With fingers crossed, the Minnesota Vikings imagined themselves 5-0 in spite of young quarterback Daunte Culpepper. Not in their wildest dreams did they envision being 5-0 because of him.
“This is where we expected to be,” coach Dennis Green says.
Green was confident Culpepper was good enough to fit into a system that seems to tolerate quarterbacks more than it needs them. Somebody has to get the ball to Randy Moss and Cris Carter and Robert Smith, and it never seems to matter whether it’s Brad Johnson or Randall Cunningham or Jeff George.
But Culpepper has been so effective in his first five starts that the Vikings are finding themselves leaning on him more than carrying him.
In Monday night’s 30-23 victory over Tampa Bay and its tough defense, the Vikings’ offense was shaky and inconsistent and needed the benefit of two Bucs fumbles. But when it came time for big plays, it was Culpepper hitting two touchdown passes and running for a third. When explaining the rough spots, Green found himself cautioning:
“Everything is not Daunte. He’s just one player. He can’t snap the ball and catch the ball and throw the ball at the same time.”
Culpepper has added a dimension that no Vikings quarterback has offered since Fran Tarkenton was running around as the original scrambler. Unlike Tarkenton, Culpepper runs with authority and, at 265 pounds, more size than any mobile quarterback in NFL history. As a result, the Vikings are more versatile than they were in 1998, when their explosive offense set a league scoring record of 556 points and they finished 15-1.
Culpepper’s first touchdown pass Monday night, a 26-yard shot to tight end John Davis, was made easier because Culpepper’s 27-yard TD run on the first play made Tampa Bay’s linebackers wary.
“Daunte does a great job of executing the play that’s called,” Green said.
It doesn’t sound like much unless you’re a Bears fan. After taking a 10-point lead against the Vikings before losing their season opener in the Metrodome, the Bears have traveled in such an opposite direction that it’s difficult to figure out how they are going to cross paths again Sunday night at Soldier Field.
No doubt Culpepper has an advantage with Moss, Carter, Smith and a solid line.
“I feel we can throw the deep pass, the intermediate passes, Robert can run it or I can run it,” Culpepper said. “That’s a lot for defenses to get ready for.
“Every time I throw it, I feel confident that [Moss is] going to come down with it.”
Mike Tomczak won his first 10 starts at quarterback with the great Bears teams of the 1980s. Likewise, Culpepper hasn’t exactly needed to turn around a faltering franchise.
“He made some good reads, some good throws and he also made some mistakes, like anybody else,” Carter said. “Everything is oversensationalized because he’s a quarterback and he’s young. I’m sure he’ll look at film and say, `Wow, I could have played a lot better.'”
Still, it’s hard to temper the enthusiasm when Vikings fans see Culpepper fall behind in the fourth quarter of his first Monday night appearance and then complete a 42-yard strike to Moss against a three-deep zone and a blitz.
“All this year you’ve all seen Daunte make some big plays,” Moss said. “I don’t think you’ve seen Daunte really fight like he did [Monday night].”
Added Carter: “I like his composure, and the way he doesn’t get rattled by bad plays or good plays. That doesn’t necessarily surprise me, but that’s just a part that I didn’t know.”
The national prime-time stage was Culpepper’s first. Even though he set NCAA passing records, he did so at Central Florida, where fans had to search to watch. On Sunday night he gets another prime-time window.
“I love it,” Culpepper said. “Monday night is the greatest showcase in our business. There’s not many workplaces in the world where you get to show what you do.”
Usually, quarterbacks don’t fully mature in the NFL until they have overcome adversity–poor play, injury, poor support from teammates or fans, or a combination of setbacks. So far Culpepper’s adversity has been measured in portions too small to notice. At the moment handling success might be his biggest challenge.
“He’s fine,” Carter said. “The team he has and the relationship he has with coach Green and myself and Randy–we’re used to playing well and having an explosive offense. We’ll be there for him. I don’t think he’s one I’d have to worry about. There are other players in this league you would have to be concerned about. What he’s doing is what he expects to do.
“I think he’s going to get better. I don’t think he’s anywhere near the capability of what he can do.”
