Vikings Are Pure Hype

The Minnesota Vikings are a cute little fairy tale that makes people gush because Old Man Favre is lacing them up and has his team 5 - 0. In reality they are a mid rung team who have beaten the squads on the bottom of the ladder. They've beaten teams everyone is suppose to beat. To brag about their accomplishments so far is as asinine as bragging that you've never gone to jail.

Saying the Vikings are a Super Bowl contender is an insult to real Super Bowl contenders like the Atlanta Falcons, the Philadelphia Eagles, or the New York Giants who have actually played teams who remember what the playoffs look like. Tavaris Jackson could have this team at where it is at. Hell, John David Booty could have this team successful right now. It is not the "old gunslinger" who has this team where they are... it's the computer in NFL headquarters that generates the schedules.

Week 1:

The Vikings face off against the powerhouse known as... the big bad Cleveland Browns. The same Browns that feature Brady Quinn and Derek Anderson who collectively make JaMarcus Russell. The same Browns that are an earth shattering 1 - 4 to start this season coming off a herculean effort of 4 - 12 in the 2008 campaign. Aren't you suppose to beat a team who didn't even announce it's opening day Quarterback until Eric Mangini finally hit one of their faces on the dart board in his office 5 minutes before kickoff?

The Vikings won 34 - 20 like they were supposed to.

Week 2:

Hold the presses! The Detroit Lions were coming off a mighty impressive streak. They had lost 18 games in a row. They were so bad that Bono was planning a benefit concert in their honor. The Detroit Lions are so bad that Jim Zorn almost got fired for losing to them a week or so after this game. If the Vikings lost this game Brett Favre would have booked the first flight back to Hattiesburg, Mississippi. The bottom line is that the Lions are a joke.

The Vikings won 27 - 13 like they were supposed to.

Week 3:

The San Francisco 49ers rolled into town with a 2 -0 record. Many people look at the 49ers win as some sort of validation of the Vikings early season. I say fine then let us go look at the 49ers for a second. The 49ers went 7 - 9 last year. The only teams the 49ers have beat this year are their NFC West division mates in which they collectively make up the worst division in football. Folks are raving about Mike Singletary's defense (who got thrashed by Atlanta in week 5) but even though the defense is decent Shaun Hill is still their quarterback. Frank Gore is still 200 yards a game or 10 yards a game or ouch I hurt my foot. Vernon Davis is still the tight end that inspired Mike Singletary's famous "Cannot play with them. Cannot win with them. Cannot coach with them. Can't do it" rant from last year. This is the same 49ers team that hasn't been to the playoffs since Jeff Garcia became the first signal caller T.O. threw under the bus. Are they a little tougher than most teams? Yes. Are they still a team you should beat? Yes. The Vikings then were only able to do so when Brett Favre cashed in whatever favor Jesus owed him.

The Vikings won 27 - 24 like they were supposed to.

Week 4:

Favre's Vikings took on a team that is far from what it was when it was Favre's Packers. Aaron Rodgers is 7 - 12 as the man in Green Bay. There is no longer a run game in Green Bay. The defense is depleted in Green Bay. The only reason that this game was so hyped was simply because the myth of Brett Favre is so big. I will not say the Vikings should have beaten the Packers because in a game with this much emotion both teams are going to give their all but at the end of the day the Packers are still a rebuilding team in transition with a quarterback who is only in his second year as a starter who's o-line hates him allowing him to be sacked 8 times in the game and 20 times on the season. Bottom line here is that without the hoopla and the hype the Vikings should have still won the game.

Vikings over Packers 30 - 23

Week 5:

Holy 14 game losing streak, Batman! The St. Louis Rams are the definition of team you are supposed to beat. They've only won 5 out of their last 32 NFL games. The St. Louis Rams are so bad that they attended an instructional football camp over the summer hosted by the Detroit Lions. Do you know why you should beat the Rams? The Seattle Seahawks went 4 - 12 last year and 2 out of the 4 wins were against the St. Louis Rams. So am I supposed to book the Vikings a trip to Miami because they beat a team ranked 32 in ESPN's Power Rankings? No!
The Vikings won 38 - 10 like they were supposed to.

Beyond Week 5:

I'm not saying that the Vikings are not a good team. They are. But to say they are the best team in the NFC is purely wishful thinking. You can't say that in a conference with the Giants, Eagles, Falcons, and Saints. Last week I got into a discussion about whether the Denver Broncos were a for real team. My answer was no. They had played teams who played badly against them. Then they played the New England Patriots and knocked them off 20 - 17 and then they became real. The Vikings have not taken that step yet.

As of this writing the Vikings are no better than the 2008 Buffalo Bills who started the year 5 - 1 and ended 7 - 9. I can legitimately see the Vikings losing 8 out of their next 11 games. They've got the Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers to deal with. They've got two games against Jay Culter's Bears and they still have to go to Lambeau for round two of Favre vs. the Packers. They've got the NFC Champion Arizona Cardinals and they've got the Seattle Seahawks who have outscored their opponents 76 - 10 when starting quarterback Matt Hasselbeck has played.

The Vikings have a tough road ahead and there is no proof that they're going to be as dominate when they start playing good teams.

I know some stat junkies are going to get after me for cracking jokes and not busting out the almanac as much as I should have. Fine. Let me leave you with this stat. The Vikings opponents have a combined win loss record of 7 - 16 this year. Call me when the Vikings beat someone.

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