The Minnesota Vikings are trending in the right direction after defeating the Detroit Lions, 34-20, last weekend. Some of the credit for success needs to go to head coach Mike Zimmer.

On the daily Locked On Vikings podcast, Luke Braun makes the argument the improved play by the Vikings has everything to do with how head coach Mike Zimmer is coaching this team.

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Braun: Teams aren’t really coming into the game anymore thinking that the Vikings are the double A-gap team, so you’re getting some utility out of it. It’s novel again. It’s surprising again to people. His blitz designs have been good, and he’s been using a lot of twists and stunts, and using a quick but not very strong defensive line.

He’s using guys like Hercules Mata’afa and Jalyn Holmes on it, and being able to use those guys to generate a little bit more pressure than he would normally be able to if you were just straight up rushing them. Zimmer used to just be able to tell Linval Joseph, Everson Griffen, and Hunter to go beat a guy and they would just do it good enough where you didn’t really have to scheme anything. Now he’s figuring out what he can scheme with his personnel, and after a few weeks of watching these guys play and getting more familiar with their strengths and stuff, especially without a preseason, here’s the thing: I think Mike Zimmer is coaching the hell out of this team.

I think he is coaching out of his mind. I think he is having an astoundingly positive effect on this team with a decimated roster; and the idea that Mike Zimmer isn’t coaching well enough right now, to me, is absurd. I think he’s coaching phenomenally.

https://open.spotify.com/episode/1KUm1mrGOEzg2xna8C3f7l?si=IUI15mS7R1aFlN2a2lmZVA