MVN - Most Valuable Network

Tom Powers Will Not Tolerate Optimistic Vikings Fans

So, we’ve been feeling pretty good about the Vikings lately, huh? The Jared Allen trade seemingly lifted the attitudes of fans from being “OK, we kinda sorta think the Vikes might make the playoffs” to “All aboard the Vikings bandwagon!”

However, in his column on Wednesday, Tom Powers made it clear that these dastardly Vikings fans need to settle down about their squad. Take a gander at some snippets from the article:

First of all, don’t get angry. Don’t holler at me. I realize many of you still are hung over from NFL draft weekend, but try to think clearly for a moment.

Nyuck, nyuck, nyuck! Tell ‘em, Tom!

One thing we’ve learned about Jackson is that he doesn’t stand up to a pounding particularly well. After getting nailed a couple of times, he invariably winds up on the sideline for a week or two. What’s going to be different this time around? Beats me.

Now, as you’ll see, Powers makes several valid points in his article. This, however, is not one of them. Look, I understand that Tarvaris Jackson missed quite a few games last season (four, to be exact), and I realize that some view this as a sign that he’s injury prone. But do we have a large enough sample size to make such an assertion? Can we use a single season to conclude that Jackson is injury prone, was injury prone, and forever will be injury prone?

It’s possible that Jackson will inevitably get injured multiple times during the course of a season. He might simply be unable to avoid getting banged up. However, it’s also possible that last season was the exception to the rule, and Tarvaris will stay relatively healthy throughout the rest of his career. I just need to see more than one season of T-Jack before I’m willing to declare him injury prone.

Bernard Berrian will help the receiving corps. But that unit needed an awful lot of help. Will he be enough to stop defenses from stacking the line to halt the run? He’s good, but that’s asking a lot.

This, I think, is a valid argument. Truth is, we’re not sure if Berrian’s playmaking ability will be sufficient to ease the pressure on Adrian. Bernard provides the Vikings with a significant upgrade for the passing attack, but the receiving corps remain a work in progress.

The x factor is Sidney Rice. In just his second season, he’ll hold great responsibility for the success or failure of this offensive unit. If Berrian is given the opportunity to play alongside a legitimate receiving threat, we just might have a decent passing attack on our hands.

And then there’s Childress, who wasn’t nearly so stubborn or erratic in his second year. During his first season, he was like the new kid on the block in a tough neighborhood. He apparently felt he had to go around and bite everyone on the leg to show he wasn’t afraid.

Last year, he calmed down. Adjusted on the fly better. However, the team still went 8-8 with all those Pro Bowl players. Plus, the season finale in Denver was a joke. The team appeared lethargic and uninterested.

Well, let’s start by putting an asterisk next to “Pro Bowl players.” Two of those guys received a Pro Bowl bid based on name recognition, not performance — and those players are Darren Sharper and Matt Birk.

Aside from that, I’ll join Powers’ in pondering Childress’ ability to take this team to the next level. However, I think the Sunday Night Football flop against Washington would be the better example of the reason we should be questioning Childress — Joe Gibbs and Gregg Williams completely outcoached Chilly in that match, as the Vikings squandered a chance to secure a playoff bid. It was the biggest game of Chilly’s career, and yet Gibbs was able to effortlessly capitalize off our esteemed coach’s terrible gameplan.

As you may recall, Chilly’s idea of an effective offensive attack in that game was repeatedly sending Adrian and Chester directly towards a stacked box of Washington defenders. His strategy was the equivalent of pounding your head against the wall throughout a period of several hours, and continuing to do so in hopes that you’ll eventually break through the wall. Indeed, this coach has yet to deliver in a must-win situation, and that’s cause for concern.

Also note that the same semi-leaky offensive line is back, but with a longer rap sheet. In a draft filled with quality offensive tackles, the Vikings came up empty. So now we’re hearing the names “Artis Hicks” and “Marcus Robinson” again. Yikes. Maybe they can get Toniu Fonoti back and put him in there.

As the Daily Norseman points out, Powers can breathe easy about the possibility of Marcus Robinson playing on the offensive line for the Vikings this season. That’s because Robinson no longer plays for this team; he’s the dude who was infamously cut on Christmas Eve in 2006, and now plays for the Detroit Lions. In fact, Robinson ain’t even an offensive lineman; he’s a wide receiver. Weighing only 215 lbs., it’s a damn good thing he won’t be playing offensive tackle for the Vikes in 2008.

And they call bloggers the irresponsible ones. Heh.

*Darrion Scott was arrested in Eden Prairie on Wednesday for “probable cause felony assault,” although very little is known about the circumstances of the arrest. Should you care? In a word, no. Scott is currently a free agent and won’t be returning with the Vikings in 2008. Happy trails, Darrion!

This entry was posted on Wednesday, April 30th, 2008 at 6:06 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.