Dave Resch's Minnesota Vikings fan blog

Don't know if I can top last week's prediction. Got the score exactly right, and I almost had the quarter-by-quarter score right, too...

And, really, I've been paying more attention to the TWINS (How do you like THEM apples?!?!?!?) than the Vikings this week, so who really cares if they win or not? It can't really top a three game sweep of the White Sox anyway.

But back to football...I'm conflicted about week four. On the one hand, Gus Frerotte gives us an actual chance to make the playoffs and be a good team. On the other hand, Tennessee is a good team, better than Carolina, and we're on the road instead of at home.

I'm going to take the optimist's path and predict a win here, but only just.

           1st 2nd 3rd  4th

Continue reading "Week 4 - Let the False Hopes Reign"

I'm feeling a Gus Frerotte-led upset this week. Peterson is hurt...new quarterback...disgruntled fans.... This is just the week when they'll pull off a decisive win.

Call me crazy.

Okay, you can stop now.

Assorted Predictions:

           1st 2nd 3rd 4th
Panthers  3    0    7   0   10
Vikings    0    10   7   3   20

Peterson: plays less than one half
Gus: 1 lost fumble, 2 TD passes
Chester Taylor: still above average too, don't forget
Our defense: 1 little sack
Games left in the Brad Childress era: 13

Other predictions:

Bears 21, Bucs 13
Niners 35, Lions 21

Continue reading "Do I Smell a Victory? Or Is That Something Else?"

As I was watching the game, I was thinking, "Oh boy, I'm really going to have to eat that prediction I made. The defense is outstanding. The Colts can't gain two yards. Payton Manning can't throw anything more than five yards downfield. We even got a couple lucky turnovers. We're running all over the place. So what if we can't score touchdowns? So what if the Colts got one lucky deep play and cut the lead in half. Their kicker missed a chip shot 30 yard field goal! As soon as Longwell makes it 6-for-6, the defense will just dig in and - "

Oops. Nevermind. These are the Vikings we're talking about here.

So then, as the Colts marched downfield to win the game (as though there was any doubt), I was depressed. The team is doomed. The quarterback is awful. The coach is incompetent. The defense is good, but you can't get a shutout every week in the NFL, so eventually you have to score touchdowns.

Continue reading "They Are Who We Thought They Were"

Just ask yourself one question: who do you trust more to bounce back from a week one loss? Tony Dungy and Peyton Manning? Or Brad Childress and Tarvaris Jackson?

Exactly.

Predictions:

        1st 2nd 3rd 4th

Colts   7    7    0   14  28

Vikings 7   0   10    0  17

Peterson: 120+ yards rushing
T-Jack: 2+ interception
Payton Manning: 4 TD passes
Peterson and Taylor on the field together: 0 times and counting
Games left in the Brad Childress Era: 14

I just hope that I'm wrong. Except about the Brad Childress part.

Other predictions:

Packers 34, Lions 10
Bears 17, Panthers 13

Continue reading "Week Two Predictions"

Alright! Week 2. Home opener. A rare visit from the Colts. Exxxxxciting!

And these two teams match up great, right? Think about everything we have in common:

Oh, wait...nevermind...

But we are both 0-1. Hoorah.

Continue reading "Let's Just Forget About Week 1 And Move On"

I was optimistic, really, after the preseason. We had Adrian Peterson. We had a more experienced T-Jack at QB. We had better receivers. We had an above-average offensive line. We had an even better defensive line with Jared Allen. We had a good kicker and a good punter...

And I want to be optimistic. I really do. I love my Minnesota sports teams. I want to root for them. And compared to a lot of other cities (like Cleveland, where I went to school), we have it pretty good. The Twins are consistently competitive. The Vikings had some good runs (1998, 2000) and went to the playoffs more often than not until the last few years. The Timberwolves had a long (albeit unsuccessful) run of playoff appearances. The Wild are competitive. The Gophers have a great hockey team and a rising basketball team.

Continue reading "If the Vikings Win More Than 8 Games, I Will Have a Set of Viking Horns Welded To My Head"