Over and out (for now)

It's not Thanksgiving in Canada (we had it in the middle of October), but you wouldn't know it based on my blogging activity this week on the site.

It's been a slow week here at Grant's Tomb and, in reality, a slow month. I've warned in previous posts that due to my new job, I might not be able to keep blogging about the Vikings. Well, after almost a month of thinking about it, I've decided this will be my last post of the season on here. There's just not enough time with the new job responsibilities and regular family responsibilities to blog on a regular basis. And if I'm not going to blog on a regular basis, I don't think there's any point in blogging at all.

I'm going to keep the site up though, in case things change and I can devote more time to it at a later date. But right now, I can't.

Thanks to everyone who bothered to stop by over the past two-plus years. I'll continue to watch the Vikings every Sunday and read other Viking bloggers who are actually, you know, blogging. So far, this has been a special season for the Vikes. I'm disappointed I won't be writing about it to the end.

The Minnesota Vikings – kicking ass and taking names

This might be my last post for a while, so I can't resist writing a few things about Sunday's 36-10 win over Chicago Bears.

Coming into the contest, here were a few of the thoughts swirling around my brain.

1. I watched Jay Cutler play against the Eagles last week and he looked rattled. His body language was terrible and he was shown berating himself after many of his misfires. His offensive line struggles to protect him when he drops back to pass. They also struggle to open holes for Matt Forte. This was all good news for a Vikings defensive line. You can't let a guy as talented as Cutler get comfortable back there – he might find his mojo and play well for a change. I also didn't expect Cutler to get picked off much. The Vikings had only seven interceptions through 10 games.

2. The Vikings d-backs and linebackers would have to tackle well because the Bears offence features a ton of short passes.

3. I also worried about Viking turnovers and the Bears return men – Devin Hester (on punts) and Danieal Manning and Johnny Knox (on kick-offs.)

4. Offensively, the Vikings had been incredibly consistent coming into the Bears game, They'd scored 30 or more points six times and 27 points three times. They had scored big against bad defences (Cleveland and Detroit) and very good defences (San Francisco and Baltimore.)

ESPN's Kevin Seifert had unearthed some scary statistics about Brett Favre's play against Chicago in recent years (scroll down to the "With that said" section of the post), but the way Favre had performed thus far, and with the multitude of weapons he has to work with in Minnesota, I didn't see him playing poorly in this one. And, of course, Adrian Peterson has run wild against the Bears the previous two seasons. I expected the Vikings would be able to move the ball on an average Bears defence with frequency.

As it turned out, the Bears return game was an issue (Manning and Knox both had big returns) and turnovers would have been an issue as well if not for a smart challenge by Brad Childress on Adrian Peterson's second fumble. But turnovers were even more of an issue for the Bears. Cutler was picked off twice deep in Vikings territory and Knox's fumble on a kick-off return led to another three points for the Vikings as they built up an insurmountable 24-7 halftime lead. It might be going too far to say the outcome would have been different had the Bears not committed those turnovers, but they certainly didn't help Chicago's cause.

But really, the Bears were not going to win this game with the way the Vikings offence performed. If not for Peterson's case of fumblitis and a batch of silly penalties (I'm not sure I've seen an uglier sequence of football than what transpired following Chester Taylor's second half touchdown nullified by a bogus Bernard Berrian holding penalty), the Vikes might have scored 50 points.

With Favre playing as well as he is right now, the Vikings offence is incredibly balanced and dangerous – every bit as unstoppable as the 1998 Vikings offence was. But it has been pretty much all year. What's really encouraging for me is the defence finally looks like it's hitting its stride. The unit has given up 10, nine and 10 points, respectively, the past three games. Those totals were put up against Detroit, Seattle and Chicago – teams that aren't very good – but the defence has still looked dominant. Remember when we were complaining about the likes of St. Louis moving the ball up and down the field on them?

A few other things worth noting:

- It would have been a pity if Jared Allen didn't get a sack today. He was disruptive the entire game, forcing Cutler to get rid of the ball early and his pressure on Cutler was the real reason Ray Edwards and Pat Williams got their sacks.

– As for Williams, I always enjoy it when the big fella' gets a sack. It's a nice reward for a player who makes his living in the trenches, occupying two or three blockers at a time. By the way, his career high is 3.5 sacks (set in '98. What a year!) He now has two.

– I thought the offensive line's pass protection was excellent. As for the run blocking – why does it seem like Peterson never has any holes to run through?

– Bernard Berrian had his most effective day of the season (six catches for 74 yards.) If he's finally right physically – I think his hamstring issues have bothered him all season – he makes the Vikings offence even more dangerous.

This was a crucial game for the Bears. They needed a win to keep their faint playoff hopes alive. But it was a crucial game for the Vikings as well. They need to keep pace with New Orleans for the fight for home field advantage in the playoffs. They also needed to keep their three-game lead over the Packers – with Green Bay now 7-4 and suddenly playing well again. The Vikings win likely sews up a divisional title for them.

Well done, Vikings. Well done.

P.S. – please keep it up.

Could it be true?
The National Football Post's Matt Bowen slobbers over the Vikings. Scary stuff. But after watching the Vikings play lately, Bowen might be right.