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By The Jazzy One on August 13th, 2010
The Vikings Head To St. Louis To Take On The Rams
It’s been almost 7 months since I’ve written a game preview. It feels like Christmas! I’m so pumped about this season!
Anyway… back to the matter at hand…
The Vikings will kick off the 2010 NFL Preseason with a road game against the St. Louis Rams. The first preseason game usually doesn’t show us too much. The starters will likely only play a couple of series, and then the game will be a tryout for all of the guys trying to make a spot on the depth chart.
At this point, I don’t care, though… I just want to see the Vikings play!
So what can we expect from the game on Saturday?
Well, for one, don’t expect to see Harvin or Rice play. Our “first string” receivers will probably be made up of Bernard Berrian, Greg Lewis, and a random third guy that might not catch a pass for the rest of the season. (just kidding about that part…. kind of)
For the most part, all of the “important” positions are set for Minnesota. There are a couple things that will be interesting to watch, though.
What will the Cornerback pecking order be?
Antoine Winfield will be #1. That’s a given. When he returns from injury, Cedric Griffin will likely be #2. The big questions are: Who will fill in for Griffen? – and – Who will be the primary Nickel Back.
The main competition will be a three-way race between veteran Lito Sheppard, who the Vikings picked up in free agency, Asher Allen, who was a rookie last year for Minnesota and got to see some playing time when Antoine Winfield was injured, and rookie Chris Cook, who the Vikings drafted in the 3rd 2nd round in April. (NOTE: I had Chris Cook and Toby Gerhart’s draft order mixed up in my head Friday afternoon)
Apparently Asher Allen has had a great camp and impressed a lot of people. Chris Cook, though, has also reportedly done some impressive things in camp.
I’ll be interested in seeing Cook play. At 6′2″, 212 lbs, he’s a pretty big corner. He’s very athletic, and has quite a vertical leap.
What will Toby Gerhart’s role be?
The Vikings used their first pick in the draft (2nd round) to pick up running back Toby Gerhart. Gerhart is listed as a running back, but some people speculated early that he would be used as a full back instead.
Personally I hope they use him in a Hybrid role. He’s big and he can block like a fullback, but he’s quick and agile, so he should be a more active part of the offense than a typical FB.
Albert Young is listed right now as the 2nd string RB, which would be the Chester Taylor role. I hope Young gets used a lot in the offense, but I can’t see the Vikings using their first pick on a guy that wasn’t going to contribute. (NOTE: Gerhart was their SECOND pick. Thanks for the reminder in the comments.)
I’m not sure how much of this will unfold Saturday, but we should at least be able to see both of them in action quite a bit.
What about this Joe Webb guy?
The Vikings drafted a quarterback in the 6th round of the draft. He’s an INSANELY amazing athlete, and the Vikings said they were going to convert him back to his high school position of wide receiver.
Then they saw him throw at rookie camp.
Obviously he impressed some people, because the Vikings quickly moved him back to the quarterback position. He has a chance to compete with Sage Rosenfels for the (assumed) 3rd quarterback position.
It’s hard to gauge what a QB can do when he’s playing with a bunch of 3rd and 4th stringers in a preseason game, but it’ll be interesting to see if the Vikings let him showcase his athleticism at all.
My Prediction
Of course winning and losing doesn’t matter much in the preseason, but the Vikes are playing the Rams…. I think our 2nd string could beat them during the regular season in a full game.
I give the game to the Vikings by a score of 28-7
By The Jazzy One on August 2nd, 2010
One of the areas of concern for the Minnesota Vikings this coming season will be the position of cornerback. The concern doesn’t come from lack of talent… Antoine Winfield and Cedric Griffin both played very well in their positions last year… but instead it comes from a potential lack of football health.
Antoine Winfield missed several games last year because of a problem with his foot. Winfield might be the smallest guy on the team, but his effect on the defense as a leader was very evident in the games he missed. The defensive backfield seemed to be less aggressive and much less solid in their ability to make good tackles. Even when Winfield came back toward the end of the season, he played inside a lot more than he has in the past couple of years, and he took a lot more plays off than he usually does. That told me that he wasn’t at 100% and that the Vikings were trying to “save” him as much as possible.
 Cedric Griffin was healthy for most of the year until covering the opening kick off for the overtime period in the NFC Championship game. During the kick off, he tore his ACL, which usually requires at least six to eight months to recover from.
The bad news for the Vikings is that we’re just now hitting the 6 month period for Griffin’s recovery, and although Cedric is anxious to get on the field, the Vikings want to play it safe with him. He hasn’t done any heavy work at camp so far, and the Vikings announced today that he will miss the week one game against the New Orleans Saints.
The good news is that Leslie Frazier has said that Winfield is looking good and is showing no ill-effects from last year’s foot injury. Winfield should be good to go at 100% for the game against the Saints.
So if Griffin is out, where does that put the Vikings with their backfield?
Well, we can all breathe a sigh of relief when we realize that Karl Paymah is no longer on the team.
That’s a good sign. So who takes over?
My guess is newcomer Lito Sheppard. The Vikes acquired Sheppard in an off season trade, and I have a feeling that this is exactly why.
Sheppard is entering his 9th season in the NFL. He spent the first seven of those seasons playing in Philadelphia where he started quite a few games. Last season he played for the New York Jets. He started 9 of the 11 games that he played in and was a contributor to the Jets great defense. He is solid in coverage, and he has the experience to make smart decisions.
Likely we’ll see Benny Sapp, Asher Allen, and rookie Chris Cook fill in at the nickel spot and spell the two starters.
Sapp is a good defender and a great athlete. His problem seems to be that he doesn’t always do the smart thing before, during, and often after the play.
Asher Allen is a favorite among the Vikings internet fans, but his playing time was somewhat limited last year. Maybe this year he’ll see more time on the field to show us what he’s really capable of.
The big question in this group will be Cook. From the sounds of it, Cook is a big strong athlete and is good enough to play in coverage. At 6′2″ and 212 pounds, though, he’s quite a bit bigger than our other corner backs. In fact, he’s bigger than our safeties. I haven’t really heard any news about it, but I wouldn’t be totally surprised to see Cook play a few downs as a safety from time to time.
By The Jazzy One on May 6th, 2010
 Minnesota Vikings Trivia
Pat Williams and Antoine Winfield played together on the Buffalo Bills before joining the Vikings
By The Jazzy One on January 28th, 2010
Pro Bowl Defensive Lineman: Antoine Winfield
Winfield has been a very solid defender for a long time in this league. Last year he was finally recognized for that by earning his first trip to the Pro Bowl.
This year his reputation speaks loudly, because he was selected again despite the fact that he only played in 10 games.
Winfield is the smallest guy on the team, but he might play one of the biggest games. He’s never the kind of corner that is going to lead the league in interceptions, but one of the reasons for that is because not many quarterbacks like to challenge him.
He’s a hard hitter and a sure tackler, and it’s contagious. During the 6 games he missed this season, it became evident at times that the Vikings secondary was lacking their leader, and from time to time their tackling became soft… something we haven’t seen from the Vikings in a lot of years. When Winfield stepped back onto the field, those problems started fixing themselves.
Despite the fact that he only played in 10 games, Winfield finished the regular season with 53 tackles, 2 assisted tackles, 1 sack, 5 passes defended, 1 interception, and 1 forced fumble.
By The Jazzy One on January 19th, 2010
Antoine Winfield was named to his 2nd consecutive Pro Bowl
Today the NFL announced that Antoine Winfield was selected to the Pro Bowl after an injury to a player in front of him. This is the second straight year that Winfield was selected to the NFL’s all star game, and after the late addition of Percy Harvin, it makes Winfield the 10th Viking selected.
The Vikings that were selected to this year’s Pro Bowl are:
Brett Favre
Adrian Peterson
Sidney Rice
Steve Hutchinson
Bryant McKinnie
Jared Allen
Kevin Williams
Heath Farwell
Percy Harvin
Antoine Winfield
The Vikings lead the NFL in the number of Pro Bowlers, but the big problem with all of this is that the NFL has moved the game to the week before the Super Bowl this year. I’m sure the NFL is thinking football interest is at an all time high right before the big game, so they’re hoping that the ratings for the game go up, but the Vikings are still in the running to play for the championship this year. If they beat the Saints this coming Sunday, the NFL will lose 10 players from a 46-man team. That’s almost 25% of the players that are supposed to be playing on a Pro Bowl team that won’t be able to play.
In my opinion, that really takes away from the impact of the game.
Can you imagine watching a Pro Bowl this year that doesn’t include Adrian Peterson, Brett Favre, Sidney Rice, Jared Allen, or Percy Harvin?
What if the Colts make it to the Super Bowl, too. No Payton Manning, Reggie Wayne, Dallas Clark, or Dwight Freeney?
In my opinion the NFL dropped the ball when they planned this one.
By The Jazzy One on December 15th, 2009
This week’s player of the game was an easy pick for me.
For 5 1/2 games the Vikings have been without starting cornerback Antoine Winfield, and I think the intensity of the defense was on a steady decline. Luckily for the Vikings, there were only 2 tough teams in that stretch, one being Green Bay who was the first full game without Winfield (who the Vikings played fine against), the other being week 13 against the Cardinals in a game that the defense looked lost and scared against.
Winfield showed in one game back how he is a leader on the defense.
It was obvious in his actions. Winfield led the team with 9 tackles, he forced a fumble, and he broke up several passing plays. My favorite thing about watching Winfield play is that even though he may be the smallest defender on the field, he makes the loudest hits. It seems like every time he makes a tackle you can hear the crack of the pads and helmets.
That intensity is contagious, too. The Vikings defense was a completely different squad out there for the week 14 game than they were during the week 13 game in Arizona.
Winfield is probably one of the best corners in the league, and he didn’t hesitate to prove it during Sunday’s game.
By The Jazzy One on December 14th, 2009
The Minnesota Vikings are now 11-2
A lot of Vikings fans were worried about their team after the Cardinals demolished them last week. Many felt that it meant that the Vikings couldn’t play against other good teams. They had a chance to prove themselves this past Sunday when the 9-3 Bengals came to town… and prove themselves is exactly what they did, as the Vikings cruised to a 30-10 victory playing a solid game from pretty much every angle of play.
That was the best pass defense I’ve seen in a long time
Ever since Brad Childress has taken over, the Minnesota Vikings have had a good run defense, but I’ve watched teams rack up the passing yards on them time and time again. Cincinnati was a team coming in that lead the league in run plays on first down, but many thought because of the Vikings tough run defense the Bengals would change their ways.
The Bengals did not.
They came in trying to run, and were somewhat successful at it, but unlike other teams that the Vikings have faced, that did not open up the passing game at all. The Vikings held Carson Palmer (who many claim is one of the top QBs in the league) to 15 completions and 94 yards.
Antoine Winfield Is A Beast
Did the Vikings miss Winfield? In his first game since week 7, he made sure that Vikings fans knew why he was important to the team. He finished the team with 9 tackles and a forced fumble, and I saw him in there batting away a pass or two, not to mention the interception that he could’ve had if he would’ve concentrated on the catch a little more. Winfield picked up right where he left off… having a pro-bowl caliber year.
Welcome back Antoine!
Peterson looked like the old All Day.
After running 13 times for 19 yards last week, and struggling for yards several times this year, Peterson looked like the runner that we’re all a little more used to. He carried 26 times for 97 yards, and we saw a lot more of the 5 and 6 yard power runs that we used to see. The offensive line seemed to open holes better for him this week, and did anyone else notice that Cincinnati didn’t stack the box as often as other teams do? I wish the Vikes would see looks like that more often.
We got good games from the rookie defenders
Jamarca Sanford started for safety Tyrell Johnson this week, and he made some good contributions. He was 2nd on the team with tackles with 5 (plus an assisted tackle), and he played pretty solid coverage against a team with several good receivers. Jasper Brinkley also played well in his new role of middle linebacker, giving the Vikings 3 bone-crushing tackles. Both Ben Leber and Brad Childress had good things to say about Brinkley after the game.
And all of that was without Percy Harvin
The Vikings looked good on Sunday. I had to wonder what they would’ve looked like with Harvin. Greg Lewis caught a couple balls out of Percy’s position, and I have to think that Percy could make a few more guys miss than Lewis can. Also, even though I think Reynaud is a pretty good kick returner, he’s no Percy Harvin. Hopefully he’ll be ready to go by next week.
Even Albert Young got some carries
I was happy to see that. If you’ve read my stuff for very long, you know I’m a fan of Albert Young (for several reasons, one being that he was a Hawkeye). I was glad to see him getting a couple carries today. He did a good job, too. He only ran twice, but he carried for 5 yards, then 8.
I am a huge fan of Chester Taylor, and I hope he’s a Viking until he retires, but if we do lose Taylor to another team, I think Young will fill his role nicely.
By The Jazzy One on December 11th, 2009
The Minnesota Vikings are back home this week to face the Cincinnati Bengals.
Hopefully the Vikings will be able to right the ship as they go back home Sunday afternoon to face the surprisingly good Cincinnati Bengals.
Injuries, injuries, and more injuries
The Vikings haven’t battled too much with injuries this year so far, but it seems that when it rains, it pours.
-Will Winfield play? Who knows! I’m tired of guessing wrong! 
-EJ Henderson is out for the year
-Cedric Griffin has a sore neck after a hard hit last week
-Tyrell Johnson is likely out of the game with a concussion
-Bryant McKinnie has a sore ankle after hurting it last week
-Steve Hutchinson has been fighting shoulder and back pains all year
-Pat Williams is having issues with his foot
-Bernard Berrian is still having soreness in his hamstring
-Anthony Herrera is coming off a concussion
-Karl Paymah has knee problems
-Phil Loadholt still has a sore shoulder
-Percy Harvin is battling Migraines again
-Adrian Peterson is having some foot and ankle problems
-Brett Favre is now on the injury report listed as a “coach’s decision”
I expect all of them to play except for Tyrell Johnson, EJ Henderson (obviously), and maybe Antoine Winfield, who at this rate I’m barely expecting him to ever play again.
Are the Vikings done after last week’s poor performance?
I certainly am not worried. Teams lose games in the NFL. It’s the way it goes. There have only been two perfect regular seasons in the modern-era NFL for a reason. The fact that we have 2 NFL teams that are unbeaten this late in the year was literally unheard of before now. The Cardinals are a good team, and the Vikings played won of their worst games of the season. The combination of the two would be hard for any team to overcome.
I really expect the Vikings to turn things around this week, especially being at home. They need one win to clinch a playoff spot, and they still haven’t officially clinched the division, so they still have a lot to play for.
Will the Vikings be able to run this week?
This one is the big question mark to me. The Bengals have a good run defense, allowing less than 90 yards per game. The Vikings have great runners, but they’ve been struggling in recent weeks.
However, after last week’s performance, I expect Chilly to drop back to more conservative play calling this week. Expect a lot more pounding by the Vikings. Expect Adrian Peterson to carry more than 13 times.
-Play “un-sloppy” football
The Vikings need to make sure they’re making good decisions, and that everyone on the team is doing what they need to do. They need to make crisp blocks and strong tackles. These were things that were missing in last week’s game against the Cardinals.
-Pressure on Palmer
The Vikings lead the league in sacks, but they didn’t get a single sack on Kurt Warner last week. They need to find a way to be aggressive about getting to Palmer, and make sure he’s throwing under pressure during the game.
-Good play from the rookies
It’s very likely that Jarmarca Sanford will start at safety and that Jasper Brinkley will start at middle linebacker this week. The Vikings don’t need anything spectacular from them, but they do need them to play solid and relatively mistake free.
My Prediction
Even though a lot of radio guys seem to be going against the Vikings this week, I think they’re tough to beat at home.
Overall with Brad Childress as coach, the Vikings are 20-10 at home (and that includes a dismal 6-10 season and a very mediocre 8-8 season).
With Adrian Peterson on the team, the Vikings are 17-5 at home.
With Brett Favre on the team, the Vikings are 6-0 at home.
The Vikings have not scored fewer than 27 points at home this year.
I’m going to give this one to the Vikings, but I think it will be close. Vikings win 27-24.
By The Jazzy One on December 4th, 2009
The Minnesota Vikings will be heading to the desert to face the NFC Champion Arizona Cardinals this Sunday Night!
It’s already week 13. Wow. The Vikings are 10-1, which I will have to truthfully say I didn’t expect at this point. The next couple games could be tough, though, as the Vikings play the Cardinals Sunday followed by the Bengals next week.
Shiancoe and Winfield out?
Last week it was Peterson and Winfield listed as questionable. This week Shiancoe takes AD’s place on the injury list. Shiancoe took a couple big hits in the endzone last week, which is what caused the issues, I would guess. Shiancoe has become a HUGE part of Minnesota’s offense, especially in the redzone, so hopefully he’ll be able to play Sunday.
As for Winfield, I don’t know what to guess. He made a statement saying that it would be a game-time decision whether or not he’s on the field Sunday. He’s been practicing this week. I’m hesitant to guess, though, because I really thought he’d be back for the Lions game, and that was 3 games ago!
Will Adrian Peterson spend time on the bench?
There are fans around the internet that think that Peterson should sit on the bench for a little while every time he fumbles the ball, but that’s not what I’m talking about.
I’m talking about the 109 MPH in a 55 MPH zone speeding ticket that he received.
I think he needs to sit at least a quarter, maybe a half. I hate to say it, because I want him to be able to challenge Chris Johnson for the rushing title, but I also know that the Vikings have prided themselves on proper conduct, and going 54 MPH over the speed limit is not proper. In fact, it’s stupid and irresponsible.
…and aside from him causing danger for other people, what about himself. What a waste it would be for such a talented person like Adrian Peterson to end his career (or worse) because he wrapped a BMW around a tree.
I was not amused.
Will Kurt Warner play for the Cardinals?
A couple weeks ago Warner went down with a concussion. Last week Matt Leinart started in his place. Reports say that Warner has been practicing this week, but he’s also been sharing snaps with Leinart. Coach Childress said that he thinks that Warner will play.
Stylistically, both of them are pocket passers, so I don’t think it matters to the Vikings defensive gameplan a whole lot. As a fan, I want a win… especially late in the year. It’d be nice to have an easier game by facing Leinart, but my guess is that Warner will end up on the field.
-Attack through the air
The Cardinals have struggled with pass defense. The Vikings have been improving their pass game. Both need to continue on Sunday. Just a note… last time Favre played the Cardinals, he put up 6 TD passes.
-Play smart pass defense
Last year I heard an unbelievable stat… Warner had a better rating and completion percentage on plays that he got blitzed than he did on plays with just the d-line rushing. I don’t know if that stat stands this year, but the fact is, Warner handles the blitz as well as anybody in the NFL. That means that our defensive backfield has to be strong in coverage, because unlike some of the QBs we’ve played recently, it’s hard to rattle Kurt Warner.
My Prediction
I think Warner will play, and I think it’ll be somewhat of a shootout, but I think the Vikings continue rolling. Vikings win 42-35
By The Jazzy One on November 27th, 2009
The Minnesota Vikings will host the Chicago Bears
Week 12 is here, and the Vikings will be playing the Bears for the first time this season. The rest of the NFC North is wrapped up for the Vikings, and the Bears are all that’s left.
The Vikings are 9-1 on the season and have a pretty commanding lead over the 4-6 Bears, but the win this week is still important for Minnesota, who is trying to put some distance between them and the 7-4 Packers.
Peterson and Winfield out?
Coming into this game, Adrian Peterson and Antoine Winfield are listed as questionable. Technically “questionable” means that there’s a 50% chance of them playing.
Winfield is still nursing a foot sprain suffered in Week 7. Some people thought that he’d be back last week against the Seahawks, but the team decided he needed a little more rest.
Peterson missed practice today because of an illness. Hopefully he’ll be better by Sunday. Personally I can’t imagine him missing this game if he has a choice. Adrian Peterson tends to run all over the Bears. In 4 career games against Chicago, Peterson averages 138.5 yards rushing.
How will Cutler handle the pressure?
If the Bears lose this game, they will slip to 4-7 with only 5 games left in the season. At that point it would be mathematically impossible for them to catch the Vikings for the division championship, and they’d likely have to win out the rest of the season to even make a run at a wildcard spot.
The team will be under pressure, but a lot of that pressure will lie on the shoulders of the Bears new quarterback Jay Cutler. Cutler is talked about by many as being one of the top quarterbacks in the NFL, but so far he has not shown that he can lead his team to victory. Cutler’s career record is 22-25 in games that he’s started.
Another one of Culter’s big problems in throwing interceptions. Last year Brett Favre (playing for the New York Jets) led the NFL in interceptions, and Jay Culter was #2. This year, Favre has reversed course, and actually leads the NFL (among starting quarterbacks) with FEWEST interceptions, while Cutler is still struggling, throwing more than anyone else in the league.
The Vikings will be looking to pressure Cutler and force him into some bad throws. If the Vikings can come out strong early and force Chicago to be in a position where they have to throw the ball, Minnesota should be playing right into Cutler’s weaknesses
-Pressure Cutler
Like I said above, the Vikings need to force Cutler into bad throws and bad decisions. The Vikings defensive line has been ferocious this year, and they need to keep up that pace. Sacks, hits, and hurries will lead to mistakes.
-Consistent play
Last week the Vikings showed that it is possible for them to play 4 solid quarters of football. If they do that this week, the Bears won’t fair any better than the Seahawks did.
-Solid special teams
I’ve been very impressed this year by the Vikings special teams unit. The Bears returners have hurt them in the past. The special teams needs to continue their solid play and not let the Bears get good starting field position.
My Prediction
The Vikings will be just fine. I think they’ll win 35-10.
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