EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. -- Mike Zimmer, Norv Turner, Anthony Barr, Captain Munnerlyn, Linval Josephl there's has been plenty of changes since the Minnesota Vikings have stepped on the field for a regular-season game.
Minnesota opens its 2014 season on Sunday at St. Louis and begins the Zimmer era as the ninth head coach in Vikings history. The early part of the schedule won't be easy, even with the Rams forced to backup quarterback Shaun Hill already because of a knee injury suffered to Sam Bradford.
Gone are Leslie Frazier, Bill Musgrave, Alan Williams, Jared Allen and Kevin Williams as Minnesota tries to put the disappointment of last year's 5-10-1 finished behind it. The Vikings get the chance to truly turn the page Sunday.
Here are five things to watch as new-look Minnesota faces its first real test:
1. The Peterson piece
During a successful preseason, the Vikings surely didn't show all the new offensive looks that will be a staple with Turner, the new offensive coordinator. In particular, Minnesota's bread-and-butter, the backbone of the offense wasn't revealed as Adrian Peterson sat out the preseason for the third straight year. Peterson is still option No. 1 in the Vikings' offense.
Few people know exactly what role Peterson will play. Turner has talked about using Peterson as a receiver, trying to get the best running back in the NFL in space. Peterson is still the workhorse back. Turner is one of the few who knows exactly how and when Peterson will be involved.
Everyone knows Peterson's ability. After not playing in the preseason last year, Peterson's first carry was a 78-yard touchdown in Game 1. He jokingly predicted he would do the same this year. St. Louis knows of Peterson's ability. In the last meeting between the two teams, Peterson ran for 212 yards and two touchdowns, spurred on by a little trash talking from the Rams' defense.
2. The matchup
St. Louis is known for its defense. Peterson will be facing a run defense that allowed 102.9 yards per game last year, the ninth-lowest total in the NFL. The line helped pace a Rams defense that was third in the league in sacks (53 total) last year. St. Louis forced an NFL-high 18 fumbles last year, recovering a league-high 13 fumbles. The Rams then drafted defensive tackle Aaron Donald in the first round and now have Gregg Williams running the defense.
On one side of the St. Louis defensive line is Chris Long. Only one person in the NFL had more sacks than the guy on the other end, Robert Quinn. Quinn had 19 sacks last season, finishing just a half-sack shy of league-leader Robert Mathis. Quinn will often be matched up with Minnesota left tackle Matt Kalil, who dropped back a bit last season following a Pro Bowl rookie season as he dealt with a knee injury. Kalil had offseason surgery, missed offseason workouts and slowly got back to himself in the preseason.
Kalil and Quinn will be, perhaps, the biggest 1-on-1 matchup in Sunday's game. Kalil will have to negate Quinn's speed rush to give Vikings' quarterback Matt Cassel time to get the ball to the receivers. For his part, Kalil began to really fine-tune in the final days of practice with Zimmer saying Thursday that Kalil has had his best practice days this week. It will be needed to slow one of the league's top pass rusher.
3. The NFL survivors
Cassel and Hill don't draw the headlines of their quarterback counterparts. The two have carved out careers in the NFL that many never expected, though. Hill, 34, was undrafted out of Maryland. All he's done is make it into his 13th NFL season, which started in 2002 with Minnesota. He spent four seasons with the Vikings, playing in one game and never throwing a pass. He had two kneel-downs at the end of a game.
Mostly a career backup, Hill will get the chance to start all season for St. Louis if he can hold on to the job. Bradford was lost for the second straight season with a knee injury, opening the door for Hill to start a regular-season game for the first time since 2010. Bradford's injury history forced the Rams to get Hill, an experience backup who started 10 games for Detroit in 2010.
Cassel enters this season as the unquestioned starter for Minnesota after last year's inexplicable rotation at quarterback. Cassel, 32, is a former seventh-round pick who is entering his 10th NFL season. The Vikings drafted Teddy Bridgewater in the first round, but it's Cassel's team right now. Cassel performed admirably when given a chance last season, finishing with an 81.6 quarterback rating and the only quarterback on the roster to have more touchdowns than turnovers.
Cassel returned to Minnesota and claimed the starting quarterback job. He held on to the position with a preseason that included a 66.7 completion rate and a 103.3 quarterback rating. Cassel is the starter for the foreseeable future and gives the Vikings a chance to develop Bridgewater with no rush to force him into the lineup.
4. The coaching
Turner takes over an offense that was maybe a bit underrated last season. Minnesota averaged 344.3 yards per game last season (13th in NFL) and 24.4 points per game (14th). Turner should be able to draw even more out of a group that returns its starting five offensive linemen for the third straight year and has a veteran quarterback in Cassel to go with Peterson, tight end Kyle Rudolph and receivers Cordarrelle Patterson and Greg Jennings, among others.
But Zimmer's coaching is the one to watch and what really could make the biggest difference for the Vikings. Minnesota's defense under Williams last year allowed the most points in the league and the second-most yards. In comparison, Zimmer's defense in Cincinnati allowed the third-fewest yards and was tied for the fifth-fewest points.
The aging line led by Allen and Williams has been transformed with Brian Robison joined in the starting lineup by Joseph, Everson Griffen and Sharrif Floyd. Zimmer can utilize his preferred rotation, bringing in veteran end Corey Wootton, tackle Tom Johnson, along with rookies Scott Crichton and Shamar Stephen.
Barr will be used in some pass-rushing situations with his hand on the ground and he'll start at linebacker with Chad Greenway and Jasper Brinkley. Greenway and Barr will be the nickel linebackers. The secondary, Zimmer's specialty, has changed with the addition of Munnerlyn. The hope is for continued improvement from second-year cornerback Xavier Rhodes and Harrison Smith, as well as new starter at safety, Robert Blanton.
Zimmer's influence on the defense is one of the most crucial for the Vikings and will be one of the most interesting to watch unfold.
5. The last starters
Two starting positions weren't determined until the end of the preseason as Zimmer decided to go with Brinkley at middle linebacker ahead of Audie Cole and Blanton won the second starting safety job.
Brinkley is likely a two-down player for Minnesota and will be counted on to stop the run, while also not failing in pass coverage. Cole offers more range and height, but doesn't bring the physicality to the run defense that Brinkley does. St. Louis will rely on its running game, led by second-year back Zac Stacy. Stacy was a revelation last season as a fifth-round pick. The physical, 224-pound Stacy ended up making 12 starts and ran for 973 yards.
Blanton won the starting job, in part because of the injuries suffered at the position as well as his coverage ability as a former college cornerback. Zimmer preferred someone with Smith who could cover. St. Louis isn't known for its passing or stretching the field, but has some potential in receivers Kenny Britt, Brian Quick and Tavon Austin, as well as tight end Jared Cook.
Zimmer put Brinkley and Blanton on notice. They won the starting jobs, but they will have to perform to keep them. Blanton will need to be able to prove Zimmer's trust. Zimmer said Blanton is a smart player and one who can cover. Blanton will need to stay healthy, too.
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