Quotulatiousness

December 25, 2011

Vikings win yesterday was bittersweet: they won the game, but lost Adrian Peterson

Filed under: Football, History, Military — Tags: , , , , — Nicholas @ 14:00

The game at Washington was never going to change much in the playoff picture: neither team is going to the post-season this year, but both teams were playing for pride. In the end, the Vikings won despite losing their starting quarterback and all-world running back on sequential plays. The win was a bit of a palliative for a doomed season, but the injury to Adrian Peterson sets next season into question.

Christopher Gates dips into his history texts to find the best way to describe yesterday’s game:

Pyrrhic victory (PIR-ik VIK-tuh-ree) n. A victory that is offset by staggering losses

The term “phyrric victory” is named after King Pyrrhus of Epirus, who did battle with the Romans in the Battle of Heraclea in 280 B.C. and the Battle of Asculum in 279 B.C. In both battles, the Romans suffered greater casualties than Pyrrhus’ army did. . .however, the Romans had a significantly larger base from which to draw troops. So, in essence, Pyrrhus’ victories came at too high a price, as he even went so far as to say that another such victory would be his undoing.

That’s pretty much what we saw today at FedEx Field in Washington, D.C., as the Minnesota Vikings fought like hell when it would have been easy to roll over, and got themselves a 33-26 victory over the Washington Redskins. The victory guarantees that they will a) not be the single-worst team in Minnesota Vikings’ history in terms of win-loss record, and b) no longer eligible for the top overall pick in the 2012 NFL Draft.

While I still think Christian Ponder will develop into a good, dependable NFL quarterback, I’ve been a fan of Joe Webb since he was drafted. I’m delighted to see that he is getting the opportunity to showcase his diverse skill set, and I’d be even happier if the team can work him into games more regularly.

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October 31, 2011

Vikings hang on to defeat Panthers at home, 24-21

Filed under: Football — Tags: , , , , , , — Nicholas @ 08:34

For what was billed as a team that couldn’t stop the run, Carolina certainly kept Adrian Peterson bottled up for much of the day — at least on the ground. Peterson didn’t break 100 yards of rushing, but he made up for that in receiving yards with 162 yards in total. Cam Newton did awful things to the Vikings’ secondary including a big completion on fourth-and-fourteen that kept the Panthers’ final drive alive. Christian Ponder put in a good performance at quarterback for the Vikings, making no serious mistakes and keeping the chains moving on third down, especially in the second half.

Carolina looked snake-bit early in the game, with several ugly plays that the Vikings failed to fully capitalize on. Their first possession lasted exactly one play as a strip-sack handed the ball over to the Vikings deep in Panther territory. Middle linebacker E.J. Henderson hit Newton forcing the ball out, and Jared Allen came up with the loose ball. Allen also had a sack later in the half, which also forced Newton to fumble. Allen set a new team record with a sack in ten consecutive games.

Percy Harvin, on the other hand, had a much more up-and-down game. He scored a rushing touchdown, but was also stripped of the ball deep in Panthers’ territory, and also drew a 15-yard penalty for what looked like a fistfight with Carolina’s Captain Munnerlyn well off the playing field (actually at the Panthers’ bench).

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October 10, 2011

Vikings finally keep a lead through an entire game

Filed under: Football — Tags: , , , , , — Nicholas @ 11:00

The 2011 Minnesota Vikings had developed a terrible habit of only playing well in the first half of games, allowing teams to beat them in the second half. Last week’s game didn’t fit the pattern, as the team played terribly in both the first and the second half. This week started to look like the pattern had been re-established as the Vikings played an excellent ground game and took advantage of turnovers to jump out to a 28-3 lead at the half (time of possession favoured the Cardinals 2:1 at this point).

Cynics among the fan base were wondering how Arizona was going to come back from that deep a deficit — not if, but how. Well the cynics were wrong: the Cardinals couldn’t come back from being that far down, so the Vikings finally win their first game of the season. The pattern did hold true, though, as Arizona did outscore the Vikings in the second half, just not by enough.

Christopher Gates of the Daily Norseman:

The Vikings were paced by a huge first quarter, in which they tied a franchise record by scoring 28 points in the game’s first fifteen minutes. The only other time they’ve accomplished that was in a blowout victory over the Green Bay Packers on September 28, 1986. The four touchdowns in that game were all touchdown passes by Tommy Kramer. . .the four touchdowns the Vikings got today all came via the ground, with three from Adrian Peterson (from 4, 24, and 14 yards) and a 4-yard run by Donovan McNabb.

The defense keyed the fast start as well, as they were dominant in the first quarter of play. The Cardinals’ first 13 offensive plays consisted of three three-and-outs, two turnovers, another fumble that went out of bounds, and one completed pass. Jared Allen and Brian Robison each had two sacks on the afternoon, and JaMarca Sanford intercepted two Kevin Kolb passes on the afternoon, with Asher Allen throwing in a third.

As several people have noted, Sanford’s two picks now give him the same number of catches on the season as our putative number one receiver, Bernard Berrian (who was deactivated for this game). The other player on the hotseat, quarterback Donovan McNabb, didn’t make a strong case for himself either, completing only 10-of-21 for 169 yards which moves his passer rating to a very mediocre 80 for the season.

Jeremy Fowler at the Vikings Now blog:

But the spotlight is still placed directly on the passing game, which has struggled with or without the inactive Bernard Berrian. Take away McNabb’s 60-yard gain to receiver Devin Aromashodu midway through the third quarter — an impressive across-the-middle throw, to be sure — and McNabb was 9-of 21 for 109 yards.

He was 3-of-10 on third down for the day while routinely missing receivers short on short or intermediate routes — sometimes five or six yards short. Cardinals defenders dropped what should have been two easy interceptions. Percy Harvin, the Vikings’ top receiver, got two targets and caught one pass for 12 yards. “There is no go-to guy right now,” McNabb said. “We’re all still getting comfortable in this offense and working on each other’s timing and chemistry.”

Maybe Christian Ponder’s not ready, and that’s fine. But McNabb must improve the accuracy for the Vikings to survive the next two weeks entering the teeth of the NFC North schedule. Speaking of the schedule…

Dan Zinski at The Viking Age:

Much of the anxiety, expressed by Metrodome fans in the form of boos, was no doubt the lingering result of psychological trauma incurred during the previous three second half choke jobs – but a lot of it was due simply to the shaky play of McNabb. The quarterback once again showed a sometimes alarming lack of accuracy on his passes, and even his better passes were wobbly and not quite on-target. The big pass of the second half, a 60-yarder to Devin Aromashodu, looked like some kind of dying bird fluttering through the air before finally landing safely in the receiver’s hands. And even worse: an attempted short pass to Visanthe Shiancoe that landed five yards in front of the intended receiver, causing the fans to jeer, McNabb to laugh and Shiancoe to get into it with his quarterback on the sideline.

This week McNabb got away with his lame-duck passes, thanks to Adrian Peterson’s hard running and the defense’s uncharacteristic ball-hawking, but that doesn’t mean the McNabb problem has suddenly disappeared. Accuracy remains a big issue for this quarterback and I don’t see that reality changing any time soon. The Vikings were fortunate that this week they faced a quarterback, Kevin Kolb, who is possibly even worse than McNabb. The defense stepped up big and Peterson did his part – even though he once again found tough sledding in the second half – but you can’t expect that sort of performance every week. At some point you need your quarterback to contribute more than 169 yards on 48% passing. A win is great but it doesn’t erase the fact that the passing game is still not anywhere near effective enough for this team to compete consistently.

September 19, 2011

Vikings blow 17-point halftime lead, lose to Bucs

Filed under: Football — Tags: , , , , , — Nicholas @ 08:12

For the second week in a row, the Minnesota Vikings had the lead at halftime, then went on vacation for the second half of the game. Unlike last week, the Vikings lead after 30 minutes due primarily to their own efforts, with a strong running game and a passing game that gained more than 39 yards (last week’s total). It just wasn’t enough of a cushion to allow the team to check out for the second 30 minutes of play.

Mark Craig:

The Vikings blew a 10-point lead at San Diego, losing 24-17 in Week 1. But as bad as that was, the sequel was much worse considering the level to which the Vikings were dominating the league’s youngest team at home at halftime.

The Vikings led in total yards, 284-62; first downs, 17-3; rushing yards, 137-23; and, well, everything else.

“I’ve been playing a long time,” receiver Michael Jenkins said. “Eight years now, and I don’t think I’ve ever seen a game that different from one half to the next half.”

Obviously, a pattern has been established: The Vikings are a 30-minute team in a 60-minute league. And they trail the Green Bay Packers and Detroit Lions by two games in the NFC North heading into Sunday’s home game against a Lions team that has won six consecutive games and is coming off a 48-3 victory over Kansas City.

Jim Souhan:

The Vikings haven’t just begun the 2011 with two losses, they’ve blown two games with poisonous second-half performances that call into question the ability of their coaches to adapt during games, their offensive philosophy, their choice of veteran quarterbacks and their ability to fulfill the lofty expectations of ownership.

Since 1990, only 12.5 percent of NFL teams that have lost their first two games of the season have made the playoffs, and we can probably make a leap of logic and guess that an even smaller percentage made the playoffs after getting outscored 41-3 in the first two second halves of the year.

The Vikings have begun a season in which they proclaimed themselves contenders and during which they are seeking approval for a billion-dollar stadium by treating the second half the way your average downtown office worker treats Friday afternoon. They’ve taken off early.

The Christian Ponder era gets closer with each loss, but for Ponder’s sake, I hope he doesn’t need to step in this soon in his rookie season.

During the first half, Adrian Peterson went into the record books again, as he scored the first of two rushing touchdowns, moving him into first place in team history for rushing TDs.

Update: As Christopher Gates reminds us, the Vikings have to make a roster move this week to make room for Kevin Williams, who is returning after his two-week suspension in the StarCaps case. Who does he want to see get cut to clear space?

The first one would be Bernard Berrian. I said this last week, and I’ll say it again . . . this guy never should have been on the roster coming out of camp. He’s a speed receiver with no speed, and shows absolutely no will or desire when the ball is coming his way. In two games this season, he has one more reception than I do. [. . .] Or, if you’re going to cut a defensive player, look no further than Tyrell Johnson. Jamarca Sanford has clearly outplayed Johnson this season at the safety spot opposite of Husain Abdullah, and Johnson’s missed interception that could have, potentially, sealed the deal for the Vikings this afternoon is basically the last straw for me. If we’re going to try to work some young guys into the lineup this season, get Johnson the heck out of town and give Mistral Raymond some run in his place.

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September 12, 2011

Vikings drop season opener to Chargers, 24-17

Filed under: Football — Tags: , , , , , , — Nicholas @ 08:20

Aside from an electrifying start, as Percy Harvin ran the opening kickoff all the way back for a TD, this game was forgettable for both teams.

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March 18, 2011

Adrian Peterson changes the tone, but not in a good way

Filed under: Football, Media — Tags: , , — Nicholas @ 13:01

Tom Powers thinks that Adrian Peterson has accomplished what many thought to have been impossible: improving the public view of the NFL owners.

With one slip of the tongue, Adrian Peterson irrevocably has altered public perception with regard to the NFL labor situation. A.P. has accomplished the seemingly impossible: He has made the bad guys look good. Or at least better.

Suddenly, NFL owners, the greediest group of cutthroat, self-indulgent operators since Al Capone’s gang ran roughshod over Chicago, stand in a more favorable public light. And they can wave a disapproving finger at the players and announce to the fans: “Now do you see what we’re dealing with here?”

The other day, Peterson called the owners’ treatment of the players “modern-day slavery.” He was making a lot of sense right up until he uttered those magic words. He had talked about the unmitigated greed of the owners and about how they were trying to wring more money from their employees. Then he made the slavery comparison. Since A.P. is due a base salary of close to $11 million next season, it’s not hard to imagine how all the working stiffs out there viewed those comments.

Because of the impasse, Powers now thinks the best solution is pretty drastic:

It’s too bad because, make no mistake about it, if NFL football goes missing this fall, it’s the owners’ doing and not the players.’ The players are the good guys in these negotiations.

Their careers are short. They get beat up more than any other athletes. They have lingering injuries that hamper them for the rest of their lives. Meanwhile, the filthy-rich owners want a bigger percentage of the revenue pie. In fact, they want a big fat slice right off the top.

OK, what’s done is done. Now everybody looks bad. And just like the 1994 negotiations that almost killed baseball, both sides are so busy trying to gouge each other that they are displaying precious little regard for the cash customers who, in reality, fund the whole damn operation. They are the ones who buy the tickets and merchandise. They are the ones who send the TV ratings — and thus the advertising revenue — through the roof.

So now I think the best thing that could possibly happen is for the NFL to disappear for a year. I hope the labor negotiations reach an impasse and the season is canceled. Then maybe reality will set in for all concerned. The mighty need to be humbled. In a year, with luck, they’ll all realize that the sun doesn’t rise and set on their fannies. They’ll realize that everyone survived just fine without them. And then maybe they won’t take it all for granted anymore.

December 29, 2010

Vikings surprise Eagles in rare Tuesday game

Filed under: Football — Tags: , , , , , , — Nicholas @ 12:56

The Minnesota Vikings were two-touchdown underdogs to the Philadelphia Eagles, and some said even that overstated how much of a mismatch this game was going to be. It was such a foregone conclusion that the game wasn’t even broadcast in my area.

As they say, however, the predictions are just guesses. The game certainly didn’t go the way it was expected to:

The victory was sparked by Adrian Peterson’s 118-yard rushing performance and an astute defensive game plan that put consistent pressure on Eagles quarterback Michael Vick. But it also was the result of a performance by a Philadelphia team that looked as if it had spent far too much time celebrating clinching the NFC East on Sunday, when the Packers beat the Giants.

The Eagles were called for 12 penalties as they lost to the Vikings for the first time since the 1997 season, ending a five-game winning streak. The Vikings had not won at Philadelphia since 1985. Philadelphia’s performance was reminiscent of the Arizona Cardinals’ effort in 2008 after they clinched the NFC West and then lost to the Vikings 35-14.

“It was an absolutely pathetic job on my part of getting my team ready to play,” Eagles coach Andy Reid said. “We didn’t coach well and we didn’t play well. It was a complete tail-whipping right there.”

Normally, as Gregg Easterbrook constantly points out, the team that blitzes too much gets burned by the quarterback throwing to his “hot read” (who is uncovered because the defender is blitzing). That wasn’t the case last night:

A game plan designed by Frazier, who had been defensive coordinator before taking over for the fired Brad Childress on Nov. 22, and interim defensive coordinator Fred Pagac made sure Vick was never was able to get comfortable because he faced a variety of looks and was consistently pursued by Antoine Winfield, who blitzed both from the corner and inside.

Vick was sacked six times and finished with an interception and two lost fumbles, including a crucial one late in the second quarter when Winfield stripped the ball from him on a sack, then picked it up and raced 45 yards for a touchdown that tied the score 7-7. Winfield finished with two sacks.

I had been looking forward to watching the game particularly to see how Joe Webb handled his first NFL start at quarterback. He seems to have done well enough:

Webb, meanwhile, got better as the game went along in his first career start, completing eight of 11 passes for 124 yards in the second half. He led the Vikings on scoring drives in their first two series of the third quarter, the first ending with a 30-yard field goal by Ryan Longwell and the second with a 9-yard touchdown run by the raw quarterback, who didn’t see open tight end Visanthe Shiancoe on the play.

Brett Favre is still the starter, if he’s healthy, so there isn’t a quarterback controversy. Whether he’ll be healthy for the final game at Detroit’s Ford Field on Sunday is still unknown.

December 6, 2010

Vikings win in Turnover Bowl

Filed under: Football — Tags: , , , , , , , , — Nicholas @ 08:26

Yesterday’s game in Minneapolis wasn’t expected to be very entertaining: a 2-9 team visiting an out-of-conference 4-7 team isn’t quite ratings gold. The turnovers started early in the game, as Brett Favre went down to a backside hit while throwing, putting the ball up for grabs. Buffalo got the ball and, at least for a few minutes, the momentum.

Favre was injured and Tarvaris Jackson came in to start the next series. Jackson threw an interception that Buffalo ran back for the first score of the game.

After that, it got entertaining — if you were a Vikings fan, anyway.

A month ago, the play that transpired with 4 minutes, 43 seconds left in the first quarter Sunday would have led to the Vikings’ undoing.

Tarvaris Jackson, in place of injured Brett Favre, threw a pass that Buffalo cornerback Drayton Florence stepped in front of and returned 40 yards for a touchdown and a seven-point lead. Under Brad Childress, that would have been a “here we go again” moment.

But under interim coach Leslie Frazier, Florence’s touchdown ended up as a footnote following the Vikings’ 38-14 demolition of a Bills team that looked every bit a bad as its 2-10 record at Mall of America Field.

Favre’s injury was reported as a sprained sternoclavicular joint and he’ll undergo an MRI today to determine the extent of the damage. Interim head coach Leslie Frazier said that if Favre could play next week, he’d play — that is, there’s no quarterback controversy here.

Rookie Chris DeGeare made his first start, replacing Steve Hutchinson, and only got mentioned for a false start penalty. That’s good: when you don’t hear the names of your offensive linemen, that usually means that they’re doing a good job. Also on the injury list were Percy Harvin and Ray Edwards. Adrian Peterson was a game-time decision with his sprained ankle from last week (he played, gained 107 yards and scored 3 touchdowns).

Sidney Rice played a great game — he’s finally back in 2009 form, going over 100 yards receiving and scoring two TDs. He clearly was the missing element in the first half of the season.

Joe Webb, the Vikings’ third string quarterback was on the active roster for the first time this season, as a receiver/kick returner, but injured his hamstring and left the game. Running back Toby Gerhart was the replacement KR (replacing Webb, who was playing in place of Harvin). This might have created a problem if Jackson had been injured, as neither Favre nor Webb could go back into the game. Luckily, the issue didn’t arise.

It seemed like a good idea, but Webb’s day ended in the first quarter when he suffered a pulled right hamstring while playing on a punt return.

“I was expecting a lot” of action at receiver, Webb said. “The coaches told me during the week. We had a couple of banged-up guys and they were going to need me to lineup there. I just had my chance to do a couple of things. My [hamstring] just gave out on me but it’ll be all right.”

Frazier acknowledged the Vikings had a “package” of plays for Webb.

Webb’s athletic ability is such that the Vikings decided to give him his first-ever reps on kickoff returns Friday and then trusted him enough to have him return Sunday’s first kick. Webb took the ball 30 yards to the Vikings 35.

“I was trying to pop it out,” he said. “That was my first time ever running a kickoff return. Now that I’ve got a chance to see it and know how I can read it up, I’m sure the next one will be a lot different.”

November 29, 2010

Vikings get first road win since November 2009

Filed under: Football — Tags: , , , , , , , — Nicholas @ 08:47

It was the second-longest losing streak on the road, after Detroit, and now it’s broken. The Vikings won in Washington yesterday, 17-13, without the services of Adrian Peterson who was injured in the first half and did not return to the game. Peterson was replaced in the lineup by rookie Toby Gerhart, who did a good job on the ground (22 runs for 76 yards and a touchdown).

Three other factors were a change from the rest of the season: it was into the fourth quarter before the Vikings had a penalty assessed against them, they had zero turnovers, and they scored on their first drive of each half. Even with all of that, they were lucky to get a Redskins special teams TD called back on a block-in-the-back penalty.

Judd Zulgad wrote:

Frazier indicated there would be tweaks in the offense and defense in the week leading to his first game as an NFL head coach. Quarterback Brett Favre appeared to roll out more often, and Fred Pagac, who is serving as de facto defensive coordinator, called more blitzes than Frazier had when he was coordinating that unit. McNabb was sacked four times.

Favre passed for only 172 yards, but one of his most important plays came with his feet late in the game. That’s right: A 41-year-old playing with a stress fracture in his left ankle, another fracture in his heel and a head and chest cold he speculated might be pneumonia took off on a 10-yard scramble that produced a first down at the Redskins 14 with two minutes left and effectively secured the game.

“That’s always the best play in the playbook,” Favre said after taking a knee three times to run out the clock. “It felt good to be able do that. [We] did that a lot last year. This year we haven’t played with the lead. We had the lead most of the game, but it didn’t really seem like it. We were up, but we’re just missing that knockout punch. Once again we hung in there [and] collectively each and every guy had a part in it.”

October 11, 2010

Let’s hope it’s 1975 all over again

Filed under: Football — Tags: , , , , , — Nicholas @ 11:17

I find it hard to believe it, but that’s the only time the Vikings have ever beaten the Jets:

With WR Randy Moss expected to play, the Vikings now have the vertical outside threat they need to allow Percy Harvin to play the slot, where his versatility is put to better use. And stretching the defense will only make RB Adrian Peterson more explosive as the Jets will have to pick their poison. Moss will likely be shadowed by CB Darrelle Revis (hamstring), who returns after missing a game and last week said Moss didn’t always play 100 percent during their Week 2 matchup against New England.

Jets QB Mark Sanchez has thrown eight touchdown passes over the past three games and gets WR Santonio Holmes back from suspension to add another downfield weapon. Sanchez’s ability to keep moving the offense will be key as the Vikings allow just 3.6 yards per carry and back quarterbacks into consistent third-and-long situations. Minnesota’s pass defense has improved with the returns of CB Cedric Griffin.

[. . .]

- The Vikings’ only victory over the Jets came on Oct. 12, 1975, when they beat New York, 29-21, at Metropolitan Stadium in Bloomington, Minn.
- The Vikings will be happy to be playing in the New Meadowlands. They never beat the Jets in their former home, going 0-4 at the Meadowlands against them.
- The Vikings have played the second fewest games out of any NFL team against the Jets, only having met them eight times since 1970.

[. . .]

SERIES HISTORY: 9th regular-season meeting. Jets lead series, 7-1. York has won six in a row dating to the 1979 season. The Vikings’ only win in the series was in 1975.

September 27, 2010

Detroit improves, but not enough to beat Vikings

Filed under: Football — Tags: , , , , — Nicholas @ 08:36

Yesterday’s 24-10 victory was a result of two things going well for the Vikings: the base defence and Adrian Peterson. Peterson ran for 160 yards and two touchdowns (including a career-long 80 yard run), while the defence kept Detroit to three-and-out several times. All of Detroit’s points came from turnovers. Brett Favre had a less-than-stellar outing, with only 201 yards passing for one touchdown and two interceptions, being sacked twice and hit several other times.

On their first offensive play, the Vikings lost starting center John Sullivan to a calf injury. Ryan Cook looked quite good coming off the bench to replace him. Later in the game, Visanthe Shiancoe had a leg injury and left the field.

Minnesota’s passing game is still very much a work in progress: although Favre distributed the ball to lots of receivers, it was almost all short passes. The longest pass was the touchdown reception by Percy Harvin, and that appears to have been a defensive miscue, leaving Harvin uncovered.

It was the first NFL start for rookie cornerback Chris Cook, who was injured in the preseason and the first start of the season for Cedric Griffin, who is now fully recovered from his torn ACL in the NFC championship game.

September 20, 2010

Vikings put themselves deeper in the hole

Filed under: Football — Tags: , , , , , — Nicholas @ 09:35

I didn’t see yesterday’s game . . . and it sounds as if I missed a really disappointing viewing opportunity:

Sunday’s loss came down to missed opportunities for the Vikings, who wasted Adrian Peterson’s first regular-season 100-yard rushing performance since last Nov. 15 against Detroit.

The stats indicate this was a one-sided game — in the Vikings’ favor.

They ran 72 offensive plays to 46 for the Dolphins. They had 364 total yards to 226 for Miami and controlled the ball for 35 minutes, 48 seconds.

But when faced with crucial situations, the Vikings failed. They converted five of 14 third-down opportunities and were unsuccessful on three of four fourth-down attempts. The Vikings brought the ball into the red zone five times but came away with only one touchdown.

Favre threw three interceptions — one more than all of last season at home — and committed a crucial fumble in the third quarter, recovered by Miami linebacker Koa Misi in the end zone for a touchdown and a 14-0 Dolphins lead.

Tom Powers wonders how long it’ll be before the team (or the fans) reach for that panic button:

The magic is gone. Or at least it has been misplaced.

Brett Favre and the Vikings’ offense had labored all game Sunday at the Metrodome. But with 1:42 left, they took the field, trailing by four points, 55 yards from victory. Favre has made a career out of situations such as these. And not one soul from among the sellout crowd for the season’s first home game had dared move toward the exit. This was Favre time.

On the sideline, coach Brad Childress felt confident. Despite watching Favre occasionally misfire against the Dolphins and watching a sub-par receiving corps struggle to make plays, he was convinced something good was about to happen. He could sense it.

“You do,” he agreed afterward. “And we had a timeout left.”

Not this time. What in the past would have been a final, glorious Vikings touchdown drive fizzled. The last play was a raggedy-looking short pass toward Visanthe Shiancoe over the middle. Then the Vikings walked off the field, heads down, staring at an oh and two record after their 14-10 loss to the Miami Dolphins.

Somewhere in Vikings Land there is a big red button just waiting to be pushed. Then sirens will wail and buzzers will bellow. Then it officially will be time to panic. Can that button be pushed after just two games?

So, Brett Favre has now had his post-pre-season workout . . . will he be back in synch with his receivers next week? It took three regular season games last year, against weaker opponents than the first two this year. The defence is in late-season form: they’ve been doing more than their share of the fighting, it’s the other guys in the passing attack who haven’t been picking up the slack.

Bernard Berrian is making a case for him not being with the team next year: this was his big opportunity to prove that he’s a number one receiver, but he’s not making the case (Powers is even harsher, “Bernard Berrian is about as useful as a hood ornament”). Visanthe Shiancoe once again was the leading receiver, and Adrian Peterson had his best running performance in more than a year . . . but the wide receivers didn’t show up on the stat sheet.

It’s not impossible for the Vikings to right the ship and sail on to a division title . . . it’s just the next thing to impossible at 0-2 with the Packers doing everything right.

August 23, 2010

San Francisco 15, Vikings 10

Filed under: Football — Tags: , , , , , , — Nicholas @ 08:43

Last night’s preseason game had a brief cameo appearance by Brett Favre, who only completed one pass to Adrian Peterson, and then took a big sack. Favre got up smiling after the sack, so he wasn’t hurt by it, but it was Peterson’s man who got through to Favre. Peterson needs to be better at picking up blitzes in order to stay on the field in third down situations (Chester Taylor used to do third down blocking, but he’s with Chicago this year).

Tarvaris Jackson took over at quarterback after the first series, and played the remainder of the first half. The Vikings’ offensive line didn’t show great form, allowing another sack of Jackson (that was Chris Clark’s man getting the sack) and allowing several hits on him as he released the ball. The defensive line wasn’t its usual dominant self either, as the 49ers were able to score the first points of the game against the Vikings’ starters. E.J. Henderson got his first start after coming back from a late-season injury that many thought might be a career-ender. The defensive backfield had a different look to it, with cornerback Antoine Winfield only playing one series, then giving way to second-round pick Chris Cook. The other corner was manned by Lito Sheppard and Asher Allen playing alternating series. Jamarca Sanford started at strong safety, then alternated with last season’s starter Tyrell Johnson.

Joe Webb, who the Vikings originally planned to convert to wide receiver, made a strong case for sticking on the regular season roster:

Webb, a sixth-round pick out of Alabama-Birmingham, completed seven of 14 passes for 47 yards in the fourth quarter and, more important, ran for 53 yards on three carries, including a 48-yard touchdown with 1 minute, 54 seconds left. He then showed his inexperience by getting sacked on the final play of the game for a safety.

The Vikings likely won’t get much of a look at Webb on Saturday night in their third game of the preseason against Seattle. It will be the Vikings’ exhibition home opener and, as is usually the case, the starters are expected to play into the third quarter. That will include Favre, who must get settled back into this offense after missing the first two weeks of training camp.

The problem for the Vikings is that they plan to carry only three quarterbacks on the roster, and Favre, Jackson, and Sage Rosenfels all returned from last season. Webb could be a good quarterback — given a year or two of seasoning — but he’s looked too good in his brief opportunities to risk trying to sneak him on to the practice squad, which may mean the Vikings need to hold a regular roster spot open for him.

January 25, 2010

Vikings dominant in all categories, except the most important one

Filed under: Football — Tags: , , , , , — Nicholas @ 08:04

Minnesota looked great in the stat sheet: total yards — 475 yards to 257, passing — 310 yards to 189 and rushing 165 to the Saints’ 68. But there was one big number they couldn’t overcome: turnovers. It was as if someone had greased the football, with Adrian Peterson fumbling twice (once on the Saints’ goal line) and recovering a third. Even Percy Harvin let one get away from him, while Brett Favre was picked off twice (once to kill the Vikings’ best chance to win in regulation time). The Saints, by comparison, played almost turnover free, except for a bad decision on fielding a punt by Reggie Bush.

Brett Favre took a beating, as Saints defenders took every opportunity to hit him (only drawing a penalty once for a flagrant hit). Near the end of the third quarter, Favre was so slow getting up again that it appeared he’d be leaving the game. After having his ankle examined and re-taped, Favre re-entered the game on the next series. He must have been quite emphatic about it with the coaches, as backup Tarvaris Jackson didn’t even start warming up.

Chip Scoggins talked with Adrian Peterson after the game:

Adrian Peterson came out of the locker room — still dressed in full uniform — to watch the New Orleans Saints celebrate their first trip to the Super Bowl. As fans cheered, confetti fell and the Saints gathered on a stage at midfield, Peterson stood silent and watched the scene from the tunnel.

“It was painful,” he said. “Especially the way the game ended. Our guys fought hard and I honestly feel like we just gave the game away. Too many turnovers. It came back at the end to bite us.”
Peterson had a hand in that. Though he finally rushed for 100 yards and scored three touchdowns, Peterson also fumbled two times and took responsibility for the botched handoff at the end of the first half.

Peterson finished with 122 yards rushing on 25 carries, ending a streak of eight games without reaching the 100-yard mark. But his performance was marred by his fumbles and he admitted afterward that he started thinking too much about his mistakes.

“After the first one close to the goal line, I let it play in my head too much,” he said. “I came out the second half and was thinking about it too much. I had to get my mind back focused and not thinking about it when I was out there.”

Peterson’s fumbling problem became a major issue in his third season. He fumbled seven times, losing six of them in the regular season. He said he will spend the offseason trying to solve it.

January 19, 2010

TMQ’s view of the Minnesota-Dallas playoff game

Filed under: Football — Tags: , , , , , — Nicholas @ 13:05

I don’t always agree with Gregg Easterbrook, but I always find him an interesting writer. Here’s some of his observations on the Vikings-Cowboys game:

Brett Favre, Peyton Manning, Drew Brees — the run-up to Title Weekend is sure to focus on them. For my money, the Colts, Jets, Saints and Vikings made the championship round because they have the league’s four best offensive lines.

Ninety percent of the action in football occurs away from the ball. When Jersey/B runners burst into the clear, or Favre casually dissects a defense, what’s going on is terrific blocking. Manning was sacked less than any other NFL quarterback this season because the Colts’ offensive line is tremendous. The Jets are in the championship round because of the holes their blockers open. The Vikings’ and Saints’ offensive lines both pass-block and run-block equally well, which is a rare combination. The TV commentators will be watching the glory boys holding the football. I’ll be watching the offensive lines. All four are tremendous.

[. . .] between a first-ever chance to host an NFC title game, and the travails of the city of New Orleans, there will be more energy in the Superdome on Sunday than in Iron Man’s pulse reactor. The sheer atmosphere-power within the facility may exceed the crowd feeling of any other game in NFL history. The Vikings are 9-0 at home this season, and 4-4 on the road — the only quality team they beat on the road was the Packers. NFL players are not intimidated by crowd noise. But it won’t just be crowd noise, it will be energy. The Vikings face an uphill climb.

Adrian Peterson — remember him? He hasn’t had a 100-yard rushing game since Nov. 15. The New Orleans run defense is weak, while its pass defense is strong. A conservative, rush-oriented game plan might be just what the doctor ordered considering New Orleans’ personnel and the need to keep the Saints’ league-leading offense off the field. But with Brett Favre and Brad Childress both preoccupied with pumping up Favre’s stats (see below) will Minnesota be able to bring itself to do the smart thing and use a conservative game plan?

When the Saints have the ball, you just never know what is going to happen. They probably don’t either, which is the joy of watching this team. When attention turns to the Vikings, all eyes are on Favre. But what makes Minnesota special is the best pair of lines in the league. The offensive line is stout, the defensive line is fantastic. The Vikings just clobbered the Cowboys via superior line play — if they are to win in New Orleans, their lines will be the key.

I’m looking forward to watching the Saints-Vikings game, but Easterbrook’s praise of Minnesota is a tad overdone. The offensive and defensive lines are good, but they have had some bad outings in the last month, and the offensive line is much better at pass blocking than run blocking (Adrian Peterson is one of the best running backs in the NFL, but even he can’t run if there are no running lanes opened up for him). It’s also not yet known how bad the leg injury to Ray Edwards was (no official word until tomorrow). If he can’t play, it’ll depend on Jared Allen fighting through double-team blocking without the same threat from the other side of the line.

The Brett-Favre-to-Sidney-Rice connection has been wonderful, but after Sunday’s game, New Orleans will be double-teaming Rice all afternoon. Percy Harvin, Bernard Berrian, and Visanthe Shiancoe will have to get open much more this week than they did this time. New Orleans is supposed to be weak against the run (they’ve jumped ahead in most games, so teams have had to throw against them to try to catch up). I hope that’s true, and that Adrian gets some good run blocking to let him do what he’s proven he can do best: hit those lanes and take it to the house.

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