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Posted on Tue, Nov. 01, 2005
Winfield criticizes defensive scheme
Claims players are handcuffed by coaches
BY SEAN JENSEN
Pioneer Press
In the wake of another dismal performance on the road, Vikings starting cornerback Antoine Winfield questioned his team's defensive coaching staff and insisted a more aggressive approach was necessary.
"Some plays, guys are out of position. But it's the scheme too," Winfield said Monday, a day after a 38-13 loss at Carolina. "The coaches are handcuffing us. We played a lot of three-deep coverage, so we're going to give up a lot. We mix in some man (coverage). But we're putting eight in the box. We need to be more aggressive."
Informed of Winfield's criticism, Vikings defensive coordinator Ted Cottrell said: "Everybody has a level of frustration going on. We just need to keep working. Winning takes care of everything."
But the 2-5 Vikings have displayed a troubling trend this season, especially on the road. They have lost their four road games by an average of 25 points, with the opposing team scoring an average of 33 points.
"We need to go back to the drawing board," Winfield said, "work on the basics. We had communication problems out there.
"It just looks sloppy. I mean, it's not even fun."
Winfield said he was particularly frustrated that he embraced the approach last week in practice. But he added that the coaching staff strayed from the original game plan for Sunday's game against the Carolina Panthers.
"We were supposed to double 89," Winfield said of Panthers receiver Steve Smith. "That's all we practiced last week. Then when the calls came in Sunday, we didn't do that, except for two out of 70 plays. That's why he had 11 catches for 200-plus yards."
Cottrell disagreed with Winfield.
"We did do what we game-planned," Cottrell said. "We rolled up, we doubled and we changed our looks. There are some things going on. But we'll be all right."
Winfield noted that the defense has played well during stretches this season and that they have a lot of talent.
"We need to be more disciplined and in a position to make plays," Winfield said of his teammates. "But we need to take away what we need to take away. Make someone else beat us."
After Smith's dominant first half (seven catches, 153 yards, TD), Winfield also was upset that the coaches didn't make adjustments, something he said does not happen enough during the course of a game.
"That's a problem," he said. "It's like we go out there blind. Nothing happens on the sidelines, and they run the same plays over and over again."
Cottrell said he and his staff are constantly making adjustments.
"You have to keep in mind, you can't pull something from four weeks ago," Cottrell said. "You can only call things you worked on in practice. You don't want them to be uncomfortable with the adjustments you make."
Sean Jensen covers the Vikings and the NFL. He can be reached at sjensen@pioneerpress.com
