Is anyone surprised that the absurd quarterback situation bit the Vikings today, resulting in a 20-17 overtime loss to the Lions?
There are precious few positions that are absolutely crucial in team sports. But quarterback ranks with hockey goalie and starting pitcher as a spot where a markedly subpar performance almost always dooms your ballclub. Surely coach Brad Childress knows this, so he is either arrogant enough to believe he can do with Tavaris Jackson what the Eagles did with Donovan McNabb, stupid enough to believe he won’t get fired if he turns last year’s 6-10 into the same or worse this season, or he has the word of the owner that he has at least another year after this one–and believes it. Which, again, makes him either very arrogant or very stupid.
Jackson seems like a good dude, and admirably accepted the heat for a terrible, terrible performance today. But that’s really about the only positive thing you can say about him right now. All four of his interceptions were cringe-inducing, not a single one tipped by a defender or bouncing in or off a receiver. Instead, they revealed a lack of judgment, a lack of touch, and a lack of self-possession in more ways than one. It is really difficult to imagine this guy approaching the caretaker status of a Trent Dilfer, let alone someone who can win you ballgames on his own. I know it takes time to learn, and young QBs inevitably look shaky, but c’mon, last week’s ugly squeaker over Atlanta is the current highpoint of his career, which is exactly what you’d expect from a guy whose best attribute was being a stud athlete, and who didn’t even play major college football.
So far almost everything is going according to form with these Vikings. Most of their supposed strengths are indeed strong, but not nearly strong enough to overcome their obviously crippling weaknesses. I don’t pretend to follow the game as closely as I do pro hoops, or even baseball, but I have seen seven of their eight and half quarters thus far this season (including today’s entire contest) and am myself arrogant or stupid enough to spout off about my impressions.
**Adrian Peterson was even more impressive this week than on opening day. Yeah, I know his numbers were mediocre at best, but Peterson bounced off the first guy to hit him at least eight times today, and bounced off multiple people at least three or four, including that beautiful run–a mix of grit, lateral threading and that glorious speed of his–to set up Jackson’s arm-stretched running TD for the only six by the Vikes’ offense. At least ten times he picked up substantially more yardage than an average back would have garnered. One of his first carries of the day, an off tackle play to the left, wasn’t there for him and his jag to the sideline seemed to be accomplished simultanously with his upfield explosion. It was probably only about a 6, 7 yard run, but it was the kind of play that scares the shit out of defensive coordinators on tape and gets linebackers and defensive ends warned to prioritize the “outside contain,” which is why it would be fun to either throw Chester Taylor (when healthy) back there with Peterson or give the ball to Tony Richardson (when healthy) up the gut more often. The plays with my man (I may be his last staunch supporter, but I love the guy) Mewelde Moore and Peterson sharing a backfield were likewise very successful today.
One last thing about Peterson; you hear all this stuff about how he runs too high, doesn’t get low enough. I’ll concede that this might increase his risk of injury, but otherwise, man, it’s part of his style, and everyone should leave him alone about it. A lot of fabulous backs ran high in their day, including Walter Payton, Christian Okoye and to a lesser extent Emmitt Smith. Besides, Peterson plays off that high style, in that he often lowers his shoulder and rises up to shrug off tacklers–that’s one of the reasons they bounce off him. Watching him, you can certainly understand why his collarbone is injury-prone, and people coming at him sidewise really can measure him for a monster hit. But like all great backs, so much of what he is doing is intuitive and can’t really be changed without sacrificing something good. Leave him alone and cross your fingers. And notice right now that it is Taylor and Richardson who are dinged, not AP.
** About the only thing that has really surprised me about the Vikes this season surprised me about them last year too, but I foolishly bought the hype again over the off-season: Their offensive line is way overrated. The right side was going to be shakey from the start, but the fabled left side, the expensive, star-studded trio of McKinnie-Hutchinson-Birk, simply aren’t as good as their reputations. Shaun Rogers had a whale of a day at the nose tackle over Birk, and Corey Redding likewise was often in the backfield. There were precious few gaping holes for Peterson and co. to run through, and precious few occasions when Jackson could drop back in the pocket and casually survey the field. Those three stud linemen, plus Peterson, pretty much comprise the Vikings’ only hope for offensive success this season, and the beef isn’t pulling their weight in the expectations game.
**If you’re going to have a QB as inexperienced as Jackson, it certainly would be nice to have at least one quality receiver to help bail him out. Bobby Wade came to Minnesota with the stats of a journeyman and has demonstrated a journeyman’s skill set thus far. On a quality team he’d be your third receiver, at best, someone you threw in the slot on passing downs. Troy Williamson dropped two more passes today and is either physically or mentally incapable of overcoming this glaring flaw enough to gamble on his great speed. Sidney Rice looked good in the preseason, and made a good block on the screen pass versus Atlanta that helped spring Peterson for six. Don’t know if Rice was injured or if Childress just decided to ride Robert Ferguson, but if this is indeed a rebuilding year (and only the most deluded fan would conclude otherwise), why not let Jackson and Rice get to know each other under game conditions as often as possible? Ferguson is obviously on the back end of his career. In any event, Wade-Williamson-Ferguson isn’t going to stretch the field or otherwise scare anybody, especially with Jackson under center.
**It really is a shame that the line of scrimmage in a football game is one of the toughest places to really spotlight and appreciate a great defender. A good case can be made that Kevin Williams and Pat Williams are the best interior line tandem in the NFL right now, and when Kevin Williams breaks through and forces a fumble, as happened today, it reinforces the point. But most of the time teams don’t even bother to run at the Williams boys–the Lions certainly didn’t much today, and if the Falcons had anyone other than Joey Harrington they probably wouldn’t have either–and when they do, it is just a rugby-like scrum most of the time. Kevin Williams is a better Keith Millard, and that’s saying something because Millard, while being a crazy, ‘roided MF, had some fabulous games in the pit. But the Vikes have never had a run-stuffer as good as Pat Williams was last season. Teams that live and die by the run, like the Bears, are going to be the most enjoyable opponents for the Vikings this season; although Chicago will probably even turn Rex Grossman loose against this pass defense.
**Which brings us to Cedric Griffin. I don’t know the coverages, so I don’t know if the Lions were picking on Griffin as much as it seemed today. But you certainly didn’t see them completing much on Antonio Winfield. Griffin was one of my favorite players last year because he was upbeat and played with a no-nonsense attitude. But you can’t teach height, and one of the few smart observations by today’s commentators made the point about the physical disparity between Griffin and Lions receiver Roy Williams, not to mention the huge rookie Calvin Johnson. The Vikings’ third round pick out of Fresno didn’t have a great day either; ditto the linebackers in pass pro. Put it this way: The Vikes haven’t come close to facing a quality quarterback yet, and already their secondary has been exposed. Hats off to Darren Sharper for two picks and heady forced fumble, and, to be fair, the defense has played well enough to be competitive both weeks thus far. But with the lack of offensive firepower, that back seven can’t be as inconsistent as they’ve shown.
**Will we be looking at Kelly Holcomb before too long? Of all three signal-callers on the roster, he’s the one with the most experience and the best credentials. Is Childress really prepared to go with Jackson through thick and thin? If so, tickets at the Dome are going to be fairly easy to come by around Thanksgiving.
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