MINNEAPOLIS -- The play that sent the Minnesota Vikings home victorious on Sunday has been in Teddy Bridgewater's repertoire for situations like these ever since his first NFL start.

Remember the screen pass Bridgewater threw to Jarius Wright during the Vikings' win over Atlanta on Sept. 28? It came barely a minute into that game, with the Falcons showing a "zero blitz" -- or a pressure with no safeties back in coverage -- on third-and-7. Bridgewater appeared to change the play at the line and flipped a pass to Wright, who looped behind blocks from Greg Jennings and tight end Chase Ford for a 52-yard gain.

The play shows up in the Vikings' offense at least once a week, out of a number of different personnel groupings. Charles Johnson took a screen 24 yards on the Vikings' first series last week, lining up alone on the left side of the Vikings' formation and following a block from Matt Kalil. Wright nearly took one for a touchdown earlier on Sunday against the New York Jets. And in overtime, with the Vikings backed up in their own territory on third-and-5, Bridgewater checked to the play to beat the Jets on one of their own pet calls.

New York had given Bridgewater trouble with zero blitzes all day, and coach Rex Ryan had another one called, with hopes of forcing a quick throw (or possibly a turnover). The Vikings had a longer pass called, but Bridgewater had an option to check to the screen. His silent count got the Jets to show their pressure, and Bridgewater changed the play to the screen.

"The check was built into the call, so if he saw something, he was going to check to that," coach Mike Zimmer said. "He did that several times today."

The Vikings set the screen up the same way they did in the Atlanta game, with Wright to the outside of Jennings and tight end Kyle Rudolph. The Jets brought seven, Wright picked up blocks from Jennings and Rudolph and took off, with nothing but space in front of him.

"As I broke free I saw Sully [center John Sullivan running down field] and I said, 'Oh, yeah, this is going a long ways,'" Wright said.

Jets coach Rex Ryan blamed himself for the loss, saying it was his call on the blitz and complimenting Bridgewater for making the check once the Jets showed their hand, but not every rookie quarterback would have as firm a grasp of pre-snap adjustments as Bridgewater seems to have. He finished 19-of-27 for 309 yards, two touchdowns and an interception. His turnover came on a Hail Mary at the end of the first half, and he would've had three TD passes if Johnson hadn't fumbled at the goal line. Bridgewater has shown marked improvement in a number of ways during the second half of the season, and the Vikings' comfort level with him at the controls of their offense is no small thing.

"That's the thing the veterans really respect and appreciate about Teddy is the way he prepares, the way he studies, the way he cares about his job, and the way he loves playing the game," Zimmer said. "The franchise is Teddy's; I know that was a good headline for you. That's what he needs to do; he needs to take it over. This is his team now."

Bridgewater demurred, saying the team belongs as much to backup guard Vlad Ducasse as it does to him. But on the field, he showed a command of the game that will get his teammates to follow him anywhere.

"That's where you see him maturing; you see he's getting a good grasp on the whole offense," Johnson said. "He's smart. He's able to see things like that and help us win on them."