Bill Parcells' sayings are legendary and stick in the brain, especially the brain of an understudy like Mike Zimmer.
Now the coach of the Minnesota Vikings, Zimmer is trying to avoid his squad becoming what Parcells used to call a "yo-yo" team.
"Up one week, down the next," Zimmer said Wednesday, via the Minnesota Star Tribune. "He wanted the same guys all the time."
When helping construct a roster, Zimmer said he tries to identify players who would be subject to yo-yoing, which can become contagious.
"It's a combination of a lot of things," Zimmer said when asked how the team goes about trying to identify mental toughness. "You talk to a lot of their coaches. What kind of competitor is a guy? How does he handle adversity? How smart is he? Is he moody on the practice field? Does he pay attention in meetings? There's a big combination of things that helps figure it out. How does he react when you get after him? How is the best way to coach this guy? Does he put the team first? Is he all about stats?"
The Vikings are coming off a spirited loss to the Arizona Cardinals in Week 14, in a game many expected the men in purple to get steamrolled without their top three defenders. This Sunday they host the 5-8 Chicago Bears, an enigmatic team lacking talent that the Vikings have already beaten this season.
Closing the season with dates against the New York Giants and at the Green Bay Packers, it would be easy for the Vikings to overlook the toothless Bears. If Zimmer has the right players, that sort of yo-yoing won't happen under his watch.
