Head coach Brad Childress didn't appear to be too concerned with the Vikings' penchant for allowing tight ends to do damage against them this season, saying, "I think it's the old thing that you tell a quarterback: They can't double-team everybody. You've got to decide what you are going to take away. We don't want to concede anything. You're not conceding it. You're still defending a play, but people do a nice job of finding that guy." In this case it's the tight end teams are finding. Childress admitted that the Vikings have decided "what you are willing to live with," and it appears they would rather have tight ends — and not speedy backs or wideouts — be the ones doing the damage. But the trend is noticeable in the past three games, with St. Louis' Daniel Fells, Green Bay's Jermichael Finley and San Francisco's Vernon Davis each doing some damage. Because the Vikings play a lot of zone and don't cover tight ends exclusively with one player, it's difficult to place blame. It just might be the kind of damage they're willing to live with.
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