Forbath getting his kicks with Vikings

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - Of all the decisions for which the Minnesota Vikings can be second-guessed following their 5-0 start to the season, the one to bring in Kai Forbath to replace Blair Walsh as their placekicker is not among them.
Forbath continued to be virtually automatic Sunday when the Vikings didn’t reach the end zone against the Jacksonville Jaguars until early in the fourth quarter. His field goals of 43, 32, 40 and 46 yards set the table until the offense came around down the stretch in a 25-16 victory that kept the Vikings in NFL postseason contention.
“Like I keep saying and saying, I just take it one kick at a time,” said Forbath, who is now perfect on all 10 of his field-goal attempts since being signed Nov. 16. “Whenever I get the chance to help the team score some points, I just go out there and do what I can to make the kick and then move on to the next one.”
The Vikings didn’t have problems moving the ball on a day when Jeff Locke ended up punting just once. Where they struggled was in third-down conversions, a category in which they were 2-for-8 through three quarters.
So they called on Forbath on three occasions in the first half alone, although coach Mike Zimmer chose not to use him a fourth time when the Vikings were at the Jaguars’ 1 following the two-minute warning.
Forbath didn’t notice anything while warming up that suggested he would have a better day than usual.
“I had a good warm-up,” he said. “But nothing changes when it’s 40 or 20. It’s the same kick. I kick extra points like I kick 50-yarders. It’s the same swing every time. I try to keep it the same, and the results are good.
“Let’s face it: Offensively, we’ve struggled to move the ball down the field some and get points,” Zimmer said. “So when you have those opportunities, you have to take advantage of them. It’s good that he’s been able to kick them through.”
Wide receiver Adam Thielen, who had a team-high 101 receiving yards on four catches, echoed Zimmer’s thoughts.
“We know as an offense we’ve got to put points on the board and make it easier on our defense,” he said. “Field goals every time in the red zone is not going to cut it. We’ve just got to keep getting better in that area and try to put up some touchdowns.”
The only thing that prevented Forbath from having a flawless performance was his missed conversion attempt following Matt Asiata’s 1-yard touchdown run.
Forbath originally was successful on his kick, but a false-start penalty against Rhett Ellison forced the Vikings to do it over. The ball came out low and was wide left.
“It didn’t feel good coming off my foot,” Forbath said. “It’s going to happen. I’ll let you know (what went wrong) after we watch films.”
Coming to a team nine games into a season ordinarily might require time for a kicker to familiarize himself with the holder and long snapper. That was not the case with Forbath, who was teammates at UCLA with not only Locke but snapper Kevin McDermott.
“Fortunately, it was a good situation because I went to college with Kevin and Jeff,” he said. “And we train together every offseason. So I’ve been getting snaps and holds from them all summer long. It was a pretty easy transition.”
Injuries mount for Vikings
Minnesota entered Sunday’s game with nine players on injured reserve and five sitting out.
Three more were hurt against the Jaguars: guard Brandon Fusco (concussion), cornerback Trae Waynes (concussion) and wide receiver Laquon Treadwell (ankle).
Fusco was lost midway through the fourth quarter and replaced by Zac Kerin. He is the only player on the offensive line, which has been devastated by injuries, to start each game this season, although he had missed most of an Oct. 9 game against Houston after suffering a concussion on the opening drive.
“We’re kind of used to it now,’’ Zimmer said. “Like (interim offensive coordinator) Pat (Shurmur) said on the sideline, ‘We’re not going to worry about it.’ We just go about our business and go.’’
Zimmer declined to give any specifics on the three players injured Sunday. Treadwell was hurt in the first quarter and Waynes was lost in the second.
“Obviously, you want to keep guys healthy,’’ safety Anthony Harris said of Waynes not playing in the second half. “It’s nice to have him on the field with you, but you’ve got to be prepared with the next man up.’’
Harris started in place of Harrison Smith (ankle), one of five players ruled out who did not travel to Jacksonville. Zimmer said Harris generally did well, although he was out of position on a 14-yard touchdown pass Blake Bortles threw to Bryan Walters in the third quarter.
“The touchdown pass was his,” Zimmer said. “He should have been there. That was his play. He messed it up.”
Also staying home for the Vikings were center Joe Berger (concussion), cornerback and punt returner Marcus Sherels (rib), defensive tackle Sharrif Floyd (knee) and linebacker Edmond Robinson (hamstring).
Berger missed his second straight game and was replaced by Nick Easton, who made his second career start. Easton, a second-year man, said he’s making progress.
“I can’t be the young guy anymore,’’ he said. “I can’t make any more young guy mistakes.’’