http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000...concussion

See if the Saints can do without Kamara what the Vikings are doing without Cook

Keenum had a breakout game in his second start, a 34-17 victory against Tampa Bay in Week 3, completing 25 of 33 passes for 369 yards and three scores. It was his best statistical game of the season thus far, but he was still working to get more comfortable in the offense.
Shumur said that what has distinguished Keenum lately is his steady improvement.
“We knew he was a good player when he came here and our hopes were he could come in and back up,” Shurmur said. “But as we worked with him and he got a chance to go and work in games, you can see he’s a bona fide starter.
“You never can anticipate how good a guy is going to play, but he has done a tremendous job of leading our team, staying within himself, not trying to do too much, and he has played really, really good football.”
Shurmur said he hasn’t necessarily created new plays for Keenum but instead adjusts the offense to fit whoever is behind center.
“We’re running our offense that we have developed throughout the year,” Shurmur said. “I try to veer towards some of the plays that maybe fit him better than Sam, but not a lot of difference. We just try to kind of focus on the plays that [Keenum] does better.”
https://vikefans.com/discussion/#/post/d...e-longship

He’s already tripled his production from Sunday just in the first quarter. The Vikes D is legit. 

For the better part of a decade, left tackle Matt Kalil battled right defensive end Everson Griffen in practices at USC and with the Vikings. Now they’re ready to meet for the first time in a game.
Kalil left the Vikings as a free agent in March to sign a five-year, $55.5 million contract with the Carolina Panthers. They play host to Minnesota  at noon Sunday in Charlotte, N.C.
On Thursday, Kalil offered a bit of a challenge to Griffen, who is fourth in the NFL with 12 sacks. Kalil noted that he often wasn’t healthy in final few seasons with the Vikings.
“I’ve played against (Griffen) a lot, but a lot of those practices I wasn’t 100 percent; I was injured,” Kalil told reporters in Charlotte. “So this will be a little bit different from my point of view as far as the things that I can do. I’ll definitely get after it, and I’ll probably be a different guy than (the Vikings were) used to the past few years.”
http://www.twincities.com/2017/12/07/pan...h-vikings/

The Minnesota Vikings rank second in the NFL in both total yards and points this season. If they finish there, it will be the highest spot of Mike Zimmer’s tenure in Minnesota, improving on top-five defensive rankings from the previous two seasons.
As the Vikings get set to face the Carolina Panthers on the road, Ron Rivera – a defensive coach himself – said he’s impressed by the growth of Zimmer’s defense.

“I will say this: In the last couple of years, you’ve noticed that they’ve gotten progressively better,” Rivera said. “They’re very consistent. They are a very aggressive, attacking defense. But the hallmark will be if they win their division, win in the playoffs and get themselves to the Super Bowl, I think people will talk about them in the same breath as a the really great defenses.”
Rivera credited the Vikings’ talent on the defensive side with their continued improvement. Last year, Everson Griffen, Linval Joseph, Anthony Barr, Xavier Rhodes and Harrison Smith all went to the Pro Bowl and Danielle Hunter, who had 12.5 sacks last season, was left off the Pro Bowl roster.
“I love the personnel, I think they’ve done a really nice job, I think Rick Spielman’s done a great job with the personnel,” Rivera said. “I think what coach [Zimmer] has done in terms of developing it, getting to understand and have a feel for what they do.”
The Panthers’ head coach was particularly complimentary of the Vikings’ secondary, which sports the No. 1 safety in the NFL by Pro Football Focus rankings in Smith.
http://www.1500espn.com/vikings-2/2017/1...ng-better/

Cam Newton’s 2017 season has been filled with peaks and valleys.
In back-to-back wins over the Patriots and Lions, he combined to throw for 671 yards, six touchdowns and completed 77 percent of his passes. Newton followed up those performances with two losses in a row in which he threw just one touchdown and five interceptions.

The bad Newton has shown up against Mike Zimmer’s teams in the past. Last year, he tossed three picks against the Vikings and registered a 47.6 quarterback rating. In 2014, Zimmer’s group held him to a 65.7 rating in a 31-13 win.
The Vikings’ head coach said he isn’t making much of pass successes against the Panthers’ franchise quarterback.
“I’ve got good players, they played those games well, each game is different though,” Zimmer said Wednesday. “Every time you play somebody it’s a different deal. He’s a very, very talented athlete. They’re doing a few different things with him now. He’s got a very strong arm, competitive. They’re good on third downs. They use him a lot in the running game. It makes it difficult.”
http://www.1500espn.com/vikings-2/2017/1...am-newton/

Might they flip/flop Waynes and Mac Alexander? Or is Mac too short for outside and Waynes too long for slot? 

I feel like I'm missing something... They did pluralize Star, correct?

https://twitter.com/Vikings/status/938936897946218497

We want em all to FRIGGING WIN this weekend!!!