Because I have quite a few jumbled Viking thoughts from the weekend and because I’ve been trying to find a coherent way to tie them all together, today I’ve come up with a “Consider this” post. I don’t think it’s going to be a regular thing. But maybe it will be. I don’t know yet.
Anyway, ready or not, here it comes.
Consider this: Adrian Peterson had 363 carries during the regular season. What toll will that take on his body in 2009 and beyond?
Before the season my hope was that AP would get somewhere between 290-300 carries, Chester Taylor would get 125-150 and an improved Vikings passing game would allow the team to run less than it did in 2007.
Well, that didn’t happen. Factoring in his carries in four preseason games, the upcoming Pro Bowl and at least one playoff game and possibly more, Peterson’s going to go over 400 carries easily (and he could be close to 500 if the Vikings reach the NFC championship game or Super Bowl).
It’s been written about many times before, but this is a dangerous, dangerous way to treat a franchise running back. Peterson’s only 23, young and strong. But if the Vikings continue to heap this workload on him in the future, we may have already witnessed one-third of his productive body of work.
Consider this: Tarvaris Jackson was just 7-14 for 85 yards in the first half against the Giants first-team defence. He was also 11-17 for 149 yards, with only 10 points on the board, plus a costly interception, until the Giants he was playing against changed from guys named Jason Tuck to guys named Jerome McDougle. Now consider what this means for the Vikings chances of success in the playoffs.
Jackson is better than he was at the start of the season. That’s easy to see. But has he improved enough to help this offence thrive against the better teams he is about to face?
Consider this: Thanks to the recent play of Jackson, barring a five-interception meltdown against the Eagles, the Vikes quarterbacks next season will be Jackson, Gus Frerotte and John David Booty, or Jackson, some other non-threatening veteran backup and Booty, OR Jackson, Frerotte and some other non-threatening project.
Whatever the combination might be, it definitely includes Jackson. He’s the starter. Donovan McNabb ain’t coming here. Kurt Warner ain’t coming here. The Tarvaris Jackson Experience will be headlining the Vikings 2009 NFL tour.
I still think the Vikings should go after McNabb – hard – if he's available this off-season.
Consider this: Cedric Griffin might not suck as badly as you previously thought.
I know that statement is difficult to process after two-plus years of watching fans vote in Griffin as the “Viking defender most likely to give up an eight-yard cushion to an opposing wide receiver.” But Ced played superbly against Arizona three weeks ago and he seems to have gained confidence from it.
My view is he’s been one of the Vikings best defensive players down the stretch. His tackling has been almost Winfield-like. He’s even starting to bat down passes before they reach the hands of the receiver he’s covering. And here’s something else: since the Jacksonville game I’ve noticed Vikings opponents are going after Winfield a lot more. Is that a sign of respect for Griffin? Or am I just imagining things?
Whatever. Griffin needs to keep playing well. The Eagles are going to throw a lot on Sunday.
Consider this: Leslie Frazier may not be the Vikings defensive coordinator for much longer. The Vikings had the NFL’s fourth-best defence according to Football Outsiders rankings and at least one other team looking for a head coach has noticed.
Never mind that Frazier’s unit got a lot better the day the Vikings traded for Jared Allen. Vikings fans still realize Frazier is the best coach on this team's staff and don't want to lose him. He gameplans well. His players tackle flawlessly. He understands the strengths and weaknesses of his players. He then uses that knowledge to put them in positions to succeed. Some team is going to take a chance on him when the Vikings season is over – if not before that. It also doesn’t hurt his chances that he’s black.
Consider this: The Vikings have the worst takeaway-giveaway differential of any team in the playoffs. It’s minus-six and ranks them 24th in the NFL in that category. Philadelphia’s differential is plus-three. The Vikings have often succeeded in spite of themselves during the regular season. But they can’t turn the ball over in the playoffs and expect it to continue.
Consider this: Who would be the Vikings coach if Minnesota had lost and the Bears had won last Sunday? Could this have been Brad Childress’s fate? And would we care?
Consider this: What will the NFC North look like next year and beyond without Matt Millen running the Detroit Lions. The Lions were 2-14 against the Vikings during Millen’s tenure and playing them was basically two guaranteed wins a year for the Vikes.
But if new team president Tom Lewand and new general manager Martin Mayhew can hire the right coach and get their shit together, that could change starting next season. Turnarounds can happen quickly in the NFL.
Finally, consider this: With a year to go, the Vikings are on the way to their second least impressive decade of football in franchise history. By going 10-6 this season, the Vikings evened their record at 72-72 and clinched their third playoff appearance of the decade.
The only decade where the Vikings played worse football was the ‘60s. During the Age of Aquarius the squad posted a 52-67-7 (seven ties?) record and made the playoffs twice.
But it really isn’t fair to compare the Vikings performances during those decades. The Vikings of the early 60s were an expansion franchise and did not have the benefit of free agency to execute a quick about face. In those days, teams were built slowly through the draft. So you would expect the Vikings to stink for a while during the ‘60s, which they did.
The Vikings of this decade don’t have that excuse. Yes, they did have an owner for half of it – Red McCombs – who didn’t want to spend a lot of money to keep the team competitive. But McCombs’ Vikings had some talent. And spending money and bringing in big-name free agents hasn’t been a problem with Zygi Wilf as the owner. The real problem has been coaching – the mediocre Mike Tice era has been followed by the mediocre (so far) Brad Childress era.
By the way, the Vikings record in the other decades?
1970s – 99-43-2
1980s – 77-75
1990s – 95-65
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
Sunday, December 28, 2008
Fire Childress now
Just kidding.
Yet, I'm kind of not kidding.
It's true that the Vikings won when they had to on Sunday. They didn’t back into the playoffs. They didn’t choke and now they’re NFC North champs with the best record a Vikings team has posted since 2000. Congratulations, Vikings.
But Sunday’s 20-19 win over the New York Giants makes one wonder – again – where the Vikings would be if they had a better head coach. And a legitimate passing game, which is supposed to be one of Brad Childress’s areas of expertise.
Instead, what we got is what we often get from the Vikings offence (Canadian spelling alert) when Adrian Peterson is getting gang-tackled for minimal gains or losses. We get an offence that scores 10 points in the first half despite some favourable field position. We get an offence that had roughly 60 yards passing in that half and only threw three balls (and completed one) to its top receiver, Bernard Berrian.
But that wasn’t all. The decision by Childress to go for it on fourth-and-one with 31 seconds left in the first half and with the ball at the Giants 39-yard-line – regardless of what the play-call ended up being – was a head-scratching blunder. The safe call would have been to punt it and go into the second half with a 10-6 lead. But Chilly didn't go the safe route. Instead he decided he was going to be a gambler.
Why he made that decision I don't know. Maybe he wanted to prove a point to a fan base that mostly despises him for feeding them three years of conservative, no-frills offensive football. Maybe. But whatever the reason, he lost the gamble. The Giants got the ball back and were able to pick up a cheap three points and go into the second half down 10-9. It wasn’t a big swing in points. But it was big enough in a game where it looked like points were going to be hard to come by.
Finally, if Vikings fans needed more proof that their team often succeeds despite playing for a shaky head coach, there was the Vikings final drive that led to Ryan Longwell’s game-winning 50-yard field goal.
From the point where the Vikings picked up a big first-down on a third-and-two completion to Visanthe Shiancoe, which put them on the Giants 30-yard-line, the Vikings showed no urgency or even seemed to have a clue that they should be showing urgency.
The clock showed there was 1:11 left in the game when Shiancoe made the catch. But Tarvaris Jackson and the rest of the offence seemed to think they had all the time in the world. What followed was a disjointed, confusing series of plays where a hand-off to Peterson lost two yards, then the Vikings wasted 27 seconds before deciding they wanted to send Longwell in to kick the field goal. Then Childress changed his mind and decided to have Jackson drop back to pass with nine seconds left in the game, no timeouts left and the Vikings down by two points. And then the play Jackson made was a high-and-wide sideline pass that only someone in the first row of the Metrodome could have caught. In hindsight, that was probably the most sensible thing the Vikings did in that short sequence. Doesn’t Childress practice this two-minute drill stuff?
Fortunately, it turned out okay in the end. The Bears even did their part and lost. Now the Vikings get to host a playoff game and are in the Super Bowl derby. They will either play the Dallas Cowboys or the Philadelphia Eagles.
I know I’m sounding like a curmudgeon here during what should be a happy time. And I am happy. The Vikings are in the playoffs and I think they could do some damage there – maybe even get to the Super Bowl.
However, I think that because I believe in the Vikings talent. I believe in Adrian Peterson. I believe in Bernard Berrian. I believe in Steve Hutchinson. I believe in Jared Allen and Antoine Winfield and Kevin Williams and Chad Greenway. Jesus, I’m even starting to believe in Tarvaris Jackson a little bit.
What I don’t believe in is Brad Childress. The Vikings could go far in January. But if they do it won’t be because of any head coaching brilliance. 10-6 could be as good as it gets under Childress. I wish I felt otherwise. But I don’t.
Now watch Zygi Wilf give the guy a contract extension.
Yet, I'm kind of not kidding.
It's true that the Vikings won when they had to on Sunday. They didn’t back into the playoffs. They didn’t choke and now they’re NFC North champs with the best record a Vikings team has posted since 2000. Congratulations, Vikings.
But Sunday’s 20-19 win over the New York Giants makes one wonder – again – where the Vikings would be if they had a better head coach. And a legitimate passing game, which is supposed to be one of Brad Childress’s areas of expertise.
Instead, what we got is what we often get from the Vikings offence (Canadian spelling alert) when Adrian Peterson is getting gang-tackled for minimal gains or losses. We get an offence that scores 10 points in the first half despite some favourable field position. We get an offence that had roughly 60 yards passing in that half and only threw three balls (and completed one) to its top receiver, Bernard Berrian.
But that wasn’t all. The decision by Childress to go for it on fourth-and-one with 31 seconds left in the first half and with the ball at the Giants 39-yard-line – regardless of what the play-call ended up being – was a head-scratching blunder. The safe call would have been to punt it and go into the second half with a 10-6 lead. But Chilly didn't go the safe route. Instead he decided he was going to be a gambler.
Why he made that decision I don't know. Maybe he wanted to prove a point to a fan base that mostly despises him for feeding them three years of conservative, no-frills offensive football. Maybe. But whatever the reason, he lost the gamble. The Giants got the ball back and were able to pick up a cheap three points and go into the second half down 10-9. It wasn’t a big swing in points. But it was big enough in a game where it looked like points were going to be hard to come by.
Finally, if Vikings fans needed more proof that their team often succeeds despite playing for a shaky head coach, there was the Vikings final drive that led to Ryan Longwell’s game-winning 50-yard field goal.
From the point where the Vikings picked up a big first-down on a third-and-two completion to Visanthe Shiancoe, which put them on the Giants 30-yard-line, the Vikings showed no urgency or even seemed to have a clue that they should be showing urgency.
The clock showed there was 1:11 left in the game when Shiancoe made the catch. But Tarvaris Jackson and the rest of the offence seemed to think they had all the time in the world. What followed was a disjointed, confusing series of plays where a hand-off to Peterson lost two yards, then the Vikings wasted 27 seconds before deciding they wanted to send Longwell in to kick the field goal. Then Childress changed his mind and decided to have Jackson drop back to pass with nine seconds left in the game, no timeouts left and the Vikings down by two points. And then the play Jackson made was a high-and-wide sideline pass that only someone in the first row of the Metrodome could have caught. In hindsight, that was probably the most sensible thing the Vikings did in that short sequence. Doesn’t Childress practice this two-minute drill stuff?
Fortunately, it turned out okay in the end. The Bears even did their part and lost. Now the Vikings get to host a playoff game and are in the Super Bowl derby. They will either play the Dallas Cowboys or the Philadelphia Eagles.
I know I’m sounding like a curmudgeon here during what should be a happy time. And I am happy. The Vikings are in the playoffs and I think they could do some damage there – maybe even get to the Super Bowl.
However, I think that because I believe in the Vikings talent. I believe in Adrian Peterson. I believe in Bernard Berrian. I believe in Steve Hutchinson. I believe in Jared Allen and Antoine Winfield and Kevin Williams and Chad Greenway. Jesus, I’m even starting to believe in Tarvaris Jackson a little bit.
What I don’t believe in is Brad Childress. The Vikings could go far in January. But if they do it won’t be because of any head coaching brilliance. 10-6 could be as good as it gets under Childress. I wish I felt otherwise. But I don’t.
Now watch Zygi Wilf give the guy a contract extension.
Friday, December 26, 2008
Week 17's two-minute drill
Giants/Vikes preview
Because I doubt more than three people will read this post during a four-day holiday weekend, here are my thoughts on the game.
Adrian Peterson, Tarvaris Jackson, Bernard Berrian, etc., etc. Please don't fumble.
Pretty please.
Pretty, pretty please with a cherry on top?
Why I'd like the Bears if they weren't the Bears
I’m dying a slow death watching Chicago stay alive in the NFC North title race. Yet I sort of respect what they are doing. The Bears defence is nothing special. Their wide receivers are terrible. The running game is solid but unspectacular. And unlike the beginning of the year, they aren’t getting good play from quarterback Kyle Orton.
Yet here they are – one win and a Vikings loss away from taking the division title. They’re winning on guts and guile and strong special teams play and some fluky plays. Isn’t that what’s often missing from this Vikings team?
One explanation I would like to get from the NFL though is how the Bears got a schedule with three straight December home games, which I think is a big advantage for a team that plays outdoors in a cold weather city as the Bears do.
Does anyone believe in this team?
The hits to this site don’t show it but the comments section, and the lack of comments I've been getting this season compared to last, makes me think Vikings fans have never been sold on this team.
And I’ve noticed a certain lack of passion from fans commenting on other Vikings blogs I frequently read – except for the Daily Norseman, which continues to roll along no matter what the team does.
Now this is just a theory from some blogger in the Northwest Territories but last season it seemed fans were more irate over Viking losses and more euphoric over Viking wins. And when the team went on a playoff run, the excitement in the team's play seemed to build with each win. It just seemed fans cared more. Perhaps it’s because we didn’t expect much from the Vikes in 2007. Also, the Randy Moss-like rookie brilliance of Peterson may have got fans jazzed about the Vikings again.
This season I’m not feeling that. Once the Vikes started the season 0-2 and everyone realized Tarvaris Jackson wasn’t turning into Donovan McNabb, the fan base seemed to greet the results of the rest of the games with a collective yawn, whether it was a win or a loss. They weren’t going to get fooled again and invest a lot of emotional energy in a team that wasn't going to do great things. It wasn’t worth it.
You know what Vikings team this squad reminds me most of? The 1987 Vikings.
The strengths and weaknesses of both are not exactly the same (I’d take the Wade Wilson of ’87 over Jackson or Gus Frerotte with no hesitation). But the ’87 Vikings had a lot of talent just like this Vikings team does. Unfortunately, they also had a habit of losing games they should have won and they couldn’t master the kind of ruthless consistency that is the mark of most excellent teams. They were underachievers.
Anyway, I’m hoping for one more similarity between the ’87 Vikings and ’08 Vikings. The 1987 team made the playoffs and even though they backed in to get there, once they were there they started playing up to their talent and went on an unexpected playoff run. They pounded the Saints and 49ers only to lose to Washington in the NFC championship game on the final play.
If the Vikings can get into the playoffs this time I believe they will make another playoff run like we saw in '87. Maybe they even make that final play in the championship game and get to the Super Bowl. Perhaps only then will Vikings fans be able to really get behind this team.
Because I doubt more than three people will read this post during a four-day holiday weekend, here are my thoughts on the game.
Adrian Peterson, Tarvaris Jackson, Bernard Berrian, etc., etc. Please don't fumble.
Pretty please.
Pretty, pretty please with a cherry on top?
Why I'd like the Bears if they weren't the Bears
I’m dying a slow death watching Chicago stay alive in the NFC North title race. Yet I sort of respect what they are doing. The Bears defence is nothing special. Their wide receivers are terrible. The running game is solid but unspectacular. And unlike the beginning of the year, they aren’t getting good play from quarterback Kyle Orton.
Yet here they are – one win and a Vikings loss away from taking the division title. They’re winning on guts and guile and strong special teams play and some fluky plays. Isn’t that what’s often missing from this Vikings team?
One explanation I would like to get from the NFL though is how the Bears got a schedule with three straight December home games, which I think is a big advantage for a team that plays outdoors in a cold weather city as the Bears do.
Does anyone believe in this team?
The hits to this site don’t show it but the comments section, and the lack of comments I've been getting this season compared to last, makes me think Vikings fans have never been sold on this team.
And I’ve noticed a certain lack of passion from fans commenting on other Vikings blogs I frequently read – except for the Daily Norseman, which continues to roll along no matter what the team does.
Now this is just a theory from some blogger in the Northwest Territories but last season it seemed fans were more irate over Viking losses and more euphoric over Viking wins. And when the team went on a playoff run, the excitement in the team's play seemed to build with each win. It just seemed fans cared more. Perhaps it’s because we didn’t expect much from the Vikes in 2007. Also, the Randy Moss-like rookie brilliance of Peterson may have got fans jazzed about the Vikings again.
This season I’m not feeling that. Once the Vikes started the season 0-2 and everyone realized Tarvaris Jackson wasn’t turning into Donovan McNabb, the fan base seemed to greet the results of the rest of the games with a collective yawn, whether it was a win or a loss. They weren’t going to get fooled again and invest a lot of emotional energy in a team that wasn't going to do great things. It wasn’t worth it.
You know what Vikings team this squad reminds me most of? The 1987 Vikings.
The strengths and weaknesses of both are not exactly the same (I’d take the Wade Wilson of ’87 over Jackson or Gus Frerotte with no hesitation). But the ’87 Vikings had a lot of talent just like this Vikings team does. Unfortunately, they also had a habit of losing games they should have won and they couldn’t master the kind of ruthless consistency that is the mark of most excellent teams. They were underachievers.
Anyway, I’m hoping for one more similarity between the ’87 Vikings and ’08 Vikings. The 1987 team made the playoffs and even though they backed in to get there, once they were there they started playing up to their talent and went on an unexpected playoff run. They pounded the Saints and 49ers only to lose to Washington in the NFC championship game on the final play.
If the Vikings can get into the playoffs this time I believe they will make another playoff run like we saw in '87. Maybe they even make that final play in the championship game and get to the Super Bowl. Perhaps only then will Vikings fans be able to really get behind this team.
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
Why you hate the Packers – reason 1,059
Well, it's on. The Packers collapse is the Chicago Bears gain. This Sunday’s games determine who wins the NFC North.
But first – and I know this is difficult – it’s time for Vikings fans to stop whining that the Packers didn’t help us win the division Monday night.
Don’t blame the Packers. It’s not their job to get the Vikings into the playoffs. That’s the Vikings job and they failed to do it last Sunday when they had a chance.
They get their second and last chance when the New York Giants visit the Metrodome this Sunday. As you no doubt know by now, the Bears visit Houston to plays the Texans. If the Bears lose, it doesn’t matter what the Vikings do against the G-Men, they’re NFC North champs and in the playoffs. But do I trust a talented but shaky Houston team to beat a Chicago squad that’s got to be inspired after winning two straight overtime games? Even if Houston is at home? No I do not.
So the Vikings need to beat the Giants. Naturally, I’m nervous about the whole thing.
It’s not just the Vikings recent history of late season collapses that has me worried. There’s also the fact that we’re depending on the Tarvaris Jackson Experience to lead us into the playoffs, that we’re depending on Brad Childress to outcoach Tom Coughlin and that we’re depending on Fred Evans and Jimmy Kennedy to help stop the Giants running game.
And while Vikings fans try to make themselves feel better by pointing out how brutal Eli Manning has been in his two starts against Minnesota, (which probably means zilch anyway, as Manning is a better player now than he was in 2007 and 2005) if we’re going to bring up irrelevant history between the two teams, let’s not forget the Vikings record against the New York Giants at the Metrodome.
The Vikings have played the Giants five times in the Metrodome. They have beaten the Giants just once – in 2001. So much for home field advantage.
What the Vikings do have going for them is that the Giants have clinched home field advantage throughout the playoffs. So it’s doubtful they will play any key players for any length of time in this game, despite what Coughlin is telling everyone.
And any comparisons being made to this game and Coughlin playing his full team last year in a similar situation against the Patriots is kind of like comparing apples to grapefruits.
This time last year, the Giants were facing a Patriots team trying to become the first 16-0 team ever in the NFL. History would not have looked kindly on Coughlin if he had started his “B” and “C” teams against the Pats and given them an easy path to 16-0.
Plus, the Giants were a team in some turmoil going into the final game of 2007. The fans and New York press had grown tired of Manning’s up and down performances. The team had gone 4-3 after a 6-2 start. Many believed the Giants were a paper tiger. Coughlin probably felt if his team could give the Patriots a good game, that even a close loss could give them some confidence and turn around their season.
But what do Coughlin and the Giants have to gain by doing the same thing against Minnesota? Not much, except for maybe a acquiring a few extra bumps and bruises.
Actually, the rush to the inactive list has already started for the Giants. It looks like their fine young cornerback, Aaron Ross, won’t play. And Brandon Jacobs might be 6’10 and 482 pounds but he’s missed a couple of games lately because of a knee injury. I don’t think we’ll see him in uniform. As for Manning, does Coughlin really want Jared Allen chasing after him for an entire game? Expect to see a fair bit of backup David Carr.
This doesn’t mean the Vikings will beat the Giants. Maybe the Vikes fumble the ball 10 times this Sunday and lose to the Giants subs anyway. But it does mean things are set up nicely for the Vikings to win. Now they just have to do it.
And by the way, Merry Christmas everybody.
But first – and I know this is difficult – it’s time for Vikings fans to stop whining that the Packers didn’t help us win the division Monday night.
Don’t blame the Packers. It’s not their job to get the Vikings into the playoffs. That’s the Vikings job and they failed to do it last Sunday when they had a chance.
They get their second and last chance when the New York Giants visit the Metrodome this Sunday. As you no doubt know by now, the Bears visit Houston to plays the Texans. If the Bears lose, it doesn’t matter what the Vikings do against the G-Men, they’re NFC North champs and in the playoffs. But do I trust a talented but shaky Houston team to beat a Chicago squad that’s got to be inspired after winning two straight overtime games? Even if Houston is at home? No I do not.
So the Vikings need to beat the Giants. Naturally, I’m nervous about the whole thing.
It’s not just the Vikings recent history of late season collapses that has me worried. There’s also the fact that we’re depending on the Tarvaris Jackson Experience to lead us into the playoffs, that we’re depending on Brad Childress to outcoach Tom Coughlin and that we’re depending on Fred Evans and Jimmy Kennedy to help stop the Giants running game.
And while Vikings fans try to make themselves feel better by pointing out how brutal Eli Manning has been in his two starts against Minnesota, (which probably means zilch anyway, as Manning is a better player now than he was in 2007 and 2005) if we’re going to bring up irrelevant history between the two teams, let’s not forget the Vikings record against the New York Giants at the Metrodome.
The Vikings have played the Giants five times in the Metrodome. They have beaten the Giants just once – in 2001. So much for home field advantage.
What the Vikings do have going for them is that the Giants have clinched home field advantage throughout the playoffs. So it’s doubtful they will play any key players for any length of time in this game, despite what Coughlin is telling everyone.
And any comparisons being made to this game and Coughlin playing his full team last year in a similar situation against the Patriots is kind of like comparing apples to grapefruits.
This time last year, the Giants were facing a Patriots team trying to become the first 16-0 team ever in the NFL. History would not have looked kindly on Coughlin if he had started his “B” and “C” teams against the Pats and given them an easy path to 16-0.
Plus, the Giants were a team in some turmoil going into the final game of 2007. The fans and New York press had grown tired of Manning’s up and down performances. The team had gone 4-3 after a 6-2 start. Many believed the Giants were a paper tiger. Coughlin probably felt if his team could give the Patriots a good game, that even a close loss could give them some confidence and turn around their season.
But what do Coughlin and the Giants have to gain by doing the same thing against Minnesota? Not much, except for maybe a acquiring a few extra bumps and bruises.
Actually, the rush to the inactive list has already started for the Giants. It looks like their fine young cornerback, Aaron Ross, won’t play. And Brandon Jacobs might be 6’10 and 482 pounds but he’s missed a couple of games lately because of a knee injury. I don’t think we’ll see him in uniform. As for Manning, does Coughlin really want Jared Allen chasing after him for an entire game? Expect to see a fair bit of backup David Carr.
This doesn’t mean the Vikings will beat the Giants. Maybe the Vikes fumble the ball 10 times this Sunday and lose to the Giants subs anyway. But it does mean things are set up nicely for the Vikings to win. Now they just have to do it.
And by the way, Merry Christmas everybody.
Sunday, December 21, 2008
Ho, ho, no!
NFL Network was nice enough to show a replay of the Vikings-Falcons 1999 NFC Championship game Friday night.
Now if I was a superstitious guy, I would have viewed the airing of one of the biggest losses in Minnesota Vikings history prior to an important late season Vikings game as a bad omen. But I’m not a superstitious guy. I even watched the game (twice) and I came into Sunday confident the Vikes would beat Atlanta and clinch a division title – as long as they held onto the ball.
Well, they didn’t hold onto the ball. Fumbles cost the Vikings this game – both the four Atlanta recovered, which they turned into 17 points, and the one Falcons fumble the Vikings didn’t recover, which Atlanta offensive guard Justin Blaylock pounced on in the Minnesota end zone to give the Falcons a 24-7 lead.
So stupid, stupid fumbles cost the Vikings this game. They had seven of them.
And although Vikings fans can look at those seven fumbles as a fluke and something that’s not going to be repeated again for quite some time, there are other developments from this game that are a cause for concern for the rest of the season – however long it may last.
Adrian Peterson
It’s official: The fumbling thing is a problem. Peterson put the ball on the ground three times on Sunday. And he’s been fumbling a lot lately. It looks like it’s getting in his head.
Peterson ran tentatively in the second half of this game, which I attribute partly to his concern about fumbling again. Of course, he did fumble again, and it was wacky one with teammate Bryant McKinnie mistakenly knocking the ball out of his hand on a harmless looking play.
This week Peterson might want to watch film of Falcons running back Michael Turner, who has fumbled the ball only twice this year despite having more carries than Purple Jesus. Peterson, by the way, has eight fumbles this season. But he has put the ball on the ground perhaps a half dozen other times where fumbles have been overturned after instant replay reviews.
The worst of it is Peterson’s fumbling makes him such a liability that he almost can’t be trusted to be on the field late in the game when the Vikings need him the most. We’ve heard for two seasons now that his pass blocking is what keeps him off the field on third downs and when the Vikings are down late in the game and need to pass the ball. Now you can probably add fumbling to that list of reasons.
Bernard Berrian
In Tarvaris Jackson’s four starts this year, Bernard Berrian has caught six passes for 97 yards and one touchdown.
The Vikings paid a lot of money to sign Berrian away from the Bears during the off-season. He’s proven to be the Vikings top pass-catching threat. But Jackson isn’t able to get him the ball. Now that it looks like Jackson is the Vikings starting quarterback again, we can’t expect Berrian will be a factor in the passing game anymore. For a team that struggles to pass the ball, not being able to take advantage of your top wide receiver is sort of a problem.
Defending the run
A big concern going into this game was how the Vikings would defend the run with Pat Williams out of the lineup. Let the stats show Atlanta’s Turner rushed for just 70 yards on 19 carries for an ordinary 3.7 yards per carry average.
Those aren’t great numbers, so Williams absence wasn't a big factor in this loss, right?
Wrong. From what I saw, particularly in the first half, Turner ripped off far too many easy six and eight-yards run, which put the Falcons in plenty of favourable down-and-distance situations, which allowed them to move the ball with ease on a very good Vikings defence.
At one point in the second half, Fox put a stat up that showed Turner had gained the majority of his yardage on runs up the middle. Hard to believe that would have been possible if Williams was playing. I also didn’t hear Kevin Williams, Fred Evans and Jimmy Kennedy’s names mentioned much.
Do you still think the Vikings will be just fine without Big Pat?
Of course, it does no good to be completely negative in times like this and there were some bright lights for the Vikings.
First, I don’t know what’s gotten into Visanthe Shiancoe. But whatever it is, I like it. Seven receptions for 136 yards and two touchdown catches? And some of his catches were tough ones. I can’t believe Brad Childress and Rick Spielman might have been right about this guy.
I also think we can be encouraged by the play of Jackson. He’s still got some limitations (his inability to throw an accurate deep ball being the biggest) but he seems like a much different and much better quarterback then the one Childress benched in September.
Today we saw a guy whose decision-making has improved greatly, who made some accurate throws into tight coverage and who made something out of nothing with his legs. If not for all the fumbles, Vikings fans would be gushing over Jackson’s performance against Atlanta.
There were still plenty of moments in the Vikings final two offensive drives where Jackson looked lost, both mentally and mechanically. And that’s not ideal. But it’s hard to argue Gus Frerotte should still be the Vikings starting QB (as I have been doing) with the way Jackson played today.
But enough with the bright spots. The fact is that the Vikings had an opportunity to make the playoffs. Once again they blew it. Perhaps the Packers will do us a favour Monday night, beat Chicago and the Vikes will win the division anyway.
I’m thinking that isn’t going to happen. More than likely it will come down to next week. The good news for the Vikings is the Bears will have to beat a dangerous Houston Texans team on the road. Meanwhile, the Vikings will face a New York Giants team that clinched home field advantage throughout the playoffs Sunday night and will likely rest Eli Manning, Brandon Jacobs, Derrick Ward, Justin Tuck and plenty of other key starters.
That means the Vikings will have the chance to take care of business, at home, against the Giants “B” team and clinch a playoff berth. Last year Washington faced a similar situation and rolled to an easy win at home against Dallas second-stringers.
But after what we saw on Sunday at the Metrodome, do we really trust this Vikings team to do the same?
Now if I was a superstitious guy, I would have viewed the airing of one of the biggest losses in Minnesota Vikings history prior to an important late season Vikings game as a bad omen. But I’m not a superstitious guy. I even watched the game (twice) and I came into Sunday confident the Vikes would beat Atlanta and clinch a division title – as long as they held onto the ball.
Well, they didn’t hold onto the ball. Fumbles cost the Vikings this game – both the four Atlanta recovered, which they turned into 17 points, and the one Falcons fumble the Vikings didn’t recover, which Atlanta offensive guard Justin Blaylock pounced on in the Minnesota end zone to give the Falcons a 24-7 lead.
So stupid, stupid fumbles cost the Vikings this game. They had seven of them.
And although Vikings fans can look at those seven fumbles as a fluke and something that’s not going to be repeated again for quite some time, there are other developments from this game that are a cause for concern for the rest of the season – however long it may last.
Adrian Peterson
It’s official: The fumbling thing is a problem. Peterson put the ball on the ground three times on Sunday. And he’s been fumbling a lot lately. It looks like it’s getting in his head.
Peterson ran tentatively in the second half of this game, which I attribute partly to his concern about fumbling again. Of course, he did fumble again, and it was wacky one with teammate Bryant McKinnie mistakenly knocking the ball out of his hand on a harmless looking play.
This week Peterson might want to watch film of Falcons running back Michael Turner, who has fumbled the ball only twice this year despite having more carries than Purple Jesus. Peterson, by the way, has eight fumbles this season. But he has put the ball on the ground perhaps a half dozen other times where fumbles have been overturned after instant replay reviews.
The worst of it is Peterson’s fumbling makes him such a liability that he almost can’t be trusted to be on the field late in the game when the Vikings need him the most. We’ve heard for two seasons now that his pass blocking is what keeps him off the field on third downs and when the Vikings are down late in the game and need to pass the ball. Now you can probably add fumbling to that list of reasons.
Bernard Berrian
In Tarvaris Jackson’s four starts this year, Bernard Berrian has caught six passes for 97 yards and one touchdown.
The Vikings paid a lot of money to sign Berrian away from the Bears during the off-season. He’s proven to be the Vikings top pass-catching threat. But Jackson isn’t able to get him the ball. Now that it looks like Jackson is the Vikings starting quarterback again, we can’t expect Berrian will be a factor in the passing game anymore. For a team that struggles to pass the ball, not being able to take advantage of your top wide receiver is sort of a problem.
Defending the run
A big concern going into this game was how the Vikings would defend the run with Pat Williams out of the lineup. Let the stats show Atlanta’s Turner rushed for just 70 yards on 19 carries for an ordinary 3.7 yards per carry average.
Those aren’t great numbers, so Williams absence wasn't a big factor in this loss, right?
Wrong. From what I saw, particularly in the first half, Turner ripped off far too many easy six and eight-yards run, which put the Falcons in plenty of favourable down-and-distance situations, which allowed them to move the ball with ease on a very good Vikings defence.
At one point in the second half, Fox put a stat up that showed Turner had gained the majority of his yardage on runs up the middle. Hard to believe that would have been possible if Williams was playing. I also didn’t hear Kevin Williams, Fred Evans and Jimmy Kennedy’s names mentioned much.
Do you still think the Vikings will be just fine without Big Pat?
Of course, it does no good to be completely negative in times like this and there were some bright lights for the Vikings.
First, I don’t know what’s gotten into Visanthe Shiancoe. But whatever it is, I like it. Seven receptions for 136 yards and two touchdown catches? And some of his catches were tough ones. I can’t believe Brad Childress and Rick Spielman might have been right about this guy.
I also think we can be encouraged by the play of Jackson. He’s still got some limitations (his inability to throw an accurate deep ball being the biggest) but he seems like a much different and much better quarterback then the one Childress benched in September.
Today we saw a guy whose decision-making has improved greatly, who made some accurate throws into tight coverage and who made something out of nothing with his legs. If not for all the fumbles, Vikings fans would be gushing over Jackson’s performance against Atlanta.
There were still plenty of moments in the Vikings final two offensive drives where Jackson looked lost, both mentally and mechanically. And that’s not ideal. But it’s hard to argue Gus Frerotte should still be the Vikings starting QB (as I have been doing) with the way Jackson played today.
But enough with the bright spots. The fact is that the Vikings had an opportunity to make the playoffs. Once again they blew it. Perhaps the Packers will do us a favour Monday night, beat Chicago and the Vikes will win the division anyway.
I’m thinking that isn’t going to happen. More than likely it will come down to next week. The good news for the Vikings is the Bears will have to beat a dangerous Houston Texans team on the road. Meanwhile, the Vikings will face a New York Giants team that clinched home field advantage throughout the playoffs Sunday night and will likely rest Eli Manning, Brandon Jacobs, Derrick Ward, Justin Tuck and plenty of other key starters.
That means the Vikings will have the chance to take care of business, at home, against the Giants “B” team and clinch a playoff berth. Last year Washington faced a similar situation and rolled to an easy win at home against Dallas second-stringers.
But after what we saw on Sunday at the Metrodome, do we really trust this Vikings team to do the same?
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Week 16's two-minute drill
One big problem
Normally, the preview of the Vikings upcoming game would come first. But I thought I’d start off with a larger issue (pun intended) – the Pat Williams injury.
There are some Vikings bloggers out there – like Defensive Indifference and Pacifist Viking – who, although they love Williams, also think he is a tad overrated and that the Vikings defence will be just fine without him.
Short-term (and I’m talking a game or two here) that might be true. But long-term, (playoffs – if the Vikings make it), I disagree.
It's hard to accept that losing a player who has just 18.5 sacks in 169 NFL games and who is often replaced on passing downs (which, when we’re talking about the Minnesota Vikings defence, can be an awful lot of downs), could be such a troubling development.
But while defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier has been able to mask the loss of middle linebacker E.J. Henderson, doing the same in Williams' case will be tougher. That’s because there is no one quite like Pat Williams. Not on the Vikings roster. And not on any NFL roster.
Consider this. You have to go back to 1999 to find a season when the Vikings held opponents under four yards a carry when running the ball. Williams joined the team in 2005. Since 2006 Vikings opponents haven’t averaged more than 3.2 yards per carry (in 2005 opponents averaged four yards per carry.) Now that dominance against the run hasn’t all been because of Williams. The improved play of Henderson, Greenway, and Kevin Williams has helped. So has the play of other free agent signees like Antoine Winfield and Ben Leber. But Pat Williams is a big part of it.
I think Big Pat is the fulcrum for much of what the Vikings do on defence. When he is in the game, he’s almost impossible to move. It takes two players to block him and even then he often penetrates into the opposing backfield and blows up running plays.
When he doesn’t manage to do that, the space and blockers he occupies still frees up guys Napoleon Harris and Greenway to shoot through gaps and tackle running backs without anyone getting in their way. And as fine a player as Kevin Williams is, don’t tell me he’s not benefiting from Big Pat’s presence.
In any event, what the Vikings run-stuffing ways translates into is a lot of second-and-eights for opposing offences. That forces them into obvious passing situations, which allows the Vikings to unleash Jared Allen and Frazier’s blitz packages. This has worked out very well for the defence of late.
But now Big Pat is gone. Maybe for two games. Or maybe for the rest of the season. We don’t know yet. What I am pretty sure I do know is that the Vikings defence won’t be as effective as it has been without Pat Williams patrolling the middle. Opponents will eventually find ways to exploit his absence, especially potential playoff teams like Carolina, the Giants, Atlanta, Dallas and Tampa Bay. All of these squads like to run the ball. Take Pat Williams out of the equation and maybe they can even run against Minnesota, which will hurt the Vikings chances of not only making the playoffs, but of going very far if they get there.
Pat – get well soon
Vikings/Falcons
Matt Ryan. John Abraham. Roddy White. Michael Turner. Jerious Norwood.
These are the five Atlanta players that scare you if you are a Vikings fan.
Ryan is only having one of the best seasons a rookie quarterback has ever had. Abraham has 15.5 sacks but somehow wasn’t named to the Pro Bowl. White is second in the NFL in receiving yardage. Turner is second to Purple Jesus in rushing yards and Norwood is a dangerous kick off returner and change-of-pace back.
Together, they’ve helped the Falcons rise from the ashes of last season’s debacle to get to 9-5 and on the cusp of a wild card playoff spot.
Ryan isn't your normal rookie. But his shakier performances have mostly come on the road. So have most of the Falcons losses. The Metrodome is not an easy place to play. It's loud and the Vikings pass rush has been fierce there all season. Ryan doesn't get sacked much. But sacking him isn't the important thing. The important thing is for the Vikings to make him throw earlier than he wants to and to make him throw on the move more than he wants to. I think the Vikes can get that done.
The Falcons aren't just a pass-happy team though. They give the ball to Turner a lot. My fear is that those gaps Pat Williams would plug up if he was playing will turn into holes for Turner to run through with Fred Evans, Ellis Wyms, Letroy Guion and Jimmy Kennedy playing. That could lead more productive running plays for the Falcons, more manageable second and third down situations, more converted first downs and more points.
As for the Vikes offence, the team has announced Tarvaris Jackson will start on Sunday. He's been pretty good the last two games but he isn't going to win this game for the Vikings. As usual, the Vikes will need productive games from the offensive line, Adrian Peterson and Chester Taylor to be successful. If Peterson can hang onto the football, I think the Vikes will move the ball on the Falcons – and lock up the NFC North title.
The Skinny: Vikings 26-Falcons 20
Chilly
I've been thinking a fair bit over the past few weeks about whether it's a good thing if Brad Childress stays as head coach after this season is over.
I have no doubt he will be back. His team is guaranteed a 9-7 record at worst and even if the Vikings lose their last two games and don't make the playoffs, I can't see Zygi Wilf firing Childress when "progress" is being made.
But outside of a Super Bowl win, I think I'll still have serious misgivings about Childress staying as the Vikings head coach whether the team makes the playoffs or not.
And if the Vikings finish 10-6, or even 11-5 and take the division, I'm not sure that's something Childress deserves a great deal of kudos for. This is a team with a heck of a lot of talent. It should be an 11-5 team.
But while the defence seems to be getting better, the offence keeps on looking the same as it ever has under Childress. Let's not let the Arizona game cloud our judgement. The offence has a ways to go before it's even an average overall unit. Is Childress capable of getting it to that middling level? I haven't seen much evidence that he can thus far.
Normally, the preview of the Vikings upcoming game would come first. But I thought I’d start off with a larger issue (pun intended) – the Pat Williams injury.
There are some Vikings bloggers out there – like Defensive Indifference and Pacifist Viking – who, although they love Williams, also think he is a tad overrated and that the Vikings defence will be just fine without him.
Short-term (and I’m talking a game or two here) that might be true. But long-term, (playoffs – if the Vikings make it), I disagree.
It's hard to accept that losing a player who has just 18.5 sacks in 169 NFL games and who is often replaced on passing downs (which, when we’re talking about the Minnesota Vikings defence, can be an awful lot of downs), could be such a troubling development.
But while defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier has been able to mask the loss of middle linebacker E.J. Henderson, doing the same in Williams' case will be tougher. That’s because there is no one quite like Pat Williams. Not on the Vikings roster. And not on any NFL roster.
Consider this. You have to go back to 1999 to find a season when the Vikings held opponents under four yards a carry when running the ball. Williams joined the team in 2005. Since 2006 Vikings opponents haven’t averaged more than 3.2 yards per carry (in 2005 opponents averaged four yards per carry.) Now that dominance against the run hasn’t all been because of Williams. The improved play of Henderson, Greenway, and Kevin Williams has helped. So has the play of other free agent signees like Antoine Winfield and Ben Leber. But Pat Williams is a big part of it.
I think Big Pat is the fulcrum for much of what the Vikings do on defence. When he is in the game, he’s almost impossible to move. It takes two players to block him and even then he often penetrates into the opposing backfield and blows up running plays.
When he doesn’t manage to do that, the space and blockers he occupies still frees up guys Napoleon Harris and Greenway to shoot through gaps and tackle running backs without anyone getting in their way. And as fine a player as Kevin Williams is, don’t tell me he’s not benefiting from Big Pat’s presence.
In any event, what the Vikings run-stuffing ways translates into is a lot of second-and-eights for opposing offences. That forces them into obvious passing situations, which allows the Vikings to unleash Jared Allen and Frazier’s blitz packages. This has worked out very well for the defence of late.
But now Big Pat is gone. Maybe for two games. Or maybe for the rest of the season. We don’t know yet. What I am pretty sure I do know is that the Vikings defence won’t be as effective as it has been without Pat Williams patrolling the middle. Opponents will eventually find ways to exploit his absence, especially potential playoff teams like Carolina, the Giants, Atlanta, Dallas and Tampa Bay. All of these squads like to run the ball. Take Pat Williams out of the equation and maybe they can even run against Minnesota, which will hurt the Vikings chances of not only making the playoffs, but of going very far if they get there.
Pat – get well soon
Vikings/Falcons
Matt Ryan. John Abraham. Roddy White. Michael Turner. Jerious Norwood.
These are the five Atlanta players that scare you if you are a Vikings fan.
Ryan is only having one of the best seasons a rookie quarterback has ever had. Abraham has 15.5 sacks but somehow wasn’t named to the Pro Bowl. White is second in the NFL in receiving yardage. Turner is second to Purple Jesus in rushing yards and Norwood is a dangerous kick off returner and change-of-pace back.
Together, they’ve helped the Falcons rise from the ashes of last season’s debacle to get to 9-5 and on the cusp of a wild card playoff spot.
Ryan isn't your normal rookie. But his shakier performances have mostly come on the road. So have most of the Falcons losses. The Metrodome is not an easy place to play. It's loud and the Vikings pass rush has been fierce there all season. Ryan doesn't get sacked much. But sacking him isn't the important thing. The important thing is for the Vikings to make him throw earlier than he wants to and to make him throw on the move more than he wants to. I think the Vikes can get that done.
The Falcons aren't just a pass-happy team though. They give the ball to Turner a lot. My fear is that those gaps Pat Williams would plug up if he was playing will turn into holes for Turner to run through with Fred Evans, Ellis Wyms, Letroy Guion and Jimmy Kennedy playing. That could lead more productive running plays for the Falcons, more manageable second and third down situations, more converted first downs and more points.
As for the Vikes offence, the team has announced Tarvaris Jackson will start on Sunday. He's been pretty good the last two games but he isn't going to win this game for the Vikings. As usual, the Vikes will need productive games from the offensive line, Adrian Peterson and Chester Taylor to be successful. If Peterson can hang onto the football, I think the Vikes will move the ball on the Falcons – and lock up the NFC North title.
The Skinny: Vikings 26-Falcons 20
Chilly
I've been thinking a fair bit over the past few weeks about whether it's a good thing if Brad Childress stays as head coach after this season is over.
I have no doubt he will be back. His team is guaranteed a 9-7 record at worst and even if the Vikings lose their last two games and don't make the playoffs, I can't see Zygi Wilf firing Childress when "progress" is being made.
But outside of a Super Bowl win, I think I'll still have serious misgivings about Childress staying as the Vikings head coach whether the team makes the playoffs or not.
And if the Vikings finish 10-6, or even 11-5 and take the division, I'm not sure that's something Childress deserves a great deal of kudos for. This is a team with a heck of a lot of talent. It should be an 11-5 team.
But while the defence seems to be getting better, the offence keeps on looking the same as it ever has under Childress. Let's not let the Arizona game cloud our judgement. The offence has a ways to go before it's even an average overall unit. Is Childress capable of getting it to that middling level? I haven't seen much evidence that he can thus far.
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Vikings hailed, NFL says "aloha" to Winfield
Football Outsiders' Ned Macey breaks down the Vikings 35-14 decimation of the Arizona Cardinals. Macey refers to the Vikes as a sleeper Super Bowl contender in this piece. Ned – take it easy. Vikings fans would prefer that their team be allowed to lie in the weeds a few more weeks.
The NFL announced its NFC and AFC Pro Bowl teams today. Six Vikings have been named to the NFC team, including Antoine Winfield. Nice to see Winfield get the nod here. It's three seasons overdue.
And I'm trying to round up the courage to write something objective, yet hopeful, about the injury to Pat Williams. So far, no dice.
How big a blow do you think this is to the Vikings playoff hopes?
The NFL announced its NFC and AFC Pro Bowl teams today. Six Vikings have been named to the NFC team, including Antoine Winfield. Nice to see Winfield get the nod here. It's three seasons overdue.
And I'm trying to round up the courage to write something objective, yet hopeful, about the injury to Pat Williams. So far, no dice.
How big a blow do you think this is to the Vikings playoff hopes?
Monday, December 15, 2008
Smile like you mean it
Wow.
Let me write that one more time.
Wow.
That's the best I can come up with after the Vikings administered a 35-14 beatdown of the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday.
It was a game many Vikings fans were worried about – including me. We worried Kurt Warner would torch the Vikings through the air. We worried the Cardinals would move the ball up and down the field, score a lot and turn the contest into a shootout. We worried a shootout would take Adrian Peterson and Chester Taylor out of the game. But mostly we worried how Tarvaris Jackson would do.
By halftime, those worries were over. And except for some shoddy tackling on one play in the third quarter that led to the first Cardinals touchdown and a blocked punt that was returned for the second, the Vikings played their first 60 minutes of dominating football in 2008. The pass rush was relentless. The tackling was spot on. The Vikings Achilles heel – punt and kick off coverage – was the best it’s been all season. The offensive line gave Jackson time to throw and ample holes for Peterson and Taylor to run through. And how about Tarvaris Jackson? Four touchdown passes! Four!
So nothing to be critical about in this one. Just kudos all around to Brad Childress and his staff, who had the right gameplan in place, and to the players, who executed that gameplan.
And aside from concerns about the health of Pat Williams (see below for an update on this situation), who had one arm in a sling post-game, the big issue this week is going to be who really is the Vikings starting quarterback: Jackson or Gus Frerotte?
A quarterback controversy is about to go down at Winter Park. But it isn't the kind of controversy we've gotten used to during the Chilly era, where the issue is over who we might play at quarterback that could suck less. In this case, if there is a controversy, or at least a vigorous debate, it’s because of what Jackson has done the past two games.
However, unlike a lot of Vikings fans right now, I still find myself only mildly impressed by what Jackson has done.
To be sure, it’s refreshing to see a Vikings QB throw not only multiple touchdown passes but also avoid multiple turnovers. This is something Frerotte has been unable to do. But to me, the Arizona game was eerily similar to the 41-17 drubbing of the Giants last year.
Both contests were perfect storms of sorts for the Vikings and Jackson. Some freak plays/turnovers allowed the Vikings to build an early lead and Jackson sprinkled in just enough nice throws to seal the deal.
But in both cases, Jackson wasn’t asked to do much and he didn’t have to do much. The Vikings most successful pass play is still the screen to Taylor. I haven’t seen enough evidence to feel confident that Jackson can consistently hit receivers beyond 10 yards; the kind of throws you need to make when the game is close and the running game isn’t quite working.
Jackson’s beautiful 59-yard touchdown pass to Bobby Wade was one of those types of throws. But it was just that – one throw. If the Vikings are down by a field goal or a touchdown late in a game, do I think Jackson can make those kind of throws over and over and get the Vikings a win when things don’t go as well as they did against Arizona? My answer to that question is “no” right now.
So, I’m still in support of riding the Gus Bus – even if the alignment is off, the tires are half-full and the oil needs to be changed.
But I could be persuaded to change my ride. Next Sunday’s game against the Atlanta Falcons will be Jackson’s latest opportunity to win me over.
Pat Williams update!
@#%$*&#!!!
Two-to-six weeks? Man, that just ain't right.
I bet you somewhere in New York City right now, Roger Goodell is having a vodka as big as your head.
Let me write that one more time.
Wow.
That's the best I can come up with after the Vikings administered a 35-14 beatdown of the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday.
It was a game many Vikings fans were worried about – including me. We worried Kurt Warner would torch the Vikings through the air. We worried the Cardinals would move the ball up and down the field, score a lot and turn the contest into a shootout. We worried a shootout would take Adrian Peterson and Chester Taylor out of the game. But mostly we worried how Tarvaris Jackson would do.
By halftime, those worries were over. And except for some shoddy tackling on one play in the third quarter that led to the first Cardinals touchdown and a blocked punt that was returned for the second, the Vikings played their first 60 minutes of dominating football in 2008. The pass rush was relentless. The tackling was spot on. The Vikings Achilles heel – punt and kick off coverage – was the best it’s been all season. The offensive line gave Jackson time to throw and ample holes for Peterson and Taylor to run through. And how about Tarvaris Jackson? Four touchdown passes! Four!
So nothing to be critical about in this one. Just kudos all around to Brad Childress and his staff, who had the right gameplan in place, and to the players, who executed that gameplan.
And aside from concerns about the health of Pat Williams (see below for an update on this situation), who had one arm in a sling post-game, the big issue this week is going to be who really is the Vikings starting quarterback: Jackson or Gus Frerotte?
A quarterback controversy is about to go down at Winter Park. But it isn't the kind of controversy we've gotten used to during the Chilly era, where the issue is over who we might play at quarterback that could suck less. In this case, if there is a controversy, or at least a vigorous debate, it’s because of what Jackson has done the past two games.
However, unlike a lot of Vikings fans right now, I still find myself only mildly impressed by what Jackson has done.
To be sure, it’s refreshing to see a Vikings QB throw not only multiple touchdown passes but also avoid multiple turnovers. This is something Frerotte has been unable to do. But to me, the Arizona game was eerily similar to the 41-17 drubbing of the Giants last year.
Both contests were perfect storms of sorts for the Vikings and Jackson. Some freak plays/turnovers allowed the Vikings to build an early lead and Jackson sprinkled in just enough nice throws to seal the deal.
But in both cases, Jackson wasn’t asked to do much and he didn’t have to do much. The Vikings most successful pass play is still the screen to Taylor. I haven’t seen enough evidence to feel confident that Jackson can consistently hit receivers beyond 10 yards; the kind of throws you need to make when the game is close and the running game isn’t quite working.
Jackson’s beautiful 59-yard touchdown pass to Bobby Wade was one of those types of throws. But it was just that – one throw. If the Vikings are down by a field goal or a touchdown late in a game, do I think Jackson can make those kind of throws over and over and get the Vikings a win when things don’t go as well as they did against Arizona? My answer to that question is “no” right now.
So, I’m still in support of riding the Gus Bus – even if the alignment is off, the tires are half-full and the oil needs to be changed.
But I could be persuaded to change my ride. Next Sunday’s game against the Atlanta Falcons will be Jackson’s latest opportunity to win me over.
Pat Williams update!
@#%$*&#!!!
Two-to-six weeks? Man, that just ain't right.
I bet you somewhere in New York City right now, Roger Goodell is having a vodka as big as your head.
Sunday, December 14, 2008
Week 15's two-minute drill
Vikes-Cardinals
The Vikings have yet to get blown out of a game this season. The Vikes biggest loss was by 13 points to the Titans. But today’s game against Arizona could be that blowout.
Playing on the road against a pass-first team, the Vikings could be in trouble, especially if they fall behind early. Conventional wisdom says the Vikings have to sustain several clock-killing drives in this one to keep Kurt Warner and his boys off the field and have a chance to win. I think the conventional wisdom is correct.
The offence
It looks like Tarvaris Jackson will be the starter. Head coach Brad Childress refuses to rule out Gus Frerotte. But we all know what Chilly is up to. He’s trying to create some doubt among the Cardinals defence as to what quarterback they will be facing, have them prepare for both and get some kind of competitive advantage in the process. But Frerotte’s got a fractured back and the Cards know it. I doubt they spent much time this week preparing for Gus.
This is actually a game where Jackson’s mobility and running skills could make a large impact, so I'm not broken up that Frerotte likely won't be playing. Arizona’s defence is not highly regarded. But they play much better at home than on the road. And they have several players – Darnell Dockett, Karlos Dansby, Adrian Wilson – who get after the quarterback and can be very disruptive. They attack opposing offences at home. A stationary Frerotte is a liability against this type of unit. I suspect even if he did play, he'd take some big shots and have to leave the game anyway. Having a quick quarterback playing like Jackson could be a blessing.
But I write "could be" because here’s the thing about Jackson. He really, really, really, really struggles hitting any receiver beyond 10 yards. Arizona knows this. If its defence takes away the slants, the screens to Chester Taylor and the underneath stuff to Bobby Wade and Sidney Rice, where is Jackson going to throw? The answer is nowhere and that's where the Vikings offence could be going with TJack taking the snaps.
The defence
I’ve been reading Mike Lombardi’s stuff at the National Football Post website a lot lately. Maybe I shouldn’t put much stock in the opinions of a guy who hasn’t been able to get an NFL job since 2007. But I find a lot of his points make sense, so I keep reading.
Here is his Arizona/Philly game preview from American Thanksgiving weekend. Read points one through four – this is where Lombardi explains how to defend the deadly Arizona passing game.
If Lombardi's correct, the Vikings habit of bending but not breaking on defence is the right tonic for the Cards. Lombardi says press coverage doesn't work against big, physical receivers like Anquan Boldin and Larry Fitzgerald. So laying off them and then tackling them immediately after they catch the ball will be important. They will catch some balls. But they can't get a lot of yards after the catch. The Vikings defensive backs generally tackle very well.
I think we have to accept the Cardinals will move the ball. There won't be a lot (or maybe any) three-and-outs. But the Vikings have to force Arizona to kick field goals rather than score touchdowns. Another one of Warner's wacky games where he fumbles the ball a few times and throws an interception or two would also help. Oh yeah – Jared Allen, Kevin Williams and Ray Edwards have to have big games.
The skinny
Overall, I'm not optimistic about this game. I think the Vikings will fall behind early. They'll have to play uphill. That will force them to throw the ball more than they would like, taking Peterson out of the game and putting it on Jackson to stay with Warner and the Cardinals offence. I don't think Jackson has it in him.
Cards 38 Vikings 20
The Vikings have yet to get blown out of a game this season. The Vikes biggest loss was by 13 points to the Titans. But today’s game against Arizona could be that blowout.
Playing on the road against a pass-first team, the Vikings could be in trouble, especially if they fall behind early. Conventional wisdom says the Vikings have to sustain several clock-killing drives in this one to keep Kurt Warner and his boys off the field and have a chance to win. I think the conventional wisdom is correct.
The offence
It looks like Tarvaris Jackson will be the starter. Head coach Brad Childress refuses to rule out Gus Frerotte. But we all know what Chilly is up to. He’s trying to create some doubt among the Cardinals defence as to what quarterback they will be facing, have them prepare for both and get some kind of competitive advantage in the process. But Frerotte’s got a fractured back and the Cards know it. I doubt they spent much time this week preparing for Gus.
This is actually a game where Jackson’s mobility and running skills could make a large impact, so I'm not broken up that Frerotte likely won't be playing. Arizona’s defence is not highly regarded. But they play much better at home than on the road. And they have several players – Darnell Dockett, Karlos Dansby, Adrian Wilson – who get after the quarterback and can be very disruptive. They attack opposing offences at home. A stationary Frerotte is a liability against this type of unit. I suspect even if he did play, he'd take some big shots and have to leave the game anyway. Having a quick quarterback playing like Jackson could be a blessing.
But I write "could be" because here’s the thing about Jackson. He really, really, really, really struggles hitting any receiver beyond 10 yards. Arizona knows this. If its defence takes away the slants, the screens to Chester Taylor and the underneath stuff to Bobby Wade and Sidney Rice, where is Jackson going to throw? The answer is nowhere and that's where the Vikings offence could be going with TJack taking the snaps.
The defence
I’ve been reading Mike Lombardi’s stuff at the National Football Post website a lot lately. Maybe I shouldn’t put much stock in the opinions of a guy who hasn’t been able to get an NFL job since 2007. But I find a lot of his points make sense, so I keep reading.
Here is his Arizona/Philly game preview from American Thanksgiving weekend. Read points one through four – this is where Lombardi explains how to defend the deadly Arizona passing game.
If Lombardi's correct, the Vikings habit of bending but not breaking on defence is the right tonic for the Cards. Lombardi says press coverage doesn't work against big, physical receivers like Anquan Boldin and Larry Fitzgerald. So laying off them and then tackling them immediately after they catch the ball will be important. They will catch some balls. But they can't get a lot of yards after the catch. The Vikings defensive backs generally tackle very well.
I think we have to accept the Cardinals will move the ball. There won't be a lot (or maybe any) three-and-outs. But the Vikings have to force Arizona to kick field goals rather than score touchdowns. Another one of Warner's wacky games where he fumbles the ball a few times and throws an interception or two would also help. Oh yeah – Jared Allen, Kevin Williams and Ray Edwards have to have big games.
The skinny
Overall, I'm not optimistic about this game. I think the Vikings will fall behind early. They'll have to play uphill. That will force them to throw the ball more than they would like, taking Peterson out of the game and putting it on Jackson to stay with Warner and the Cardinals offence. I don't think Jackson has it in him.
Cards 38 Vikings 20
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Who's to blame when Shiancoe does dick?
I didn't have time today to do a proper two-minute drill post or comment on the Pat and Kevin Williams situation. That's on the docket for tomorrow.
Instead, how about a post about a Vikings tight end?
Visanthe Shiancoe is having his best season as a pro and he’s arguably coming off the best game of his year and his career. So it’s a little sad that all anybody is talking about this week is his penis.
But there'll be no penis talk here. I'm more concerned with how Shiancoe is performing on the field.
And for much of this season the answer to that question has been, well, pretty good. Count me in as one of many Vikings fans who have been shocked that Shiancoe has transformed from a butterfingered non-entity into a living, breathing pass-catching tight end.
But even with Shiancoe enjoying a "breakout" year, his stats are pretty underwhelming by starting tight end standards. He's tied for 17th place among tight ends in catches and he ranks 15th in receiving yards. Now to be fair, Football Outsiders has him ranked very high in its baseline stats for tight ends and only Denver's Tony Scheffler has a higher yards-per-catch average among tight ends in the top 20 in catches and yardage. Still, Shiancoe's not anywhere near Tony Gonzalez or Chris Cooley territory.
And check out Shiancoe's numbers in the five previous games before Sunday's five catch/65 yards/one touchdown performance against Detroit.
Houston: 1 catch for 25 yards
Green Bay: 3 catches for 4 yards
Tampa Bay: 2 catches for 41 yards
Jacksonville: 3 catches for 60 yards
Chicago: 1 catch for 20 yards
That's an average of two catches and 30 receiving yards a game. In 13 games he's only caught four or more passes three times, with his season high being the five he caught against the Lions. Opposing defences (Canadian spelling alert) are always keyed up to stop Adrian Peterson. Bernard Berrian is also demanding the attention of defensive backfields everywhere this year. So why isn't Shiancoe being thrown to more? Is he just not getting open? Is it the fault of Tarvaris Jackson and Gus Frerotte? Or is the offensive playcalling of Brad Childress and Darrell Bevell to blame?
It's impossible for a football layman like me to answer those questions. But I have some theories.
For one, we know Jackson and Frerotte are mediocre quarterbacks even on their best days. It's quite possible their weaknesses – Jackson's inexperience, his decision-making and inaccuracy; Frerotte's decision-making, immobility and interception fetish – means the Vikings don't call as many pass plays as they might, which means less opportunities for Shiancoe. It also means there are times when maybe he's open but he doesn't get the ball because Gus is being sacked or Tarvaris is throwing the ball at Shiancoe's feet.
I think Childress and Bevell are also a problem. The Viking offence is very bland. It's not very creative. Chilly and Bevell don't seem to be able to find ways to get a player like Berrian – who's been extremely dangerous when he has been thrown the ball – involved in the offence consistently. I think the same thing is happening to Shiancoe.
Which is too bad. Shiancoe's has improved in catching the ball this season. His confidence seems to be high. He's making big plays when he's been thrown to. He seems capable of doing more.
But Shiancoe doesn't throw passes and he doesn't call the plays. Because of the talent level of the Viking quarterbacks and Childress' less-than-kick ass offence, Shiancoe isn't the weapon he could be. His production comes and goes. Mostly, it goes.
Instead, how about a post about a Vikings tight end?
Visanthe Shiancoe is having his best season as a pro and he’s arguably coming off the best game of his year and his career. So it’s a little sad that all anybody is talking about this week is his penis.
But there'll be no penis talk here. I'm more concerned with how Shiancoe is performing on the field.
And for much of this season the answer to that question has been, well, pretty good. Count me in as one of many Vikings fans who have been shocked that Shiancoe has transformed from a butterfingered non-entity into a living, breathing pass-catching tight end.
But even with Shiancoe enjoying a "breakout" year, his stats are pretty underwhelming by starting tight end standards. He's tied for 17th place among tight ends in catches and he ranks 15th in receiving yards. Now to be fair, Football Outsiders has him ranked very high in its baseline stats for tight ends and only Denver's Tony Scheffler has a higher yards-per-catch average among tight ends in the top 20 in catches and yardage. Still, Shiancoe's not anywhere near Tony Gonzalez or Chris Cooley territory.
And check out Shiancoe's numbers in the five previous games before Sunday's five catch/65 yards/one touchdown performance against Detroit.
Houston: 1 catch for 25 yards
Green Bay: 3 catches for 4 yards
Tampa Bay: 2 catches for 41 yards
Jacksonville: 3 catches for 60 yards
Chicago: 1 catch for 20 yards
That's an average of two catches and 30 receiving yards a game. In 13 games he's only caught four or more passes three times, with his season high being the five he caught against the Lions. Opposing defences (Canadian spelling alert) are always keyed up to stop Adrian Peterson. Bernard Berrian is also demanding the attention of defensive backfields everywhere this year. So why isn't Shiancoe being thrown to more? Is he just not getting open? Is it the fault of Tarvaris Jackson and Gus Frerotte? Or is the offensive playcalling of Brad Childress and Darrell Bevell to blame?
It's impossible for a football layman like me to answer those questions. But I have some theories.
For one, we know Jackson and Frerotte are mediocre quarterbacks even on their best days. It's quite possible their weaknesses – Jackson's inexperience, his decision-making and inaccuracy; Frerotte's decision-making, immobility and interception fetish – means the Vikings don't call as many pass plays as they might, which means less opportunities for Shiancoe. It also means there are times when maybe he's open but he doesn't get the ball because Gus is being sacked or Tarvaris is throwing the ball at Shiancoe's feet.
I think Childress and Bevell are also a problem. The Viking offence is very bland. It's not very creative. Chilly and Bevell don't seem to be able to find ways to get a player like Berrian – who's been extremely dangerous when he has been thrown the ball – involved in the offence consistently. I think the same thing is happening to Shiancoe.
Which is too bad. Shiancoe's has improved in catching the ball this season. His confidence seems to be high. He's making big plays when he's been thrown to. He seems capable of doing more.
But Shiancoe doesn't throw passes and he doesn't call the plays. Because of the talent level of the Viking quarterbacks and Childress' less-than-kick ass offence, Shiancoe isn't the weapon he could be. His production comes and goes. Mostly, it goes.
Monday, December 08, 2008
Odds and ends
It’s started. Tarvaris Jackson’s play against the Lions on Sunday has some Vikings observers at least wondering if the team might be better off starting TJack rather than Gus Frerotte.
But I agree with Kevin Seifert here. Jackson looked good. But he looked good against a bad Lions defence that had prepared all week to face Frerotte. That’s a lot different than putting up good numbers against, say, the Buccaneers or the Giants when they have had a week to scheme for Jackson.
What also bothers me is that Jackson didn’t really show us anything different in this game against the Leos. He was a bit more accurate with his throws but the throws were still short and safe. Jackson has always been able to make those throws. It’s the medium-to-long passes he hasn't been able to complete. And the one long throw he made to Bernard Berrian was way off the mark.
To sum it up: I’m not convinced Jackson will be able to make teams pay for stacking the line of scrimmage to stop Adrian Peterson. Frerotte has at least shown he can make teams pay. Make another QB switch and I guarantee we’ll be back here two games from now wondering why Brad Childress didn’t stick with Frerotte. These are the choices you are left with when you’ve got two guys who are backup material and you’re trying to pass them off as starters.
However, there is a good chance Jackson supporters may get their wish against Arizona. Frerotte is hurting. If Frerotte can't play, I’m extremely uncomfortable that we’re a Jackson injury away from starting the John David Booty era.
That’s how you earn that paycheck
Here is my underrated moment from Sunday’s win. Jared Allen gets hit low by the Lions Gosder Cherilus. Allen proceeds to get up and go after Cherilus. Ray Edwards steps in and gives Allen a bear hug, preventing Allen from getting anywhere near the Lions offensive tackle.
If that’s all Edwards does against the Lions, it would have been enough. Because if Allen makes it to Cherilus, there’s a good chance he’s coming at the Detroit rookie swinging, which gets Allen ejected from the game. That would not have been good for Minnesota. Edwards didn’t let it happen. Thanks, Ray.
That’s how you earn that paycheck – part two
My nomination for the second most underrated moment from Sunday’s win is Brad Childress’ challenge of Calvin Johnson’s 13-yard reception late in the fourth quarter. If the play stands, the Lions have a first down on the Vikings eight-yard line and are driving for a touchdown that gives them a 20-17 lead. Instead, Childress challenged the call, won the challenge and Detroit kicks a field goal to make it 17-16 Vikings.
I admit when Childress threw the red hanky, I thought it was another in a long list of bad challenges by the Vikes head coach. I remember immediately taking a swipe at an imaginary foe and spitting out “That’s a waste of a challenge. What’s he doing?” My three-year-old daughter then parroted those same words a few seconds later. (Whenever she does this, it always reminds me how ridiculous I must look and sound, yelling at a TV during Vikings game. Yet I continue to do it). I thought there was no way the ref would overrule the call. But he did, so that was one challenge that paid off for Childress.
But perhaps we should ask Childress why Benny Sapp was covering Johnson on the play in the first place? To be fair, the coverage wasn’t that bad. But I’d much rather see Johnson forced to beat Antoine Winfield on that play than the sixth-best defensive back on the Vikings roster. Let Sapp cover Keary Colbert or John Standeford.
Law and order
I was really hoping we could move on with the Kevin and Pat Williams suspension drama. But the boys continue to fight their respective four-game bans and so here comes another week of “will they or won’t they” speculation.
For what it’s worth, NFL Network’s Adam Schefter seems to think this matter won’t get settled until the off-season and the Williamses will be available for however long the Vikings 2008 season lasts.
But I agree with Kevin Seifert here. Jackson looked good. But he looked good against a bad Lions defence that had prepared all week to face Frerotte. That’s a lot different than putting up good numbers against, say, the Buccaneers or the Giants when they have had a week to scheme for Jackson.
What also bothers me is that Jackson didn’t really show us anything different in this game against the Leos. He was a bit more accurate with his throws but the throws were still short and safe. Jackson has always been able to make those throws. It’s the medium-to-long passes he hasn't been able to complete. And the one long throw he made to Bernard Berrian was way off the mark.
To sum it up: I’m not convinced Jackson will be able to make teams pay for stacking the line of scrimmage to stop Adrian Peterson. Frerotte has at least shown he can make teams pay. Make another QB switch and I guarantee we’ll be back here two games from now wondering why Brad Childress didn’t stick with Frerotte. These are the choices you are left with when you’ve got two guys who are backup material and you’re trying to pass them off as starters.
However, there is a good chance Jackson supporters may get their wish against Arizona. Frerotte is hurting. If Frerotte can't play, I’m extremely uncomfortable that we’re a Jackson injury away from starting the John David Booty era.
That’s how you earn that paycheck
Here is my underrated moment from Sunday’s win. Jared Allen gets hit low by the Lions Gosder Cherilus. Allen proceeds to get up and go after Cherilus. Ray Edwards steps in and gives Allen a bear hug, preventing Allen from getting anywhere near the Lions offensive tackle.
If that’s all Edwards does against the Lions, it would have been enough. Because if Allen makes it to Cherilus, there’s a good chance he’s coming at the Detroit rookie swinging, which gets Allen ejected from the game. That would not have been good for Minnesota. Edwards didn’t let it happen. Thanks, Ray.
That’s how you earn that paycheck – part two
My nomination for the second most underrated moment from Sunday’s win is Brad Childress’ challenge of Calvin Johnson’s 13-yard reception late in the fourth quarter. If the play stands, the Lions have a first down on the Vikings eight-yard line and are driving for a touchdown that gives them a 20-17 lead. Instead, Childress challenged the call, won the challenge and Detroit kicks a field goal to make it 17-16 Vikings.
I admit when Childress threw the red hanky, I thought it was another in a long list of bad challenges by the Vikes head coach. I remember immediately taking a swipe at an imaginary foe and spitting out “That’s a waste of a challenge. What’s he doing?” My three-year-old daughter then parroted those same words a few seconds later. (Whenever she does this, it always reminds me how ridiculous I must look and sound, yelling at a TV during Vikings game. Yet I continue to do it). I thought there was no way the ref would overrule the call. But he did, so that was one challenge that paid off for Childress.
But perhaps we should ask Childress why Benny Sapp was covering Johnson on the play in the first place? To be fair, the coverage wasn’t that bad. But I’d much rather see Johnson forced to beat Antoine Winfield on that play than the sixth-best defensive back on the Vikings roster. Let Sapp cover Keary Colbert or John Standeford.
Law and order
I was really hoping we could move on with the Kevin and Pat Williams suspension drama. But the boys continue to fight their respective four-game bans and so here comes another week of “will they or won’t they” speculation.
For what it’s worth, NFL Network’s Adam Schefter seems to think this matter won’t get settled until the off-season and the Williamses will be available for however long the Vikings 2008 season lasts.
Sunday, December 07, 2008
Just win baby
Prior to the second half kick-off in Sunday's Minnesota-Detroit game, Fox cameras panned the Vikings sideline and caught Pat Williams and a couple of other members of the team whiffing smelling salts.
Big Pat and his teammates might want to try that tactic a little earlier next time. The NFC North leaders were in need of a wake-up call well before that point as the squad fumbled, bumbled and stumbled its way to a 6-3 deficit after 30 minutes of dreadful football against the winless Lions.
Fortunately for the Vikings, the smelling salts seemed to work (except for Cedric Griffin, whose dreadlocks are still swaying in the breeze created by Calvin Johnson on that 70-yard touchdown catch). The Vikes came out a different team – notably on offence – in the second half and won 20-16. The victory keeps the Vikings one game ahead of Chicago in the race for the NFC North title.
Because the win wasn't the dominating ass-whupping Vikings fans were hoping for, it's tempting to get all hot and bothered about the Vikings performance in this one and say it doesn't bode well for their final three games, or the playoffs – if they make it that far.
And the truth of it is, I was plenty hot and bothered by the Vikings play during the game. Watching the defensive line jump offside every other play, watching Gus Frerotte revert to Bad Gus instead of simply Mediocre Gus and watching Adrian Peterson apparently playing with lard on his hands every Vikings offensive series will do that to a guy.
But if you forget the intimate details of how they did it, Vikings fans like myself shouldn't have been all that surprised, or even that upset, by what they saw. It's kind of like being a Red Sox fan and getting pissed all those times when Manny Ramirez wouldn't hustle running out a ground ball. They called it "Manny being Manny." Well, on Sunday against the Detroit, the Vikings were just being the Vikings. They have yet to play a solid 60 minutes of football this season – regardless of who the opposition is; the offence really struggles when Peterson is bottled up and they turn the ball over way too much. It's who they are and we should know this by now.
But somehow, in spite of all that, the Vikings have won five or their last six games. And in each of those wins, a handful of individual performances has been enough to overcome all the bad stuff.
The win over the Lions was much the same. Perhaps the only surprising thing is the performance that was most responsible for the win – the play of Tarvaris Jackson.
Yes, you read that correctly, Tarvaris Jackson deserves the game ball in this one. After taking over for the injured Frerotte in the second half, Jackson led the Vikings to two touchdown drives and looked like the kind of quarterback Vikings fans had hoped he would be when the season began and he was still the starter.
Except for one pass that should have been intercepted, he was accurate, composed, mobile and made key plays in pressure situations with his arm (the TD throw to Visanthe Shiancoe; the 3rd and four completion to Bobby Wade). If Frerotte hadn't got hurt and Jackson stays on the sideline wearing his headset and his hat backwards, I think the Vikings might have lost this one.
But the Vikings didn't lose and they have Jackson to thank for it. Who would've believed that could happen?
The Vikings haven't been impressive in fashioning their 8-5 record. But they are winning anyway. Next on the hit list is Kurt Warner and the Arizona Cardinals. Chicago gets another home game against the Saints.
If the Vikings want to keep their slim NFC North lead, I'd advise them to break out the smelling salts prior to gametime next Sunday.
Big Pat and his teammates might want to try that tactic a little earlier next time. The NFC North leaders were in need of a wake-up call well before that point as the squad fumbled, bumbled and stumbled its way to a 6-3 deficit after 30 minutes of dreadful football against the winless Lions.
Fortunately for the Vikings, the smelling salts seemed to work (except for Cedric Griffin, whose dreadlocks are still swaying in the breeze created by Calvin Johnson on that 70-yard touchdown catch). The Vikes came out a different team – notably on offence – in the second half and won 20-16. The victory keeps the Vikings one game ahead of Chicago in the race for the NFC North title.
Because the win wasn't the dominating ass-whupping Vikings fans were hoping for, it's tempting to get all hot and bothered about the Vikings performance in this one and say it doesn't bode well for their final three games, or the playoffs – if they make it that far.
And the truth of it is, I was plenty hot and bothered by the Vikings play during the game. Watching the defensive line jump offside every other play, watching Gus Frerotte revert to Bad Gus instead of simply Mediocre Gus and watching Adrian Peterson apparently playing with lard on his hands every Vikings offensive series will do that to a guy.
But if you forget the intimate details of how they did it, Vikings fans like myself shouldn't have been all that surprised, or even that upset, by what they saw. It's kind of like being a Red Sox fan and getting pissed all those times when Manny Ramirez wouldn't hustle running out a ground ball. They called it "Manny being Manny." Well, on Sunday against the Detroit, the Vikings were just being the Vikings. They have yet to play a solid 60 minutes of football this season – regardless of who the opposition is; the offence really struggles when Peterson is bottled up and they turn the ball over way too much. It's who they are and we should know this by now.
But somehow, in spite of all that, the Vikings have won five or their last six games. And in each of those wins, a handful of individual performances has been enough to overcome all the bad stuff.
The win over the Lions was much the same. Perhaps the only surprising thing is the performance that was most responsible for the win – the play of Tarvaris Jackson.
Yes, you read that correctly, Tarvaris Jackson deserves the game ball in this one. After taking over for the injured Frerotte in the second half, Jackson led the Vikings to two touchdown drives and looked like the kind of quarterback Vikings fans had hoped he would be when the season began and he was still the starter.
Except for one pass that should have been intercepted, he was accurate, composed, mobile and made key plays in pressure situations with his arm (the TD throw to Visanthe Shiancoe; the 3rd and four completion to Bobby Wade). If Frerotte hadn't got hurt and Jackson stays on the sideline wearing his headset and his hat backwards, I think the Vikings might have lost this one.
But the Vikings didn't lose and they have Jackson to thank for it. Who would've believed that could happen?
The Vikings haven't been impressive in fashioning their 8-5 record. But they are winning anyway. Next on the hit list is Kurt Warner and the Arizona Cardinals. Chicago gets another home game against the Saints.
If the Vikings want to keep their slim NFC North lead, I'd advise them to break out the smelling salts prior to gametime next Sunday.
Friday, December 05, 2008
Week 14's belated two-minute drill
Vikes-Lions
Is an analysis of this game necessary?
Detroit is 0-12. They are a horrible team. And they are getting more horrible each and every week. Pat and Kevin Williams will be able to play. The Vikings should win this game easily – even though it’s on the road
There’s your analysis.
Of course, most people thought the Baltimore Ravens were going to beat the 0-13 Miami Dolphins last December. The Dolphins won 22-16. There is also this business of the first time the Vikings and Lions played, where, were it not for a very questionable pass interference call on Detroit’s Leigh Bodden, the Vikes may have lost that game.
This matchup probably terrifies most Vikings fans. It should. This is the kind of game Minnesota has specialized in losing the past decade. The Lions probably feel this is their best chance at winning a game this season (Detroit's remaining games are at Indy and Green Bay and at home against New Orleans). They might actually be fired up for this one.
And here is something to watch out for in this one: Aside from the debacle that was the Tennessee game, the Lions have had a habit of grabbing early leads and then giving up those leads.
The Vikings must prevent that from happening here. Not only is Minnesota a team that doesn’t play catch-up well but the longer this game is competitive, the more likely it is that the Lions players will actually give a damn, believe they can win and pull off the upset. The Vikings need to step on the Motor City Kitties throat early and not step off of it until the final whistle.
Early this week when the suspensions of Kevin and Pat Williams were announced, I tried to take a glass-is-half-full approach. With the Williams boys out of the lineup, I figured the Lions would try to run more, which might be good, because I’m in favour of anything that de-emphasizes Calvin Johnson and his 18.3 yards per reception average and eight touchdowns.
Well, that ain't happening now. Expect Detroit to throw a lot. And now that I think about it, that's fine. Because anything that emphasizes Daunte Culpepper dropping back to pass, taking sacks, fumbling and doing all the other wacky things Culpepper seems to do on the field these days is okay with me.
A couple of weeks ago I figured this was a game the Vikings would lose. But the Lions have been so bad recently I can’t make that call now. Plus, the return of the Williams boys should give the Vikings a lift. Anything but an absolute throttling of the Lions on Sunday will be a disappointment. And I expect to be disappointed. This game will be closer than it should be. But the Vikings will still win and that keeps them on top of the NFC North.
The skinny: Vikings 27-Lions 17
Dollars and sense
I'm not in favour of the gamble the Williams brothers have taken – deciding to fight their four game suspensions in court rather than serve them, get it over with, and then be rested (and eligible) for the playoffs, assuming the Vikings make it.
But a couple of readers have pointed out that fighting this thing is a financial necessity for Big Pat – and to a lesser extent as well for KW. Check out this post by John Clayton. The players don't get paid while they are suspended. So a four game suspension is going to cost Pat Williams just over $940,000. Kevin Williams will lose around $235,000. And because both players have been suspended for using banned substances, they aren't eligible to be selected to the Pro Bowl, which probably costs them another 100 grand or more in incentives.
Football may have made Pat Williams a wealthy guy. But I imagine Big Pat's got a big house (or three) and fancy cars and plenty of bills to pay. He can't afford to lose almost a million dollars. He can't afford not fight this suspension – as long as there is some chance that he can win it. And Kevin Williams probably is looking at it the same way.
So while I don't like the fact the Williamses have gone to court to fight their suspensions because it delays those suspensions and may cost the Vikings the services of the Great Wall of Wlliamses for an important playoff game or games, as John Clayton writes, the players have done the math. The math has won out.
Is an analysis of this game necessary?
Detroit is 0-12. They are a horrible team. And they are getting more horrible each and every week. Pat and Kevin Williams will be able to play. The Vikings should win this game easily – even though it’s on the road
There’s your analysis.
Of course, most people thought the Baltimore Ravens were going to beat the 0-13 Miami Dolphins last December. The Dolphins won 22-16. There is also this business of the first time the Vikings and Lions played, where, were it not for a very questionable pass interference call on Detroit’s Leigh Bodden, the Vikes may have lost that game.
This matchup probably terrifies most Vikings fans. It should. This is the kind of game Minnesota has specialized in losing the past decade. The Lions probably feel this is their best chance at winning a game this season (Detroit's remaining games are at Indy and Green Bay and at home against New Orleans). They might actually be fired up for this one.
And here is something to watch out for in this one: Aside from the debacle that was the Tennessee game, the Lions have had a habit of grabbing early leads and then giving up those leads.
The Vikings must prevent that from happening here. Not only is Minnesota a team that doesn’t play catch-up well but the longer this game is competitive, the more likely it is that the Lions players will actually give a damn, believe they can win and pull off the upset. The Vikings need to step on the Motor City Kitties throat early and not step off of it until the final whistle.
Early this week when the suspensions of Kevin and Pat Williams were announced, I tried to take a glass-is-half-full approach. With the Williams boys out of the lineup, I figured the Lions would try to run more, which might be good, because I’m in favour of anything that de-emphasizes Calvin Johnson and his 18.3 yards per reception average and eight touchdowns.
Well, that ain't happening now. Expect Detroit to throw a lot. And now that I think about it, that's fine. Because anything that emphasizes Daunte Culpepper dropping back to pass, taking sacks, fumbling and doing all the other wacky things Culpepper seems to do on the field these days is okay with me.
A couple of weeks ago I figured this was a game the Vikings would lose. But the Lions have been so bad recently I can’t make that call now. Plus, the return of the Williams boys should give the Vikings a lift. Anything but an absolute throttling of the Lions on Sunday will be a disappointment. And I expect to be disappointed. This game will be closer than it should be. But the Vikings will still win and that keeps them on top of the NFC North.
The skinny: Vikings 27-Lions 17
Dollars and sense
I'm not in favour of the gamble the Williams brothers have taken – deciding to fight their four game suspensions in court rather than serve them, get it over with, and then be rested (and eligible) for the playoffs, assuming the Vikings make it.
But a couple of readers have pointed out that fighting this thing is a financial necessity for Big Pat – and to a lesser extent as well for KW. Check out this post by John Clayton. The players don't get paid while they are suspended. So a four game suspension is going to cost Pat Williams just over $940,000. Kevin Williams will lose around $235,000. And because both players have been suspended for using banned substances, they aren't eligible to be selected to the Pro Bowl, which probably costs them another 100 grand or more in incentives.
Football may have made Pat Williams a wealthy guy. But I imagine Big Pat's got a big house (or three) and fancy cars and plenty of bills to pay. He can't afford to lose almost a million dollars. He can't afford not fight this suspension – as long as there is some chance that he can win it. And Kevin Williams probably is looking at it the same way.
So while I don't like the fact the Williamses have gone to court to fight their suspensions because it delays those suspensions and may cost the Vikings the services of the Great Wall of Wlliamses for an important playoff game or games, as John Clayton writes, the players have done the math. The math has won out.
It's official
The Detroit Lions will have to run through the Great Wall of Williamses after all.
More on this in a belated two-minute drill post later. My initial reaction is that while the Vikings will have their starting defensive tackles this Sunday, Kevin and Pat Williams, their lawyers and the Vikings are taking a big gamble here and I don't like it.
More on this in a belated two-minute drill post later. My initial reaction is that while the Vikings will have their starting defensive tackles this Sunday, Kevin and Pat Williams, their lawyers and the Vikings are taking a big gamble here and I don't like it.
Tuesday, December 02, 2008
Show us something
I may be getting ahead of myself a bit here considering this court injunction business may save their hides yet, but the news that the NFL has suspended Pat and Kevin Williams for testing positive for a banned substance means it’s very possible our All-Pro defensive tackles could be out for the Vikings final four games of the season.
The suspensions come at a terrible time for the Vikings, who are making a playoff run. But if the court injunction either fails or doesn’t materialize, the Vikings must do what good teams are supposed to do – move on and win even when the circumstances suggest they shouldn’t.
The Vikes situation got me thinking today about something that happened to me almost 25 years ago while playing high school hockey.
Bear with me here for the next couple of minutes.
That year there was this big road game we had against the league’s best team. We were a pretty solid team ourselves. But our upcoming opponents were bigger than us. They were faster than us. They had more depth. They had more skill. They had better scorers, a better power play and a better penalty kill. In just about every area – except for goaltending – they were better than us. And we usually didn’t do very well when we played them in their home rink.
Now I don’t remember exactly how it happened (I think a lot of our team had caught the flu bug), but just a few days before the game occurred it became clear we weren’t going to be playing at full strength. In fact, about half our team wouldn’t be making the trip – including our first-string goalie.
And he wasn’t just our first-string goalie. He was our only goalie. He had played every minute of every game of that season up to that point. As for our backup goaltender, a guy named Louis, he really wasn’t a goaltender at all. He had tried out for the team as a defenceman. But he couldn’t skate very well. Our coach cut him.
Fortunately for Louis, nobody else had tried out for the goalie position besides our first-string guy. And you can’t go into a hockey season with only one goaltender. What if he gets hurt?
So we needed a backup. Our coach decided to ask Louis if he wanted to do it – probably because he recognized Louis had worked hard during tryouts and really wanted to be on the team. Louis said yes.
And so Louis sat and he sat. He never played. In fact, he was told by our coach that he would not play. He accepted that. He understood he wasn’t a goalie. He was a safety net. A guy who would go in there in case our starter got hurt, so one of the regular players didn’t have to. The entire team hoped that day would never come.
Of course, it did come and with our regular goalie unable to play, Louis was about to play in a real game for the first time – against the best team in the league. And he’d do it playing for a team that only had, I think, eight or nine players in the lineup that night (most hockey team's dress 16-18 players).
I can’t remember what the exact score was. I think it ended up being 3-1 or something like that. But we won that game – a game we had no business winning.
How did we do it?
Well, for starters, we got lucky. I think the other team hit about five or six goal posts that night.
Louis also stood on his head. He was awkward in everything he did, and sometimes it was more a case of the puck hitting him than him stopping the puck, but just about every shot they fired at him – and they fired plenty that night – he managed to keep out of the net.
Finally, the players we did have that night played their hearts out. We hustled. We played smart. We never gave up. Every player played at a higher level than they usually did. We had to. We would have got blown out otherwise.
I bring this up now because if the Williams twins do miss the final four games of this season, the Vikings are going to have to do something similar to what our team did 25 years ago. They will have to win without the benefit of being able to put their best team on the field. They'll have to succeed in less than ideal circumstances.
To do that they will have to be fortunate and get some breaks. They are also going to need their best players who can still play, guys like Jared Allen and Adrian Peterson and Antoine Winfield, to play at a higher level than they have ever played at. The Vikings will also need some of the lesser regarded players to punch above their weight – guys like Fred Evans and Ellis Wyms and maybe even rookie Letroy Guion – and pick up the slack if the Williams boys can’t suit up.
Bucking the odds and exceeding expectations isn’t something the Vikings have excelled at, especially during the Brad Childress era. But now it appears they have no choice but to do exactly that.
It’s time for the Vikings to show us what they are made of. We’ll be watching.
The suspensions come at a terrible time for the Vikings, who are making a playoff run. But if the court injunction either fails or doesn’t materialize, the Vikings must do what good teams are supposed to do – move on and win even when the circumstances suggest they shouldn’t.
The Vikes situation got me thinking today about something that happened to me almost 25 years ago while playing high school hockey.
Bear with me here for the next couple of minutes.
That year there was this big road game we had against the league’s best team. We were a pretty solid team ourselves. But our upcoming opponents were bigger than us. They were faster than us. They had more depth. They had more skill. They had better scorers, a better power play and a better penalty kill. In just about every area – except for goaltending – they were better than us. And we usually didn’t do very well when we played them in their home rink.
Now I don’t remember exactly how it happened (I think a lot of our team had caught the flu bug), but just a few days before the game occurred it became clear we weren’t going to be playing at full strength. In fact, about half our team wouldn’t be making the trip – including our first-string goalie.
And he wasn’t just our first-string goalie. He was our only goalie. He had played every minute of every game of that season up to that point. As for our backup goaltender, a guy named Louis, he really wasn’t a goaltender at all. He had tried out for the team as a defenceman. But he couldn’t skate very well. Our coach cut him.
Fortunately for Louis, nobody else had tried out for the goalie position besides our first-string guy. And you can’t go into a hockey season with only one goaltender. What if he gets hurt?
So we needed a backup. Our coach decided to ask Louis if he wanted to do it – probably because he recognized Louis had worked hard during tryouts and really wanted to be on the team. Louis said yes.
And so Louis sat and he sat. He never played. In fact, he was told by our coach that he would not play. He accepted that. He understood he wasn’t a goalie. He was a safety net. A guy who would go in there in case our starter got hurt, so one of the regular players didn’t have to. The entire team hoped that day would never come.
Of course, it did come and with our regular goalie unable to play, Louis was about to play in a real game for the first time – against the best team in the league. And he’d do it playing for a team that only had, I think, eight or nine players in the lineup that night (most hockey team's dress 16-18 players).
I can’t remember what the exact score was. I think it ended up being 3-1 or something like that. But we won that game – a game we had no business winning.
How did we do it?
Well, for starters, we got lucky. I think the other team hit about five or six goal posts that night.
Louis also stood on his head. He was awkward in everything he did, and sometimes it was more a case of the puck hitting him than him stopping the puck, but just about every shot they fired at him – and they fired plenty that night – he managed to keep out of the net.
Finally, the players we did have that night played their hearts out. We hustled. We played smart. We never gave up. Every player played at a higher level than they usually did. We had to. We would have got blown out otherwise.
I bring this up now because if the Williams twins do miss the final four games of this season, the Vikings are going to have to do something similar to what our team did 25 years ago. They will have to win without the benefit of being able to put their best team on the field. They'll have to succeed in less than ideal circumstances.
To do that they will have to be fortunate and get some breaks. They are also going to need their best players who can still play, guys like Jared Allen and Adrian Peterson and Antoine Winfield, to play at a higher level than they have ever played at. The Vikings will also need some of the lesser regarded players to punch above their weight – guys like Fred Evans and Ellis Wyms and maybe even rookie Letroy Guion – and pick up the slack if the Williams boys can’t suit up.
Bucking the odds and exceeding expectations isn’t something the Vikings have excelled at, especially during the Brad Childress era. But now it appears they have no choice but to do exactly that.
It’s time for the Vikings to show us what they are made of. We’ll be watching.
What took 'em so long?
More on this later.
For now, bad news. But it's really not a surprise. I can't remember an NFL player every winning this kind of appeal. This gets really messy for everyone if the suspended players seek an injunction.
For now, bad news. But it's really not a surprise. I can't remember an NFL player every winning this kind of appeal. This gets really messy for everyone if the suspended players seek an injunction.
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