Archive for September, 2010

News is thin this Vikings‘ bye week, so we are reduced to mentioning things of only peripheral interest…like the fact that, on Tuesday, the Lions worked out four receivers including one-time Viking draft bust Troy Williamson. Williamson has been on the street since September 4 when the Jaguars cut him. Also, the Indianapolis Colts worked out Ryan Moats, who made it all the way to the preseason with the Vikings before being dumped. In practice squad news:  the Vikings have released cornerback Marcus Sherels and replaced him with tight end John Nalbone.  I’m sure that will have huge ramifications down [...]

Things were supposed to have changed this year for the Detroit Lions, but the team I saw yesterday looked an awful lot like the same old Lions. They have weapons on offense, but don’t seem to know how to use them.  Their quarterback play hovers mostly between barely adequate and atrocious.  Their running game doesn’t exist.  Their defense isn’t bad up front, but their linebackers and secondary lack discipline and don’t tackle all that well.  Their coach doesn’t always seem to know what he’s doing (evidence:  wasting time at the end of the second quarter instead of using a time [...]

Adrian Peterson told Brad Childress he wanted to be fed.  And he wasn’t talking about whipping up a batch of Brett Favre‘s favorite jambalaya. After a frustrating first game that saw Peterson barely touch the ball in the second half, Childress decided to finally listen to his all-world running back, and let the feeding commence.  The result?  Over the last two games, Peterson has carried the ball 51 times for 305 yards and 3 touchdowns, and has caught 10 passes for 71 yards.  Sunday, the Feed Adrian approach resulted in 190 total yards, 2 TDs including a stunning 80-yarder…and the [...]

If you were to tell me that it’d be a relief for us to beat the Detroit Lions in week 3 about a month ago I would have asked what was wrong with you. But when you start off 0-2 after blowing winnable games, discussion of Brett Favre not being the same and having second thoughts on coming back this season, conversation on how a mere 8 months ago this team had a slew of offensive weapons that seem to be gone now and going against a rejuvenated and pesky Lions team that should have beaten the Chicago Bears (that [...]

Adrian Peterson broke one today.  Who needs a vertical passing game when you have this? Peterson finished with 160 yards on 23 carries and 2 TDs, and added 5 catches for 30 yards.  Brett Favre was only okay, going 23/34 for 201 yards, 1 touchdown and 2 picks, but at least he looked a little more like his old self, joking around and slapping guys on the butt.  He seemed to get on the same page with Percy Harvin, and Percy, thankfully, was able to stay in for the entire game. Sign up now and get 50% off CBSSports.com’s award-winning [...]

The early stages of today’s game looked like more of the same for the Vikings:  mistakes, penalties, injures, turnovers…pretty much general suckage. Thankfully, the Lions, being the Lions, were unable to fully capitalize on the Vikings’ gaffes.  Eventually, Brett Favre got in some rhythm, and got the Vikes on the board with a long touchdown pass to Percy Harvin.  Adrian Peterson then got in on that act, scoring from 6 yards out to make it 14-7.  The Lions got three back after Favre’s second pick of the half, on a play where Cliff Avril beat Phil Loadholt around the edge, [...]

Cedric Griffin is not only active today for the Vikings‘ home game vs. Detroit, he will be the starter at right corner.  This is Cedric’s first game action since tearing his ACL in the NFC Championship Game. And there’s more good news on the cornerback health front:  Chris Cook is also active.  Finally, the Vikings have a full complement of defensive backs. By the way, that full complement of defensive backs does not include Tyrell Johnson, who is inactive.  In a few short weeks, Johnson has gone from incumbent starter at safety to sitting with Albert Young and the rest [...]

I don’t think it’s an exaggeration to say the season is on the line for the Vikings this afternoon at home against the Detroit Lions. 0-2 is troublesome; 0-3 would be catastrophic.  Especially when you consider who our next four opponents are.  In case you haven’t looked at the schedule lately, the next four games, after a bye week, are against the Jets, Cowboys, Packers and Patriots. To those who think today’s game isn’t a must-win…how do you like the Vikings’ chances against those four teams coming off a home loss against the Lions? Where do you think the team’s [...]

In place of the usual five questions segment, this week I engaged in a little back-and-forth with Zac Snyder of  SideLion Report.  Among other things, we discussed the State of Favre, the rise of Best and whether the Lions have finally turned the corner… SideLion Report: The Lions have a strong defensive line and have shown an ability to get to the quarterback. Brett Favre has not looked very mobile following his ankle surgery. Is there cause for concern in the Twin Cities? The Viking Age: Favre wasn’t very mobile last year either and it didn’t hamper his ability to [...]

The Vikings seem to be making slow progress toward getting their whole defensive backfield back together.  This week, Chris Cook was well enough that he was able to participate fully in practice, and Cedric Griffin says he is almost ready as well. However, like I said, the progress is slow.  Both players, despite getting in their practice time, are still listed as questionable for Sunday’s game vs. Detroit. The Vikings may just elect to leave both players inactive for this week, knowing they have the bye week coming up after that.  Once those two weeks have elapsed, you have to [...]