Blair Walsh has another up-and-down game for Vikings

Blair Walsh needed a great showing against the Cowboys to get back his feel after missing four kicks against the Raiders and getting chewed out on the field by Mike Zimmer.

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Instead of a great showing against Dallas, Walsh only had an okay showing.

Working exclusively with long snapper Kevin McDermott after the decision to release Cullen Loeffler, Walsh hit two field goals and missed another.

Walsh’s two makes were a chip shot from 28 in the first quarter and a solid kick from 45 in the second. His miss was a 43-yarder he hooked wide left early in the fourth.

Walsh also connected on a pair of extra points, which shouldn’t be a big deal but sort of is.

Amusingly enough, Walsh’s most impressive kick of the night wasn’t even a kick, it was a punt. The kicker was pressed into punting duties after Jeff Locke briefly left with an injured ankle and actually hit the punt too well, out-kicking his coverage and resulting in a long Dallas return.

So if we learned anything positive from Walsh’s performance last night it’s that he can function as a backup punter if needed.

The obvious caveat is that Walsh was kicking indoors Saturday night, a different deal than kicking outside at TCF Bank Stadium.

Walsh could have gone 6-for-6 last night and it would still not have meant a whole lot in the grand scheme. Walsh has to make a few outdoors in less-than-ideal conditions before concerns about his kicking will begin to go away.

And what does Mike Zimmer think about Walsh’s struggles? Zimmer offered up his opinion in the post game press conference. He thinks Walsh might be too much inside his own head:

"Like I told [Walsh] after he missed the one “Quit thinking so much and just kick the dang ball. You’re too good for that. So just kick it. Quit thinking.” These kickers they want to fade it to the right… [Like they’re] Bubba Watson."

So there’s your answer Blair Walsh. Stop thinking like a golfer. Quit being cute and just kick it.

Mike Zimmer knows all.

Next: Mick Tingelhoff enters Hall of Fame

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