SB Nation User Blog: MilCardFan

Good-Bye, Bad-Bye

MilCardFan — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 22:35:26 -0000

I want to use this space to write about the Vikings and how they performed coming out of the bye week. This is the 20th anniversary of the bye week in the NFL schedule, and it came at the perfect time for the Minnesota Vikings. That said, it never comes at a good time for us, the fans. Quite frankly, the bye week sucks.

I’ve been married for twenty years, or longer than the bye week has been around, and every year the bye week sucks, and every year the overall suckitude of the bye week gets worse. Well, this year was okay, because both Green Bay and Chicago lost in separate, yet equally embarrassing fashion, but did I get to see any of it? No, I did not. Why? Please refer to the ‘I’ve been married for 20 years’ comment. I have a great wife, and how she’s managed to put up with me for 20 years I’ll never know. I just gratefully accept that there’s someone on this earth who doesn’t think I’m a complete dick, and move on to ponder other things. Like where I left my damn car keys…getting old sucks.

Anyways, I play this cat and mouse game with my wife of ‘Hide the Bye Week’ every year since I got the Sunday Ticket, because it is the one weekend that my wife automatically assumes is hers from early September to early February. About Wednesday, she’ll ask who the Vikings are playing. And every year, I’m a dope, because for 16 weeks, I spit out the opponent, home or away, time the game comes on, and what station it is on. And when I say ‘spit out’ I mean it’s out within two seconds, like it’s something I’ve known since childhood. On the bye week, I say something lame, like ‘I’m not sure’, or ‘I haven’t looked it up yet’, and she has me. I’m gooned, and the plans she has been scheming for three to eleven weeks are hatched upon me, much like D-Day was launched on the continent of Europe. You know it’s coming, but you’re not sure where and with how much force.

This season? Pretty bad. I got carted off to antique shops (oooooh, what a nice armoire), the grocery store (baby, go over two aisles and get me some pomegranates), a local garden store (don’t these marigolds look pretty, honey?), and then I spent the rest of the day doing shit around the house. Shit I normally wouldn’t have to do, mind you, but for the damn bye week. The driveway has been weather sealed, the garage got cleaned, we finalized plans for finishing off the basement.

Oh, the Vikes are an all-time 16-4 coming out of the bye (there were two bye weeks in 1993, an especially painful year), and they should kick the hell out of Detroit. Sorry, I gotta go clean the gutters. See you Sunday.

Those who were against the Favre signing

MilCardFan — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 23:00:05 -0000

I was wondering if you've been able to reconcile yout anti-Favre feelings halfway through the season and are you on board with the move now, or are you still against the move? If so, why? I'm genuinely interested in hearing what your opposition is.

I still have friends that are trying to compartmentalize their anti-Favre feelings as they watch what is possibly the greatest Vikings team in over 10 years. For full disclosure, I was on board with signing Favre from the beginning and have been ecstatic to see what's transpired on the field to this point. And I'm on board right now for him coming back next year, if he wants to and if he's healthy. And if he does the drama of the retire/unretire I honestly won't give two hoots in hell.

And if he helps lead the Vikings to a Su--...a really big victory late, late in the year, I'm going to be leading the drive to retire his number as a Viking. Really, I think I might.

Stunning Revelation for Me Yesterday

MilCardFan — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 04:07:22 -0000

As I was watching the game yesterday, I started taking note of the construct of this team. I had looked it over and mulled it earlier this season, but yesterday it really hit me, especially after I had spent a good part of the early afternoon watching the Horror that was the Rams-Lions.

I am stunned, and excited, at how many draft picks are significant contributors on this football team, especially on offense. 80% of the offensive line are draft picks. Harvin, AP, and Rice--draft picks. Granted, this team isn't 7-1 without Favre and Jared Allen, but when you contrast the Vikings situation with the disaster that is the St Louis Rams, I am amazed at how many guys the Vikings drafted have been hits as opposed to misses. And we can't forget EJ Henderson, Chad Greenway, Cedric Griffin, and up and coming Ray Edwards over on defense.

I remember when Rick Spielman got hired, many Viking fans winced, and rightfully so, based on what he did, or didn't do, while he was in Miami. He gave up a second round draft pick for AJ Feely, and their drafts were pretty mediocre. Well, he's redeemed himself, and if the Vikings make it as far as we hope, I hope he gets his due credit.

Chilly, the KAO, and Two Minute Tommy Kramer

MilCardFan — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 01:36:38 -0000

A couple things here. First, I think I'm warming to Brad Childress, and it's from a commercial on NFL Network. He talks about doing things right all the time, even when no one is looking. On to my point...

I HATED...I mean HATED 2006-2008 when it came to the Vikings offense, with the exception of Adrian Peterson. I really thought that the offense Childress brought in was the most unimaginative, bland, lifeless offense I had ever watched in my lifetime. Fast forward to this year, and the Minnesota Vikings offense is...kick ass. Yeah, you heard me, it IS a kick ass offense. Well, why?

The obvious answers are Adrian Peterson and Brett Favre, but it goes deeper than that. Let's look at the skill players the Vikings had from 06-08 and what they have now. Well, screw that, let's start with Favre and look what the Vikings had prior to 2009. Brad Johnson, Tarvaris Jackson, Kelly Holcomb, Tarvaris Jackson, Gus Frerotte, and then...say it with me...Tarvaris Jackson again. Johnson, Holcomb, and Gus were smart veteran QB's that just couldn't execute all the throws in the offense. Brad had a weak arm but knew the offense inside and out, Holcomb matched his weak arm with an uncanny inability to hit an open receiver, TJ has a cannon for an arm but is wildly inconsistent, and Gus, God Bless Him, was the closest thing to Tommy Kramer the younger kids will ever see. How do I describe Two Minute Tommy for the little ones?

He was sit on the edge of your seat exciting to facepalm ugly to watch, and then back again several times a game. He'd make a great throw and then throw three picks; he'd win a game in the last minute and then stand in front of a TV camera with a dip the size of a bathroom vanity in his lower lip and then say "aw shucks, we just took what the defense gave us today." Gus didn't have a flair for the game ending dramatics like TK did, but his game resembled Kramer's in the maddening, lovable, kick-a-puppy-he-makes-you-so-mad in a lot of ways. Why, when you compare Kramer's career to similar players over at pro-football-reference.com, two names pop up--Brad Johnson and...wait for it...GUS FREROTTE!!!

And a guy that's so inconsistent like Gus and TJ have been makes Chilly conservative in a Jim 'it's okay to punt' Tressel kind of way. Why? He knew he didn't have a QB that could overcome mistakes and play from behind, and his WR's weren't game changers and guys that could swing momentum in one play. Travis Taylor, Bobby Wade, Marcus Robinson, and Robert Ferguson are nothing but a bunch of...meh when it came to making big plays.

Enter Sidney Rice and Percy Harvin. In 2008, Sidney Rice was really starting to emerge late in the year, and made some clutch, move the chain catches late in the years...and then hurt his knee, pretty much wasting his sophomore season. He is healthy, and is becoming a force. Percy Harvin is explosive, and TE Visanthe Shiancoe is a threat.

Chilly has opened up the playbook because he finally has the weapons to run all the plays in all the down and distance combinations, and the results are tangible.

And if Favre does finally retire at the end of this season, I'll start the Tommy Kramer Comeback Petition.

Feel Better After This Loss Than Most

MilCardFan — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 22:22:01 -0000

I wanted to wait about 24 hours to really reflect on this game, because what you say or write in the heat of the moment isn't necessarily what you want the world to see, or what you truly feel.

This was a winnable game, and when the Vikes answered the first Pittsburgh defensive TD with the Percy Harvin kick return, then a defensive stop, I thought they had a chance. When Adrian Peterson ran over William Gay and let out that Primeval scream, my Dad and I looked at each other and said 'we're going to win this game'. We NEVER feel that absolute and certain about the Vikings ability to win a game late. The Vikings have elevated their play to another level this year, and they are on par physically and mentally with any other team in the NFL.

Obviously, they didn't win, but neither of us were truly upset that they lost. Disappointed, most definitely, but the Vikings will win more of these games than they will lose, and if they meet Pittsburgh again on a neutral field, Minnesota will win.

This is the bottom line for me: If the Vikings have a healthy Brett Favre, the ball, time on the clock, and are within a score, they will win 9 times out of 10.

They beat Green Bay by two scores next week. Mark it down.

Draft Success Leads to Field Success

MilCardFan — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 02:59:45 -0000

The Minnesota Vikings are 5-0 and have the look and feel of a Sup--...really good team. Marquee players like Brett Favre and Jared Allen have deservedly garnered a majority of the headlines to this point, but teams that contend for and win a championship have depth and quality at almost every position. In the NFL, there are several theories that people recite, like 'defense wins championships', 'you have to run the ball and stop the run to win', and 'teams that win are teams that draft well'. I thought it would be interesting to see how the Vikings have drafted over the last few years to see if that theory holds true.

The last year of the Mike Tice era was the 2005 season, which was kicked off by the 2005 draft. The Vikings had two first round draft picks that year, thanks to the trading of Randy Moss to Oakland, also known as the final middle finger of Red McCombs to the fans of the Minnesota Vikings. In that draft, they took Troy Williamson and Erasmus James, players no longer with the Vikings. 5 years later, when players are entering or in their prime playing years, there are no players from that infamously bad class currently on the roster. In the final report of the Mike Tice drafts (2002-2005), there are currently three...three...players still on the roster. Granted, they're pretty good players in Bryant McKinnie, EJ Henderson, and Kevin WIlliams (who the Vikes got only after running out of time for the pick), but it is still a damning indictment, especially for a team that was pretty bereft of talent after you got past Daunte Culpepper and Randy Moss.

So when Brad Childress took over in 2006, the Vikings had holes everywhere. With his 6 picks in 2006, he struck gold with Chad Greenway and Cedric Griffin, silver with Ray Edwards, and bronze with Ryan Cook and Tarvaris Jackson. (Greg 'you're my boy' Blue is no longer on the team). So that's three starters and two former starters still on the team. After one draft. That said, Jackson is still the key to Childress' long term fortunes, though, and it's safe to say that a guy who was regarded as a quarterback guru hasn't been with TJ.

2007 had 8 picks, of which only three are still on the team, but one of those three would be Purple Jesus. The others are Sidney Rice, who is really coming into his own as a good NFL receiver, and Brian Robison, a defensive end who plays both sides in the defensive end rotation and could start for several teams in the NFL.

2008? You have to consider the Jared Allen trade when evaluating the '08 class, and early returns indicate that the Vikings got the better end of that deal (scroll to number 2). Yeah, that's worked out pretty well so far. The Vikes also drafted starters John Sullivan and Tyrell Johnson plus special teams whiz Jaymar Johnson to go along with Jared Allen, arguably the game's best defensive player.

2009 is still early to pass judgement, but Percy Harvin and Phil Loadholt give off the vibe that they'll be around and very productive for a decade. As I write this tonight, they are both starting. Well, Harvin is the third WR, but he leads all Vikings not named Adrian Peterson in touchdowns, and is a versatile receiver and kick returner.

So in 4 years, Brad Childress, the guy who has final say in personnel decisions (scroll down to 'long shots'), has plugged the holes with 10 starters, including Peterson, Jared Allen, Percy Harvin, and two starters on the offensive line. That's downright impressive. It's easy to say it was easy to draft guys like Peterson and Harvin, but six teams passed on Peterson, and Harvin was drafted 22nd.

Say what you will about Childress' bland personality, bland play calling, and questionable people skills...see Robinson, Marcus, and Wade, Bobby.

Childress knows what he's doing when it comes to talent evaluation, and that is bearing fruit in 2009. And for that, he deserves all the credit in the world.

Oh, and the quarterback dilemma? It seems to be okay for this year.

Top Viking-Packer Moments

MilCardFan — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 22:27:03 -0000

So I read Gonzo’s post about the Eric Guliford game, which was a great moment in this storied rivalry, and I thought—What are the top games or moments in the Vikings Packers rivalry? Now admittedly, most of these games are from the 1990’s and the aughts for a few reasons. The 1960’s was a decade pretty much dominated by the Packers, the 70’s was dominated pretty much by the Vikings, and both teams pretty much sucked in the 1980’s. It wasn’t until the 1990’s that Minnesota and Green Bay have both fielded competitive, talented teams, and both franchises, for the most part, have been equals on the field. With arguably the most anticipated Vikings-Packers game ever coming up on Monday, I thought it might be nice to look back on some memorable moments and contests from the most bitter border war in the NFL. I wanted to rank order them, but they’re all special to me, so I’ll leave it to you guys to pick what was your most favorite moment.

1964, at Green Bay. Minnesota 24, Packers 23. This was the first-ever Vikings victory over the dynasty of the 1960’s. Vince Lombardi was in his 6th year as the Packers coach and had two NFL titles, with more on the way. The Norm Van Brocklin led Vikings were in their fourth year of existence and were just looking for some respect. Fred Cox kicked a late field goal to give the Vikings a win, and Minnesota would end the season at 8-5-1, their first winning record in team history.

1966, at Green Bay. Vikes 20, Green Bay 17. Minnesota scored 10 points on the road in the fourth quarter to beat what was the NFL’s juggernaut, making this the most stunning upset for the Vikings in the series. The Packers were in the middle of dominating the 1960’s, and would go on to win the now mythological ‘Ice Bowl’ game and then Super Bowl I later that season. The Vikings? A forgettable 4-9-1 record, and the first ‘schism’ in Vikings history. Fran Tarkenton was traded to the New York Giants because he and Van Brocklin couldn’t co-exist. Then Van Brocklin retired…but didn’t, as he ended up coaching the Falcons. The Vikings hired a little known CFL coach named Bud Grant. The tide was about to turn.

1968, Vikings sweep season series. This was a milestone event for both franchises in a couple of ways. Bud Grant was starting to shape the Vikings into one of the NFL/NFC’s most dominant teams, and Vince Lombardi had left the Packers for Washington. 1968 was a symbolic passing of the torch for the franchises, as the Packers began a slow descent into a hell of Lynn Dickey, David Whitehurst, Terdell Middleton, et al, while the Vikings were forming the nucleus of the now legendary Purple People Eaters, and the golden era of Minnesota Vikings football.

The 1970’s. I got nothing. It was during the 1970’s that the Green Bay Packers began playing more of their home games at the old Milwaukee County Stadium, because, well, they sucked and couldn’t fill up Lambeau. True or not, it makes a good story. Let’s viral this!! Little known fact: The only two stadiums where both teams were on the same sideline were Met Stadium and…anyone…Milwaukee County Stadium. The only highlight of significance was John Brockington of the Packers (I swear it was Brockington but I could be wrong) running down the far sideline of the Met late in the season from left to right on you TV dial, not being able to slow down, and falling over the rolled up tarp and smacking his legs into a chain link fence. He really hurt himself on that play, as I recall. If anyone with a better memory of this than I do, please share. I was still a kid when that happened.

1986, at Minnesota. Vikes crush the Pack 42-7. Tommy Kramer threw a career best 6 TD passes-- two each to Hassan Jones and Steve Jordan-- as the Vikes scored 28 first quarter points and cruised. And that’s about it for the 1980’s. I wish I had more, I really do, but it was a pretty forgettable decade for both teams. And I gotta be honest, I moved away from Minnesota, went to college, and invested most of my spare time drinking and chasing women. Had to mention 2 minute Tommy, though. Loved the guy. And Hassan Jones. Great name, lame receiver.

1992, at Green Bay. Vikes 23, Green Bay 20 (OT). Viking fans were introduced to two people that day, Terry Allen and Dennis ‘The Sheriff’ Green. Up until that point, Allen had been an unremarkable running back and the budding author Green had actually introduced Northwestern University to a very foreign concept—football teams that win games. Allen gashed the Packers for 140 yards on only 12 carries, and Green began his mostly anonymous, scandal free tenure as Vikings coach with a big road victory that eventually led to a division title, the first for the Vikings in the 1990’s. Sadly, Denny turned out not to be who we thought he was. Maybe we prematurely crowned his ass, I don’t know.

1993, at Minnesota. Vikings 15, Packers 13. The Guliford game, described much better by Gonzo.

1998, at Green Bay. Minnesota 38, Green Bay 24. Randy Moss, this is the NFL. NFL, meet Randy Moss. Up until that point, Moss was more rumor than fact, because you see, kids, this was in the early days of the Internet, and 24 hour video on demand was nothing like it is today. Moss had started off strong, but there was kind of a Paul Bunyan myth about him. Viking fans tried to warn people, though: He’s 50 feet tall!! He’s faster than sunlight!! He has 8 tentacles for hands!! “Bullshit”, said Green Bay and the NFL. “He is but a mortal man”. When this game was over, Green Bay and the NFL pissed down their collective leg. As a matter of fact, Green Bay spending their next 52 draft picks on defensive backs, none of which could cover the Legend of Randy Moss.

2003, at Green Bay. Minnesota 30, Green Bay 25. It really wasn’t that close, though. Minnesota ruined the re-christening of Lambeau Field by picking off Brett Favre 4 times while amassing a 27-11 lead at the end of the third quarter. Green Bay got back into it, but Corey Chavous ended whatever chance Green Bay had by intercepting Favre late in the game. The Vikes ran out the clock, Moss had 150 yards receiving with a TD, and the Vikes started out 6-0. As an aside, I hope Nate Poole burns in Football Hell. But that's just me.

2004, at Green Bay. Minnesota 31, Green Bay 17, NFC Wild Card Playoff. It was the first ever post season meeting between the teams, and it was one that was thoroughly dominated by the Vikings. Daunte Culpepper and Randy Moss had their signature moment as Vikings, beating Al Harris twice for long scores while earning their last playoff victory together. At halftime, Harris was admitted to the University of Wisconsin Burn Center, and Favre had a very forgettable day, throwing 26 interceptions. Moss mooned the Lambeau crowd, Joe Buck was horrified, Cris Collinsworth wasn’t, and Brett Favre announced he was going to hang it up and fade off into the sunset. No, really.

2005, Vikes sweep season series. You guys remember 2005, right? It was the first year of the post-Randy Moss era. During the pre-season, Daunte Culpepper proclaimed himself to be a ‘Jedi Knight’ while operating the offense. Eh, not so much. The Vikings started out slow, going 1-3 and getting blown out in all three losses before taking the most infamous boat cruise this side of the Titanic, the Poseidon, and the USS Minnow all rolled into one. Green Bay came to town and were expecting to crush the Vikings, but the Little Kicker That Could, Paul Edinger, kicked an improbable 56 yard field goal as time expired to win 23-20. 56 yarder…damn. That’s still impressive four years later. When the Vikings visited Green Bay that November, they were in the middle of a 6 game winning streak that got them back in contention for a playoff spot. Koren Robinson caught a pass late in the game, and Edinger once again kicked a field goal as time expired as Minnesota won 20-17. I know Edinger was only 25/34 in FG attempts, with a terrible 3/8 in the 30-39 yard range, but I would’ve re-signed him for another year just based on those two kicks alone.

2008, at Minnesota. Vikings 28, Green Bay 27. Adrian Peterson had a monster day, rushing for 192 yards. However, a late fumble by Peterson almost cost the Vikings the game, and when they got the ball back they found themselves down 27-21. Gus Frerotte had thrown three interceptions, one of which was returned for a TD, Green Bay had also returned a punt for a TD, but it was Peterson’s fumble on 4th and 1 at his own 40 that took the air out of the Metrodome crowd. That play killed a drive and set up a Green Bay field goal. Minnesota got the ball at their own 31 with 5:56 left, and Adrian Peterson eschewed Viking Purple and Gold for Superman Red and Blue, accounting for 64 of the 69 yards on their final touchdown drive, the capper being a scintillating 29 yard run to the goal line. The Packers still had a chance at the end, but Mason Crosby missed a long field goal as time expired.

So that’s what I’ve got. It's not, by any means, all encompassing, and I'm sure folks have better memories or moments. I'd love to hear them.

Week 3 Post Mortem

MilCardFan — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 21:27:42 -0000

Holy. Crap.

24 hours later, and I am still trying to digest what I saw. After a day of improbable plays, the Vikings won on the most improbable of all—a 32 yard frozen rope to ~~Cris Carter~~ Greg Lewis, who replaced the unceremoniously dumped Bobby Wade on the eve of the regular season. It was Lewis’ 4th play of the game. Not catch. Play. It was also his 4th play of the season.

Really?It was the anti-Nate Poole, anti-snatch-defeat-from-the-jaws-of-victory, anti-Tarvaris Jackson/Sage Rosenfels probable finish all rolled into one. I originally wrote it was the anti-Hail Mary game, but until Favre and Lewis do that in the playoffs, I can’t go to that level. It was a game that had everything and nothing, all rolled into one. Typical Adrian Peterson 35 yard burst in the first quarter, then virtually nothing. Solid Vikings defense, except for the, you know, fourth quarter drive that put the 49ers in the lead. The special teams gave up and took a touchdown. And the game also exposed the biggest flaw and the greatest strength of this 2009 Vikings team, both from the same person: Brett Favre. He can’t throw the ball almost 50 times every week if the Vikings are going to win consistently, but when you absolutely, positively, need one guy to make one throw, you have Favre do it.

I’ve been a Vikings fan for almost 40 years, and this was one of the five best game endings in Vikings history. Hell, other than the Kramer to Rashad Hail Mary to beat Cleveland in 1980 that clinched the Central Division, I can’t think of a better ending.

On to the grades.

Run Offense: C. The Vikings were effective early, and used the threat of Adrian Peterson to open up the vertical passing game. But after Peterson’s 35 yard first quarter burst to the right, he was held in check…All Day (get it, all day?). To their credit, the Vikings stuck with the running game well into the third quarter, but eventually abandoned it and put their fate in the hands of Favre, which they can’t do every week. Chester Taylor has been virtually invisible through the first three games, and that’s troubling. Taylor is a substantial run threat, and provides a great change of pace alternative to Peterson, but has been missing in action from a rushing standpoint so far.

Pass Offense: A, but with an asterisk. Any throw and catch of that magnitude merits an A, but it was like needing to pull a 100 on the final to get to an A. There were issues with the passing game, but it was the first 300 yard passing game by a Vikings quarterback in 4 years. Favre missed a couple of wide open receivers, and said receivers dropped at least 6 balls by my count (I might be off on that, but not by much). Pass protection was again spotty. They only gave up two sacks, but Favre was pressured all day long. He also tried to force a couple throws into double coverage, causing an interception, and had a horrid fourth down throw to Harvin with just over two minutes left in the game that should have been a pick 6 for Dre Bly. But Oh….MY, how the ending made up for some of that.

Besides the TD to Lewis, there was one other pass that stood out where I thought ‘no way Jackson or Rosenfels makes that throw’. Late third quarter, Vikes are pinned deep in their territory and its third down and 15, I believe. Fail to make this conversion and Kluwe is punting from his end zone. I looked at my Dad and we both said at the same time ‘screen pass to Taylor’. Instead, Favre drops back, and throws the ball to a well covered Bernard Berrian (who had a forgettable game otherwise) with an opening about the size of a postage stamp. Berrian catches the ball near the first down marker and runs to the 41. First down, Vikings. Maybe 10 guys in the world can make that throw, and no way Rosenfels or Jackson even try.

Run Defense: A. Coming into this game, if you had told me that the Vikings would hold San Francisco to 58 yards rushing, Favre would throw for 300 yards and 2 TD’s, San Francisco would go 0-11 on third down conversions, and Percy Harvin would score a TD on a kickoff return, I would have assumed that the Vikings win the game by three scores. This was the vaunted Williams Wall we’ve been waiting for, and the Vikings did a much better job of gap discipline this week. The defensive line was more disruptive, and when the Niners tried to run to the perimeter, the defense did a very good job of stringing out the play. Glenn Coffee made a couple of nice runs in the third quarter, but overall Minnesota did a very good job of making San Francisco one dimensional.

Pass Defense: B-. If you take out the monster game and clutch catches Vernon Davis had, this was a very solid performance. But you can’t, so it wasn’t. The Vikings smothered the 49ers in the first half, but Shaun Hill found Isaac Bruce and Vernon Davis almost at will in the second half. The Vikings were as porous in the second half as they were impregnable in the first. The pass rush started out very strong, with a Jared Allen sack on the first play, but that was it. Pressure on the QB was intermittent at best for the rest of the game, and Hill had ample time to find open receivers on San Francisco’s second half scoring drives. But when Minnesota’s defense had to make a stop at the end of the game, they did.

Special Teams: D, with an asterisk. Percy Harvin’s kick return was like pulling a 100 on the semester final to avoid abject failure. I think if the Vikings go in the locker room up 16-7 as opposed to down 14-13, I think the second half is completely different and the last second heroics probably aren’t necessary. Harvin’s kick return was huge and provided a much needed momentum shift, but the reason the Vikings needed that was because of the blocked FG that the Niners returned for a score at the end of the first half. If the special teams units continue to give up big plays like that on a regular basis, the Vikings will lose a critical game that might cost them a division title or playoff berth. It’s tough to look at the positives, but Harvin was a big one. His speed is incredible, and he has a legitimate chance to go the distance on every kickoff return. Darius Reynaud is as an exciting punt returner as Harvin is kick returner, and a significant injury to him will adversely affect the punt return team. But they cannot yield another special teams score this year and continue to win football games, they just can’t.

Coaching: B. I like the game plan the Vikes had going into the game—run Adrian Peterson, even if he doesn’t get big chunks of yards, take the lead so the 49ers have to play catch up (putting the game in Shaun Hill's hands), and go downfield when the opportunity presents itself. For the first 29:59, it was working almost perfectly. Peterson was okay but not dominant, Favre threw a 30 yard TD dart to Sidney Rice, and the Vikes dominated almost the entire first half. They were poised to take a 16-7 lead against a very good team, and everything fell apart. Minnesota still tried to run the ball in the third quarter, but the Vikings abandoned the run at about the right time and looked to Favre to get them the win. And he did. Statistically, both offense and defense played well, but there were some critical breakdowns in the second half, and the game was on the verge of getting away from the good guys. I give them an overall B because finally, FINALLY, there was a two minute drive from the Vikings that was crisp, effective, and showed a sense of urgency. And yeah, I panned cutting Bobby Wade for Greg Lewis a few weeks back, but maybe Brad Childress knows what the hell he’s doing. A win is a win, and the Vikings are 3-0. I’ll take that any day of the week.

Bring on the Packers.

Week 2 Post Mortem

MilCardFan — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 16:37:31 -0000

First, let’s state the obvious. The Vikings won the game, and they’ve started the season 2-0. Both victories have come on the road, a difficult task to accomplish in the NFL. I’d rather be 2-0 with two ugly wins than 0-2 and staring in the abyss of a lost season like the Vikes were this time last season.

To feed the ‘NFL is in a conspiracy against the Vikings’ wing of Viking fandom, only one other team has started with two games on the road, and that would be the St Louis Rams. To no one’s surprise, they are 0-2. Winning on the road is tough, winning on the road two weeks in a row is tougher still, and winning on the road by two touchdowns in each game while playing bad football in the first half of both of those games is just short of remarkable. So to all you Chicken Littles that can’t take pleasure in a road win in the division, lighten up. It’s a win and the Vikings are undefeated. I’ll take it.

Since 1990, teams that start 2-0 have a 65% chance of making the playoffs. If you go 1-1, your chances drop to 40%. 0-2? 14% make the post season (one of those teams being your 2008 Minnesota Vikings).

So what does this all mean? It means the Vikes should be grateful to be coming home with two hard fought road victories, but they need to get some things figured out, because they won’t be playing Cleveland and Detroit every week. Let’s get on with the post mortem, shall we?

Run Offense: B-. Just like last week, Adrian Peterson was stopped cold in the first half and ran wild in the second. But he put the ball on the turf during a promising opening drive, sending the Vikings offense into a first half tailspin that they didn’t pull out of until a minute remained in the first half. That said, the line and AP got on the same page in the second half, and took control of the game. The Vikings need more consistency, obviously, but I like that they were able to take control of the game when Detroit gift wrapped it for them early in the third quarter. And here’s a bit of advice to teams playing the Vikings: don’t piss off Adrian Peterson. There’s running angry, there’s running pissed off, and then there’s running Hannibal Lecter. When you run Hannibal Lecter, you peel off someone’s face and eat their liver. That’s what Adrian Peterson was doing in the second half.

Pass Offense: B. Again, unimpressive numbers yardage wise, but 23-27 with 2 TD’s and no interceptions was very impressive. In two games, Favre has 265 yards passing, which is about three possessions for Drew Brees. But you know something, so what? The TD pass to TE Visanthe Shiancoe at the end of the first half was a huge momentum swing, and the TD pass to Percy Harvin in the fourth quarter was the dagger. I don’t know what to make of the amount of sacks the Vikings are giving up, though. Favre was dumped three times again on Sunday, but one of those definitely looked like a coverage sack where Favre chose to eat the ball as opposed to forcing it. Either way, when you have a 40 year old quarterback and a lot of money/high draft picks invested in your offensive line, they have to keep him cleaner.

Run Defense: C+. Once is an anomaly, twice is a trend, three times is a pattern. Kevin Smith absolutely gashed the Vikings run defense in the first half, allowing rookie Matthew Stafford to get comfortable and play with favorable down and distance situations nearly the entire first 30 minutes. I’m not the defensive coordinator (and we may all thank the Lord for that), but it seemed like the Vikings linebackers were missing gap assignments the entire first half. Just like last week, the Vikings made good adjustments at halftime, forced a turnover that lead to a touchdown, and then took control of the game, but Frank Gore is just a wee bit better than Kevin Smith, and an uninspired opening half could be disastrous with a quality opponent like the 49ers. They must come out stronger and play with more consistency early on, or they will dig a hole that they will have a tough time crawling out of.

Pass Defense: B. Yes, Calvin Johnson scored a touchdown, but he only had 5 catches for 51 yards. When you're talking about one of the most talented wide receivers in the game, I'll take it The Vikings were on their heels early, but as the game wore on, and it was put on Stafford’s shoulders, the defense was able to make some plays and keep Detroit from making the big play. Chad Greenway made two very nice interceptions, and Madieu Williams was putting the wood to people in the first half. They did have a busted coverage in the fourth quarter that allowed Bryant Johnson to break free deep, but Stafford overthrew him. They did a good job of pressuring Stafford and making him uneasy in the second half, and Jared Allen and Ray Edwards had two nice sacks to set the tempo early in the third quarter.

Special Teams: B+. The Vikings did a fine job on both kick and punt coverage, Ryan Longwell was money kicking FG’s, but had only okay distance on kickoffs, and Chris Kluwe did a good job punting the ball. Kluwe averaged 42.5 yards on 4 punts and gave the punt coverage team enough hangtime that the Lions only managed 1 return for 7 yards, compared to three fair catches. Best all around effort on special teams in over a year.

Coaching: B. A 14 point win on the road is nothing to scoff at, even if it is Detroit. The slow starts are a concern, and if you combine them with the conservative play calling and the possibility of a two score deficit if they start slow against a quality opponent, you have the makings of a disaster on your hands. Run defense has to get better and the play calling needs to improve (throw down the field once in a while!), but I like the halftime adjustments and the sense of urgency that the team played with in the second half. That sense of urgency needs to appear a lot earlier in the game, but it’s better than not showing up at all, like it has with too much frequency in the Brad Childress era.

Week 1 Post Mortem

MilCardFan — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 04:15:17 -0000

So, week one is in the bag, as the Vikings roll into the Dog Pound, kick the dog, steal the food dish, and walk out with a 34-20 victory. Let’s grade out the game, shall we?

Pass Offense: B. Solid effort from Brett Favre and the receivers. There are still some timing and audible issues, and Favre only had 110 yards passing, but that’s all he needed to have. A lot of people look at passing yards and would consider it a C or D, but there’s more that goes into it. Did he make throws when he had to? Yes. Two throws in particular kept third quarter drives going that resulted in touchdowns. One was to Visanthe Shiancoe on third and long, the second was to Percy Harvin on second and long. If the first throw fails its fourth down…field goal. Instead of 17-13, it’s 13-13. Second throw fails, it’s now third and long and the playbook is limited. And by limited, I mean a 5 yard screen pass to Chester Taylor. Maybe they make it on third down, maybe not. But on third and short, Favre found Harvin for a short TD pass, and in all truthfulness the game was over at that point. Again, chances are that if the first down isn't made the Vikes kick a field goal, and now it’s 16-13 as opposed to 24-13. The complexion of the game is completely different. Would TJ or Sage have made the same reads and resultant throws? Maybe, maybe not. If the Vikings had full faith and confidence in their ability to make throws like that, would Brett Favre be on the team?

Run Offense: A. Adrian Peterson. That’s all I have to say. Well, okay, the line play was particularly impressive, and Phil Loadholt and John Sullivan acquitted themselves well run blocking, but every time AP gets the ball, I hold my breath in anticipation, because he has a better than even chance to break it. 7 man front, 10 man front, it doesn’t matter. If AP gets to the second level, he’s gone. He’ll bulldoze you, outrun you, out maneuver you, maybe all on one play. The last time I held my breath like that was when I watched Barry Sanders, and I held my breath in fear. Now it’s in anticipation, and I hope we get to watch him for 10 years.

Run Defense: A-. Yeah, Cleveland averaged 4.5 yards per carry, but the Browns rushed for under 100 for the game. Lewis had a few impressive runs, but when the Vikings needed to clamp down the run, they did. I thought they did a particularly good job shutting down Cleveland’s version of the Wildcat, especially on the goal line. Why the Browns ran the Wildcat with Josh Cribbs on the goal line when they could have used a big brusing back like Jamal Lewis is beyond me, but they did. And the Browns got stuffed. And as I looked at the NFL Sunday Ticket rapid rewind last night, Jimmy Kennedy stuck out, and in a good way. He made a couple of nice stops, and seems to be a good solid backup.

Pass Defense: B+. Antoine Winfield just slobberknocks people, doesn’t he? There were a couple of coverage breakdowns, but the days of receivers so open that you’d think they had H1N1 seems to be over. Cedric Griffin has stepped up his game, and seems to have improved in his man coverage skills (minus the nullified TD/PI call involving Braylon Edwards), and I was particularly impressed with both Chad Greenway and Ben Leber covering the short and intermediate routes over the middle. I miss Darren Sharper, but for at least one game, Tyrell Johnson was up to the task, as was Madieu Williams, finally 100% healthy after battling a persistent neck injury last season.

Special Teams: C-. Kick coverage was good, averaging only 20 yards per return. Punt coverage was good, except for the, you know, touchdown by Josh Cribbs. Cleveland had 3 punt returns for 67 yards, and ironically, Cribbs’ TD return was for…wait for it…67 yards. I thought the onside kick was a bold call, and I hope we see more of stuff like that as the season unfolds. Chris Kluwe and Ryan Longwell are two of the more dependable kicking tandems in the NFL, so if the punt coverage can put that one return behind them and focus on the two positive ones and build from that, overall this unit will be dramatically improved.

Coaching: B-. It was definitely a tale of two halves, but I will give Childress and company credit—they remembered who brought them to the dance and allowed Adrian Peterson to get untracked. The first half was a combination of typical Childress conservatism and a small schism in timing (schism, get it?) between Favre and the receivers. Oh, and Adrian Peterson needed to be bled with leeches at halftime. But the two back breaking touchdown drives in the third quarter (11 plays, 55 yards and 13 plays, 82 yards) were a good mix of runs and passes that kept Cleveland off balance and wore out the Browns defense, setting the stage for Peterson’s electrifying 67 yard romp and stomp dagger in the 4th quarter.

Overall: B. Cleveland isn’t a very good team, and the expectation was that the Vikings should beat the Browns handily. The fact that they actually did is mildly surprising, because these are games that historically give the Vikings fits. In outside, road, natural grass games, the Vikes are 9-25 since 2002 (including playoffs); 5-15 under Brad Childress. They usually look horrid outside on grass and play some terrible games against some terrible teams, but not this past Sunday. Let’s hope that trend continues against the woeful Lions, a team the Vikings always have fits with.