Fun with Long Snapping

So locally we have the misfortune of having to getting to listen to the Superstar Mike Morris on KFAN each and every morning. Morris, in another life was the long snapper for the Vikings in the 1991-1999 seasons. Some blame his snap for Gary Anderson's missed FG in the 1998 NFC Championship game (the only missed FG of the season), but is yet to be proven.

Morris considers himself to be one of the best long snapper in the history of the NFL. But I think he has been surpassed by this guy...

Bryan Pittman of the Houston Texans is rather accurate, check THIS VIDEO link out.

Just for fun here is more long snapping fun. I think it is safe to say that Briana is happy with her snapper.

Sunday Morning Countdown - Keyshawn Johnson is TERRIBLE

Who let Keyshawn Johnson on the ESPN set of Sunday Morning Countdown. I thought Michael Irvin was bad, but Keyshawn is FAR worse. Two things jump out at me immediately.

1. I guess the Houston Texans are going to struggle today and here is why (according to Keyshawn). WR-Andre Johnson is not playing and that is going to make things difficult for QB-David Carr.

WHAT? Somebody please tell Mr. Johnson that David Carr is in Carolina and the Texan's QB is Matt Shuab (has been all year Keyshawn). Holy crap, give me a break. Who let him on the set?

2. Later we get to watch an interview with Bengals WR-Chad Johnson. Chad has been struggling this year along with his team. Keyshawn had the audacity to accuse Chad of being a DISTRACTION!! Are you kidding me? Keyshawn is one of the top 5 NFL distractions in my lifetime. It got funnier as Keyshawn made it known that he was "mentor" to Chad but lately Chad has "forgotten" what Keyshawn taught him. "He doesn't get what I'm trying to tell him," says Keyshawn. I didn't know that Keyshawn was qualified to mentor a player and "teach" him how to be a team player that doesn't bring attention to himself.

Seriously, I get that it is kind of important to have former NFL players/coaches on the show. Steve Young has been very good and I LOVE Emmitt Smith. Michael Irvin annoys the crap out of me but he is Emmy worthy when compared to Keyshawn Johnson. He is terrible and destroys the credibility of the show.

NFC Power Rankings Week 6

Well, it is a good week when the Vikings move up and the Bears move down.

1. Dallas (5-1) - lost to the best, can't fault them for that.
2. Green Bay (5-1) - Favre breaks another record! Fortunate to win @Washington
3. Carolina (4-2) - 2 straight wins both on the road and one with Testaverde at QB!
4. NY Giants (4-2) - 4 game wins streak is impressive but can't rank ahead of Vinny.
   
5. Tampa Bay (4-2) - Michael Bennett, NFC West better look out!
   
6. Washington (3-2) - might be the best NFC team nobody is talking about
   
7. Arizona (3-3) - couple impressive wins and a couple ugly losses
   
8. Seattle (3-3) - ho hum team and I hate west coast teams as a general rule
   
9. Minnesota (2-3) - up to #9 only because of Purple Jesus factor
   
10. Philadelphia (2-3) - rough start is behind them
    
11. Detroit (3-2) - the Lions just suck. Given up 56, 26 and 34 in the last 3 weeks.
12. Chicago (2-3) - loss to the Lions is a greater factor than beating Green Bay
13. San Francisco (2-3) - terrible offense, I mean really terrible
    
14. New Orleans (1-4) - hurray a win, hurray!
    
15. Atlanta (1-5) - enter Leftwich as the fight for draft picks begins
    
16. St. Louis (0-6) - Scott Linehan fire watch? He'll be a college coach by the end of December
    

Vikings v Bears Recap

"This ain't college, Rook!" That was what Peanut Tillman had to say to Adrian Peterson (the MN version) early in the 1st quarter. Good call, Peanut!

Really this game came down to the following equation...

Purple Jesus > Devin Hester

Peterson Highlights

The rest of the parties involved were just average.

OK, so maybe we need a little better analysis than that, but if you are just skimming the blog, that is all you need to know. We'll start with the grades....

QB (B+) - this was TJax best game as a pro. The sad part his he didn't top 150 yards and completed fewer than 40% of his passes. With that said he made 1 huge play to Williamson to give us a TD that nobody was counting on. He also did not turn the ball over, which goes a LONG way towards winning a ball game. And his numbers would be much better were it not for some dropped passes by Sydney. But he also missed a few guys including Richardson on what would have been a huge play (it not a TD) late in the 2nd qtr. Overall a solid game but nothing to get excited about.

RB (A+) - not much needs to be said about what Purple Jesus did on the field. A few viking records were broken and all in all he pretty much carried the entire team to the W. It should also be noted that Taylor had a decent game as well. 83 yards isn't anything special but he got stronger as the game went on averaging 3.3/carry through 3 qtrs and finishing the 4th with 4.3 including 2 runs of 12 or more.

WR (C+) - Williamson's TD is the lone bright spot today. He ran a good route, got behind the coverage and most importantly caught the ball. But apparently South Carolina receivers have trouble catching NFL passes as Sydney Rice dropped a few balls that would have helped sustain drives. TJax put the ball where it had to be a number of times and it was just plain dropped, that can't happen.

OL (B+) - Only gave up 1 sack and this was their best game of the year. But watching the game I felt like PJ was making the OL look good, not the other way around.

Overall Offense (B+) - hard to criticize 31 offensive points (final 3 points was all special teams), we may not see that again this season. I think we are lacking some balance when 68% of our plays were running plays, but you have to go with what is working. Overall, I can't really complain about anything.

DBs (C-) - They gave up a ton of yards and 3 big plays for TDs. That just can't happen. If we give up 3 passing TDs of 33 yards or more again this year we better hope for 300 yards rushing or we'll lose that game. Brian Griese won't have 380 yards passing again this year (well maybe on Dec. 17) and it is kind of embarrassing that he did yesterday.

LB (A-) - I love this group of linebackers. EJ has been making plays all over the place, Leber is seriously underrated and Greenway is on his way to being a force at this level. The Bears has 9 plays that ended up in negative yardage, 7 of those 9 were made by a Vikings linebacker. Also add 1 forced fumble and 1 interception to the linebackers combined stat line.

DL (B+) - a little more pressure on Griese would have been nice. Ray Edwards probably had the best day of this group with 5 tackles including 1 for a loss (combined with EJ). The Williams brothers were pretty quiet but for the most part I think the Bears were scheming to run away from them.

Overall Defense (B-) - gave up a lot of points but for the most part played their part. A ton of passing yards given up but kept the running game shut down. By my simple math they gave up 22 rushing yards in the 2nd half. It is always nice to make teams 1 dimensional, now we just need to figure out what to do with them when we know they are going to pass.

All in all this was a good game by the Purple. On the road, against the defending NFC champs and we were clearly the physically dominant team. That was the first time all year we have won the battle at the line of scrimmage. This Bears defense isn't what it has been in recent memory but it still had Urlacher, Briggs, Hillenmeyer, Ogunleye, Tommy Harris (playing hurt) and Mark Anderson (6 of starting front 7 from week 1).

Chicago was able to hit us with big plays through the air and return games but we dominated the box on both sides of the ball. Hester is hands down the best returner in football, and if healthy will be one of the best all time (and 2nd to Favre as my most hated players in NFL, I can publish a list later). We won't have to face that with any other team.

The passing game remains a problem on both sides. The Bears were missing 3/4 secondary starters and we really didn't couldn't take advantage of that. Defensively the fact remains that ANYBODY can pass on this defense. That needs to be curtailed. I don't expect it to be fixed but it has to be mended a little bit.

Vikings v Bears Kool-Aided Preview (wk 6)

Denny Green is priceless, nobody can deny that. But I can't help but agree. The Bears are who we thought they were. And I think they are showing that this year. Before we get into the actual preview please enjoy this remix...



Seriously though the 2006 Bears were living on that razor thin edge of making exactly 1 monster play to win the game in spite of their QB making the plays to lose them the game.

Grossman in 2006

• @ Min - threw 2 picks including 1 for a TD. But defense makes a huge play late in the game to give the offense a final chance to win the game
• @ AZ - threw 4 picks but defense and special teams score 3 straight TDs to win the game
• vs. Min - throws 3 picks but defense scores 16 to win the game

All 3 games were wins in spite of your starting QB. And the team's 3 losses were all a direct result of Rexi and his poor play (all had 3 games he threw 3 INTs).

Flash forward to 2007, this has finally caught up with them. Injuries to the defense, a lack of a strong running game and awful QB play has led the defending NFC Champs to a 2-3 record. Rexi has been benched and Griese has given mixed results through 2 games.

Of course the Vikings have their own set of issues, ESPECIALLY at QB. This makes for an interesting matchup and will likely be a very ugly game.

Here are the Keys to a Viking Victory...

1. Cover the Tight Ends - I know this is not a sexy key matchup but I think it is huge. The Bears have not shown a strong running game all year. Griese has not shown an ability to throw the ball downfield (and he has 4 INTs in 2 games). Statistical examples?...

• Muhammad + Berrian = 2 catches vs. Green Bay
• Greg Olson + Desmond Clark = 7 catches and 2 TDs vs. Green Bay
• Cedric Benson is averaging 60 yards per game (50.5 if you take out KC)
• Chicago Rushing offense = 27th in the league vs. Min's #1 rushing defense
  

Cedric Benson does not worry me. Griese loves the check down so his wideouts aren't as scary either. But EJ Henderson and the safetys have to cover the TEs and not let them beat us in the middle of the field.

2. Run the Ball with the Pass - The Bears started the year strong against the run, but recently they have been more succeptable. I think eventually we'll be able to establish some semblance of a running game. With that said, there is no doubt that the Bears will be keying on the run each and every play and the Vikings struggle (mightily) to pass the ball. I'm not asking for this zebra to change his stripes, I don't expect Jackson or Holcomb to rack up 300 yards of passing to the receivers.

What I want to see are screens and swing passes to Peterson and let him get out in space and make guys miss. Play Action then hit the back when he clears. Short passes that are essentially runs will be more effective than trying to run the ball down the throat of this Bear defense. We have been unable to dominate the line of scrimmage in any game this year and I don't expect that to change against this D. But short/quick passes will hide our lack of a real passing game and hide Bryant McKinnie's inability to pass block.

3. Don't let their Special Teams win the game - We don't have to win the special team's battle but just have to be relatively even. If Hester is able to return one for 6 or consistently put their anemic offense 20 yards closer to a FG then Minnesota will struggle to keep up in the battle for 3 points. Kick it out of bounds if you have to but don't let Hester win this game for them. He has done it before and is capable of it every week.

Fearless Prediction...

Vikings win 18-16 and here is how it ends.

Longwell lines up for the game winning 37 yd FG. Right before the snap Lovie calls a timeout to rattle the Vikings kicker. Longwell actually misses that FG but gets a 2nd chance because of Lovie's timeout. Ryan nails the 2nd attempt and Minnesota wins.

NFC Power Rankings Week 5

I know that I skipped a week or two or three. I have several excuses so if you want to hear them shoot me an e-mail. If not then quit whining and enjoy the official power rankings...

1. Dallas (5-0) - I'm one who turned it off and went to bed, this looks to be the best the NFC has to offer
2. Green Bay (4-1) - Maybe the refs didn't get the memo, this is Ol'#4's last year so they have to go 19-0.
   
3. Arizona (3-2) - beat Pitt, lost 2 close games and revived with Warner
   
4. Washington (3-1) - just happy they killed the Lions
   
5. New York (3-2) - OOOOH, a 3 game win streak, LOOK OUT!
6. Seattle (3-2) - beat Cincy, but that just gets them a ranking above Carolina
   
7. Tampa Bay (3-2) - has anybody called He Hate Me yet?
8. Carolina (3-2) - unimpressive but still above .500
   
9. Detroit (3-2) - most points allowed in NFC (and they even played the Vikings)
10. Chicago (2-3) - nice road win, be sure to send a gift basket to James Jones and Favre
    
11. San Francisco (2-3) - raise your hand if you knew Trent Dilfer was still in the league
    
12. Minnesota (1-3) - a 1 week non-losing streak heading into Bear week
    
13. Philadelphia (1-3) - ranked below MN cause it is my freaking blog
    
14. Atlanta (1-4) - Hey, the team we beat got a win, YAY!
    
15. St. Louis (0-5) - there is always next year
    
16. New Orleans (0-4) - I thought they'd be bad, but this is ugly
    

Guaranteed or your Money Back

The Vikings will NOT lose this week! And thank goodness cause we need a week without a loss.

Should this week be considered a moral victory?

Kansas City Chiefs are MYTH BUSTERS

Typically I am very positive regarding the Vikings. I am certainly a glass half full kind of guy, but the time has come for reality to set in. I felt really good about certain aspects of this team and was confident (really hoped) that they would be able to cover up the weaknesses we had in other areas. Unfortunately that is not the case. The offense is worse than expected and regardless of how good this defense is, they can't make up for it.

Before I get into the bashing let me say this. Defensively we are better than even I anticipated. The pass defense is better, it will give up yards but not as many as last year when teams could pass at will. The pass rush is better, we are getting MUCH more pressure on opposing QBs thus far. EJ Henderson has greatly exceeded expectations at MLB, he is making plays all over the field. Greenway has made a few mistakes but I'll let those pass as youthful mishaps for now and he has made several good plays to make up for it.

Offensively I couldn't be happier with Adrian Peterson and he is going to be a great back for years in my humble opinion. I also think that Ryan Cook has quietly had a decent 3 games at RT which was a big question mark.

With that said, here are some big "MYTHs" that the Chiefs graciously busted for us this weekend.

Myth #1 - The Vikings offense would be good enough if they had a QB who didn't make mistakes.

Truth - 50% completion, no interceptions and the offense still sucked. Our offense is just bad. Some will blame it on the Brad's Kick Ass Offensive system and others will blame the personnel. I blame both but it really doesn't matter the net result is the same. And offense that has no identity can cannot score in the red zone. Ultimately it doesn't matter which of our QBs is starting this offense will struggle all year. If healthy TJ has to start, if we can't win with Holcomb then let Jackson learn on the job.

Myth #2 - The Vikings have a good offensive line (at least the left side).

Truth - neither side of this line is performing. The left side is just as culpable as the right side for not giving the QB time to throw nor helping to establish a ground game. The Vikings have FAR too many 1st down runs for losses. That is 100% on the OLine. And I would venture that a number of the positive runs have come from Purple Jesus making a guy miss in the backfield and turning nothing into something.

Myth #2b - Bryant McKinnie is a very good LT

Truth - McKinnie is the most overrated LT in the league and he kills us at times. Overpaid and underacheiving. Your average speed rushing RE is able to get a full step before Bryant is able to get out of his stance and that kills us. I wish more than anything we could trade him or cut him and recoup salary cap. Unfortunately salary cap is not a problem for us and cutting him does us very little good.

Myth #3 - Minnesota is a playoff team.

Truth - Minnesota is a playoff defense, but a bottom 10 offense. Besides single handedly outscoring the opponent what more does the defense have to do? Unfortunately without making serious changes this offense stands no chance of helping out the defense. I used to think they were just a couple players away from being average but I fear they need at least 4 position upgrades (QB, WR, LT, RG).

Myth #4 - Brad Childress will be fine given time and the right personnel

Truth - Brad was a coordinator and still thinks like a coordinator. I would love for him to hire an offensive coordinator who he trusts and turn the entire offense over to him. Start thinking and acting like a head coach not a glorified coordinator. Maybe Childress will eventually be a good head coach in this league (there are things I like about him) but for now I don't get the feeling he has what it takes. Maybe Darrell Bevell will be a good coordinator in time, but I'm not comfortable with a guy who's been coaching for 8 years to be an offensive coordinator at the NFL level.

Historically speaking I have been VERY patient with many coaches in recent MN sports memory. I was still sticking up for Mason, Tice, Denny and Monson for a long time after the masses had turned on them. And usually I will preach patience with coaches cause you usually have to give them time to succeed. But I'm turning quickly on Brad and nothing would make me happier than a bold move like nabbing Bill Cower, Marty, Pete Carroll, Mike Martz, or anybody else with a track record of success.

Vikings v Chiefs Kool-Aided Preview (Wk 3)

This is not your Kansas City Chiefs of recent memory. This team is not very good and the Vikings have another winable game on the road. If they want to live up to my kool-aided expectations then they have to win these games.



Before I get to the match-ups I know you are dying to hear my thoughts on the QB situation, so here you go...

I want to stick with TJax and give him every opportunity to learn what he's doing out there. With that said, I think starting either Bollinger or Holcomb give us a better chance to win. The real problem is that we have a defense that isn't just good enough to get us to the playoffs they are good enough to win playoff games. Unfortunately our offense isn't good enough to sniff the playoffs. I think we are a good QB and WR away from being a really good team. Obviously the 2007 Vikings have neither of these. So do you go with an average QB or do you let your young QB go through what is sure to be a difficult season and HOPE that next year is your year? If I felt that Kelly or Brooks (NOT Kelly Brook, btw) were good enough to get us to the playoffs I'd lean towards them. I know that TJ is going to make more mistakes than the white guys but I still think a rough 2007 will make him better for 2008. If healthy I hope they stick with TJ.

On to the match-ups...

KC OL vs. Min DL - advantage Vikings

I gave this one to MN last week and it turned out to be a push, but this week I will not be wrong. KC's OL has been criticized this year while the Vikings DL has performed beyond expectations. Kevin Williams has been dominant and the DE's have put pressure on QBs. Huard will be pressured all day, LJ will have trouble getting 60 yards and we will dominate the line of scrimmage.

KC RB/TE vs. Min LB - advantage Vikings (slightly)

The Vikings D will shut down the run, but I expect Tony Gonzalez to toy with our LBs all day. This is almost a push, but I give shutting down the run game more importance that 1 TE (albeit a very good TE)

KC QB/WR vs. Min DBs - advantage Vikings

Huard scares nobody, and off the top of my head I can't name 1 KC WR who is healthy (Kennison is injured). I'm assuming pressure on Huard since he has been sacked 7 times already, and assuming that you will see the Vikings actually shut down the passing game for the first time in a long time.

KC DL vs. Min OL - advantage Vikings

I would LOVE to see the OL just decide to dominate and watch the Vikings run the ball down the Chefs' throat. I felt they missed this opportunity last wee, but with a new QB this week hopefully that will be done.

KC LB vs. Min RB/TE - advantage Vikings (slightly)

I think the Cheifs LBs are the strength of their defense, but I also love what I'm seeing from Purple Jesus, Chester and even Mewelde. Short passes to our RBs has been rather successful and I see us running at these guys all day as well.

KC DBx vs. Min QB/WR - advantage Chiefs

Unless the Vikings are playing the Gophers, this will always be ad-opponent. Our QB situation is bad enough that best case scenario is that they don't lose the game for us. Our WRs may or may not be adequate we don't know cause they can't get the ball. I'd love to see just a little bit of success beyond 15 yards. I can always hope!

Seriously, this is the most winable road game the Vikings will have all year. If you want to have a shot at the playoffs you have to win this game. I think that we match-up very well in all areas except our passing game. The defense should dominate. The running game should have every opportunity to run downhill all day. I'm hoping to see some life in the passing game but I'm not holding my breath.

Both teams really need this win. In my opinion the team who loses might as well pack it in for 2007. If KC loses they fall to 0-3 with a trip to San Diego next week. That is almost a certain 0-4 and that is too big of a hole to climb out of in the AFC. Minnesota had what we figured would be a cushy schedule to start. Losing this game puts them at 1-2 with a home game against a hot Green Bay team. That is winable as well but not a sure thing by any stretch. They have to win this to guarantee a 2-2 start with a shot at 3-1 going into the bye. That puts them in a position to make a playoff run, but 1-3 is over for them as the schedule gets much more difficult.

KEYS to the Game

1. Pressure on Huard - which will lead to turnovers and a short field for the offense.
2. Dominate the running game - I know I've said this 27 times but let the OL dominate and lets run until they bring a 9th guy into the box.
3. Score more points - I know you're saying "DUH!" but let me be more clear. I want the offense to score more points than the defense or special teams.
   

Fearless Predictions

• Minnesota 23 - Kansas City 10
• Purple Jesus shows the Chiefs the big numbers on his jersey (that means his back as he's running to the endzone)
• 3 Interceptions for the Vikings D
  

NFC Power Rankings Week2

I'm not convinced anybody is worth of #1, but somebody has to be on top so they can be knocked off. They have beat Philly at home in a relatively close game, then they dominated the Giants on the road. Neither team appears to be great but their 2 wins are just as impressive as any other 2 wins at this point.

My NFC Power Rankings - only NFC cause I don't care about about the AFC. Based on 2007 results only, not 2006 or perceived talent going into 2007.

1. Green Bay (2-0) - nice road win, dominating 2nd half - this hurts
   
2. Dallas (2-0) - defense was better and a road win, still nothing impressive
   
3. Washington (2-0) - nice road win within the division, could be a surprise team
4. San Francisco (2-0) - worst offense in league is 2-0, intersting
5. Chicago (1-1) - unimpressive home win over worst of the AFC, defense is GOOD
   
6. Detroit (2-0) - ulgy win, I'm just not buying into the hype yet
   
7. Tampa Bay (1-1) - improved from week 1, beat a talented team
8. Minnesota (1-1) - young QB < good defense = road loss
9. Carolina (1-1) - you can't quit when up 14-0, even vs. Houston
10. Arizona (1-1) - beat the Seahawks, therefore ranked above the Seahawks
11. Seattle (1-1) - lost @AZ by a FG? not if you want to make playoffs
12. St. Louis (0-2) - for a contending team, it isn't a pretty 0-2
    
13. Philadelphia (0-2) - they think they'll turn it around, I'm not so sure
    
14. New York (0-2) - looked good through 1 half, but then killed at home
15. Atlanta (0-2) - not very good, enter Leftwich
    
16. New Orleans (0-2) - can't live off of 2006 anymore