The Stefon Diggs era in Minnesota has officially begun. After being an unknown in the NFL Draft, the rookie wide receiver is quickly making his presence felt with the Vikings. After injuries opened the door for Diggs to get his first NFL start, the receiver has not looked back as he remains their best playmaker through two games. Heading into a matchup against the Chicago Bears, Diggs is expected to remain the starter even as players return healthy.
According to the Twin Cities Pioneer Press, Diggs will be the starter in Week 8 even as Charles Johnson gets healthy. Diggs replaced Johnson when the receiver got injured and while head coach Mike Zimmer stressed that the change was not permanent, the Vikings simply cannot ignore the play of the rookie. Against the Detroit Lions, Diggs put up 108 yards and touchdown off six catches to lead the team. However, he is making sure to stay grounded and consistent.
I'm going to keep grinding," Diggs said, via TwinCities.com. "Compliments like that, if it happens, it happens. It's in God's hands. I just appreciate the compliment, but I've got to keep working, and you've got to prove it on the field."
Diggs will once again be relied upon heavily for quarterback Teddy Bridgewater. Jarius Wright has returned to practice and is expected to play in Week 8 along with Johnson and Mike Wallace. The question is the state of Adrian Peterson. The running back is healthy after shrimp eating incident. Peterson is practicing in full and is expected to take on a full workload as he could have a big game against the inconsistent defense of the Chicago Bears. Offensive coordinator Norv Turner stressed they needed to continue feeding Peterson the ball.
"If we don't give him the ball, he can't break long runs," Turner said, via the team website. "He was close in that game to breaking four or five different times. We're close to finishing blocks or getting on the right guy and giving him that chance. We knew going into the season, we know where we're at right now six games in that we have a lot of work to do in the offensive line."
The Vikings have a chance to make some real gains in the league if they can beat the Bears after getting the best of the Detroit Lions. As the offense gets better each week, the defense is matching the production and Minnesota is now a team to pay attention to.
