The Vikings have been one of the biggest stories in the NFL all season, and now, Vegas is warming to them too.  The latest odds (courtesy of Bodog.com) place the Purple at 7/2 to win the NFC, and 8/1 to claim their first Lombardi Trophy.

At 3/1, the Saints are right now considered the best bet to emerge victorious from Super Bowl XLIV in Miami, with the Colts right behind them at 5/1 and the Patriots at 11/2.  New Orleans is the favorite to claim the NFC at 3/2, followed by the Vikings, the Eagles at 13/2 and the Cowboys at 8/1.

If you’re looking to lay down a couple bucks on a long-shot, the Browns, Lions, Chiefs, Rams and Buccaneers are all at 1000/1 to win the Super Bowl.  Considering that those teams would have to run the table to even get back in playoff contention, I’m guessing there won’t be anyone cashing in on that particular bet.

Standard disclaimer:  The above odds were presented for entertainment purposes only.  Gambling is bad.

How does one sum up the talents of Viking phenom Percy Harvin?  Noted locker room grappler Adrian Peterson tried it by whipping out an unusual animal analogy culled from his rural experiences.

“I call him a young hog,” Peterson said while gushing about Harvin’s abilities.  “I’m from the country and I know how wild boars get after you. That’s how he is. He breaks so many tackles, I’m sure he’s got tons of yards after the catch. He’s just a gift. He’s a tremendous athlete. He comes in each week, he works hard and he goes out and plays his heart out.”

That’s interesting, because there’s another Viking player – Jared Allen – who enjoys killing the occasional wild boar, not with a gun or a bow-and-arrow like a normal person, but with a bowie knife after wrestling it to the ground with his bare hands.

Thankfully, Jared’s drinking days are behind him, so the chances of him mistaking Percy for a boar and attempting to snuff him via sharpened object are slim.

Get ready for more crap like this.  It’s the bye week.

Monday’s 10 Points:

1.  I don’t know if the emotion of the homecoming helped Brett Favre, but it certainly didn’t hurt him.  One thing’s for sure:  Brett likes playing against the Packers.  In his two games against them this year, he is 41-for-59 with 515 yards, 7 TDs and no picks.  2 of his 3 highest QB rating games are against the Packers (the other was against Baltimore).  And it’s not like you can just chalk it up to familiarity with the Packers team either:  they’re playing a different defense now than the one they had when he was there.  The main problem for the Pack against Favre has been the lack of pass rush.  You just can’t give that guy so much time.  If you let him stand in the pocket, he will pick apart your defense; doesn’t matter if he knows your players, knows your system or hates your GM.

2.  Go ahead teams – keep game-planning to stop Adrian Peterson first.  Keep bringing up extra men.  Keep keying on him.  He is still among the league leaders in yards, is still getting his touchdowns, and now he’s a legit threat catching the ball out of the backfield.  Oh, and he’s not fumbling anymore.  And, in case you didn’t notice, we’re 7-1.  So suck it.

3.  Percy Harvin had his best all-around game of the season, catching 5 balls for 84 yards and a touchdown (an assist on the touchdown to the Packers DBs for knocking each other out of the play), and helping set the Vikes up in great field position with two long kick returns.  Is he the rookie of the year?  I don’t know.  I do know that he is a serious, big-time weapon.  He has good hands, great speed, fantastic YAK ability and isn’t afraid to deliver the blow.  And being sick during the week doesn’t seem to affect him during games.

4.  The line of demarcation between good Vikings defense and poor Vikings defense was glaringly obvious.  When their front-4 is getting mad pressure, they are a great defense.  When their front-4 isn’t getting that much pressure, they are a weak, even porous defense.  Thankfully, Jared Allen and Ray Edwards were both dominating for long stretches of the game, and that was enough to keep the Packers from piling on the points.  Obviously, the Packers have a good QB and some nice receivers, and are going to get their yards and touchdowns.  The Vikings made enough plays when they needed to.

5.  Brad Childress can drive you nuts sometimes.  Late in the first half, he elects to go for it on fourth down instead of taking the field goal, and AD (who – memo to everyone – is NOT A GREAT SHORT YARDAGE BACK) gets stuffed.  So, Vikings get the ball back with a little over two minutes left, and instead of showing that same bulldog instinct, Chilly goes into his usual run the clock down, take the 3 and go into halftime mode (for which Troy Aikman and Howie Long both blasted him).  I’m not entirely certain what is going through Chilly’s mind, but, he has this bizarre, infuriating tendency to play it safer and safer the closer he gets to the half.  I think there might be some kind of childhood issue at play here.  I know he likes playing dress-up more than a normal man.  Dude’s head is full of snakes.

6.  At first I was amused by Packer fan bitterness, but now I’m actually worried for them.  I live in Wisconsin, so I know how such emotions can quickly turn into destructiveness, especially when alcohol enters the mix.  The whole state needs therapy.

7.  Brian Robison hasn’t done much this year.  I’m afraid that, if we remember him for anything, it will be the fumble that let the Packers back into the game.  He is officially the third-biggest knucklehead on the defense, behind Benny Sapp and Ray Edwards.  And speaking of Benny Sapp:  yeah, he had a nice game again, made a huge play batting down a pass late; but would someone please get hold of that young man and tell him to stop almost getting in fights, especially when we’re winning?

8.  I have come to the conclusion that Asher Allen and Karl Paymah both suck equally.  Thankfully, I think Antoine Winfield will be back after the bye, certainly after the Lions game.  And that’s good, because the less Allen/Paymah get on the field, the better the defense will be.

9.  Do the Vikings need to consider rotating defensive linemen more to keep guys fresh?  I ask because it seems like Jared Allen and Kevin Williams are fading as the game goes on.  Oh, and while we’re on the subject of K-Will:  Is there a better lineman in the league when it comes to batting/tipping/deflecting balls?  Those plays are as big as sacks and run-stuffs in the backfield, if you ask me.

10. John Sullivan says it was his fault that ball got snapped before Favre was ready.  Did he really need to tell us?

Bonus: Johnny Jolly, I thank you for being an idiot.

We’ve seen this bit before.  The Vikings build a big lead, only to watch their defense go softer than Minnesota snow, letting the other team back in.

That’s why, as the Packers clawed their way up from the bottom of a 24-3 well in the second half today, we experienced such a sinking feeling.

Aaron Rodgers, after spending the first half getting battered, finally got some pass protection, and began finding the gaping holes in the Viking defense.  And the Packers got close enough to make a game of it.

But, as was the case during the 4th quarter defensive meltdown against the Ravens, the Vikings had enough answers to keep the game from slipping away.

Today it was Percy Harvin, and Brett Favre with timely plays, and Adrian Peterson with big runs and catches when they were needed.

And, yes, the defense did step up and make a couple of plays to keep the slide from becoming an avalanche.

So the Vikings held on against the Packers, making Brett Favre’s homecoming a triumphant one.  What could’ve been a massacre ended up being merely a solid win.  The Vikes go into the bye 7-1 and in charge of the division.

And I need to stock up on aspirin and Pepto.

Packer fans booed Brett Favre lustily when he trotted onto the field for his first game at Lambeau as a member of the enemy.

By halftime, Favre had shut up the thousands of bitter cheeseheads by leading the Vikings to a 17-3 lead.  With a lot of help from Adrian Peterson, Percy Harvin (whose long kick return set up the first TD) and a defense that had Packer QB Aaron Rodgers running for his life.

The Packers were not helped on the first Viking TD drive when, after Minnesota appeared to have been held to a field goal attempt, Johnny Jolly headbutted Chester Taylor, leading to a personal foul and more downs for the Vikes.  They would score a touchdown, rather than settle for the 3.

It could’ve been even more than 17-3.  The Vikes got the ball back at 14-3 with a little more than two minutes left and drove it down to scoring range, but Brad Childress, per his usual habit, took the foot off the gas and settled for the field goal.  This after Chilly, on the previous possession, gave away three points by going for it on 4th down and seeing Adrian Peterson get stuffed.

Viking fans know well the oddball tendencies of Mr. Chilly.

You knew things would get crazy when Brett Favre returned to Lambeau Field.  You just didn’t know the craziness would extend to the pregame injury reports.

The madness began much earlier today when it was suggested by FoxSports.com’s John Czarnecki aka the Czar that Bernard Berrian would not play today despite being listed as questionable on Friday’s injury report.

Maybe that was the plan initially, but after Berrian got out on the field and tested his bad wheel, the decision was made that he could go, and start.

We also learned – from the normally reliable Jay Glazer – that Packers left tackle Chad Clifton was active for the game, but would be replaced in the starting lineup by rookie T.J. Lang.

Unfortunately, that report also turned out false.  Clifton will be in the lineup at left tackle when the starting gun sounds, trying to block Jared Allen.

So, if you’re keeping score, that’s Reality 2, Fox Sports reporters 0.

Another noteworthy item:  Naufahu Tahi is inactive for the game and will be replaced by Jeff Dugan at fullback.  Sean Jensen believes the move may be a disciplinary one stemming from some remarks Tahi made about Percy Harvin’s illness during the week.

Update: KFAN now says Tahi is inactive because of a late eye injury.

Update: Clifton will not start after all.  It’s T.J. Lang vs. Jared Allen.  So I guess that evens up the Fox Sports reporters vs. Reality score at 1-1.

Keep up with all the breaking Vikings news and commentary on Twitter.

The Vikings experienced something last weekend in Pittsburgh that they hadn’t all season:  losing.  Now they long to spit that sour taste out of their mouths, and once again drink deep the sweet nectar of victory.

But it is no ordinary nectar they seek to partake of this Sunday afternoon in Green Bay.  It is, instead, the sweetest of all delights:  victory over the Packers.

To be slightly less flowery about it:  beating the shit out of the Packers always feels better than beating the shit out of anyone else.

And not just because they’re the #1 rival.  There are practical reasons, too, why a victory today would ring louder than most.

First and foremost, a win over the Packers gives you a season sweep and, therefore, a massive tiebreaker advantage against a divisional opponent.  You can have a crappy second half and still know, if you somehow end up tied with the Pack, you own them.

Victory today would also make the Vikings 5-0 against the NFC.  Not to get too far ahead of ourselves, but, conference record is everything when it comes to playoff seeding.

Also, being 7-1 going into the bye would just be damn cool.

Of course, there are a few things standing between us and that seventh victory, and they are all named “the Green Bay Packers.”

I don’t need to remind you that, after kicking the Packers in the teeth for most of their first meeting, the Vikings sort of wilted late, and nearly let Green Bay back in.  If nothing else, that game proved that the Packers have plenty of fight in them.  If you get them down early you better finish them off.

I also don’t need to remind you – do I? – that Aaron Rodgers was the NFC’s Offensive Player of the Month for October.  He is currently second only to Peyton Manning in passer rating in the NFL, is completing nearly 66% of his passes and has only 2 picks against 11 touchdowns despite enjoying arguably the worst pass protection in the history of the cosmos.

In the first Vikes/Packers showdown, you will recall, Rodgers threw for 384 yards and two scores while completing over 70%.  And that was with Antoine Winfield shutting down Greg Jennings.  Today, we will have someone other than Antoine covering Greg Jennings.

The lack of Winfield didn’t matter last week against the Steelers, but I guarantee you, the Packers will go after whoever is playing left corner, be it Karl Paymah, Benny Sapp or Asher Allen.

Assuming Aaron Rodgers can stay upright long enough to complete the passes.

Yes, pass protection is still a problem for Green Bay.  They gave up 5 sacks two weeks ago against a Lions team that was missing three of four starting defensive linemen.  True, they gave up no sacks against the Browns, but that was the Browns.

The Packers are fortunate in that, this week, Chad Clifton will play instead of whoever that was they had trying to block Jared Allen last time.  Clifton, we remember, completely shut down the Vikings’ main pass rusher in the teams’ early-season meeting in Lambeau in 2008, prompting Allen to declare himself a total suckball.

I expect the Packers’ pass blocking to be better today than it was last time, but I still think the Vikings will get their shots at Rodgers.  If they don’t, Rodgers could have a good day.

Speaking of pass rush:  the Packers got none on Brett Favre during the big Monday night meeting, the result being a 3 TD, 135.3 passer rating performance for Brett.  I’m assuming the Packers will make a more concerted effort to put pressure on the passer today.  Of course, the Packers know better than anyone else the sort of carnage that can ensue when you blitz Favre and don’t get him down.

Actually, I’m not that worried about Brett.  Yes it’s possible he could get carried away by the moment and have one of those awful Favre performances, but I think he will be fine in spite of the emotionally-charged atmosphere.  The guy I’m looking squarely at is Adrian Peterson, who I’m sure wants redemption after a 25 carry/55 yard/1 fumble-for-touchdown effort in game 1.

Sometimes, when Adrian gets angry, he runs people over (just ask William Gay).  But sometimes when he gets angry he starts coughing it up.

My hope is that Brad Childress and Darrell Bevell will try to use AD like they did last week, mixing in some throws out of the backfield.  Despite his reputation as a powerful, hard-running back, Peterson is really at his best when he’s got room to work.

The other big issue for the Vikings is the health of the receiver corps.  Bernard Berrian and Percy Harvin are both expected to play after battling physical problems all week, Berrian a pulled hammy and Harvin an illness of undisclosed nature.  These are two explosive players who have a bad habit of not finishing games.

Of course, The Favre’s #1 weapon these days is Sidney Rice.  At last, the Vikings have found a receiver the other team must at least consider slapping a double-team on.

The Packers have a lot to deal with defensively.  They didn’t do a great job overall during the first meeting, but it is a tough defense, one that has allowed just 3 points the last two weeks, and is high up in the rankings against the pass.

Weather will not aid the Packers in their efforts this week at least.  It’s expected to be around 50 in Green Bay with no precipitation and a light wind.

And then of course there’s the little matter of fan reaction to Favre.  I expect boos.  Lots of boos. But I don’t expect the boos to affect Favre adversely; in fact, knowing this guy, they may only fuel him.  He was on top of his game in the first meeting at the Dome, largely because it was the Packers and he wanted to show them he could still get it done.

Now, Favre will want to show his old fans he can still get it done.  If emotion once again guides Brett to a great performance, the Vikings will win.  But it will not be easy.  The Packers are a worthy opponent with a quarterback who can also get it done.

It’s rare that a Packer/Viking game doesn’t turn into a nerve-wracking experience.  I expect this one will also have us biting our nails to the quick.

Join me and the rest of Purple Nation for more commentary and wackiness all day on Twitter.

As part of hate-on-Brett Favre week, Green Bay rechristened the city’s Minnesota Ave. “Aaron Rodgers Drive,” and erected a sign to indicate the temporary change.

On Saturday morning, an unnamed idiot was arrested by Green Bay police for stealing the sign.  And no, he isn’t a Vikings fan.

The cops reportedly pulled this fool over after noticing a “strange green glow” coming from the front seat of his vehicle.  That turned out to be the sign.  Upon questioning, the man said he stole it as a joke.

When the cops informed the moron that the object he’d stolen was going to be auctioned for charity, the drunken imbecile insisted he himself meant to sell the sign and give the money to a worthy recipient.

Yeah…the local liquor store.

Last weekend we heard a report that Brad Childress, in an effort to loosen up the team heading into the Steelers game, had dressed as a female flight attendant complete with wig and make-up.  Now we have the pictures to prove it, courtesy of Visanthe Shiancoe’s twitter account by way of SportsbyBrooks.

In a word, “disturbing.”

Of course this is not the first time Chilly has made news by donning a disguise.  During minicamp, he made us all almost snicker by putting on a spikey-wig visor that made him slightly resemble golfer Ian Poulter.

Chilly certainly enjoys dressing up.  I’m not sayin’, I’m just sayin’.

It’s no secret that Packer fans harbor a ton of bitterness in their hearts over the way Brett Favre turned his back on them (after the Packers organization turned their backs on him in favor of the unproven Aaron Rodgers). It would be hard for them to insist otherwise, given the open demonstrations of scorn they have made in the weeks since Favre signed with the hated Vikings.

Ah, the demonstrations.  Some of them have actually been amusing.  Others have been more-or-less pathetic.

The latest – Green Bay’s Minnesota Ave. being renamed Aaron Rodgers Drive – hovers somewhere between goofy and vaguely pitiful.

All have had one thing in common:  they make Packer fans look like a bunch of buffoons who don’t know how to move on from the past.

Of course most of this buffoonery is harmless, because the people perpetrating it are mere clueless hicks.  But then there’s the buffoonery perpetrated by the mayor of Green Bay, who ought to know better.

Now don’t get me wrong:  I have nothing against a government official having a good time with a sporting event.  Silly wagers between governors of states whose teams are squaring off in the Super Bowl?  Fine.

Barack Obama doing a goofy pick-the-NCAA-brackets segment for SportsCenter?  No prob.

But when the mayor of Green Bay goes so far as to ask Packer fans for suggestions on “clever” ways to make Brett Favre feel less-than-welcome when he returns to the village, and settles on encouraging residents to wear flip-flops in honor of Favre’s legendary indecisiveness?  That goes beyond good-natured fun and into the realm of genuine civic irresponsibility.

A sane community would denounce a mayor who behaved like that, and look for ways of removing him from office.  Legal ways at first, and then, barring that, illegal ways involving pitchforks and torches.

The community of Green Bay, being both insane and inebriated, is of course perfectly fine with its leader’s lameness.  They think the crap is hilarious.  The more cans of Miller they slam, the funnier it gets.

The rest of the world, however, sees through these allegedly harmless shenanigans to the all-too-harmful anger that lies behind them.  The sad thing for the Packer faithful is that this anger, in the end, hurts only them and the ones who are unfortunate enough to love them.

But there is hope.  There is a way to end the cycle of bitterness once-and-for all.  There is a means by which Packer fans can take back control of their lives, and rejoin the human race:

Just f***ing get over it already.

Yes, it’s that easy.  Just forget about Brett Favre and all he once meant to you.  Leave the past where it belongs – in the past.

After all, he is only a football player.  He is not a god.  He is not a demigod.  He is not even a Demi Moore.  He’s a guy who has thrown a bunch of touchdowns, won one Super Bowl, and made fans snicker with his tales of farting in the huddle.

He is only an obsession if you are Jon Gruden, John Madden, SportsCenter or a Packer fan with a hopeless case of nostalgic yearning for the late 1990s.  For the rest of us, he is just a guy who plays football, sometimes well, sometimes badly, sometimes only after agonizing for months over whether to retire.

You, crazed Favre-hating Packer fan, could be one of the fortunate many who have kept their sense of perspective throughout the Favre drama, and not allowed themselves to sink into alcohol-fueled crankiness.  And it doesn’t take a miracle to make it happen.  It just takes opening the door, walking outside, breathing the fresh air, puking out the poison and realizing that there’s a whole world out there, a whole great big beautiful planet that doesn’t give a rip about Favre, or the Packers, or football or sports or anything except flying around and eating and screwing.

Just think of yourself as the caterpillar creeping along the tree branch, waiting to weave its cocoon so it can begin its transformation into the beautiful butterfly.  Don’t you want to be a beautiful butterfly?  Wouldn’t you rather float across the world on delicate, multicolored wings than drag yourself across the dirt leaving a disgusting slime trail?

Of course you would.  We all would.  And some of us do, every day.  We let the wind carry us where it may.  And sometimes we give our purple wings a flap and fly to a higher plane, from which we may gaze down upon all the poor caterpillars with their slime trails and their six-packs of Bud and their Aaron Rodgers jerseys and their misspelled “Go to hell Brett” signs.

We feel for you.  We want you to be among us.  Not all of the time, because you’re really annoying and you smell like urine, but some of the time.  For a few minutes anyway.  As long as you don’t drink all our liquor and try to have sex with our dog.

What I’m trying to say, Packer fan, is that I care about you.  I don’t want you to spend your life wallowing in bitterness.  I don’t want you to remain trapped in the past forever.

I want you to take my hand and walk with me into the future.  The beautiful future, where Brett Favre leads the Vikings to the Super Bowl while the Packers sit at home with their 8-8 record wondering what the heck went wrong.

Don’t be afraid.  He’s only Brett Favre.  There’s no reason to reach for that bottle of cheap whiskey or start loading that shotgun.  He can’t hurt you.  Unless you break onto his property and he runs you over with his Toro.