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.
So I am well aware that we're not going to have invincible teams in every sport that win championships every few years. It just doesn't work that way, especially in the NFL. But the Vikings have such glaring flaws...
We still have Brad Childress, who clearly does not have a creative bone in his body. And good ol' T-Jack is still the same as he was last year - signs of promise and a lot of incomplete passes. The defense falls apart if the other team's coach realizes they can just pass on every play.
I mean, seriously. Aaron Rodgers? I don't buy it. What we saw on Monday night was a case of an easily stoppable force (Rodgers and the Packers) meeting an entirely moveable object (anyone weighing less than 300 pounds on the Vikings defense).
So we're back to the same place with the Vikings as last year. 8-8.
I know it's pointless to 'predict' the season by looking at the schedule now, so early on, but it just doesn't look good:
Week 2: Indianapolis - Big Loss
Week 3: Carolina - Probably a Loss
Week 4: @Tennessee - Maybe a Win
Week 5: @New Orleans - Loss
Week 6: Detroit - This better be easy - Win
Week 7: @Chicago - Loss
Week 8: Bye
Week 9: Houston - I'll go out on a limb and say Win
Week 10: Green Bay - It's not going to be better - Loss
Week 11: @Tampa Bay - Loss
Week 12: @Jacksonville - Maybe Childress will already be fired by now - Loss
Week 13: Chicago - Win
Week 14: @Detroit - Win
Week 15: @Arizona - Win
Week 16: Atlanta - Four in a row? - Win
Week 17: NY Giants - Better hope this is meaningless for them - Loss
So that's 7-9 right there. I suppose they could take one from Carolina or Chicago, or maybe the Giants. Or maybe Payton will still be rusty next week.
Maybe tomorrow I'll wake up feeling better about them. But after what I just saw on Monday night...I'm not holding out any hope.
Keywords: Minnesota Vikings, Predictions
