ESPN NFC North Blog

Posted by ESPN.com's Kevin Seifert

Circling back on our earlier post about Minnesota's bizarre practice week, defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier spoke extensively Thursday about the interruption. Frazier flew to New York on Tuesday to participate in a meeting between league officials and defensive end Jared Allen.

Initially reluctant to make the trip, Frazier said he arranged the Vikings' game-planning schedule to accommodate a request from coach Brad Childress. Frazier also said the Vikings had to work around the absence Thursday of defensive tackles Kevin Williams and Pat Williams, who were in New York to appeal four-game suspensions. As a result, Frazier said, the Vikings are almost "a day behind" in practice this week.

Thanks to the Vikings' public relations department, here is a transcript of the relevant questions posed Thursday by Minnesota reporters:

Whose decision was it for you to go with Jared to his meeting?
Leslie Frazier: Coach Childress had talked to me about it once we knew what the itinerary was going to be. He thought it would be a good idea if I were able to go.

What was your role? Did you just explain to the league how he plays?
LF: I did chime in, and that was exactly my purpose for being there, to talk about his role and what we ask him to do.

That's the main day for installing your game plan. How do you make up for missing that?
LF: [It's] an extremely important day. We had to alter some things because of that. We did some things Monday night to help to alleviate what would normally happen on a Tuesday. When I got back into the office at about 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday we picked up on some things that we needed to work on for the next day. It definitely altered the schedule.

What time were you here until Tuesday night?
LF: Oh boy, it was a long night. Tuesday was a long day and a long night. You do what you have to do under the circumstances. It was necessary; after going there, it was necessary for me to be there. Originally I was very reluctant, really concerned, but after going I realized that it was the right decision.

What value came out of your specific role?
LF: I think it lent some credence to who he is and what he's about, as well as talk them through the plays that were in question from a coaching standpoint, a former player's standpoint along with the current player's standpoint. A combination of those gave it a unique blend [that's] not ordinarily there. As I mentioned, after being there I realized it was important that I was there.

How much does it affect the game plan when Kevin and Pat miss practice?
LF: It makes a big difference. We were just talking about that this morning. There are some things and some looks that we wanted them to be able to see. We'll have to go back tomorrow and make sure that we have [time] for the both of them. They are the meat and potatoes of what we do inside, and to not have them on a day where you make adjustments, because today is our third-down day, along with short yardage and goal line, and those guys are pivotal to our success in that area. It makes a big difference. It causes us almost to be a day behind.