I read a blurb on Profootballtalk about how Donovan McNabb is interested in playing for the Minnesota Vikings, and the feeling may be mutual. Signing qbs at the end of their careers has been the Vikings specialty for the past 15 or so years. In the mid 90s Warren Moon led some good Viking teams. He was followed by a player they actually drafted, Brad Johnson, for a couple years, but that soon gave way to Randall Cunningham who led one of the great offensive teams of all time, the 1998 Vikings. That team is considered one of the best to never win the Super Bowl, losing the NFC Championship at home after going 15-1 during the regular season. The next season didn't start off as hot for him, so he was replaced by Jeff George. Then comes the big exception in the Vikings recent history - Daunte Culpepper. He was drafted in the 1st Round by Minnesota and burst on the scene in 2000, putting up huge numbers throwing and running, leading the Vikings once again to the NFC championship game where they got destroyed by the Giants. This was followed up by a couple disappointing, injury ridden seasons, but he came back for a historic personal year in 2004, however the team struggled. The injury problems continued the next year, and so he was replaced by, yes, that's right, Brad Johnson. After that came the Tarvaris Jackson experiment, and feeling that wasn't the answer they famously turned to Favre, who again led the Vikings to the NFC championship, where they once again lost in agonizing fashion. Now it seems the reins may be turned over to their younger guys, Joe Webb or Tarvaris Jackson, but most likely they will make a desperate play for McNabb.
The reason I elaborated on that situation so much is because I feel it is kind of an example of how many teams can struggle for years through quarterback and coaching changes, having good seasons mixed in with terrible ones, trying to find an solution to finally get them through to the Super Bowl.
If you look at the NFL Champions from this decade you will mostly find teams that drafted and developed their own quarterbacks under a consistent system. Green Bay, Indianapolis, New England (3 times), Pittsburgh (twice), all won with a quarterback they drafted. St Louis, Baltimore, Tampa Bay, and New Orleans won with quarterbacks that they did not draft. Kurt Warner was obviously an unbelievable story, something that I don't think any thinks will be replicated any time soon. New Orleans had Drew Brees, who was drafted by San Diego, had a few ok seasons, then in his contract year played excellent. However, the Chargers chose their rookie, Philip Rivers over Brees, and Drew went to the Saints with Sean Payton and became a Pro Bowl caliber quarterback. Baltimore and Tampa Bay went by the theory that with an outstanding defense and veteran "caretaker" at quarterback it is possible to win a Super Bowl.
I think that the Tampa & Baltimore situations have made a lot of people believe that formula for success is something that can be replicated. Looking back, it sure seems like an anomaly, especially when you look at how historically great those defenses were.
Recently we have seen teams like Arizona, and Carolina make exciting runs to the Super Bowl with qbs signed in free agency, but they both came up short, losing at the end of the game in memorable fashion. Also, teams have made runs to the conference championship game like the 09 Vikings, 05 Broncos and Panthers, but it just seems that recent history favors teams that are cohesive and have been together for years. I think that this is evident in the recent versions of the New England Patriots. They still have their super star and MVP QB, but don't have the caliber of defense that they did in the early 00s, with mostly young players, and little leadership and playmaking ability.
I guess, basically what this all comes down to, is there is no formula for winning a Super Bowl, but if there is, it definitely seems to be assembling a team of players drafted in your own system, with a quarterback that your staff has developed, and a few playmakers on defense. Seems so easy, right? Which is probably why every year people reach for quarterback prospects hoping that they have found their future. I think this will lead me to write a post this week about the rookie quarterback prospects this year.
Showing posts with label Vikings. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Vikings. Show all posts
Saturday, April 16, 2011
Monday, December 6, 2010
Prime Time
Two straight days, two straight big prime time games in the NFL between division leaders in heated rivalries. In both games the winner made a statement and gained the inside track to a division title and a first round by in the AFC playoffs.
While watching the Ravens/Steelers last night I could tell a big play had to be made somewhere. The Ravens managed a few deep balls from inside their own 10 yard line but weren't able to convert both in to points. The Steelers kept making mistakes around midfield but hung around and kicked a couple field goals. Terrell Suggs was a terror in a way I have rarely seen one player be in one game. Maybe Ray Lewis 10 years ago had games like that, I can't remember. When it came down to it the Steelers made 3 beastly plays in the span of a minute or two. Polamalu comes off the corner and destroys Flacco causing the fumble. Woodley picks it up and takes it to the 10. Down 4 they needed at TD and that is no easy task against the Ravens D inside their stadium in Prime Time on the road. On 1st down Roethlisburger came under heavy pressure by Suggs (who else). One thing Big Ben is known for is using his height and strength to hang in the pocket or escape defenders that might bring smaller QBs down. He escaped the pocket while Suggs was dragging him down and shoved the ball out of bounds for an incomplete pass instead of taking a 10 yard sack. No one scores TDs on 2nd and goal from the 20, and Ben wanted to avoid that all costs. With a injured ankle and broken nose he was not going to allow that to happen. Two plays later he found a 3rd string running back across the middle at the 5 yard line. With a defender on his back he shook a tackle and outran a couple more Ravens for the game winning. These are the kind of things that makes a team's season.
New England made a different kind of statement tonight. Both the Patriots & Jets played on Thanksgiving (against different teams obviously). Both won. Both had 10 days to prepare for this MNF showdown among the 2 best teams in the conference. The Patriots have a much maligned defense and the number 1 offense in the league. The Jets have at top 5 defense and an offense that struggles at times but generally makes enough plays to win (usually because the other team chokes big time, ie. Browns, Texans). Labeled as a rough and tough battle of Boston v. New York this turned ugly quickly. New England established their dominance offensively, defensively, and on special teams. They ran the ball effectively, Brady cut up the defense with his precision passing and improvisational ability, and racked up 17 points in the first quarter. The Jets moved the ball a little but couldn't get the ball in scoring position, and that was it. By then my DVR needed to record some things but at I didn't care; it was 38-3 (the game ended 45-3).
Like I wrote last week, when December comes the big time teams cement themselves as true contenders.
In the NFC the Falcons also went on the road yesterday and pulled out a tough win against a division rival in Tampa Bay, and they are also 10-2. New Orleans squeaked one out against Cincinnati (that word is hard to spell for some reason... it is 2 Ns and 1 T...) who gives teams a lot of trouble but usually chokes. Green Bay pulled away from an inferior San Francisco team, and Chicago shook off a tough challenge in Detroit and stayed a game up on the Pack. Looks like Minnesota has figured some things out by playing bad Washington & Buffalo teams, but thank God they are in the rear view mirror now.
Thanks to NFL.com for the sweet highlights.
While watching the Ravens/Steelers last night I could tell a big play had to be made somewhere. The Ravens managed a few deep balls from inside their own 10 yard line but weren't able to convert both in to points. The Steelers kept making mistakes around midfield but hung around and kicked a couple field goals. Terrell Suggs was a terror in a way I have rarely seen one player be in one game. Maybe Ray Lewis 10 years ago had games like that, I can't remember. When it came down to it the Steelers made 3 beastly plays in the span of a minute or two. Polamalu comes off the corner and destroys Flacco causing the fumble. Woodley picks it up and takes it to the 10. Down 4 they needed at TD and that is no easy task against the Ravens D inside their stadium in Prime Time on the road. On 1st down Roethlisburger came under heavy pressure by Suggs (who else). One thing Big Ben is known for is using his height and strength to hang in the pocket or escape defenders that might bring smaller QBs down. He escaped the pocket while Suggs was dragging him down and shoved the ball out of bounds for an incomplete pass instead of taking a 10 yard sack. No one scores TDs on 2nd and goal from the 20, and Ben wanted to avoid that all costs. With a injured ankle and broken nose he was not going to allow that to happen. Two plays later he found a 3rd string running back across the middle at the 5 yard line. With a defender on his back he shook a tackle and outran a couple more Ravens for the game winning. These are the kind of things that makes a team's season.
New England made a different kind of statement tonight. Both the Patriots & Jets played on Thanksgiving (against different teams obviously). Both won. Both had 10 days to prepare for this MNF showdown among the 2 best teams in the conference. The Patriots have a much maligned defense and the number 1 offense in the league. The Jets have at top 5 defense and an offense that struggles at times but generally makes enough plays to win (usually because the other team chokes big time, ie. Browns, Texans). Labeled as a rough and tough battle of Boston v. New York this turned ugly quickly. New England established their dominance offensively, defensively, and on special teams. They ran the ball effectively, Brady cut up the defense with his precision passing and improvisational ability, and racked up 17 points in the first quarter. The Jets moved the ball a little but couldn't get the ball in scoring position, and that was it. By then my DVR needed to record some things but at I didn't care; it was 38-3 (the game ended 45-3).
Like I wrote last week, when December comes the big time teams cement themselves as true contenders.
In the NFC the Falcons also went on the road yesterday and pulled out a tough win against a division rival in Tampa Bay, and they are also 10-2. New Orleans squeaked one out against Cincinnati (that word is hard to spell for some reason... it is 2 Ns and 1 T...) who gives teams a lot of trouble but usually chokes. Green Bay pulled away from an inferior San Francisco team, and Chicago shook off a tough challenge in Detroit and stayed a game up on the Pack. Looks like Minnesota has figured some things out by playing bad Washington & Buffalo teams, but thank God they are in the rear view mirror now.
Thanks to NFL.com for the sweet highlights.
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
Nothing important happened today...
OK so I guess since I am a blogger now (yikes) I should respond to comments.
First of all, the queen of blogging, My Mom, directed everyone here and looks like we got some good chatter in the comment section. I'm glad to see people were interested in this year's World Series.
Secondly, I (Patrick Jr) have written all the posts so far. At some point, when he is not changing diapers and working like crazy, Matthew (Asher's Dad) will probably contribute. Miz Boo is really hoping we can collaborate on a brothers themed sports blog (maybe with a name not quite as lame as "sports plus" at some point), so we'll see. Anyways, thanks to everyone for your comments on how wonderful my nephew is.
Cheryl - I'm not really a Boston basher. I respect the Patriots, Celtics, and Red Sox. I actually cheer for them in a lot of series, especially vs teams like the Yankees, Lakers, and I was really hoping the 07 Pats would have went 19-0. I just get sick of the East Coast media bias. Some people like to say it doesn't exist, but lets be realistic. Yankees vs. Red Sox in June gets more coverage on ESPN than then the World Series. That was my main point there. Like Sandy C. said, even in a documentary they seem to get more coverage than anyone else.
The thing about the Giants winning this year that everyone is talking about is how they were able to win without any huge stars, especially on the offensive end. The one thing I haven't heard anyone say yet is that this is such a contradiction to the '02 team (with Barry Bonds) that lost to the Angels. I am not a Barry Bonds basher and someone who likes to act holier than thou when it comes to steroids and that whole era of baseball, but it is fitting that the first team to bring a championship to San Francisco is a group of selfless guys and exceptional pitchers rather than hulking sluggers with inflated muscles and egos that just crank the ball out of the ballpark.
As far as the Favre situation is concerned I don't bash Brett or begrudge him for continuing to play. I'm not thrilled about it, and losing to him and the Vikings twice last year was brutal. But if I was 40 years old and someone wanted to pay me 16 million dollars to do what I loved, with minimal commitment to the organization, why not? It is not his fault, it is Vikings management's, and even more so, head coach Brad Childress's fault. You do not give a professional football team the impression that one player out of 53 is the key to your season, and that is what they have done two straight years with Favre. They are getting what they deserve this year. Do I think the Packers will win the Super Bowl this year? Probably not, but at least I know the coach & team have one goal in mind and are in this together.
Also, I have changed the design of this for now per the advice of Shelby who tells me the black/white is too hard to read.
First of all, the queen of blogging, My Mom, directed everyone here and looks like we got some good chatter in the comment section. I'm glad to see people were interested in this year's World Series.
Secondly, I (Patrick Jr) have written all the posts so far. At some point, when he is not changing diapers and working like crazy, Matthew (Asher's Dad) will probably contribute. Miz Boo is really hoping we can collaborate on a brothers themed sports blog (maybe with a name not quite as lame as "sports plus" at some point), so we'll see. Anyways, thanks to everyone for your comments on how wonderful my nephew is.
Cheryl - I'm not really a Boston basher. I respect the Patriots, Celtics, and Red Sox. I actually cheer for them in a lot of series, especially vs teams like the Yankees, Lakers, and I was really hoping the 07 Pats would have went 19-0. I just get sick of the East Coast media bias. Some people like to say it doesn't exist, but lets be realistic. Yankees vs. Red Sox in June gets more coverage on ESPN than then the World Series. That was my main point there. Like Sandy C. said, even in a documentary they seem to get more coverage than anyone else.
The thing about the Giants winning this year that everyone is talking about is how they were able to win without any huge stars, especially on the offensive end. The one thing I haven't heard anyone say yet is that this is such a contradiction to the '02 team (with Barry Bonds) that lost to the Angels. I am not a Barry Bonds basher and someone who likes to act holier than thou when it comes to steroids and that whole era of baseball, but it is fitting that the first team to bring a championship to San Francisco is a group of selfless guys and exceptional pitchers rather than hulking sluggers with inflated muscles and egos that just crank the ball out of the ballpark.
As far as the Favre situation is concerned I don't bash Brett or begrudge him for continuing to play. I'm not thrilled about it, and losing to him and the Vikings twice last year was brutal. But if I was 40 years old and someone wanted to pay me 16 million dollars to do what I loved, with minimal commitment to the organization, why not? It is not his fault, it is Vikings management's, and even more so, head coach Brad Childress's fault. You do not give a professional football team the impression that one player out of 53 is the key to your season, and that is what they have done two straight years with Favre. They are getting what they deserve this year. Do I think the Packers will win the Super Bowl this year? Probably not, but at least I know the coach & team have one goal in mind and are in this together.
Also, I have changed the design of this for now per the advice of Shelby who tells me the black/white is too hard to read.
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