There’s no way of finessing the situation – the Vikings need a win against Arizona or their season will be lost. At 2-5 they still have a decent shot at the playoffs, given the weakness of the NFC. But if they slide to 2-6? You can kiss any realistic hope of a 2010 playoff run goodbye. And, if last week’s reports are to be believed, you can probably kiss Brad Childress goodbye as well.
Judging from the sentiments being expressed by most Viking fans, there will be few tears shed if Childress is indeed sent packing by Zygi Wilf. The fact is that, from almost the moment of his hiring, Childress has been an unpopular figure with Minnesota fans. His manner has often seemed patronizing, his offense has often been boring, and his handling of players has often been clumsy. And I haven’t even mentioned his game management skills. However, if the Vikings should lose to Arizona this weekend, and Childress should subsequently be fired: I ask the vociferous Chilly-haters, what then? Would getting rid of Childress and elevating Leslie Frasier to head coach actually result in a run of wins? Or, would the Vikings’ problems remain even without Childress at the helm?
I have no doubt that Childress has done things to deserve being on shaky ground with his owner. However, if the owner fires Childress simply because Childress irritated him…well, how then would Wilf be any different than Childress himself, who got on the hot seat precisely because he allowed Randy Moss‘ comments about him to bother him personally? At some point, somebody in the Vikings organization has to put personal feelings aside and run this thing like a professional organization. In my mind, Childress getting fired now would demonstrate that Wilf is no more in command of things than Childress. The firing of the coach would not restore my faith in the organization; on the contrary, it would prove to me that the organization is in profound disarray, from the top down.
The fact is, a lot of what’s gone wrong this year has not been Childress’ fault. Did Childress injure Sidney Rice’s hip? Did he cause Brett Favre to suffer a bad elbow and bad ankle? Did he hurt Cedric Griffin’s ACL? Did he cause the pass rush to mysteriously vanish? Blaming Childress for everything that’s gone wrong in 2010 is, I think, a little too easy. And thinking Childress’ firing would magically fix the Vikings is naive at best.
No, the best thing for the Vikings now would not be a Childress firing but a win Sunday against the Cardinals. If the Vikings are going to get this much-needed victory, it appears they will have to do so without Percy Harvin, who injured an ankle early against the Patriots and has spent the whole week hobbling through practice. With Moss gone and Rice and Harvin hurt, the Vikings would be left with Bernard Berrian as their #1 receiver…but even Berrian was listed on the injury report this week with a bad groin. If you want to find a healthy Vikings receiver you have to go down the list to guys like Greg Camarillo, Greg Lewis and Hank Baskett. Needless to say, Brett Favre himself is not exactly 100%.
With Favre still not fully himself and the receiver corps greatly diminished, it figures to be another rough week for the passing game. At this point we should’ve long-since resigned ourselves to the reality that, if the Vikings do manage to put together some wins this year, they will not be pretty wins. The 2009 offense ain’t walking through that door. The only thing that’s working this year is running the ball with Adrian Peterson…and if Childress elects to leave Peterson on the field, maybe he will even have a chance to carry the team. If Childress has any survival instinct at all, he will scrap his “mixing in Toby Gerhart” plan and just ride Peterson. I wouldn’t presume to tell Mr. Childress how to do his job, but it seems to me that when you do get some offensive momentum going, it would be a good idea not to yank your best player.
The key word when addressing the defense this week is “bounce back.” As in, these guys need to bounce back from getting undressed in the second half by Tom Brady and the Patriots. Asher Allen got exposed as not a very good football player last week, and overall, the tackling was just not good enough – sort of shocking when you consider that, for the last few years, the Vikings have sported one of the best tackling units in the league. Obviously, with the secondary looking shakier by the week, the onus falls more-and-more on the front-four, which has not exactly been rising to the challenge. I could do the easy thing here and blame it all on Jared Allen, but the fact is, the line in general has just not been getting consistent penetration, and that’s showing up both in the pass rush and the run defense. If the guys in the middle – the alleged strength of our defense – get more penetration, quarterbacks will get flushed more and Allen will run into more sacks. Frankly, I’m beginning to believe our real problem is that Kevin Williams has hit the downslope of his career. Outside of the occasional batdown, what plays is he making? The Williams Wall this year has looked more like the Williams Chicken Wire Fence. I don’t want to sound too harsh, but frankly, Brett Favre isn’t the only old washed-up guy on our team. Pat Williams is about done; and if you want to extend this discussion out to the team as a whole, I think you can add Antoine Winfield and Steve Hutchinson to the list of guys who are fading quickly. We knew the window was going to close on this team this year, but what we didn’t realize was that, for a few of the key veterans, it was already down to a crack.
Brad Childress can’t stop Father Time any more than he could stop Randy Moss from being a prick. But, when you’re a coach in the NFL, the reality is that you’re going to be blamed for everything, even the stuff that’s out of your hands. Childress’ problem this year is that everything came to a head at once: certain key guys got old, certain young guys got hurt, and a certain desperation set in that led to the single most disastrous personnel move of Childress’ tenure. Of course, Chilly still deserves plenty of blame, for the sometimes bizarre and boneheaded way he reacted to all these issues. However, I reiterate, firing Childress won’t make that stuff go away. Only a win, ugly or otherwise, will dispel the Cloud of Doom currently darkening the Vikings’ skies.
Learn why Brett Favre isn’t going to retire and will suit up in purple and gold come the 2010-2011 football season. News on Brett Favre’s commitment and statistics, updates on his retirement status and injuries, funny videos showing why Brett is a pure joy player, and memorable pictures showing his courage and magic.
Showing posts with label minnesota vikings sidney rice. Show all posts
Showing posts with label minnesota vikings sidney rice. Show all posts
Sunday, November 7, 2010
Monday, September 20, 2010
Recap Of Vikings Loss To Dolphins
Adrian Peterson could not be contained by the Dolphins defense but there were too many mistakes and miscues for the Vikings to overcome in their home opener. The result was a 14-10 victory for the Dolphins at Mall of America Field on Sunday, as a visiting team won a regular season game at the Vikings home stadium for the 1st time since December of 2008.
The mistakes and miscues added up for the Vikings, as they were penalized 7 times for 44 yards and turned the ball over 4 times. While one Vikings superstar - Peterson – was up to his old tricks (28 carries for 145 yards and 1 TD), another Vikings superstar just couldn’t get it going. Favre lost a fumble in the endzone that was recovered for a TD and he threw 3 INTs.
Usually dominant at home, where they accumulated a 9-0 record last year, the Vikings were held scoreless in the 1st half. Favre drove the Vikings from their own 29 to Miami’s 32 in just 9 plays on the game’s opening drive, but a decision to go for it on 4th down ended up costing the Vikings points. Miami’s defense held and the offense immediately drove on the Vikings defense to take a quick 7-0 lead.
Both teams scored TDs in the 3rd quarter. Miami scored when LB Koa Misi fell on Favre’s endzone fumble and the Vikings scored when LB Erin Henderson recovered a Miami fumble forced by his older brother, E.J., near the Dolphins goal line. Peterson plowed his way into the endzone 2 plays after the Hendersons combined to turn Miami over.
The Vikings held Miami to just 1 first down and 4 total plays on the ensuing drive, giving the offense possession after a punt on the Vikings 11-yardline. That’s where the Vikings relied on their workhorse, Peterson, to take over. Peterson accounted for 62 yards on the Vikings drive and after a sack of Favre, Ryan Longwell came on to salvage a few points by splitting the uprights on a 28-yard try that cut Miami’s lead to 14-10.
The Vikings defense rose up 3 more times from that point on but the Vikings offense wasn’t able to capitalize. Following Longwell’s FG, Minnesota forced the Dolphins to a 3-and-out. But Favre followed with an INT, giving the Dolphins possession on their own 34. One play later, the Vikings defense forced another Dolphins fumble and Favre and Co. took possession on Miami’s 24.
Five plays after the recovered fumble, the Vikings had a 4th and goal from the 1, but Miami’s defense bowed up and stopped Peterson, giving their offense possession on the 1.
From there, the Dolphins picked up 1 first down via a holding penalty against the Vikings defense, but DT Kevin Williams batted down a Chad Henne pass on 3rd down, which gave the Purple another chance to mount a game-winning drive.
The Vikings took over after a punt on their own 45. Favre drove the team down to the Dolphins 31 on 3 plays, but from there he threw 3 incompletions and eventually the ball was turned over to Miami, where they were able to kneel on the ball and run out the clock.
The loss drops Minnesota to 0-2, the same record they had in 2008 before they won 10 of their next 14 on the way to a division title.
The mistakes and miscues added up for the Vikings, as they were penalized 7 times for 44 yards and turned the ball over 4 times. While one Vikings superstar - Peterson – was up to his old tricks (28 carries for 145 yards and 1 TD), another Vikings superstar just couldn’t get it going. Favre lost a fumble in the endzone that was recovered for a TD and he threw 3 INTs.
Usually dominant at home, where they accumulated a 9-0 record last year, the Vikings were held scoreless in the 1st half. Favre drove the Vikings from their own 29 to Miami’s 32 in just 9 plays on the game’s opening drive, but a decision to go for it on 4th down ended up costing the Vikings points. Miami’s defense held and the offense immediately drove on the Vikings defense to take a quick 7-0 lead.
Both teams scored TDs in the 3rd quarter. Miami scored when LB Koa Misi fell on Favre’s endzone fumble and the Vikings scored when LB Erin Henderson recovered a Miami fumble forced by his older brother, E.J., near the Dolphins goal line. Peterson plowed his way into the endzone 2 plays after the Hendersons combined to turn Miami over.
The Vikings held Miami to just 1 first down and 4 total plays on the ensuing drive, giving the offense possession after a punt on the Vikings 11-yardline. That’s where the Vikings relied on their workhorse, Peterson, to take over. Peterson accounted for 62 yards on the Vikings drive and after a sack of Favre, Ryan Longwell came on to salvage a few points by splitting the uprights on a 28-yard try that cut Miami’s lead to 14-10.
The Vikings defense rose up 3 more times from that point on but the Vikings offense wasn’t able to capitalize. Following Longwell’s FG, Minnesota forced the Dolphins to a 3-and-out. But Favre followed with an INT, giving the Dolphins possession on their own 34. One play later, the Vikings defense forced another Dolphins fumble and Favre and Co. took possession on Miami’s 24.
Five plays after the recovered fumble, the Vikings had a 4th and goal from the 1, but Miami’s defense bowed up and stopped Peterson, giving their offense possession on the 1.
From there, the Dolphins picked up 1 first down via a holding penalty against the Vikings defense, but DT Kevin Williams batted down a Chad Henne pass on 3rd down, which gave the Purple another chance to mount a game-winning drive.
The Vikings took over after a punt on their own 45. Favre drove the team down to the Dolphins 31 on 3 plays, but from there he threw 3 incompletions and eventually the ball was turned over to Miami, where they were able to kneel on the ball and run out the clock.
The loss drops Minnesota to 0-2, the same record they had in 2008 before they won 10 of their next 14 on the way to a division title.
Thursday, September 16, 2010
Vincent Jackson Possibility Accruing
 |
| Vincent Jackson Possibility Accruing Vincent Jackson in purple makes sense. The Vikings only have 4 receivers on their active roster, their star receiver, Sidney Rice, is out for the foreseeable future with a hip injury, and Percy Harvin showed up on this week’s injury report. It appears that Minnesota’s ailing wide receiver corps could use an upgrade.Having said that, it sounds like Vincent Jackson’s future in Minnesota hinges on an arbitrator’s interpretation of the “roster-exempt” designation the San Diego Charger’s placed on the sixth-year wideout. Vincent Jackson will miss the first three games of the season due to violating the league’s substance abuse policy. The Chargers also punished Jackson for missing the team’s entire offseason by placing him on the “roster-exempt” list. With that designation comes an additional 3 game suspension. However, in a 9:00 a.m. hearing today, the NFL’s player’s union is expected to argue that should Vincent Jackson be traded, that additional three game suspension should not be enforced because Jackson would no longer be a member of the team that handed it down. Should an arbitrator be swayed by the NFLPA’s case for Jackson, it’s looking more and more likely Jackson will be catching passes from someone other than Charger’s quarterback Phillip Rivers. One possible trade partner would be the Minnesota Vikings. Judd Zulgad of the Minneapolis Star Tribune does a nice job of breaking down the likelihood of a trade between the two teams, but writes that it may be difficult to decide on the proper compensation for the 6-foot-5 receiver. Lee Hamilton of XX Sports Radio in San Diego reported that if the suspension is reduced to three games, the Vikings are prepared to make a trade offer. Rumors have been swirling in Minnesota as well, but both teams as well as Jackson’s agent have been quiet on the matter. The arbitrator has 5 days to rule on the case, but it’s possible Jackson’s fate will be decided by the weekend. Whether or not Vincent Jackson is catching Brett Favre’s passes remains to be seen. |
Dolphins Secondary Braces For Brett Favre
Dolphins Secondary Braces For Favre
At one time, Brett Favre throwing against Vontae Davis would have been a laughable mismatch.
``I was probably a baby in diapers when he was first in the league,'' Davis said.
It's true: Davis was 3 when Favre made his NFL debut in 1991. Now, Davis is a second-year cornerback for the Miami Dolphins and part of a revamped secondary bracing to face Favre and the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday.
The pass defense was solid in a season-opening 15-10 win at Buffalo. Miami allowed only 116 yards through the air and had three sacks.
But that was against Trent Edwards, who has 25 career touchdown passes. Favre has an NFL record 498.
Favre also has started 286 games, compared with 70 for Miami's four starting defensive backs combined.
``It's a test for us,'' Davis said. ``We get to see where we're at when we go against Brett Favre.''
Where they're at is in transition. Davis and veteran strong safety Yeremiah Bell are holdover starters, but free safety Chris Clemons and cornerback Jason Allen won jobs in training camp, and Benny Sapp is the new nickel back after being acquired last month in a trade with the Vikings.
The secondary needed a shake-up after allowing 14 touchdown passes of 20 yards or more last year, second-most in the NFL. Early returns on the changes are favorable, with Miami 1-0 for the first time since 2005.
Minnesota is 0-1, and Favre is eager to get the offense in gear after throwing for only 171 yards in a 14-9 loss at New Orleans. After wavering on retirement, he joined the Vikings only four weeks ago, and rust showed.
``There's no doubt we have to get on the same page,'' Favre said, ``and we have to do it in a hurry.''
While cohesion might yet surface as an issue in the Dolphins' secondary, they had only one glaring defensive lapse at Buffalo - a blown assignment on fourth and 11 that resulted in a 31-yard scoring pass. Otherwise the Dolphins smothered the Bills' receivers.
``We played great as a whole,'' Clemons said. ``Everybody was getting to the ball.''
Open-field tackling was much improved over a year ago, and the Dolphins broke up seven passes. When Allen dropped a potential interception with only the end zone in front of him, he returned to the huddle grinning.
``That's all he could do, was laugh,'' Davis said. ``We joked around. We were having fun.''
Allen, a first-round pick in 2006, took a big step in shedding his label as a draft bust. He helped hold the Bills' Lee Evans to 34 receiving yards, playing so well that Sean Smith, who started all 16 games as a rookie in 2009, never got on the field.
``I probably should have played Sean,'' coach Tony Sparano said. ``The way it was going, we just didn't feel like it would be a good idea to mess around with that.''
Clemons, a fifth-round draft pick in 2009, was all over the field. He made one eye-popping tackle, blitzing from the left side and racing to the other sideline to chase down C.J. Spiller for a 1-yard loss.
``As good a play as I've seen,'' Sparano said.
``Chris was flying everywhere,'' Davis said. ``There were times I didn't even know where he came from.''
The front seven applied effective pressure, although the Dolphins did allow Edwards to scramble to the outside several times. That's a no-no against Favre.
``Those things, when you play against a guy like this, they'll kill you,'' Sparano said. ``He can take those plays and turn them into touchdowns, and everybody has seen him do it time and time again.''
Otherwise, the biggest knock on the Dolphins' defense is that the unit came up with no turnovers in the opener. That was a problem last year, when Miami's 21 takeaways were the fifth-fewest in the league.
Favre threw only seven interceptions in 531 passes last season, and it will be tough to wrest the ball from him. Still, the Dolphins' DBs look forward to the challenge.
``Him being 40 years old - that's like me playing against my father,'' Davis said. ``I would never have thought when I was watching Brett Favre at Green Bay that I would be lining up across from him. That's like a dream.
``It's also a dream to grab an interception from him.''
``I was probably a baby in diapers when he was first in the league,'' Davis said.
It's true: Davis was 3 when Favre made his NFL debut in 1991. Now, Davis is a second-year cornerback for the Miami Dolphins and part of a revamped secondary bracing to face Favre and the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday.
The pass defense was solid in a season-opening 15-10 win at Buffalo. Miami allowed only 116 yards through the air and had three sacks.
But that was against Trent Edwards, who has 25 career touchdown passes. Favre has an NFL record 498.
Favre also has started 286 games, compared with 70 for Miami's four starting defensive backs combined.
``It's a test for us,'' Davis said. ``We get to see where we're at when we go against Brett Favre.''
Where they're at is in transition. Davis and veteran strong safety Yeremiah Bell are holdover starters, but free safety Chris Clemons and cornerback Jason Allen won jobs in training camp, and Benny Sapp is the new nickel back after being acquired last month in a trade with the Vikings.
The secondary needed a shake-up after allowing 14 touchdown passes of 20 yards or more last year, second-most in the NFL. Early returns on the changes are favorable, with Miami 1-0 for the first time since 2005.
Minnesota is 0-1, and Favre is eager to get the offense in gear after throwing for only 171 yards in a 14-9 loss at New Orleans. After wavering on retirement, he joined the Vikings only four weeks ago, and rust showed.
``There's no doubt we have to get on the same page,'' Favre said, ``and we have to do it in a hurry.''
While cohesion might yet surface as an issue in the Dolphins' secondary, they had only one glaring defensive lapse at Buffalo - a blown assignment on fourth and 11 that resulted in a 31-yard scoring pass. Otherwise the Dolphins smothered the Bills' receivers.
``We played great as a whole,'' Clemons said. ``Everybody was getting to the ball.''
Open-field tackling was much improved over a year ago, and the Dolphins broke up seven passes. When Allen dropped a potential interception with only the end zone in front of him, he returned to the huddle grinning.
``That's all he could do, was laugh,'' Davis said. ``We joked around. We were having fun.''
Allen, a first-round pick in 2006, took a big step in shedding his label as a draft bust. He helped hold the Bills' Lee Evans to 34 receiving yards, playing so well that Sean Smith, who started all 16 games as a rookie in 2009, never got on the field.
``I probably should have played Sean,'' coach Tony Sparano said. ``The way it was going, we just didn't feel like it would be a good idea to mess around with that.''
Clemons, a fifth-round draft pick in 2009, was all over the field. He made one eye-popping tackle, blitzing from the left side and racing to the other sideline to chase down C.J. Spiller for a 1-yard loss.
``As good a play as I've seen,'' Sparano said.
``Chris was flying everywhere,'' Davis said. ``There were times I didn't even know where he came from.''
The front seven applied effective pressure, although the Dolphins did allow Edwards to scramble to the outside several times. That's a no-no against Favre.
``Those things, when you play against a guy like this, they'll kill you,'' Sparano said. ``He can take those plays and turn them into touchdowns, and everybody has seen him do it time and time again.''
Otherwise, the biggest knock on the Dolphins' defense is that the unit came up with no turnovers in the opener. That was a problem last year, when Miami's 21 takeaways were the fifth-fewest in the league.
Favre threw only seven interceptions in 531 passes last season, and it will be tough to wrest the ball from him. Still, the Dolphins' DBs look forward to the challenge.
``Him being 40 years old - that's like me playing against my father,'' Davis said. ``I would never have thought when I was watching Brett Favre at Green Bay that I would be lining up across from him. That's like a dream.
``It's also a dream to grab an interception from him.''
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
Sidney Rice's Hip Is Improving, But When We Returns To The Vikings Is Still Uncertain
Sidney Rice's hip is improving, but when he returns to the Vikings is still uncertain
 |
| Sidney Rice Will Miss The First 6 Games Of The Season |
While Childress was offensive coordinator there.
Asked about his comfort level with receivers Bernard Berrian, Percy Harvin, Greg Camarillo and Greg Lewis, Childress said he's "completely comfortable."
Injury update: Left tackle Bryant McKinnie says the dislocated finger he suffered against the Saints is fine and he will play this week. The gory photographs of his treatment that he posted on his Twitter account last weekend were not for the squeamish.
McKinnie was injured early in the fourth quarter against New Orleans. He said he would have been able to return, but the Vikings never got the ball back.
Baby steps: Though his knee is feeling "strong" after he tore his anterior cruciate ligament in late January, cornerback Cedric Griffin says he's not rushing his return.
The Vikings considered playing Griffin against the Saints but ultimately placed him on the inactive list.
"This is something I'm doing for my career, more than just the first game or second game," Griffin said. "I'm looking out for my interests as well. We're taking our time."
Last year's starter said the process is day to day, and he believes he will play "whenever the coaches feel I'm good and whenever I go express my feelings (that I'm ready)."
Quote of note: "If you go to the ground, you have to come up with the football. Period." — Childress, on Detroit Lions receiver Calvin Johnson's apparent touchdown catch with 24 seconds left at Chicago on Sunday that was ruled incomplete despite clear possession of the ball. Johnson left the ball on the ground as he popped up, giving the Bears a 19-14 victory.
Brian Murphy contributed to this report.
 |
| Toby Gerhart Minnesota vikings 3rd Down Back |
A week after arthroscopic hip surgery, Vikings wide receiver Sidney Rice has been placed on the reserve/physically unable to perform list.
This means Rice will miss the first six games of the season, after which the team will have three weeks to activate him for practices or place him on injured reserve. The latter would risk losing Rice for the entire year.
Coach Brad Childress said last week he expected at least eight weeks before realistic discussions of Rice's return.
Rice said on Twitter that he would return to the Vikings' Winter Park facility on Monday.
Rice's move to PUP came in light of the Vikings' efforts to trim the roster to 75 players for Tuesday's deadline.
The team waived tackle Bill Noethlich, receiver Marko Mitchell and linebacker J Leman. The Vikings have to cut to 53 players by Saturday.
Injury update: Running back Toby Gerhart, a second-round pick out of Stanford, returned to practice after missing Monday because of a knee injury.
Also missing in action were cornerback Chris Cook (knee), center John Sullivan (calf), defensive tackle Jimmy Kennedy, wide receiver Logan Payne, safety Jamarca Sanford and tight end Garrett Mills.
Percy Harvin strolled into practice a couple of minutes late. At this point, his everyday attendance is a victory for the Vikings after he missed most of the preseason with migraine headaches.
'Big game' for Webb: Rookie quarterback Joe Webb said he's confident in his place
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
Minnesota Vikings Starters Stil Uncertain But SuperBowl Chances Solid
 |
| John Sullivan |
The Vikings haven’t made a final decision on whether or not to play their starters in Thursday’s preseason finale, but John Sullivan won’t be among them. Plus, Sidney Rice is officially out for at least six weeks, the first roster cuts are in and traffic could be snarled Thursday. Offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell said Tuesday that a final decision on the starters for Thursday’s preseason finale hasn’t been made yet. Most likely, the star players won’t be making an appearance, but a decision to sit the entire starting cast or a portion of it hasn’t been made yet. “Originally I think coach said that he wasn’t going to (play the starters) and then in the team meeting right before the game he said he reserved the right to put them in if he needed to, so I’m not sure he’s made a decision on that,” Bevell said. “He hasn’t told us yet. But the guys did perform pretty decent early in that game and he’ll end up making that decision, probably pretty quick.” Injuries have forced the Vikings make a number of adjustments to their starting lineup, most notably and consistently at center. John Sullivan hasn’t played yet this preseason and Bevell said he wouldn’t be playing again in the preseason finale Thursday night against the Denver Broncos. “I don’t think it’s at that point yet. We’ve got to get him back out here after this preseason game,” Bevell said. “We knew that we weren’t going to have him through this game. Pretty much just being able to see if it can handle pushing off, the physical strain. He’ll be fine conditioning-wise because they’re still working with that.” The Vikings have started 2009 rookie free agent Jon Cooper as well as Anthony Herrera, normally the starting right guard, at center in their first three preseason games. As for the regular-season opener, all three – Sullivan, Herrera and Cooper – are possibilities, Bevell said. Bevell said the team expected to have their five starting offensive linemen from last year all healthy when they started training camp, but “at some point we’ll get Sully back.” RICE MOVED TO RESERVE/PUP The Vikings placed wide receiver Sidney Rice on the reserve/physically unable to perform list, meaning he will officially be out for at least the first six games of the season. Rice had surgery on his hip last week and Vikings coach Brad Childress said it would be “at least” eight weeks before he could return. The Vikings can have him return to practice after the first six games of the season and make a determination about his future after that. Rice tweeted on Tuesday that he was working out in a pool with Timberwolves guard Jonny Flynn. CUTS COME HOME The Vikings got down to the NFL-mandated 75-player roster limit on Tuesday by making the move on Rice and releasing WR Marko Mitchell and OL Bill Noethlich. The team put LB J Leman on the injured-reserve list after he cleared the waived-injured process. He joins WR Jaymar Johnson on that season-ending designation. The Vikings will have to make a decision on CB Cedric Griffin, who is on the active physically-unable-to-perform list by Saturday. Griffin, who hasn’t practiced with the team since tearing his ACL in the NFC Championship Game on Jan. 24, could also be headed for the PUP list if trainers and doctors aren’t convinced he’s ready for action in the coming weeks. The Vikings will have to be down to the NFL-mandated roster limit of 53 players by 5 p.m. Central Saturday, meaning at least 22 players will be waived, along with a decision being made on Griffin. VIKINGS-TWINS SHOWDOWN The city of Minneapolis is warning Vikings and Twins fans of the potential for congested traffic on Thursday night. With the Twins now playing in the new Target Field, Thursday night will mark the first concurrent Twins and Vikings games and the city is projecting that as many as 100,000 people will attend the two games. The Vikings play the Denver Broncos at 7 p.m., with doors opening at 5 p.m., and the Twins host the Detroit Tigers at 7:10 p.m., with gates opening at 5:30 p.m. Additionally, the Orpheum Theatre is presenting the production “Wicked,” with doors opening there at 6:30 p.m. The City of Minneapolis is encouraging those who drive to the games to park as close as they can to that stadium and encouraging other forms of transportation. The Hiawatha Light Rail is expected to be full, but bus service will supplement that before and after the game, picking up passengers at the 28th Ave. Station and Fort Snelling Station and going to both the Metrodome and Target Field. The Northstar commuter rail is sending an eight-car train from the Big Lake Station with stops in Elk River, Anoka, Coon Rapids and Fridley, with arrival at Target Field Station at about 6:10 p.m. Fans headed to the Vikings game will make a free transfer to the Hiawatha light-rail line for the short trip to the Metrodome. After the games, separate sets of buses will depart both venues and deliver passengers back to their starting points. NOTES
| |||||||
| The Vikings have had the best rush defense over the past three years, finishing second last year and first the previous two years. Avoiding four-game suspensions to Pat and Kevin Williams would help keep that important element intact. The recent court decision to delay the suspensions of Pat Williams and Kevin Williams may have a big influence in Brett Favre’s still-pending decision as to whether to come back for another year or to spend an autumn on the farm in Mississippi for the first time in his adult life. The conventional wisdom is that if Favre comes back, the Vikings will make a Super Bowl run. But, without the Williams Wall, those odds would take a hit. The Williamses have both been Pro Bowlers for a reason. With all the complicated offensive schemes designed to open up and exploit defenses, the basic premise of the game remains the same – run the ball effectively on offense and stop the run on defense. If you do that consistently, you stand a better chance to win consistently. With the Williams Wall in place, over the last three years, nobody has done it like the Vikings. In 2007, the Vikings finished 8-8, missing the playoffs thanks to a collapse at home against Washington that would have clinched a wild card berth. Their mediocrity wasn’t due to the run defense. It was rated No. 1 in yards allowed and No. 2 in average per rushing attempt. The problem was that the Vikings couldn’t consistently generate a pass rush and quarterbacks with any acumen (and even some without a lot of street cred) were able to pick them apart – the Vikings had the 32nd-rated pass defense in ’07, which was saying something considering there were six teams that lost 12 or more games and one (Miami) that lost 15 times. In 2008, Jared Allen came to the team and Ray Edwards was given the other full-time starting job and they helped vastly improve the pass rush and the overall defense. The Vikings went from 32nd in the league in pass defense to 18th. It wasn’t a meteoric jump, but it was good enough to help the team improve from 8-8 to 10-6. The run defense was still dominant. They again finished first in rush yards allowed and second in average per rush, leading the Vikings to a division title for the first time in eight years and giving hope that bigger things could be on the horizon. The arrival of Favre kicked expectations up a notch – make that 20 notches. The offense improved exponentially upon his arrival. In the two years previously referenced, the Vikings had started Tarvaris Jackson, Gus Frerotte, Brooks Bollinger and Kelly Holcomb. Favre brought immediate excitement – and more scoring – to the Vikings offense. It put pressure on the defense to keep up and the that side of the ball responded. The numbers slipped slightly – second in the league in rush yards allowed and sixth in average per carry – but the formula remained the same. If you stop them, the wins will come. Had the NFL been able to impose its four-game suspension on the Williamses – the odds of them getting it reduced by a game or two given the rancor of the court cases is unlikely – it might have been enough to keep Favre on the farm side of the fence. But with them back in the fold for the foreseeable future, things again look bright heading into the season, which could be a contributing factor in Favre making the decision so many fans, coaches and teammates are keeping their fingers crossed that he will make. MONDAY NOTES | |||||||
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)