Purple Pride Ponderings - Favre Light Edition
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by Venomlace
Purple Pride Ponderings
September 30, 2007
Green Bay at Minnesota
So I’ve yet to get to one of these this season. Some would say that with your team sitting at 1-3 right after the easiest part of the schedule, why bother? Well that’s just not how I was raised. I’m here to stick it till the end – through the good, the bad, and in most cases this season, the ugly.
I'm going to go ahead and get the Favre record done and out of the way. The national love affair with “number 4” is sickening. Yesterday I heard Berman say, “How can you root against Brett Favre? That’s just Un-American.” Shortly after that, I actually re-tasted and re-ate a small bit of what I had for dinner. But, I must say, congrats to Favre, that’s one hell of a record to break and you are one hell of a player. While I can never say I’m a fan, I am an admirer. All week long I was upset about the fact that he would beat the record in the Dome, but now that it has happened, I’m actually glad because all the fans at Lambeau Field didn’t get to witness it in person. Enjoy it while you can Favre, I have a feeling that Manning will one day eclipse your newfound record.
That’s enough attention given to Favre, now on to the game………
Hardly Outmatched
Going into this game, it was stated everywhere of how outmatched the Vikings were going against the surging Packers. When looking more into the numbers after the game, that was clearly not the case. That Vikings had two more first downs than the Packers and the Packers gained only two more yards of total offense than the Vikings. The Packers ran one more play than the Vikings and the Vikings actually gained a hair more yards per play than did the Packers. There was a less than two minute difference in Time of Possession and the Vikings committed one more penalty than did the Packers. One area that sticks out though would be that sack category. Holcomb was on his back three more times than Favre resulting in a much wider margin of yards lost. That is clearly another indication of poor pass protection and McKinney even found himself yanked from the game because of it. And as far as Driver having a field day on Winfield, that was not the case either. Winfield played another solid game and contained that Packers number one receiver rather well.
Let the kids play
What’s with Childress not allowing the best playmakers on the team to get more touches? He was criticized in last week’s game against the Chiefs (and rightly so) for not having Adrian Peterson in the game during the final drive. So how does he follow that up? Well, let’s look at Peterson’s stats – 12 carries for 112 yards. So let me get this straight, you have a playmaker that’s averaging 9.3 yards per carry, and he only gets 12 touches? Give me a break and give him the damn ball 25 times a game, please!
There’s another rookie playmaker on this team that I think needs to be incorporated into this mundane offense more, Sidney Rice. Did anyone notice how Moss-esque his touchdown catch was? That’s not the first time I’ve noticed it either. He made a few nice plays in the pre-season that had me thinking the same thing. He’s clearly a receiver that can go up and make a play, so start chucking it up to him.
QB Kerfuffle
A much needed bye week is upon the Vikings and that will no doubt find the coaching staff in the midst of some soul-searching over the Quarterback situation. While it’s no secret that Jackson is not ready to lead a NFL team, it’s painfully obvious that Holcomb is not who you want any QB to learn from. The best bet for the remainder of the season is for Jackson to stay out there and take his lumps. I’m a firm believer in on-the-job training and without a legit veteran QB on the squad; it’s by far this team’s best option.
Remaining Schedule Hope?
So here we are at the Bye, sitting at a dismal 1-3 when it could have just as easily been 3-1 if not 4-0. Looking at the schedule before the season started, these first four games appeared to be the easiest part of the schedule with the remaining looking rather daunting. That may not be the case after four games played into the NFL season though. In the next four games, only the Dallas game looks to be out of reach for the Vikings. The Bears, Chargers, and Eagles no longer appear to be anywhere near as good as they should be. After that is the Packer rematch and as we saw yet again today, these games are always a close contest. So, the Vikings have a legit shot at getting to .500 or better in that five game stint and if they can muster any kind of offense what so ever, they should be able to obtain that goal.
Thoughts from the other games
Ø Falcons upset Texans (that just does not sound right), Harrington caught saying “See, who needs Schaub!” '
Ø Bills finally win; fans still wonder who the hell Trent Edwards is. '
Ø Can anyone figure out the Browns? First the Bengals, now the Ravens? They are a Vegas Odds betting nightmare. '
Ø How Bout Dem Cowboys! Seriously, this team is for real and Romo is playing out of his mind. '
Ø Lions scratch 34 points into Bears once defensive skin, in one quarter! No offense and now serious issues on defense, the Bears are in major disarray. '
Ø Culpepper points to his knee and says, “How you like me now?” Vikings fans say, “Was the bang boat really that bad?” '
Ø Note to self; NEVER pick a team that starts David Carr. '
Ø The 49ers were the Pre-season sexy pick for the NFC West, is that starting to change for anyone else yet? '
Ø It’s been highly noted that the Steelers have yet to beat a quality opponent. Losing to the Cards may have re-iterated that. '
Ø Colts start slow - then put the hammer down on the overrated Broncos. '
Ø How do you ruin a quality playoff team? Replace you quality Head Coach with Norv Turner. '
Ø Hey McNabb, now you know how Kitna felt, and then some. '
Monday Night Prediction
I’m looking forward to this matchup because I’m still a Moss fan. I look for him to have a Monday Night game very similar to his rookie break-out game against the Packers in Lambeau Field.
Randy Moss – 21
Bengals – 0
Actual score:
Patriots – 45
Bengals – 17
This will be a laugher and Moss does get into the end zone three times.
That’s it for this week and due to the Bye, there will be no Purple Pride Ponderings next week. Hopefully the Vikings find some kind of offense in their time off and Childress keeps his mouth shut when it comes to play calling. Enjoy the week ahead, I know I will - the Vikings can’t lose!
Later,
Keith Michaels
venomlace@yahoo.com
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