Vikings Destroy Giants (And Now We Wait)

by Anthony21 on Jan 3, 2010 2:50 PM CST in Vikings 2009 Season Comment 13 comments

Holy cow. That was a massacre. Absolute domination.

Of course, it helped that the Vikings couldn't possibly have faced a more disinterested New York Giants club. I've seen more spirited efforts from teams playing their fourth game of the preseason. As the final score indicates, the Vikings took full advantage of an opponent that quit on this game and this season long before the opening kickoff.

Now we wait. The Vikes did their part, but they obviously need help to capture a first round bye. Today, we're all Cowboys fans -- and I, for one, think Jumbotronicus will get the best of Philadelphia.

As for the game, the Vikings switched course from last Monday by establishing the pass before seeking to pound the ball on the ground. And their pass-first offense was extremely effective: At the half, Brett Favre had 271 passing yards and a trio of touchdowns (one to Visanthe Shiancoe, two others to Sidney Rice), and he finished the game with a few more yards and another touchdown (to Tahi). Percy Harvin got numerous touches through the air, which was a welcome change from previous weeks.

Favre was never sacked and had plenty of time to throw the ball, as the offensive line had their way with the Giants defense. It was truly a dominant performance up front. The Giants had no interest in covering Rice or Shiancoe, and both finished the season with big games.

The game was done long before halftime -- but that didn't stop Chilly from keeping his offensive starters in the game for two additional drives when the second half got underway. An interesting decision on his part, and as a result, the first teamers put up some second half points before the day was done. Extending the lead to 41-0 after a touchdown and field goal to start the third quarter? I'd call that a good day.

On the defensive side, the Vikings allowed just four New York first downs in the first half, along with 16 rushing yards and 66 passing yards. Eli Manning made a play or two, but he was surrounded by a lackadaisical team and didn't have any help out there. The defense highlighted the afternoon with a couple turnovers -- the first being a Chad Greenway interception (he then fumbled the ball, which was recovered by Ben Leber), and the second being a forced fumble by Jared Allen (who also recovered it). Not a challenging afternoon for this defensive unit.

The only negative I can muster up? Darius Reynaud fumbled a couple of punts -- a factor that was irrelevant in the long run today (the Vikings recovered the ball both times), but this still can't happen in the playoffs.

But seriously, that's all I can come up with. Take a near-perfect performance by the Vikings, throw in Giants players who were already getting their golf clubs out of storage, and this game was a laugher. Never in doubt for 90% of the afternoon. For a Vikings team that was struggling, this is the absolute right way to enter the playoffs.

And now...GO COWBOYS!!!

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12-4 ain't so bad

It’s what I predicted in the beginning of the season. We just won & lost different games than I expected. :)
“Mission Miami” is in full effect…..Go Vikes, Go Cowboys!

by chaosg on Jan 3, 2010 3:13 PM CST reply actions

Good Win! Proved that Giants fan of my brother real wrong.

by dolphinsinbuffalo on Jan 3, 2010 3:42 PM CST reply actions

The Vikings SUCK...

pause…NOT!

"Is it normal to wake up in the morning in a sweat because you can't wait to beat another human's guts out?" -Joe Kapp

by less cowbell, more 'neau on Jan 3, 2010 5:07 PM CST reply actions 1 recs

vodka rules !!!! # 4 best prostitute of azkrakistan Go VIKINGS !!!

by jonesey56131 on Jan 3, 2010 11:28 PM CST up reply actions

I hope the last two weeks puts to rest once and for all ...

… this attitude that it’s “wrong” for us to throw more than pass, even when we win convincingly. Seems like it took a long time for some here to come to their senses over this what-should-be-obvious “take whatever works” approach.

by puddnhead on Jan 3, 2010 5:33 PM CST reply actions

run?

I BELIEVE...

by ArizonaVikingsFan on Jan 3, 2010 8:58 PM CST up reply actions

lol

Yeah, “throw more than run” I meant. Thanks!

I think it can be universally agreed that it is “wrong” to complain about throwing more than passing! :)

by puddnhead on Jan 4, 2010 10:35 AM CST up reply actions

I'm very proud of our team today!

Great comeback from last week’s performance. They showed heart and played with tremendous intensity, even if it was against the Giants. I also give credit to the coaching staff for mixing up the play calling and going with an empty backfield at times. The staff obviously learned from their past mistakes and went with a flexible play-calling scheme that flowed with the game and what Brett was seeing behind center instead of sticking with a pre-scripted playbook. Great job!!

"Speak softly and carry a big stick; you will go far." Theodore Roosevelt

by DaRange on Jan 3, 2010 5:45 PM CST reply actions

Yeah Probably as close to a complete game as we've had all season

You’ve all done a great job of pointing out the things we did well yesterday so I will only point out the things I was most impressed with, and a few things that I thought were troubling:
Most Impressed:
1. The play of both lines. The Oline opened up huge holes for everyone (AP, Chester, Percy and even Young). It also gave Brett a lot of time. He was still hit a few times, mainly because the running back didnt pick up the extra man, so I’ll still say the line was solid.
Whether it was putting pressure on Eli or pluggin holes or batting down passes at the line of scrimmage or forcing fumbles, this unit was back to its league leading sack machine self.
2. Better play calling. Let’s face it, we are better when the pass opens up the run than the other way around. If we analyze the season it was the early games and most of the games down the stretch that we tried to run first and these were the games that our offense struggled. The second half of Chicago and the whole game against NYG we definately used the pass to open up the run.
3. Better tackling. Call me crazy, but dont you think that Sanford should be starting at strong safety? Dont get me wrong he is very valuable on special teams but come on this guy is the second coming of Winfield when it comes to bringing down ball carriers. All Williams and Johnson have done this year is make me wish that we had resigned DSharp. Start Sanford and let Williams and Johnson battle it out for FS. For now I was happy with putting him in on run situations and calling a run blitz for him.
4. Peterson only had 9 carries. That is not a type-o. His yards per carry was over 5 for the first time in a while so I was happy about that. No need to put unnecessary miles on him before the playoffs in a game we had in the bag before halftime.
5. Longer kickoffs by Longwell. I think this helped our coverage units tremendously. I think the giants best starting position was the 30 yesterday.

Least impressed:
1. Reynaud’s 2 muffed punts. This guy has been solid all year, I was very concerned by this. Don’t be surprised to see Jaymar or Bernard back there in the playoffs.
2. The refs. I know, I know every fan thinks that the refs are screwing their team, but come on. Whether we are winning or losing we can’t catch a break from these guys. You might mention that long completion to Berrian as a break but it was all about Favre’s hustle that allowed us to run a play before Coughlin had a chance to challenge. What was up with that PI call against Harvin? What about that in the grasp call on Eli’s fumble?
3. Empty sets versus the blitz. That was the only time I questioned the play calling or Brett yesterday. When he recognized the blitz he should have called timeout. Unless a screen is on, when blitz is on its not a good time to go empty.
4. Not covering the back when in man to man on the last play before the half. Where was Leber? I am sure he was in the middle on that play. I know he doenst always play in the middle but he has to know that he only drifts into the deep middle when in Cover 2, not man!
5. Jared Allen’s sack celebration. What happend to the hog tie celebration? I was dying for it!

I hope you all found the humor in my list of least impressed. Pretty nice when only 2 of them are real.

"We Szekelys have a right to be proud, for in our veins flows the blood of many brave races who fought as the lion fights for lordship. Here, in the whirlpool of European races, the Ugric tribe bore down from Iceland the fighting spirit which Thor and Odin gave them, which their Berserkers displayed to such fell intent on the seaboards of Europe, ay, and of Asia and Africa too, till the peoples thought that the werewolves themselves had come."
-Bram Stoker

by NMVike on Jan 4, 2010 2:04 PM CST up reply actions

I Like What I'm Hearing

Most of the commentators on the different networks are already saying it’ll be Dallas Or Philly representing the NFC in the Super Bowl. It seems that they’re discounting Minnesota because of their lackluster performance at the latter part of the season. Let then jump on the NFC East bandwagon. The Vikes turned their season around at halftime of last week’s game at Chicago and it carried over into today. This team is at it’s best when it spreads the field and passes to set up the run. There’s nothing wrong with letting Favre adjust to what he sees on the field and then act accordingly. The bye will give the team time to rest and heal up before it’s first playoff game. What I can’t believe though is how nobody is talking about how tough it is to play against Minny in the Dome. It seems that the media has very short memories…..

by purplegrey on Jan 3, 2010 9:24 PM CST reply actions