Less than halfway through the season, the Minnesota Vikings have matched the 6-0 start of the Super Bowl champion St. Louis Rams.
Although renowned for their multifaceted passing game with quarterback Daunte Culpepper and receivers Randy Moss and Cris Carter, the Vikings also entered Sunday night’s game with the top rushing game in the NFL, thanks mainly to running back Robert Smith and an efficient offensive line.
Smith became the Vikings’ all-time leading rusher after his 72-yard touchdown jaunt in the second quarter provided Minnesota with its first points of the game and cut the Bears’ lead to 9-6. The TD run gave Smith 5,887 career yards, surpassing Chuck Foreman’s total of 5,879.
Smith finished the night with 170 yards rushing in 23 carries and was a major factor in Minnesota’s 28-16 victory over the Bears.
“Robert has signed three contracts since he’s been here, so he’s a player that means a great deal to us,” said Vikings coach Dennis Green. “Coming up will be his fourth contract. I think longevity is significant, but also his consistency. In many ways we have been viewed as a passing team. But we believe in balance. When we give the ball to Robert more than 20 times, we’ve got an exceptional record. We haven’t always been able to do that, but he’s been a big part of our success over the years.”
Smith, who has battled serious injuries throughout his career, has evolved into a big-play runner.
“I think he’s a stronger player, like a lot of guys in the league,” Green said. “He works extremely hard. He goes to school in the off-season, but he’s a hard worker. He’s bigger now than he ever was before. A lot of times you get accidents that just happen, a lot of just fluke-type injuries. I think those are probably all behind him now. He’s been healthy all the whole training camp, running the ball extremely well.
“I think he’s one of the best backs in the NFL. In fact, he’s the best long-[yardage] back in the game now that Barry Sanders is not around. “I think he’s one of the most gifted runners in the league. His style of play is very exciting and he’s a great competitor. He represents our team in the National Football League Players Association. He’s got a very bright future whenever he finishes playing football.”
Smith can become a free agent at the end of this season, but Green is confident the Vikings will re-sign the former Ohio State star.
“Oh, yeah, we’re going to get him,” Green said. “Remember, this thing is called free agency and that means you have a choice to do whatever you want, and that’s what we’ve always done.”
The Vikings, who outlasted Tampa Bay 30-23 Monday night, improved to a 4-8 record in games following Monday night contests.
“I think we really focus on making sure our players get the proper amount of rest,” Green said. “We didn’t wear pads Wednesday when we normally do. We were less than 48 hours away from the [Tampa Bay] game, so you try to make some adjustments to speed the development of your rest and your preparation for the game.
“This is part of the NFL. We’ll have some more [short weeks] like this too, where you can’t worry about anything other than the fact that you’ve got a team that you’re going to have to play well to beat, a team that played us very close last time.”
The Vikings are on the road two of their next three games.
“Two out of the next three games are on grass also, so this is a very tough stretch for us,” said Green. “[Sunday night] is a good way to start off as far as being mentally tough for it.”
