Ed Donatell's view: Vikings defense taking hard look at itself, understands all that's at stake

As defensive coordinator Ed Donatell huddled with fellow Vikings coaches this week for another autopsy of what is now the league's last-place defense, what is the primary concern for what's also the last-place pass defense?

Between the busted coverages and recently ineffective pass rush, Donatell, a veteran defensive backs coach, kept the focus Wednesday on his area of expertise and the porous performance that is the antithesis of a zone-heavy defense designed to take away the deep throw.

"It works all together," said Donatell, speaking for the first time after Lions quarterback Jared Goff became the seventh passer to top 300 yards against the Vikings in Sunday's loss. "But definitely when you look at the balls going down field, you want to get that stopped. Last week, we had two balls go over our head deep. That can't happen. That's way against the vision and the standard of what we're looking for."

"So what do you do?" he added. "You take a hard look at yourself, your positioning. You scout yourself and look at what you can do to rectify that."

Donatell said coaches and players "feel that urgency" to improve so they can capitalize on what's expected to be the franchise's first NFC North division crown — and home playoff game — since 2017. The Vikings get another chance Saturday to sew up the division with a win against the Colts (or a Lions loss to the Jets).

A day after the loss in Detroit, head coach Kevin O'Connell said he wants a more aggressive approach from a defense that has given up a franchise-worst 400 yards or more in five straight games. The Vikings haven't outgained an opponent since the Nov. 6 win in Washington.

"As of right now," O'Connell said, he wasn't considering changing defensive play callers.

Regarding what needs to change, Donatell said, "I really don't think it's drastic."

"We'd like to take some of the air out of the coverage," he added. "You want to be tighter. ... Whether you're in man or zone [coverage], we got to be tighter on our matches and tighter to people. That makes it harder for people to run their passing game."

Donatell noted that coaches still are learning strengths and weaknesses of the nine different defensive backs that have started this year. Another lineup change could come Saturday against the Colts as cornerback Cameron Dantzler, the starter who struggled against Detroit in his return from a high-ankle sprain, has missed two practices this week with an illness.

Six corners have started for the Vikings this season, including four different players — Dantzler, Akayleb Evans, Andrew Booth Jr. and Duke Shelley — on the opposite side of stalwart Patrick Peterson.

The constant rotation has contributed to coverage busts and open receivers, including the Lions' Jameson Williams on a 41-yard touchdown over the middle. Peterson said that deep throw was an example of defenders not being aligned.

"We have to make sure that we're on the same page at all times," he said. "A couple of those plays, just not clear communication with one another. ... If one or two guys aren't on the same page, it can be a recipe for disaster."

The pass rush is also under the microscope.

Danielle Hunter's transition to a stand-up outside linebacker role, which comes with varied responsibilities that included dropping into coverage on five of 32 passing downs in Detroit, is a work in progress, according to coaches. That role "is a little new to him still," Donatell said, on early downs when Hunter is often aligned wider in a five-man front with three down linemen and Hunter and Za'Darius Smith standing over the edges.

"Danielle has had some real moments for us," O'Connell said. "But like our whole team and all of our coaches, we're just looking for consistency across the board."

Smith leads all NFL defenders in quarterback pressures, according to Pro Football Focus, but a lingering knee injury — first suffered Sept. 25 vs. Detroit — has contributed to him having just one sack in the last six games. But Donatell said Smith is now healthy.

Adjustments against the Jets and Lions included a few more five-man pressures by Donatell, who reiterated his belief in the four-man rush and in tighter coverage.

"We like our four-man rush," Donatell said. "If you can hold the coverage just a little bit longer, a lot of those rushes will work with four. But then we've added some five. You've seen some changeup the last few weeks and so forth. We'll continue to have a combination."

Donatell also alluded to coverages being too easily decipherable and schemed against. He said players can better disguise intentions through "sameness and likeness" in pre-snap alignments.

"Make it hard for the quarterback to see the pass scheme oriented," he said. "That's a work in progress right now and we're not accomplishing it, but it doesn't mean there's not a great opportunity coming."