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Preseason Week 2 Thoughts: Vikings at Seahawks

The Jazzy One — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 17:51:19 +0000

The Minnesota Vikings are now 1-1 in the 2011 Preseason.

The Vikings were able to get things moving slightly better this week, beating the Seattle Seahawks on Saturday night by a score of 20 – 7

First Team Offense Still Is Without A Touchdown

The biggest fact I’ve heard people talking about at this point is the first team offense is still without a touchdown in the preseason. In fact, the ONLY offensive touchdown so far came with the 3rd and 4th stringers by a running back who probably won’t even be with the Vikings in a couple weeks.

I’m really not that concerned about that, though.

For one, the first team offense only got to play 2 series. After a quick stop by the defense at the beginning of the game, the first team offense took the field and looked bad. A 3 yard run by Peterson started things off okay, but then a huge sack on Donovan McNabb (due to left tackle Charlie Johnson not blocking a single person) set things way back. A couple plays later, the Vikings were punting.

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Image by Getty Images via @daylife

From there, the Seahawks ran a few plays before the Vikings defense stopped them again. The Seahawks punted a second time. This time the punt was fielded by Marcus Sherels, an undrafted rookie defensive back from the University of Minnesota. Sherels had a good return, advancing 16 yards. Unfortunately he fumbled it at the end of his run, so the Seahawks got the ball back again.

Having the ball at the 46 yard line, Seattle was able to run a few more plays before Seahawks quarterback Tarvaris Jackson threw an interception. The pass was picked off by… you guessed it… Marcus Sherels, who had fumbled the ball just minutes earlier. Sherels made up for his previous error by returning the interception 66 yards for a touchdown.

I was really impressed by Sherels speed on the return, by the way.

The interception return was great, but it meant that the Minnesota offense was not going to be able to get back on the field.

Seattle took the ball back with 5 and a half minutes left in the first quarter and drove nearly the length of the field, eating up the rest of the quarter. At the very beginning of the second quarter, the defense made a big stop at the 1 yard line (more on that in a minute), giving the first team offense their second attempt of the game.

McNabb came in ready to move the team, and offensive coordinator Bill Musgrave was ready to be aggressive. With the ball on their own 1 yard line, the Vikings came out with an EMPTY BACKFIELD!

I bet Brad Childress had a heart attack just watching from home!

Musgrave and Frazier put their complete trust in McNabb and the Vikings offense. The offense moved very efficiently all the way down to the Seattle 18 before being stopped, which means they had an 83 yard drive.

An 83 yard drive would be more than enough on most offensive possessions.

In my opinion they would have scored the touchdown, too, if this had been the regular season. There were a couple passes that McNabb threw just out of the reach of his receivers. I really think if they had had more time to work on timing together, Donovan would have hit those passes, and the Vikings would have went into the endzone.

That was the only real chance at a drive that the first team had, and I thought they looked good doing it. They didn’t build “Super Bowl Dreams” type confidence in me just yet, but I have much more confidence in them than I did last week.

The Defensive Line Looked Impressive

Jared Allen should have had a sack in the first Seattle passing play of the game. He breezed past the offensive line and had his arms on Jackson. Unfortunately it was a poor tackle, and Jackson squirmed away. I’m really not worried about that at all, though. Jared Allen is a great tackler, and that was his first attempt to wrap someone up since the first week of January.

Allen was in the backfield on several plays, and the Seahawks seemed to have trouble running on the first and second team defensive lines.

It really reminded me of 2008 and 2009.

Christian Ponder is Coming Along

As of right this minute, it’s obvious to me that Joe Webb is a better NFL quarterback than Christian Ponder. That makes perfect sense, though, since Webb has had a year in the league, including a start, and Ponder hasn’t even had a complete offseason.

That being said, I think Ponder will be just fine.

He seemed a little more ready for the game Saturday night than he did a week prior. Not perfect, mind you, but a little more solid. He seemed to make decisions a little quicker, and he showed some ability to throw on the move. He’s also more athletic than I think a lot of people assume he is.

With a year of learning under his belt, I think he’ll be ready to take over for the Vikings

What Did You Think?

So you’ve seen the Vikings play twice now. What are your thoughts on the team so far?

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Preseason Week 2: What Will You Be Watching For?

The Jazzy One — Sat, 20 Aug 2011 18:39:24 +0000

Tonight the Vikings will play in their second preseason game in 2011. This time they’ll be going up against some familiar faces in offensive coordinator Darrell Bevel, quarterback Tarvaris Jackson, and wide receiver Sidney Rice.

The Vikings travel to Seattle tonight to play against the Seattle Seahawks for preseason week 2. While next week will be the most interesting preseason game to watch, this week should be more interesting than Week 1. The starters will get extended time tonight, and may even play a little into the second half.

What About All Those Former Vikings On The Other Side?

I have to be honest.

This might be an unpopular opinion among Minnesota Vikings fans, but I am really rooting for Tarvaris Jackson to turn into something good. I have my doubts that it’s possible, but I want to see it happen. It wasn’t his choice to be drafted by Childress and the Vikings. Fans wanted him to play instead of Brad Johnson in 2006, but Jackson stayed humble about it. In 2008 he got benched after two weeks, and he stayed gracious about in. In 2009 and 2010, he never publically complained about the Brett Favre situation, even though both times it cost him a role with the starting team.

Do I want him as the QB of the future in Minnesota?

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Image by Getty Images via @daylife

No.

Do I think he’ll turn into a great quarterback?

No.

But that being said, I’m rooting for him, and I’m hoping I’m wrong.

Sidney Rice on the other hand?

I wouldn’t be disappointed if he never had a good season again. I personally put most of the blame for last year on his shoulders. Had he gotten surgery in February and been ready to play in week 1, I think he makes the difference in our three losses in the first four games. From there I think the Vikings have more momentum and do better through the rest of the season. Do you realize if they could have beat the Packers ONE time, Green Bay probably wouldn’t have made it to the playoffs?!?

Yep, I said it here… it’s Sidney Rice’s fault that the Packers won the Super Bowl.

Anyway, moving on…

The Quarterbacks

I expect Donovan McNabb to get more playing time this week. He wasn’t bad last week, but hopefully he shows that he’s one week closer to being on the same page as more of his targets.

Christian Ponder will get to play with the 2nd string this week as well. That means he should have a little more talent around him to show us what he can do.

I don’t think Webb playing with the third string will hurt at all. I have some theories about what the Vikings are going to do with Webb this year, but I’ll save those for an article later this week.

The Offensive Line

Last week they had some struggles, but they also showed some glimpses of hope by opening some holes for Lorenzo Booker.

This week they should have more depth. I assume Steve Hutchinson will play a little bit, and it’s possible that Anthony Herrera will get some playing time as well.

That means better guys with the first string, and the guys that SHOULD have been playing with the second and third strings will be back in their proper spots as well. Two better players with the first string should improve the line all the way down the depth chart.

I probably won’t get to watch the game tonight. I’ll watch it tomorrow, though, and I’ll have my thoughts on it posted Monday.

Enjoy, and SKOL VIKINGS!

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Audible: Tarvaris Jackson Talks About His New Job In Seattle

The Jazzy One — Tue, 09 Aug 2011 21:01:35 +0000

VIKING SHIP AUDIBLE

Tarvaris Jackson discusses being told he was the starting quarterback when he signed with the Seattle Seahawks, what he learned from Brett Favre during his time with Minnesota, coming into Seattle with a chip on his shoulder and something to prove, the importance of Darrell Bevell and Sidney Rice coming to the Seattle Seahawks and feeling any pressure coming into Seattle as the replacement for Matt Hasselbeck:

http://sportsradiointerviews.com/2011/08/04/tarvaris-jackson-has-no-ill-will-towards-his-past-in-minnesota-acknowledges-that-replacing-matt-hasselbeck-is-a-tall-task/

*Viking Ship Audible: Quickly keeping you up to date on Minnesota Vikings News

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Sidney Rice is No Longer a Viking

The Jazzy One — Thu, 28 Jul 2011 02:59:38 +0000

Well, not all is going well for the Vikings in this crazy offseason.

Sidney Rice has agreed to a deal with the Seattle Seahawks.

Image via Wikipedia

Apparently he’d rather be catching passes from Tarvaris Jackson in ugly green and blue uniforms than catching passes from McNabb and Ponder in the majestic purple and gold.

I’m a little disappointed in the Vikings for letting him go and in Rice for actually going, to be completely honest.

I would imagine that this development will mean that the Vikings will be more likely to hold onto Bernard Berrian. A lot of people assumed that Berrian was on his way out this season after having a rough couple of years. Berrian never seemed to get on the same page as Favre. Hopefully he’ll have better luck with McNabb.

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The Vikings 2011 Preseason Schedule Has Been Released

The Jazzy One — Tue, 12 Apr 2011 21:36:47 +0000

The Minnesota Vikings have released their preseason schedule for 2011:

Image via Wikipedia

Preseason Week 1 (Aug. 12-13):
at Tennessee Titans

Preseason Week 2 (Aug. 19-20):
at Seattle Seahawks

Preseason Week 3 (Aug. 26-27):
vs. Dallas Cowboys

Preseason Week 4 (Aug. 31-Sept. 1):
vs. Houston Texans

Of course this is all dependent on a CBA getting worked out between the players and the league. Hopefully the work stoppage will not hinder the preseason. By the time it rolls around, I am usually going out of my mind waiting for more football!

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The Minnesota Vikings 2010 Playoff Chances

The Jazzy One — Thu, 09 Dec 2010 16:17:38 +0000

I’m not going to lie to you…

This is going to be a depressing blog post.

As of right now, the Minnesota Vikings are not mathematically eliminated from the playoff race, but their chances of going are extremely slim. However, even though the hope of them participating in post season play is very slim, there technically is a possibility, so we will take a look here at what would have to happen.

Just to warn you, this post could get a little technical in spots as I talk about tiebreakers, and possible records, and such. Nothing too complicated, but if you read it too fast it might get a little confusing.

The Vikings Would Have To Win Out

This probably goes without saying, but realistically the Vikings have to finish at 9-7 for any of these scenarios to have any chance at happening. The way the Vikings have been playing, winning out is a possibility, but it won’t be easy. Here are the Vikings remaining games:

Vs. New York Giants
Vs. Chicago Bears
At Philadelphia Eagles
At Detroit Lions

The Vikings will have to be on the top of their game for each of these match ups. The Giants are a tough team, even though they’ve struggled a little as of late. The Bears and Eagles are each on top of their own divisions, and even though the Lions haven’t won many, they’ve surprised a lot of people with how close they’ve made a lot of games.

If the Vikings can’t win all four of these games, the stuff we’re going to talk about in the rest of this article is worthless, since there will be too many teams that it’s impossible to beat in the standings.

We Can Not Win Our Division

There is no possible way that the Vikings can catch the Chicago Bears in the NFC North. The Bears already have 9 wins, so even if they lost their final four games and the Vikings won all four, they would end up with the same record: 9-7. The first tiebreaker would be head-to-head record, which would be 1-1. That means it would drop down to the next tiebreaker, which would be division record. If the Bears lost their final four games, their division record would be 4-2. The best record that the Vikings can hope for at this point in the division is 3-3.

To add to the dilemma, even if the Vikings could win the tiebreaker, and the Bears did lose out, Chicago’s final game of the season is Green Bay. If Green Bay gets even one more win, they’ll be unreachable for the Vikings in the division standings as well.

So, Wildcard It Is…

That means the Vikings only shot is getting a wildcard spot.

Here’s what makes it tough, though.

There are three teams in the NFC that the Vikings cannot pass in the standings:

The Chicago Bears
The Atlanta Falcons
The New Orleans Saints

I already explained why the Vikings can’t pass the Chicago Bears.

The Falcons already have 10 wins, which is more than the Vikings could possibly have at this point in the season.

The Saints already have 9 wins, which is the most that the Vikings could have. If the Vikings won out and the Saints lost out, they’d have the same record, but the Saints beat the Vikings in their head-to-head matchup, giving them the tiebreaker.

Luckily for the Vikings, the Falcons and the Saints are in the same division, and one of them will likely win the division overall.

So How Do The Vikings Get In

Well, like I said, it’s somewhat of a long shot. Several things have to go right, because the Vikings will have to pass up the Seahawks or Rams (which ever one does NOT win the NFC West), Tampa Bay, Green Bay, and the Giants

So let’s go through the steps the Vikings have to take to beat the odds and make the playoffs…

STEP 1: The Vikings Have To Win Out

We already mentioned this, so I won’t go into detail again, but the Vikings have to win their final four games.

STEP 2: The Packers Have To Lose Out

One more win by the Packers will guarantee them a better spot in the standings than the Vikings. Since there are already two teams from the NFC South that the Vikings cannot pass in the standings(New Orleans and Atlanta) and already one in the NFC North (Chicago), being behind in the standings to Green Bay would mean there was no possible chance of a wildcard.

Unfortunately, this is probably the worst news that I have to share in this article, because it seems unlikely that a team of Green Bay’s caliber would finish the season with a four game losing streak.

The bright side (if there is one) would be the remaining schedule for the Packers:

At Detroit
At New England
Vs The Giants
Vs The Bears

Apart from the Lions game, these games all seem losable for Green Bay. Not sure losses, by a longshot, but losable.

So this coming Sunday, we all have to be Detroit Lions fans. If the Packers beat the Lions, it’s all over for the Vikings.

The potentially bad thing about this step is the Packers Week 17 game against the Bears. If the Packers did somehow manage to lose against Detroit, New England, and the Giants, I’m not sure the Bears would have much to play for in that final game of the season.

STEP 3: Tampa Bay Has To Lose At Least Two Games

Image via Wikipedia

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers currently have two more wins than the Vikings. If the Vikings went 4-0 in their last four games, and the Buccaneers went 2-2 in their last four games, the two teams would both finish at 9-7. The first tiebreaker is head-to-head record, but the Vikings didn’t play the Bucs this year. The second tiebreaker is conference record. If the Vikings win out, their conference record would be 8-4. If the Bucs lose at least two games, their conference record would be 7-5 at best, giving the edge to Minnesota.

Tampa has these games remaining on their schedule:

At Washington
Vs Detroit
Vs Seattle
At New Orleans

We have to hope that they can lose two of them. To be honest, this schedule looks a little softer than the remaining schedule for the Packers. Maybe we’re going to end up rooting for Detroit two weeks in a row.

STEP 4: Either Seattle and St. Louis Have To Lose At Least Once

This one gets a little trickier to figure out.

Seattle and St. Louis are in the same division. One of them will get and automatic bid into the playoffs because they won the NFC West.

We don’t care about the team that wins.

But, both of them are one game ahead of the Vikings in the standings, so the Vikings have to do better than whatever team doesn’t get the automatic bid.

Both teams sit at 6-6 right now. One loss would guarantee that their best record could be 9-7, which is the same as the Vikings. The Vikings didn’t play either of them head-to-head, which means the next tiebreaker would be win-loss record in the conference.

The Vikings would beat the Rams for sure at this point, since the best conference record that the Rams could have would be 7-5, and the Vikings would be sitting at 8-4.

Here’s where it gets tricky.

Image via Wikipedia

Technically, though, the Seahawks could end up with a 9-7 record as well as a 8-4 division record with only one loss in the final four games.

The number three tiebreaker for NFL wildcards is “Best won-lost-tied percentage in common games, minimum of four”.

If the Seahawks win 3 of their last 4 and the Vikings win out, their records against common opponents would be tied at 3-2.

That means it drops down the #4 on the tiebreaker list, which is “Strength of victory”. Basically that means that the winning percentage of all the teams that the Vikings beat during the season would be calculated against the winning percentage of all the teams that the Seahawks beat. We probably wouldn’t know the outcome of that until much closer to the final week of the season.

Of course, this would all become much easier if one of these two teams would lose at least twice. They play each other in Week 17, which might be helpful if by some miracle the Vikings were still alive at this point.

Because of the tiebreaker possibilities, we’re probably better off rooting for Seattle to win the division, just in case.

Here are the remaining games on Seattle’s schedule:

At San Francisco
Vs Atlanta
At Tampa Bay
Vs St. Louis

Here are the remaining games on St Louis’ schedule:

At New Orleans
Vs Kansas City
Vs San Francisco
At Seattle

STEP FIVE: Either The Giants or the Eagles Have To Lose 3 of Their Last 4

This one doesn’t seem too easy, either.

Both Philadelphia and the New York Giants currently sit at 8-4. Losing 3 of the next four would put either team at 9-7, and since the Vikings play both of them (and we’re assuming the Vikings are winning out), Minnesota would have the automatic tiebreaker over both teams.

Here’s where it gets tricky.

The Giants play the Packers in Week 16. We need the Giants to win that game. If that was the only game that the Giants won, the Vikings would be fine.

But, Philly and New York play each other in Week 15. If New York was to win that game, it would mean that the Eagles would have to also lose one out of two games to the Cowboys.

Of course, that’s a possibility, but figuring out the different scenarios between the two teams makes my head hurt.

The ideal situation would be for Philly to be the one to lose at least 3 games. At that point, we wouldn’t care how many games the Giants won.

But yes, it’s still a mathematical possibility for Philadelphia to win the division, the New York Giants to win against the Packers, and the Vikings to pass up the Giants.

Thinking about those scenarios makes my head hurt.

Here are the remaining games on the Giants schecule:

At Minnesota
Vs Philadelphia
At Green Bay
At Washington

Here are the remaining games on the Eagles schedule:

At Dallas
At New York Giants
Vs Minnesota
Vs Dallas

Got All That?

I will post a “who to root for” guide later on to help out. I know it can be a little confusing. Basically at this point, the Vikings chances of getting in are slim, but they are still there.

If the Vikings survive this weekend, I will continue to update you all on this for the rest of the season.

Good luck, Minnesota!

SKOL VIKINGS!

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Highlights from Vikings Seahawks game

The Jazzy One — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 21:57:40 +0000

Here are some highlights for you guys from last weekend’s Vikings/Seahawks game.

Tomorrow’s game is the last one before the REAL SEASON STARTS!!!!!!!!!!

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IT’S GAME TIME! Preseason Week 3: Vikings vs Seahawks

The Jazzy One — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 17:50:51 +0000

Saturday at 7:00 PM the Minnesota Vikings will host the Seattle Seahawks in Preseason Game 3 at Mall of America Field.

This Is The Fun One

Week 3 is the best week of the preseason by far. The starters will play the first half… some of them even the third quarter, and it’s easily the most eventful game of the preseason.

Harvin Still Unlikely To Play

After last week’s hospitalization, Percy Harvin has practiced very little through out the week. Although the Vikings as of this time haven’t officially said he’s not going to play this Saturday, I’d be surprised if he did.

Hopefully he’s not too far away from game shape, because he’s not getting much of a preseason workout.

Pat Williams Will Play

Big Pat doesn’t play much in the preseason, but he will play this Saturday against Seattle.

I’m not sure it’s 100% necessary, but it’ll be good to see what are already-good defensive line will look like with even more depth and talent on board.

Javon Walker and Brett Favre Will Play Together Again

The big story for me this Saturday will be watching Walker and Favre. Hopefully they can connect a few times to get some rust out of their QB-WR relationship.

With Sidney Rice out for around half the year, the Vikes are going to need big things from Javon Walker.

My Prediction

The Vikings offense will roll. They’ll score 28 points. Seattle will score some late.

28-17 Final.

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REPLAY: Vikings Music Video: Vikings vs Seahawks

The Jazzy One — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 14:28:56 +0000

This will be my last replay for the year. This Saturday the Vikings play the Seattle Seahawks in the week 3 preseason game. Last year the Vikings hosted the Seahawks in Week 11 of the regular season.

This Week’s Minnesota Vikings Song Parody and Music Video:

Download the MP3 of this song – 2009 Week 11 – Come To The Dome

Lyrics for Come To The Dome

Title: Come To The Dome
Written by: Jason Hannah (The Jazzy One)
Parody of: Come As You Are
Originally Performed by: Nirvana

Come to the dome
We’re at home
Where we all want to be
Seattle’s here
but have no fear
The Vikings are a better team

We’ll take the game
We’ll beat ‘em up
It will be something to see
We’ll often sack
Their quarterback
As we defeat the Sea hawks
defeat the Seahawks
defeat the seahawks
defeat the seahawks

Come
Root on the Vikes
to show their might
To show that they’re the better team
And once again
The vikes will win
as they defeat the Sea hawks
defeat the Seahawks
defeat the seahawks
defeat the seahawks

Cuz we know that they
Can’t stop the run
no they can’t stop the run
no they can’t stop the run
no they can’t stop the run
no they can’t stop the run

defeat the Seahawks
defeat the Seahawks

Do me a huge favor, and please send this page to a bunch of people! Stumble it, Digg it, share it on facebook, or whatever you do. I would really appreciate it! There are even some buttons at the bottom of this post to help you out.

Here are the links all of the 2009 videos:

NFC Championship – Game 2

Playoffs Divisional Round – End of Their World

Week 17 – Week Seventeen

Week 16 – Purple (and gold) Haze

Week 15 – Beat Caroline

Week 14 – Vikings R Good

Week 13 – Won

Week 12 – Vikings Host Chicago

Week 11 – Come To The Dome

Week 10 – Vikings Fever

Week 9 – Our Schedule’s Open

Week 8 – The Vikings Beat The Pack

Week 7 – The Vikings Come To Town

Week 6 – Guys Like These

Week 5 – On The Road

Week 4 – The Vikings Reign

Week 3 – No Chance Against the Vikes

Week 2 – The Lions Suck

Week 1 – Vikings Rock

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Highlights from The Vikings-Seahawks Game From Last Year

The Jazzy One — Tue, 24 Aug 2010 17:15:27 +0000

This Saturday the Vikings will play the Seattle Seahawks in their week 3 preseason game… which is by far the best week of preseason. Last season the Vikings played the Seahawks in Week 11 of the regular season.

Here are some highlights from that game, just to get you excited about Saturday night.

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