When the Jaguars inquired with Vikings coach Mike Zimmer this spring about a joint workout, it’s as if he could see into the future.
“When they called me, I just expressed my concerns that I don’t want this to be a fight or anything like this,” Zimmer said, via Chris Tomasson of the St. Paul Pioneer Press.
Of course, the Jaguars have mostly been fighting amongst themselves, and suspended defensive end Dante Fowler for his part in one, and cornerback Jalen Ramsey for yelling at the local media about reporting it.
But when the Jaguars arrive in Minnesota for two days of joint practices in advance of this week’s preseason game, Zimmer is hoping for some good, clean work.
“The biggest thing is what we want to do is we want to get work done against a good team,” Zimmer said. “So it’s important that our guys know that we’re not going to put up with any trash talking. We’re not going to put up with any fighting. We’re not here for that. We’re here to get better. . . .
“Whoever they bring, they bring, and if they don’t, they don’t. We’re just going to go out and try to improve. Their defense is very similar to a lot of the defenses that we’re going to face this year schematically, so I think that will be good, especially for our offense. And then they’re a downhill power running team.”
So if Zimmer has his way, this won’t turn into a Washington-Jets situation, in which the fight spilled into the crowd.