we look at everybody.” EAGAN, Minn. �? The Minnesota Vikings took only two healthy defensive ends to Philadelphia http://www.indianapoliscoltsteamonline.com/ben-banogu-jersey , a true test of conditioning and determination for Danielle Hunter and Stephen Weatherly at a position where backups frequently rotate in for breathers.More Vikings coveragePreview: Cook, Vikings look to keep rolling vs. PackersTop Tweets: Vikings prepare for Packers with TMNT hype videoBarr, seasoned Vikings defense off to strong startNew offense, same Rodgers: Vikings prep for LaFleur’s PackersVikings re-sign center Jones, waive rookie TE DillonThey successfully powered through it, an apt summary of a critical 23-21 victory by the Vikings on the road against the defending Super Bowl champion Eagles.“This game is as much mental as physical. If you ever look at an NFL schedule, it’s mostly meetings, right? So if your head is in the right place, your body is going to go wherever your mind tells you,” said Weatherly, whose sack of Carson Wentz in the second quarter forced an airborne fumble that Linval Joseph caught and returned for a 64-yard touchdown .With three-time Pro Bowl pick Everson Griffen out indefinitely because of mental health issues, Weatherly has been promoted to the starting lineup in his third season. The other backup, Tashawn Bower, was inactive on Sunday with an ankle injury.Rookie defensive tackle Jalyn Holmes made his NFL debut by taking a handful of turns at end, but Hunter (55 of 59 snaps) and Weatherly (54 of 59) rarely left the field after preparing all week for the probability they’d get a strenuous workout.Hunter, who at age 23 has suddenly become the elder of the ends, was in Weatherly’s ear often.“He kept saying Parris Campbell Jersey , ‘It’s going to come. You’re going to hit that wall. We need you to push through it,'” Weatherly said, “and we were able to.”Last week proved to be the perfect occasion, then, for a pep talk from Olympic gold medalist cross-country ski racer Jessie Diggins.“She said coming in she doesn’t know much about football. She definitely doesn’t know what it’s like to go out there and try to maul someone, especially on defense,” Weatherly said.“One thing she does know is preparation and what it’s like when you’re in your moment for your sport, and it’s that crucial time and you’ve given everything you have up until that point but you need more. Everyone has felt that at every position, when we feel like we’ve given it all and now that crucial point is coming up. What will you do? And she really hit home with that.”Coach Mike Zimmer brings in guest speakers from time to time, and Diggins, a native of Minnesota, was the celebrity visitor on Friday.“She did a great job of talking to the team, and honestly, as you’ve probably seen the race and some of the video she had, it was very emotional,” Zimmer said. “But basically she talked about, ‘Anybody can do anything for 10 things Will Harris Jersey ,’ whether it’s 10 push-ups. She said, ‘Now I had 10 kilometers, but I count 10 strides.’ Who knows if any of that stuff is a big factor in winning, but it gets you to think about what’s important and how you can overcome when you’re tired.”Diggins posted a picture on her verified Twitter account after her presentation in the team auditorium, with quarterback Kirk Cousins, wide receivers Stefon Diggs and Adam Thielen and Joseph.Against the Eagles, Cousins completed 30 of 37 passes for 301 yards and a touchdown to Thielen. Diggs and Thielen combined for 17 catches and 207 yards. Joseph had a sack and the touchdown return. Coincidental, most likely, but they all took the message to heart.Cousins gave the animated pregame reminder to the entire team just before kickoff about delivering the finishing touch the Vikings lacked in losing to the undefeated Los Angeles Rams 38-31 in their previous game. By doing so, they exact a measure of revenge on the Eagles for the NFC championship game loss in January.“There is no better feeling,” Thielen said, “than coming into a tough environment and winning.”