Minnesota Vikings Team Report

Favre Missed Some Crucial Passes In The Season Opener Vs Saints

NFC North Standings W L T PCT PF PA Chicago 0 0 0 .000 0 0 Detroit 0 0 0 .000 0 0 Green Bay 0 0 0 .000 0 0 Minnesota 0 1 0 .000 9 14 Team Stat Leaders Passing Att Cmp Yds TD Int Favre 27 15 171 1 1 Rushing Att Yds Avg TD Long Peterson 19 87 4.6 0 14 Harvin 1 2 2.0 0 2 Receiving Rec Yds Avg TD Long Shiancoe 4 76 19.0 1 33 Camarillo 1 29 29.0 0 29 Schedule/Results Date Opponent Score 9/9/2010 at New Orleans L 14 - 9 9/19/2010 Miami 1:00 PM 9/26/2010 Detroit 1:00 PM 10/11/2010 at N.Y. Jets 8:30 PM 10/17/2010 Dallas 4:15 PM 10/24/2010 at Green Bay 8:20 PM 10/31/2010 at New England 4:15 PM 11/7/2010 Arizona 1:00 PM 11/14/2010 at Chicago 1:00 PM 11/21/2010 Green Bay 1:00 PM

Brett Favre joined the Vikings in late August last year, didn't get into a groove until Week 3 of the season and still they cruised to a 6-0 start.

This season, however, Favre's decision to again not arrive in Minnesota until training camp was over appeared to backfire in quick fashion.

Favre, who took advantage of the fact the Vikings opened up against woeful teams in Cleveland and Detroit in 2009, completed 15 of 27 passes for 171 yards with a touchdown, an interception and a subpar 71.7 passer rating in a season-opening 14-9 loss to the defending Super Bowl champion New Orleans Saints at the Superdome.

It was obvious Favre was not on the same page as his wide receivers and he completed only four of the 12 passes that he threw to Greg Camarillo, Percy Harvin, Greg Lewis and Bernard Berrian. About the only receiver who was in sync with Favre was tight end Visanthe Shiancoe, who caught four passes for 76 yards and a touchdown.

"I think the timing was off a little bit," Favre said. "Without looking at film, off the top of my head, there were three or four throws that I just missed. I have no excuse other than just missing them. I threw one behind Greg Lewis. I had a couple of reads that I should have made differently. If I do that, I think it is a different ballgame. ... Overall, I just missed on some throws that I should have made."

In his first game with the Vikings last season, Favre completed 14 of 21 passes for 110 yards and a touchdown in a 34-20 victory over the Browns. A week later he threw for 155 yards and two touchdowns in a 27-13 victory at Detroit before following that with a 301-yard passing performance against San Francisco.

The question now becomes how long will it take Favre to get on track this season? The Vikings play their home opener on Sept. 19 against Miami and then play host to Detroit before having a bye.

Those are key games considering the Vikings will play the Jets, Cowboys, Packers and Patriots coming out of the bye.

NOTES, QUOTES

—Vikings coach Brad Childress acknowledged that his team's opening game was expected to be a shootout between two top offenses. But that isn't what happened. "Obviously, it turned into a defensive struggle," Childress said. "I don't think that anybody would've seen that this way. They had four explosive plays in the first quarter. We kind of held them down after that. We were right where we wanted to be at halftime. Unfortunately, we were three and out far too many times. Hats off to New Orleans. They did a nice job defensively ... and we didn't have a lot of answers for that."

—DE Jared Allen was pleased with how the Vikings defense performed. "I am really proud of the way our defense played," he said. "Other than their first drive (on which the Saints scored), I thought we stopped them a lot on third downs and made plays."

—QB Brett Favre didn't play his best Thursday but he did say his surgically repaired left ankle held up fine. "I don't move around like I used to," Favre said. "But I feel like it did OK."

__  Should Lito Sheppard Be The Number One CB and Greg Camarillo A Starting Receiver? From The looks of Thursday's game these were the players that played the best for the Vikings under pressure.

STRATEGY AND PERSONNEL

PLAYER NOTES

—S Husain Abdullah started at strong safety Thursday and has won that job, according to coach Brad Childress. Abdullah beat out Tyrell Johnson and Jamarca Sanford, who were believed to be the top two candidates throughout training camp.

—CB Asher Allen started ahead of Lito Sheppard at right cornerback and was used at the left corner in nickel situations as veteran Antoine Winfield moved inside and Lito Sheppard came off the sideline to play right corner.

—WR Bernard Berrian returned punts but didn't do much in that role. Berrian muffed one punt and finished with 2 yards on two returns. He also had two fair catches. There is a chance the Vikings could give WR Greg Camarillo a look in that role.

—CB Cedric Griffin, who tore his left anterior cruciate ligament in the NFC title game last season, was among the Vikings' eight inactives. It's not certain when Griffin will be able to begin playing but he is doing limited work in practice.

—LB E.J. Henderson played against the Saints, nine months after suffering a gruesome broken leg. Henderson started in his usual role in the middle and tied for second on the team with nine tackles.

—LT Bryant McKinnie left Thursday's game in the fourth quarter after he dislocated his finger. He is expected to return for the Vikings next game against Miami a week from Sunday.

REPORT CARD

PASSING OFFENSE: C-minus — A year ago Brett Favre started slowly after joining the Vikings late and it didn't matter as Minnesota cruised past a woeful Cleveland team in its opener. This time, however, Favre's decision to arrive late definitely hurt his team as the Vikings lost to the world champion Saints. Favre often looked as if he was not on the same page as his wide receivers and the stats supported that. He completed 15 of 27 passes for 171 yards with a touchdown, an interception and a 71.7 passer rating. The only player Favre seemed to be in sync with was tight end Visanthe Shiancoe, who caught four passes for 76 yards and a touchdown. No wide receiver caught more than one pass. Greg Camarillo, Percy Harvin, Greg Lewis and Bernard Berrian were targeted a combined 12 times but had only four receptions.

RUSHING OFFENSE: B-minus — The Vikings made a surprising decision to go away from the run game in the second half after having success with it in the first. Adrian Peterson finished with 87 yards on 19 carries, but 57 of those yards and 13 of the carries came in the opening two quarters. The Vikings' run-to-pass ratio in the first half was 17 to 15 but that changed to six to 12 in the second. Peterson did see some time on third down, something that didn't happen much when Chester Taylor was around, and backup Albert Young got only three carries for 2 yards. Percy Harvin also rushed once for 2 yards. Rookie Toby Gerhart, a second-round pick, did not play because of a knee injury.

PASS DEFENSE: B — Despite having only three healthy cornerbacks dressed, the Vikings were able to do a nice job against Drew Brees. The Pro Bowl quarterback threw for 237 yards and a touchdown but that score came on New Orleans' opening drive when Brees completed three of four passes, including a 29-yard touchdown that went to Devery Henderson and came at the expense of cornerback Asher Allen. Allen started at the right corner but the Vikings went nickel much of the game and moved Allen to the left corner in those situations with Lito Sheppard on the right and savvy veteran Antoine Winfield matching up against the slot receiver. Strong safety Husain Abdullah got his first career start and appeared to hold up just fine.

RUSH DEFENSE: B — The Saints accumulated 79 yards on 25 carries with almost all of it coming in the second half. New Orleans only attempted three rushes in the first half but then ran the ball 22 times for 70 yards in the second. The Vikings have one of the NFL's top rushing defenses and for the most part they were solid on Thursday. The Saints were able to gain 31 yards on their 11-play drive that ended with a Pierre Thomas 1-yard touchdown run in the third quarter.

SPECIAL TEAMS: C — Nothing special here. Bernard Berrian, who had some success on punt returns in 2008, only had 2 yards on two returns and muffed one that he recovered. Percy Harvin was able to return kicks and averaged 20.5 yards on two run backs. Ryan Longwell made a 41-yard field-goal attempt but his extra point try late in the second quarter after Shiancoe caught a touchdown pass was blocked. Longwell also is back handling kickoffs after Rhys Lloyd failed to make the roster coming out of the preseason. Longwell did not have a touchback on three kickoffs but his first kick to open the game did go 2 yards deep into the end zone.

COACHING: C — The decision to go away from the run game in the second half was surprising, especially as Saints coach Sean Payton made the adjustment to try to balance his offense by running more. Childress also was unsuccessful on a challenge of a pass that he thought tight end Jim Kleinsasser had caught early in the fourth quarter. That cost him a timeout he could have used later in the game as the Saints ran out the clock. The bottom line, however, was that if Favre had a better game the Vikings would have won.


Well, look forward to the Miami Dolphins Game Vikings Fans maybe we'll see our offense and secondary step it up and match the rest of the team. Below, is a store of Minnesota Vikings Player Jerseys, get your Brett Favre Minnesota Vikings Jersey, they're selling fast!!

Adrian Peterson Wanted More Carries In The Vikings 14-9 Loss Vs Saints

Adrian Peterson Stiff Arms Saints Defender

Adrian Peterson had 13 carries on the Vikings' first three possessions on Thursday night. The Vikings' game plan was, clearly, to get Peterson the ball coming out of the gate.

And then the Vikings got away from that game plan. Peterson had just six carries the rest of the game, and none at all on the Vikings' final drive, on which Brett Favre threw seven passes, the Vikings ended up punting with five and a half minutes left, and then the Saints proceeded to run out the clock.

So why didn't Peterson get the ball more late in the game? He says he asked for it, but he's not sure if coach Brad Childress heard him.

"I'll do whatever it takes," Peterson told Michael Silver after the game. "Whatever it takes to help this team win. I don't know if Coach heard me, but I remember walking by in the second half on the sideline saying, 'Hey, give it to me. Feed me.' I don't know if he really heard me. But there's a lot to learn from this game."

The No. 1 thing for the Vikings to learn is that just having Favre lead the offense won't be enough. They're going to have to feed the rock to Peterson more than 19 times a game this season.

Adrian Peterson Stiff Arms A Saints Defender

Saints Hold Off Vikings 14-9 To Open Season

Brett Could've been Doing This

          On a night that the city of New Orleans celebrated last season's accomplishments, the 2010 version of the Saints began their title defense with a 14-9 win over the Vikings on Thursday.

The Saints wasted no time in finding the end zone, scoring just 2:04 into the game. Brees hit Devery Henderson from 29 yards out, whipping the Superdome crowd into a frenzy and putting the defending champs up 7-0 before Favre and the Vikings' offense even touched the ball. Minnesota's first points of the game finally came in the second quarter on a Ryan Longwell field goal, cutting the deficit to four points. The Vikes took the lead later in the quarter when Visanthe Shiancoe hauled in a 20-yard Favre touchdown pass. A missed extra point by Longwell gave Minnesota a 9-7 lead at halftime.

New Orleans took control in the third quarter, finishing off an 11-play, 69-yard drive when Pierre Thomas plunged over the goal line to put the Saints back on top 14-9. Favre and the Vikings were unable to get back on the scoreboard and the Saints hung on for their first win of the new season.

Brees finished 27 of 36 for 237 yards and one touchdown while Favre went 15 of 27 for 171 with a scoring strike and one interception. Adrian Peterson was the game's leading rusher with 87 yards; Thomas led New Orleans with 71 yards on 19 carries. 

Brett Favre Is Back But For How Long

      Brett Favre was retrieved from his farm in Mississippi by three teammates, practiced with the Minnesota Vikings the next morning and then met media. This will be my final season he was heard to exclaim.

Can Brett Endure The Whole Season?

What's funny about that, aside from the obvious, is that he thought the most common reaction would be, "thank goodness". He mentioned that his family will be happy that after his twentieth season he'll be out of pads and a helmet, and thought the rest of America would share that sentiment.
For some reason he didn't realize that the first and most popular reaction would be, "We'll believe it when we see the signed papers filed with the NFL." Of course even that didn't keep him from returning from retirement in 2008 to play for the New York Jets. Favre has not yet grasped the fact that we love it when he plays football, just not when he talks about NOT playing football.
Much has been said and written about why he finally caved in to Steve Hutchinson, Ryan Longwell and Jared Allen when they landed on his doorstep this week. From what they are willing to reveal and what Favre said at the media conference, he was still not sure he was good enough to make a Super Bowl run and doubted his ability to make everyone happy.
Veterans of twelve-step programs say they are taught that addicts-alcoholics are all egomaniacs with inferiority complexes. Both parts of that dichotomy were on display during our third annual "Is He or Isn't He" summer ritual.
The quarterback's insecurity makes him fearful he'll disappoint his team of the moment. Add a rehab from surgery to that and it becomes overwhelming for him.
It's hard for us to understand that an athlete like Favre could ever doubt himself.  He admitted he had to grow to believe his teammates, over the course of the day and a half they spent with him, when they told him he didn't have to replicate last season, one of the best in his 19-year career.
The final straw, according to Favre was when one of the three-some asked him to return as a persdonal favor. He realized his fear of failure was not theirs and that one little "yes" from him would make them very happy.
Meanwhile, agonizing about his own insecurities puts the needs of his team a distant second. He gives little thought to the rituals of a team that makes no exceptions but for him, in demanding that training camp is required.
He doesn't think it's his job to let the coaches know if they are designing schemes for him or backups. He thinks that a few words upon his late arrival at camp makes it all right for him to toy with the heads and hearts of two men who want to take his place if they only knew whether he would return.
 He's special, after all and of course he's right. There are different rules for someone like Favre. But he doesn't have to take advantage to this extent. The fact that he does so without dwelling on consequences, stems from his all consuming insecurity.
Other than the Packers and their GM Ted Thompson, no other team has told him to stick his ridiculous indecisiveness and put it where the sun doesn't shine. So it's back to work for Brett Favre and supposedly only one more try at football glory  Here's a video clip from the press conference. 

The real question Minnesota Vikings fans are pondering is if Brett Favre will be the starting quarterback for the whole season this year without getting injured, and if he does have a remarkable season like last year than would he stay for another year?Well, we all know that his bum ankle isn't tested yet and we won't really know if Brett can make it through the while season even if he doesn't get sacked a lot because of his enigmatic ankle. We know Brett is tough and can play through pain but just to what extent is his ability to maneuver outside and in the pocket affect his game? So, all we can do is say that he will give it 100% like he has for his previous 19 years and try to bring us to the Superbowl.
We all know that Brett Won't quit if he has another outstanding year like last year, how can he when he's still a top quarterback. Get Your Brett Favre Minnesota Vikings Jersey below and get ready for a Minnesota Vikings Superbowl Season.
   

New Orleans Saints vs. Minnesota Vikings Preview

Adrian Peterson Looking To Carry The Load

Vikings Fans Are Looking For Revenge

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    It has been more than seven months since the New Orleans Saints and Minnesota Vikings battled for the NFC championship.
saints_fans95.jpgScott Threlkeld/The Times-PicayuneIt will be an emotional game for the New Orleans Saints and their fans Thursday night.

Since then, barbs have been traded, criticisms levied, taunts fired.


Minnesota Vikings Coach Brad Childress accused the Saints of taking cheap shots at quarterback Brett Favre.

Vikings running back Adrian Peterson and tight end Visanthe Shiancoe called out Saints safety Darren Sharper for dirty play.

Sharper, in turn, hinted that the Saints would be targeting Favre's ankle.

The Biggest Game Of The Vikings 2010-2011 Season

Saints defensive coordinator Gregg Williams said his defense could continue to send messages to opposing quarterbacks, "starting with No. 4 (Favre)."

Vikings defensive end Jared Allen, meanwhile, called Williams' remarks "meathead comments."

The trash talk and verbal volleys only add to the anticipation for Thursday night's regular-season opener between the teams at the Superdome.

It's one of the most-hyped rematches since Ali-Frazier.

NFL Kickoff?

More like the NFL Tick-off.

And it might be more physical than the Thrilla in Manila.

Saints' players spent Sunday afternoon downplaying their newfound rivalry with the Vikings. They stressed this will be just another game on the schedule. They insisted there'll be no more trash talking or extracurricular action than any other week.

Visante Shiancoe Looks To Quiet The Superdome Early

And they fooled no one.

Thursday night has all the earmarks of a blood bath. The Vikings believe they, not the Saints, should have won Super Bowl XLIV. They are convinced they gave away the NFC championship game. They are going to arrive with horns on their helmets and chips on their shoulders.

"I think it will all take care of itself from our standpoint and their standpoint, " Childress said. "You better play this game from an emotionally aroused level. I don't have any illusions that they will. All you want to make sure is you give your best shot, and that's what I want from my players."

Childress on Sunday did not back down from claims earlier this summer that he believes the Saints intentionally tried to hurt Favre in the NFC championship game.

Jared Allen Looking To Get His

"What I hate to see are late hits or attempts to hurt anybody, " Childress said. "I don't think there's a place for that in the game."

Later on Sunday, Saints defensive end Will Smith scoffed at the notion.

"Everybody knows that's nonsense, " Smith said. "We play to the whistle. We played like that all year and didn't hear anybody else complain."

Defensive tackle Remi Ayodele said the Saints have never tried to intentionally hurt a player, including Favre. On the play in which Favre injured his ankle, Ayodele said he even tried to let up on the quarterback at the last minute.

"Watch the film, " he said.

Brett Favre Looks To Pour On The Points

"You don't ever want to hurt another player, but I just think it was taken out of proportion because it was Favre and it was that game. But if you look back on the rest of our games, it was kind of the same deal. ... We did that every game."

Defensive end Anthony Hargrove just rolled his eyes when asked about the play.

"If the league doesn't want the quarterback to get hit, maybe they should just give him a flag, " said Hargrove, who was fined $5,000 for a late hit on Favre in the NFC championship game.

"We're not going to change how we play. We're going to come after every quarterback we play. It's about sending messages all season."

To Favre's credit, he didn't buy into Childress' claims. "It's physical, " Favre said. "It's football. I'm not going to get caught up in that."

What both teams likely will get caught up in is the emotion of the night.

There's going to be a pregame parade in the French Quarter.

The Dave Matthews Band and Taylor Swift will perform concerts.

They are going to drop banners at the Superdome on Thursday night: One for the NFC South Division title; one for the NFC championship; and another for the Super Bowl XLIV title.

The atmosphere is going to be electric. And the action is only going to intensify once they kick it off.

Vikings' corners see math problem

Which Corner backs Will Start? Winfield and Griffin like last year? Abdullah and Winfield? Sheppard and Winfield? Or Maybe a mixture of all four? We all know that Antoine Winfield is our number one corner back ,it just depends on who will win the second and slot covering positions?This is now the big focus on the Minnesota Vikings Roster Preparation for the regular season.

Cedric Griffin

Antoine Winfield

Husain Abdullah

Lito Sheppard

     

       The Saints like to use four receivers at a time, so being shorthanded could be an issue in the defensive

backfield    The Vikings have only three healthy cornerbacks on their active roster. The New Orleans Saints like to use four wide receiver sets.

It doesn't take a math whiz to realize the numbers don't work in the Vikings' favor.
But that is the predicament they face in their season opener Thursday against a Saints team that finished No. 1 in total offense and No. 4 in passing last season.
"It could be tough," Vikings cornerback Antoine Winfield said. "Of course we're kind of short-handed, but that's football. We'll go out there and play with the guys that we have."
That group consists of Winfield, veteran Lito Sheppard and second-year player Asher Allen, the team's primary nickel back. Rookie Chris Cook was poised to start at right corner, but he suffered a knee injury in the third preseason game and could miss several games.
Their shortage of healthy corners forces the Vikings to explore different options. Defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier didn't even rule out getting some help from Cedric Griffin, who returned to practice this week after missing all of training camp while recovering from anterior cruciate ligament surgery. Griffin injured his knee covering a kickoff against the Saints in the NFC Championship Game in January. The team put him on the 53-man roster and he has practiced on a limited basis this week.
"The fact that he's out here practicing gives us some hope," Frazier said. "We're just trying to ascertain over the next couple days is it a real possibility. We're going to give it another day and see how he does [Tuesday]. But he has already done far more than we expected when we decided to put him on the 53."
Frazier admitted it's probably too late in the week to sign another cornerback, so they need to find the solution inside their own locker room. One possibility could be safety Husain Abdullah, who got limited playing time as the nickel corner last season.

It wouldn't be surprising if Abdullah plays a significant role, possibly even as a starter at safety. Abdullah said he's done "a little bit of everything" this week in practice.
Safety Jamarca Sanford is bothered by an ankle injury and is better suited in run support. And last season's No. 1 strong safety, Tyrell Johnson, expressed doubt that he will start.
"I don't really know, I doubt it though," he said. "But all you can do is handle your job, your responsibilities."
Sheppard admittedly didn't make many plays in preseason games, but he blamed it on a lack of opportunities. That shouldn't be a problem Thursday.
"You know what you're in store for," he said. "We know what the situation is going into this game. We just have to be professionals and be prepared for it."
The Vikings are hoping a consistent pass rush on quarterback Drew Brees will help their secondary. The Vikings were credited with one sack and four quarterback hurries against Brees in the NFC title game.
"[Pressure] is always important when you're playing against that guy," defensive tackle Kevin Williams said. "I think he's one of the most accurate quarterbacks in the league. If we're going to win any kind of way -- whether we have 100 [defensive backs] -- we have to make him move and not let him get settled in the pocket."
The Vikings also need to be effective on third down. The Saints converted only three of 12 third-down opportunities in the playoff meeting. The Vikings can't afford to give that offense extra chances.
"They have so many weapons and can put up so many points on you so fast," Winfield said. "If we can get off the field like we did last year, we'll be good."
If not, their depth problem at cornerback could get magnified. The Vikings fully expect New Orleans to come out throwing the ball with their four-receiver sets.
"I'm sure they are reading the papers and looking on the Internet, seeing we have only three corners," Winfield said. "So we can expect that."

   Get Your Brett Favre Jersey The Season Opener Vs The New Orleans Saints is on September 9 only, four days from today. Below are jerseys of all the vikings players on the 2010 Roster.