Zimmer liked the look of Vikings run defense in preseason debut
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Minnesota Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer is a defensive-minded guy, so it's no surprise when he praises big dudes who rarely get the limelight. After the Vikings' 14-3 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday night, Zimmer gave a shoutout to the team's top two nose tackles -- Linval Joseph and Shamar Stephen.
"Shamar played very well," Zimmer said, via Mark Craig of the Star-Tribune. "Linval only played two plays because we went to the nickel on the third play. He's had a really good camp. It's hard to judge on [two snaps]."
While athletic receivers and shutdown cornerbacks are all the rage nowadays, Zimmer is one of the NFL's true throwbacks. It's a played out football cliché, but he still believes the game is won and lost in the trenches.
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"I feel like we controlled the line of scrimmage the other night," Zimmer said, per the Star-Tribune. "So that's important to me on both sides of the ball."
The Vikings' decisive win in the preseason opener serves as hard proof that Zimmer's winning formula remains timeless.
(h/t Star-Tribune)
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Photo Credit: Andy Clayton-King/Associated Press