EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. — To hear Minnesota Vikings rookie quarterback Teddy Bridgewater explain Sunday’s matchup against the Washington Redskins, it doesn’t sound like a good week for him to be overthinking things and therefore holding on to the ball too long.

“Washington is 11th in the league defensively, seventh against the pass and they have 21 sacks,” said Bridgewater, who obviously was well-tutored in pertinent statistics by the team’s media relations staff. “So it’s going to be quite a challenge.”

Bridgewater also could have pointed out that Washington’s exotic 3-4 blitz packages made Monday night miserable for Cowboys veteran quarterback Tony Romo, who has 61 more regular-season wins than the two that belong to Bridgewater.

Although the Redskins are only 3-5, they’re also coming off an upset of the Cowboys in Dallas on “Monday Night Football.” So one can’t assume that TCF Bank Stadium at noon Central time on a Sunday is going to intimidate a Redskins team that has now won two straight.

Both teams are 3-5 and looking for momentum heading into their bye week. Both teams also are led by rookie head coaches who spent three years together as coordinators on opposite sides of the ball in Cincinnati. Vikings coach Mike Zimmer, the defensive mind, interviewed for the Redskins job, but lost out to Jay Gruden, the offensive mind hired in part because of his connection to general manager Bruce Allen and the team’s desire to have someone groom quarterback Robert Griffin III.

Griffin’s playing status is uncertain as he continues to work his way back from a dislocated ankle. The Vikings are preparing for Griffei’s unique skill set as well as backup Colt McCoy, who has performed admirably in helping the Redskins win back-to-back games.

Meanwhile, the Vikings have Bridgewater, who enters the game with a 2-2 record since stepping in for the injured Matt Cassel. Bridgewater did better last week when it came to not overthinking things, playing fast and getting the ball out quickly.

He was sacked only one time in an overtime win at Tampa Bay, which was a tremendous upgrade after taking 13 sacks the previous two weeks. Granted, the offensive line hasn’t played well, but Bridgewater said the coaches have been on him to get the ball out quicker.

“Just think less,” he said of their advice. “Go out there and play pitch and catch.

“I have to keep telling myself to stop thinking so much. Our coaches are calling great plays to allow me to think less. But still, being a young player, I try to be perfect and find myself thinking too much. I have to trust my teammates and trust everything that I’m being taught and let those guys make plays.”

He said he’s making strides, but expects more of himself.

“You’re talking about being sacked eight times, five times and then one time (on Sunday in Tampa), so it’s getting better,” Bridgewater said. “Our offensive line is doing a great job. I think I’ve been struggling holding on to the ball a lot and causing those guys to have to block for extra seconds. Coaches have been on me to get rid of the ball and play faster and the past three weeks, we’ve made those improvements.”

But Bridgewater is quick to recognize that a rare meeting with a 3-4 defense with complex blitz packages is a lot different than facing a Bucs defense that was fairly vanilla in head coach Lovie Smith’s Cover-2 scheme.

SERIES HISTORY: 19th regular-season meeting. The series is tied, 9-9. The Vikings are 6-4 at Washington. They lost the last meeting there, 38-26, in 2012. Griffin completed 17 of 22 passes with one touchdown and ran 13 times for 138 yards and two touchdowns, including the game-clinching 76-yarder in the fourth quarter. The teams have met five times in the playoffs, including the 1987 NFC Championship Game, which the Redskins won 17-10.

MEDICAL WATCH:

–DE Brian Robison, who has missed only two games in his eight-year career, didn’t practice Wednesday because of a glute injury. He played a season-low 40 snaps on Sunday.

–CB Jabari Price (hamstring) didn’t practice Wednesday. He’s mainly a special teams player, but is the team’s fourth corner. So if he can’t play and there is an injury, punt returner and scrappy corner Marcus Sherels will have to step in, as he has done numerous times in recent years.

–TE Kyle Rudolph (hernia surgery) didn’t practice and won’t play this week. But he has been running off to the side and could be in position to return after next week’s bye. He hasn’t played since being injured in Week 3.

–CB Josh Robinson (ankle) was limited in practice. He handled his usual role as the third corner despite being listed as questionable last week.

–DT Sharrif Floyd, who has battled elbow and ankle injuries this season, was limited in practice and listed as having “ankle/knee” injuries. Floyd already has a career-high three sacks. He had 2.5 as a rookie last season.

–LB Gerald Hodges, who has missed the past two games because of a hamstring injury, was limited in practice Wednesday.

–S Antone Exum (shoulder/ankle), one of the team’s most used special teamers, was limited in practice Wednesday.

–TE Chase Ford, who had six catches for 61 yards in Sunday’s win, was limited in practice on Wednesday.

GAME PLAN: Stopping running back Alfred Morris from controlling the down and distance will be the key defensively. Morris, who has four touchdowns and ranks sixth in rushing, is a downhill, one-cut force that will make it almost impossible to defend the pass – regardless of who starts at quarterback – if he can’t be contained. Offensively, rookie running back Jerick McKinnon needs to maintain that 5.2-yard average per carry to keep the Redskins’ exotic 3-4 blitz packages from overwhelming rookie quarterback Teddy Bridgewater.

MATCHUPS TO WATCH:

–Redskins RB Alfred Morris, a downhill banger who can set the tone of a game, vs. Vikings NT Linval Joseph, a wide-bodied player who sets the tone for the Vikings’ run defense. The Vikings will need a team concept to contain the league’s sixth-leading rusher. But Joseph will be a key. He has adjusted to coach Mike Zimmer’s scheme in recent weeks, and it’s no surprise the run defense has improved.

Redskins OLB Ryan Kerrigan, who ranks fourth in the league in sacks with 7.5, vs. Vikings QB Teddy Bridgewater, who admits he sometimes hangs on to the ball too long. The Vikings haven’t played great up front on the offensive line, but Bridgewater also is being told by the coaching staff to stop overthinking things and get the ball out quicker. Bridgewater was sacked only one time last week after being sacked 13 times the previous two weeks. But the Redskins have an exotic 3-4 scheme that could present a lot more problems for the rookie than the Bucs’ vanilla look did last week.