The Vikiogns are a group that will spend a decent chunk of the offseason trying to establish its identity on offense. Here's an idea: balance.
The Vikings haven't ranked in the top 20 in both running and passing yards since 2009, when Brett Favre shared a backfield with Peterson. Since that season, one facet of the Vikings' offense has been ranked 26th or worse in the league in every year but one: 2013, when the league's most porous defense forced the Vikings to play catch-up enough that their passing game ascended all the way to 23rd.
"We were almost totally 100 percent one-dimensional, which made it extra tough for the quarterback," Zimmer said at the NFL owners meetings last week. "Teams were able to load up on us, rush the quarterback, play more coverage. I thought [Bradford] did great. He hung in there and showed his toughness. He's an extremely accurate thrower. The guys in the locker room, he developed a relationship with those guys, even though he came in [eight] days before the season, and was able to learn the system and so on."
Related players: Latavius Murray, Sam Bradford
Last year, the Vikings' 18th-ranked passing offense was their best since 2009, but they were hindered by a 32nd-ranked ground game that made their offense almost inoperable at times.
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