I know it's bad to fall to Philly. I don't like the Eagles. They are one team I don't like to see win. It sucks to talk about "next year" and there is no trophy for "Next Year's Champion." But there's good news.

This can be fixed! There's one OBVIOUS problem with the Purple (sorry, Zig, it's not the stadium). The problem is QB. And it's a problem that can be addressed. Look around the league: Do you want to try and fix the Detroit Lions? Want to tackle Ohio's Cleveland or Cincinnati? Where would you start? Do you have any idea what's wrong with the Saint Louis Rams? Where do you start in Dallas? The only team I see with Minnesota's problem is Chicago. If one team can land a quarterback over the other, it will add to the black & blue rivalry.

So Minnesota's situation is bad but repairable. The hard question regards USC quarterback draft choice John David Booty. Is next year his year? If yes, then no major signing or trading is needed. If he's Hertz (not exactly), then a move is needed. And when I say it's time for a move, I'm not talking about grabbing a Brooks Bollinger during the final week of preseason (2006). I'm talking about making a move before training camp begins so a system can be built around the QB.

That can be done and that's very good news.

Labels: John David Booty, Minnesota Vikings, quarterback

There's no need to be scoreboard watching now. Minnesota, it's time to earn the right and win your way into the playoffs. Sunday's game was bizarrely calm. Maybe knowing that you have to win one of two games or that Chicago only had to lose one game took the edge off. Well, I didn't like it. The Vikings control their destiny which means they need to take it, grasp it, and make it theirs! No waiting!

I'm glad Green Bay lost (I'm not sure Chicago won) and I want the Vikings fired up and needing a win. It shouldn't be handed to them by way of Green Bay. That's tainted! So darn tainted!

I was at the game Sunday and the fans didn't seem as amped up as Fox was about the game. While the TV network 'flexed' the game from noon to 3:15 because this was a great playoff-like matchup, the fans did not seem as excited.

Why did I notice? Well, I was excited and I was there to root the Vikings to victory. I took my cousins to their first ever game and I wanted them to see firsthand the excitement that the Metrodome can offer. I wanted them to complain that the fans were too loud and I wanted them to walk away from the 'Dome with a quiet ringing in their ears and amazement in their hearts and minds.

Instead, the game fell short. The Vikings never seemed to be as fired up as they needed to be. Why, I don't know? Maybe, you're supposed to be on an even keel.

I know the Vikings gave the game away with four lost fumbles. Adrian Peterson again struggled holding onto the ball. It's mind-boggling. My cousin Jessie said it best after his second fumble, "You keep doing that and you do not have a career." Genius! That's so poignant!

I was really surprised with how well Atlanta played with their rookie running back. They took Tarvaris Jackson's running for big gains in stride and kept their poise. With the Vikings giving away the ball, I can't really say that Atlanta won the game but I can certainly say that Atlanta didn't lose it. It was the Falcons that looked like they controled their destiny. And now, with the other losses in the NFC, they have seized their destiny and earned a playoff spot. Now, I want the Vikings to do the same.

Labels: Atlanta Falcons, Metrodome, Minnesota Vikings, playoffs, Tavaris Jackson

This might be somewhat premature, but I'll say it anyway. I have a good feeling.

The Minnesota Vikings appear to be transforming. It seems as though they were a team that was a nameless, faceless system installed by some consultant brought in by the ownership in order to make things more "efficient" and somehow deliver results.

After a couple years and many strange twists and turns, it seems like they are becoming a system completely and utterly owned by a few unlikely heroes of the team - a running back at the age of 23 who imposes his will on any defense, a defensive end with an addiction to extreme-sport levels of excitement, and a pair of defensive linemen that have an appetite for a plate of whatever lines up in front of them.

The only question is - will all these heroes be on the field when it matters, when the villains show up?

Labels: chicago, eternal optimism, heroes, week thirteen