NFC north showdown

  What a week it has been.
Got to see the Vikings, who according to many of the national talking heads were going to be the worst team in the league this year, give the 49ers a good old fashioned ass-whippin. We also got to see the pack and Lions lose to give the Vikings a share of the lead in the NFC north.
 Well I think this week will be even better. Adrian Peterson has always had HUGE games against the Lions, and I think this will be the game where he shows the fans that he really is ready to get back to being an explosive touchdown machine. I'm also very excited for the debut of pot-head acrobat reciever Jerome Simpson. From everything we've seen in training camp and the preseason games our STUD quarterback, (did i really just say that?!?) has a great chemistry with Simpson and the big play opportunities for Harvin will dramatically increase with a legitimate deep-threat on the opposite side.
 From what I've seen progress over the first 3 weeks with this offense has me believing that this will be the week we see them really start to come together and put points up and move the ball. Like i said, Ponder is balling his rear end off out there, leading the league with a 70.1 completion percentage and boasting a QB rating of 104.9. He doesn't have monster stats through 3 weeks, 719 yards and 4 tds (not counting the one he ran for last week), but they are pretty damn decent. The one number that really sticks out to me is the 0, as in how many turnovers he has this year. He is making great decisions and not forcing anything into coverage. Last year I thought Ponder was a bum but I anticipated a great improvement this year and so far he has looked like a franchise quarterback, greatly exceeding my expectations.
 And my final note on the offense is this, the 49ers front 7 are arguably the best in football and the Viking O-line really handled their business against them. If they can play like big bullies in every game and allow Ponder time and make lanes for the Viking runners then they have a chance in every game they are in, so lets hope that keeps up.

 Another place I think the Vikes really showed improvement last week was on the defensive side of the ball. Now I'm not sure if this is because they have got their stuff together in the secondary or if Alex Smith was just being the the Alex Smith we are used to seeing, but the Vikes secondary was making plays and being physical, which allowed the front 7 to really get more pressure than what we saw in the first 2 weeks. Like I said last week, the linebackers are really playing well. They were a big question mark going into the season, especially with E.J. not coming back and I think players have really stepped up, so hopefully that can happen again this week with Henderson and Raymond not playing this week. I predict that Jared Allen will get a ton of pressure on Stafford, who will be playing hurt, and get a couple sacks in this game. And my final note on the defense is this, the Vikings are strong against the run, once again ranked #1 in the NFL, and Detroit doesn't have much of a ground game to begin with, so they can make the Lions totally one Dimensional and double cover Megatron and blitz Stafford, which should lead to turnovers and a Viking victory.

In what will be their first (and last for awhile) match against a divion opponent, the Final score: Purple 27, Lions 21

as always, the packers suck...
SKOL!!!!!!!

Jordan Nadel

2-1 Vikings team, possible NFC sleeper?

Vikings stun "Leagues best team", 24-13

 As the Vikings failed to punch the ball into the endzone on 3 straight run plays, I was thinking to myself..."Musgrave.", in much the same way as Seinfeld would mutter "Newman...". So it looks like another long drive capped off with a Blair Walsh field goal, Great. But I was shocked to see they were going for it on 4th down, wait a minute...now this game has a different feel to it. I wasn't as concerned about the actual score itself, which was a beautiful touch pass to tight end Kyle Rudolph, but more the fact they were willing to go for it. That said to me that the coaching staff was starting to loosen the reigns, and once i saw they were willing to take some risks to win this game I knew the 49ers were in trouble.

 Ponder continued to impress, completing 21 of 35 attempts for 198 yards and 2 TD's, and added a 23 yard rushing score that might have reminded 49er fans of one of their old favorite QB's. His completion percentage did take a dip, which is to be expected against a secondary as good as what the 49ers have, but still has not turned the ball over. He continues to make good decisions, never forcing anything deep into coverage and taking what the defense gives him. I'm excited to see what happens once Simpson is available to play next week. I think this lowly Minnesota offense may surprise a lot of folks in the coming weeks if Ponder continues to be this efficient combined with an ability to throw to a reliable deep threat.

 Kyle Rudolph is emerging as one of the leagues more dangerous tight ends. He put up 2 TDs on 36 yards recieving again today. One of the touchdown catches was a beautiful one-handed catch while falling down in the back of the endzone. The other Notre Dame tight end the Vikings aquired in free-agency, John Carlson, dropped what would have been his first catch of the season, but im sure he will get rolling soon. And of course, number 12 was just out there playing his ass off and moving the chains again...ho-hum, just another day at the office for Harvin.

 As i said in the "keys to victory" post earlier this week, the vikings secondary did play more bump and run coverage, jamming recievers up on the line and allowing the pass rush to hurry Alex Smith in the pocket. The defense as a whole played good, the linebackers (who were without starter Erin Henderson) played great. Chad Greenway was a beast, making tackles all over the field and putting up 2 sacks. The defensive line was physical and Jared Allen finally got the elusive first sack of 2012, not to mention DT Letroy Guion blocked a David Akers filed goal, allowing the offense to set up the rookie Blair Walsh for yet another 50yd+ field goal at the half.

 Toby Gerhardt and the Officials were also impressive. I've never seen a tailback fumble 3 times on 3 straight rush attempts until today, nor have I ever seen an NFL team be awarded 5 timeouts in one half until today. So kudos to them.

 In conclusion, The Vikings BEAT the 49ers!!! That is awesome! Nobody gave them a shot in this game and they dominated the line of scrimmage, time of possesion, and the turn-over battle (until they put Gerhardt in). I predicted before this season that the Vikes were a 9-7 team, and 2-1 is not a bad start! We as Viking fans have a win we can really hang our hopes on, and if this offense really starts clicking the sky's the Limit.

As always the Packers suck.

SKOL!

Jordan Nadel

Vike's face a tough task this Sunday

"Favre rolls...wants to throw deep and does....to the back of the endzone, Greg lewis...TOUCHDOWN!!!!!" 

One of the best plays in recent Vikings history. I get goosebumps whenever I think about it, BUT...this Minnesota team is a wee bit different now, as is this 49ers club

So, Its tough to find any glimmer of hope the Vikings have in putting a notch in the win column this weekend aginst the unbeaten San Fransisco squad that many have picked to become the Super Bowl champions. I mean lets face it, the matchups don't look favorable. The Viking's glaring weakness is stopping the pass, while the 49ers like to pound the ball with Frank Gore, they also have an array of talent that can move the ball through the air in a variety of ways. The Vikings offensive bread and butter is the run game, the 49ers have the best defense in the league against the run. Now...with all this said, I believe in the "any given Sunday" philosophy, so i think if the Vike's try some new things they can at least make this game interesting, and dare i say, possibly... win???

The Vikings have been playing alot of zone defense, and opposing QB's have been slicing it, connecting with recievers in-between the zones, especially on 3rd down, I think the vikings corners would have success playing some press man coverage and jamming targets up on the line of scrimmage, allowing Jared Allen and Co. to apply pressure to Alex Smith.

On the offensive side of the ball, Bill Musgrave has to, HAS TO, open up more of the passing playbook. I know Ponder has limited targets on the outside, but the 49ers will bring a safety down to stop the run, so the wide-outs should see alot of 1 on 1 coverage, and hopefully they are able to take advantage of it. I personally would like to see what the Arkansas rookie, Jarius Wright brings to the table. from everything I've seen of him at Arkansas, it looks like he can stretch the defense deep, or run good routes over the middle. Also, Stephen Burton who caught a fluke touchdown last week has burned Carlos Rogers before, granted it was preseason but let's get him in there too! The chemistry between Ponder and Rudolph keeps getting stronger, and Rudolph is a mismatch for just about any linebacker or safety that tries to cover him so I hope to see them exploit this early and often

Those are my keys to the game, Its going to be a tough game for the Vikings to come out on top, but if they do pull it off it willbe a HUGE statement, and nothing short of another Minneapolis miracle.

Here's some other games to keep an eye on this weekend:

Browns vs. Bills- two upstart teams that feature two strong young RBs

Redskins vs. Bengals- both young QBs have impressed, I just cant wait to see what RGIII does next.

Eagles vs. Cardinals- which team will remain unbeaten?

Broncos vs. Texans- two teams with pro-bowl QB's, and defenses with a knack for taking your football away. Was monday night a fluke for 18, or should the Broncos be concerned?

thanks for reading, Packers suck.

SKOL!

Jordan Nadel

Minnesota comeback comes just short due to stupid ass penalties and nonexistent pass defense

So week two of the 2012 NFL season is in the books, and another comeback by the Minnesota Vikings just couldn't be executed. There were alot of negative things I observed in the contest between the Vikings and the Colts, and we will go over those, but i am a "good news first", or "glass is half full" kind of guy, so lets look at the positives first.
I was very impressed with the play of "no mercy" Percy Harvin again this week. He avaeraged almost 9 yards per reception, catching 12 balls for 104 yards. You cant help but be in awe of the toughness of this kid. He plays so hard and always fights for the extra yard, Not to mention he was the only bright spot in the recieving game while he was suffering from cramps.
The Colts really did a good job of stopping the run, but I was happy to see 28 out there running hard. His performance did take a step backward this week,only rushing for 60 yards on 16 carries, but it was due to the Vikings offensive ineptitude and not any lack of ability on Petersons part.
My faith in Ponder continues to grow. I really like the strides he has made with his decision making. He completed 27 of 35 passes but this number would have been higher if he had any legitimate wide-outs, other than Harvin, to get the ball to. He demonstrated good mobility, escaping pressure and completing passes on a few occasions. I really think the kid has all the tools needed to be a high calibur NFL quarterback, and I wish Musgrave would stop calling such vanilla, predictable games and take the reigns off the passing game and let number 7 develop and shine. He does need to focus on throwing the ball away when he is aboput to get sacked.
The linebacker core was a huge question mark going into the season, but on this defense, which is a sub-par disappointment to say the least, I think the young linebackers are a bright spot. I have been very pleased by the play of Erin henderson, who has racked up 22 tackles and 2 sacks this year, and Jasper Brinkley has been very effective against the run. Of course Pro-bowler Chad Greenway remains a consistant threat in both the run and pass game.
I thought we would seriously miss... whats his name? Oh yea, Ryan Longwell. Yet I am amazed with this rookie kicker booting the ball for the vikes. Blair Walsh is a perfect 6 for 6 with two 50+ yd field goals (and is KILLING it for my fantasy team!) and consistently pins the opponent deep in their own territory with those booming kicks of his.

Now, while i remain optimistic because of all the things mentioned above lets face it, the Vikings SUCKED in this game, from awful playcalling to stupid penalties, to bad tackling, they sucked, sucked, SUCKED!
I already mentioned the lame gameplans that offensive coordinator, Bill Musgrave, provides so i will start there. The Vikings offense is so predictable that even I could effictively gameplan against it. It's not until late in the 2nd half, when the Vikes are trailing that they open up the playbook, and when they do this the Vikes are able to move the ball. I understand they want to keep it basic so the young QB doesn't make mistakes, but in a season where not alot is expected why wouldnt you want to see what Ponder has to offer? Go deep. Run an end-around. Try some bootleg passes. SOMETHING! What do you stand to lose? Its brutal to watch and I hope they change the approach next week vs the 49ers.
I cant even tell if they have a secondary on the field in these games, or if those are just spectators in the defensive backfield. The last 2 weeks the oposing QB's, one of which was a rookie, and the other was the worst QB in the league in 2011, have looked like pro-bowlers. The defensive line is unable to get any pressure, and if they do get near the quarterback they fail to wrap him up. Brian Robison had an easy safety served on platter for him yesterday, but somehow failed to bring Luck to the ground. Jared allen chased Luck out of the pocket and out of bounds on a 3rd and long but then negated what would have been a good stop with a late hit penalty that resulted in an Indy 1st down, and eventually 6 points. This was just one of MANY rediculous penalties we saw from an undisciplined young Viking team, but the difference is Jared Allen is one of the best in the league and should know better than this.
All in all I think if they can erase the mental errors and open up the playbook they can begin to build on the positives I listed above. They need someone in the secondary to step up and start making plays, I cant remember the last time I saw the Vikes get a pick. And if Allen wants any shot at a sack record he better get his boys on that D-line to get their asses in gear.
This upcoming game will be a real test of where the team is, and I hope im writing alot more about positives than negatives.

SKOL!

-Jordan Nadel