The Viking Age » matt cassel

Vikings Trail Chiefs 9-7 at the Half

Dan Zinski — Sun, 02 Oct 2011 18:27:58 +0000

Here’s a novelty: The Vikings went into halftime behind. Being ahead at the half didn’t help them the last three weeks, so maybe this is a good sign. Speaking of good signs: The Vikings’ one score came on a long TD pass from Donovan McNabb to Devin Aromashodu. Yes, an actual deep passing play. Outside of that there wasn’t much going on for either team offensively…and you can’t really argue it was good defense keeping the offenses down, cause mostly it was just the offenses killing themselves with penalties and dumb plays. Things got so bad for Kansas City that Todd Haley and Matt Cassel ended up shouting at each other on the sidelines. Mostly what we learned from the first half is why both these teams were winless coming into the game. This one has been almost unwatchable.

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Vikings vs. Chiefs Quick Preview

Dan Zinski — Sun, 02 Oct 2011 13:33:32 +0000

The Vikings must win on Sunday against Kansas City to keep a miserable season from becoming a complete unmitigated disaster. At 0-3 there probably isn’t much hope left of a playoff run…and if they fall to 0-4 you can remove the “probably.” The good news is, this game sets up pretty well for the Vikings. Kansas City’s secondary has been decimated by injuries, they are without their top offensive weapon Jamaal Charles and their quarterback Matt Cassel has been arguably the most disappointing in the NFL so far – yes, even more disappointing than Donovan McNabb. The Vikings need to take advantage of this situation by getting on top early.

But wait…getting on top hasn’t been the problem has it? Staying on top in the second half has been the issue. Well there’s only one way to fix that: Donovan McNabb playing better. Hopefully all that work in practice this week on those mechanical problems McNabb claims he doesn’t have will pay dividends. Bill Musgrave can help in this area by not calling any more pass plays for Jim Kleinsasser or 4th down run plays for Toby Gerhart. The Vikings aren’t going to pull themselves out of this tailspin by feeding their blocking tight end or #2 running back. They have weapons, now they just have to figure out how to use them. I hope Percy Harvin and Adrian Peterson have big games, not just because I want the Vikings to win but because I’m sick of hearing about how those guys aren’t getting the ball enough. It would also help to get Visanthe Shiancoe and Bernard Berrian more involved so it won’t seem like we’re carrying a bunch of deadweight on the roster.

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Vikings-Chiefs Loser Will Deserve to Be Considered NFL’s Worst

Dan Zinski — Fri, 30 Sep 2011 17:04:08 +0000

Once upon a time the Vikings and Chiefs clashed in the Super Bowl. Kansas City emerged victorious from that epic battle, having earned with their blood and sweat the championship title and the honor of being crowned the best team in pro football.

Fast forward to 2011. Once again the Vikings and Chiefs find themselves taking the gridiron with a title at stake. This time though, the title will not be bestowed upon the team that prevails, but rather on the one that fails. The winner on Sunday will come away with no championship or trophy or distinction of any kind, but the loser will indeed receive a crown. And on that crown will be emblazoned the words “Worst Team in the NFL.”

And trust me kids, whichever team loses this game will wholly and completely deserve that particular shameful bit of headwear.

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