EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. — Minnesota Vikings coach Mike Zimmer said Monday that he was “hopeful” quarterback Teddy Bridgewater will be healed enough before Thursday’s NFC North matchup against the Green Bay Packers. Bridgewater left Sunday’s smashing debut against the Atlanta Falcons with an ankle injury that sidelined him for the final 10 offensive snaps of the victory.

Bridgewater wasn’t on crutches after the game and all indications are that he should be able to play, but the short week does increase the possibility that Christian Ponder could become the Vikings’ third starting quarterback in as many weeks.

With Matt Cassel already on injured reserve, the Vikings signed Chandler Harnish to the practice squad Monday as an insurance policy. Had Ponder been forced from the game Sunday, wide receiver Jairus Wright was the emergency quarterback.

Rolling his right ankle trying to score on third-and-goal from the 1-yard line was the only thing Bridgewater did wrong Sunday, as the Vikings outscored the Atlanta’s No. 1-ranked scoring offense 41-28 at TCF Bank Stadium. With the offensive line dominating the Falcons up front, the Vikings posted 558 net yards, the fourth-highest total in team history, while Bridgewater completed 19 of 30 passes for 317 yards, no turnovers and a 98.9 passer rating. He also ran for a touchdown.

“It was great to get that first win, of what looks to be many more,” Bridgewater said.

When it comes to rookie debut starts by Vikings quarterbacks, Bridgewater set records for most passing yards, completions and highest passer rating. When the defense blew a 13-point lead in the third quarter, Bridgewater also became the first Vikings player to post his first career fourth-quarter comeback in his NFL starting debut.

He also showed some toughness, staying on the field for two more plays after spraining the ankle. He handed off to Matt Asiata, who scored on fourth-and-goal from the 1. Then he rolled right and hit Rhett Ellison for the two-point conversion to make it 35-28 with 10:50 left in the game.

“He’s an amazing kid,” Zimmer said. “I’m just glad he’s on my team.”

–WR Donte Foster, a rookie out of Ohio, was released from the practice squad.

REPORT CARD VS. FALCONS

PASSING OFFENSE: A – The offensive line was dominant in rookie quarterback Teddy Bridgewater’s NFL starting debut. The 32nd overall draft pick wasn’t sacked and was rarely hurried while completing 19 of 30 passes for 317 yards with no turnovers and a 98.9 passer rating. Bridgewater didn’t throw for a touchdown, but he did run for one when the coverages were too tight downfield. The current clamor for Cordarrelle Patterson to see more offensive touches was overshadowed by the victory and a breakout game for No. 3 receiver Jarius Wright, who had eight catches for a career-high 132 yards. Patterson didn’t get his first touch until the third quarter, but the Vikings led by 10 and had already scored 24 points. He finished with two catches for 38 yards.

RUSHING OFFENSE: A-plus – Well, that certainly came out of nowhere. Still missing Adrian Peterson and coming off back-to-back contests in which they averaged 2.8 and 2.7 yards per carry, the Vikings crushed the Falcons with 241 yards rushing on 44 carries for a 5.5-yard average. Again, the offensive line dominated the Falcons up front. And it did so without one of its better run blockers in right guard Brandon Fusco, who is out for the season with a torn pectoral muscle. Former Jet Vladimir Ducasse stepped in and may have had the best game of his underachieving career. Rookie third-round draft pick Jerick McKinnon finally got enough carries to get in a rhythm. He responded with 135 yards on just 18 carries (7.5), including a 55-yard burst in which fullback Jerome Felton leveled a linebacker in the hole. Matt Asiata also had his best game of the season with a 3.9-yard average (20-78) and three powerful short touchdown runs, including one on fourth-and-goal from the 1. The Vikings were smashing the Falcons so decisively up front that the decision to go for it on fourth-and-goal was a simple one.

PASS DEFENSE: C – It was far from a fulfilling performance, but the satisfying part for the Vikings was the way the defense played after the Falcons came from 13 down to go ahead 28-27 late in the third quarter. From that point on, the Vikings got their only sack, both interceptions and held Atlanta to 0-for-2 on third downs. Rookie first-round draft pick Anthony Barr got the sack on third-and-7. Safety Harrison Smith and cornerback Josh Robinson notched the interceptions, which were the first takeaways since the closing three minutes of the season opener. Cornerback Xavier Rhodes also ran stride for stride with Julio Jones, dived perfectly and swatted away a deep ball on third down to start the fourth quarter. It was one of his four pass defenses. The pass defense also played poorly at times, particularly the third quarter when missed tackles by cornerback Captain Munnerlyn and end Everson Griffen allowed Devin Hester to score on a 36-yard reception. The Falcons also converted 10 of their first 13 third downs, including one series in which Matt Ryan completed passes to convert on third-and-20, third-and-10 and third-and-three in the red zone.

RUSH DEFENSE: C – Again, it wasn’t a great performance overall, but it was good when it counted in the fourth quarter. Overall, the Falcons averaged 5.6 yards on 22 carries. But a large chunk of that 123 yards came on one 48-yard touchdown run by Antone Smith. Missed tackles and a horrendous angle by strong safety Robert Blanton allowed Smith to get around the right side and race untouched down the right sideline. No other carry was longer than 11 yards.

SPECIAL TEAMS: B – Kicker Blair Walsh had six touchbacks against Devin Hester and nailed a 55-yard field goal to make it a 10-point game with 3:38 left. He also missed a 49-yarder wide right, but connected from 41 and 33 as well. Hester had only three kickoff returns for a 20.7-yard average. His only punt return went 16 yards. Cordarrelle Patterson averaged 43 yards on two kickoff returns, while Marcus Sherels averaged 19.5 yards on two punt returns. Punter Jeff Locke had a 62-yard punt.

COACHING: A – The Vikings were coming off the roughest two weeks of any team in the league. They had lost their identity (Adrian Peterson), their quarterback (Matt Cassel), their right guard (Brandon Fusco), their No. 1 tight end (Kyle Rudolph) and were forced to release troubled deep threat Jerome Simpson before he was able to return from his suspension on Monday. They also were coming off consecutive losses by a combined 34 points. And they were starting a rookie quarterback, Teddy Bridgewater. But the offensive game plan was balance and explosive behind the best performance the offensive line has put up in a long time. Defensively, the Vikings were terrible on third downs for three quarters (10 of 13), but clamped down in the pivotal fourth quarter (0 of 2). Zimmer and his staff deserve a lot of credit for holding the team together during a very rocky period.