National Football League

As Vikings prep for Pack, Zimmer tries to keep team grounded

Published Nov. 16, 2015 4:56 p.m. ET

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EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. (AP) One of coach Mike Zimmer's favorite warnings for the Minnesota Vikings is this: ''Don't take the cheese.''

The advice to stay hungry and avoid complacency, analogous to a mouse sniffing a trap set with a tasty snack, will be especially pertinent now that they've moved past the Green Bay Packers in the NFC North.

''I'm sure you're all aware, all right, that we're in first place,'' Zimmer told the players after a 30-14 victory Sunday at Oakland in a video posted on the team website. ''You know what that means? It means nothing. It's not where we are. It's where we finish at the end of the year.''

If the Vikings beat the Packers for the first time since Dec. 30, 2012, they'll have a two-game lead in the race that would be more like three with six to play because of the tiebreaker edge.

Considering how Zimmer has consistently pushed his players to disprove whatever external doubts about them exist, an attitude he has acknowledged is rooted in his own personality and experience, the Vikings might as well be in last place.

''We have to continue to stay motivated and continue to play with that chip on our shoulders,'' quarterback Teddy Bridgewater said. ''Don't believe everything you hear. Don't believe everything you see.''

The Vikings would actually like to take down the cheese this week, with the Packers and their fans from the dairy state due to arrive.

Their biggest rival, winners of four straight division titles plus the Super Bowl after the 2010 season, is reeling. Despite the predictable attempts by the Vikings to temper the significance of this game, there was a palpable buzz in the building Monday.

Hanging in each player's cubicle in the locker room was a new black T-shirt, with the NFC North and Vikings logos printed on the front and ''Beat Green Bay'' in all capital letters on the back. The entrepreneur? Zimmer himself.

''We're making way too big a deal out of that,'' Zimmer said, when asked to elaborate on his idea. ''It's just a T-shirt. It's a T-shirt. You go down to the store and print them up.''

The Vikings, who have won five straight games for a 7-2 record, are 1-9-1 in their past 11 matchups with the Packers.

''It's more about understanding who we are, how we got here, what we have to continue to do,'' Zimmer said. ''I understand the heightened part of this game, but you know it's still about us and how we play.''

Zimmer added: ''I think that our players will know that this is a big game. I don't think that I'm going to have to pull out any magic wands or anything like that.''

There's little magic in the formula the Vikings have been using to win.

''Everything hasn't been smooth sailing, but this group, we fight. We are a team of fighters. It's not one game we've been in where I've seen guys hanging their heads, or where you feel the vibe that guys have quit,'' running back Adrian Peterson said. ''With that, anything is possible.''

Success starts with the aggressive defense that now leads the NFL with an average of just 17.1 points allowed per game. Zimmer has taught the scheme for decades, and the Vikings have taken to it quickly.

''He's brought a different mentality in here the last two years. Everything is about being more physical, outworking our opponent. I think that's what you're seeing on the field,'' defensive end Brian Robison said.

The special teams have been superb, and Cordarrelle Patterson added to the list with a kickoff return for a touchdown late in the second quarter against the Raiders. Bridgewater played a turnover-free game, returning from a concussion. Then there's Peterson, who posted his sixth career 200-yard rushing performance.

The best current record of the teams the Vikings have beaten this season is 4-5, but that's not their problem.

''If we're not impressive and we keep winning,'' Zimmer said, ''more power to us.''

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Online:

AP NFL website: http://www.pro32.ap.org and AP NFL Twitter feed: http://www.twitter.com/AP-NFL

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