Vikings @ Packers Game Day Discussion Thread -- Week 12

[CalVike]

The 4th quarter and OT had plenty of disappointment. Just a couple more plays and they might have won, again losing in heartbreaking fashion. Most disappointing was the penalty on Robert Blanton in OT that kept the Packers scoring drive alive. And the PI on a ball that would not have been caught near the end zone (Sherels?). And the Jennings and Patterson drops that would have kept drives alive late (not the end zone Patterson miss, the other one). And the coaching decision to go conservative on key third downs late and give the Packers a chance to show they could get through the defense enough to tie. And Ponder's decisions to check down and run late, none of which got first downs IIRC.

What's maddening is that I am proud of the team effort to take such a big lead at Lambeau to begin with. 23 straight points. Ponder on target on mid range passes. AD and Toby G running at will.

In short, they gave away what could have been a win. Better decisions, execution, and discipline might have changed things. Story of all losses or ties I suppose but today more than many.

Skol.


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[tmscr]

The 4th quarter and OT had plenty of disappointment. Just a couple more plays and they might have won, again losing in heartbreaking fashion. Most disappointing was the penalty on Robert Blanton in OT that kept the Packers scoring drive alive. And the PI on a ball that would not have been caught near the end zone (Sherels?). And the Jennings and Patterson drops that would have kept drives alive late (not the end zone Patterson miss, the other one). And the coaching decision to go conservative on key third downs late and give the Packers a chance to show they could get through the defense enough to tie. And Ponder's decisions to check down and run late, none of which got first downs IIRC.

What's maddening is that I am proud of the team effort to take such a big lead at Lambeau to begin with. 23 straight points. Ponder on target on mid range passes. AD and Toby G running at will.

In short, they gave away what could have been a win. Better decisions, execution, and discipline might have changed things. Story of all losses or ties I suppose but today more than many.

Skol.


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I'm sure it's been mentioned, but I haven't gone back and looked, so I'll just say that the most disappointing and embarrassing part of this game for me was the offensive possession when we had the 3 point lead and a chance to salt away the game. Can anyone explain why the offense snapped the ball with 11 seconds left on the play clock (I think it was on second down)??????? They broke the huddle with 20 seconds left! That is simply amazing in a situation where you want to run the clock. Then Ponder forgets to properly get the snap cleanly and losses yardage after the busted play. Then the incompletion made it 4th down. I just cannot understand how the vikings offense (who actually did a decent job today) failed yet again to run down the clock on their own accord. They needed maybe two first downs and the win was ours. Now, that isn't to absolve the defense of anything since they failed again as well, but again the offense had the ball and a chance to run out the clock and failed AGAIN.

[CalVike]

Whoa! I didn't know there was such a thing as a 'free kick' after a fair catch. I thought you were all talking about a field goal at the end of the game (which would have been ridiculous), but we totally should have tried a free kick.

Frazier and Co. probably didn't know it existed either, right?

They knew. If you recall, Sherels asked them if he should fair catch for free kick just before the punt. Rewatch it & you will see. Why else fair catch when a punt return is likely the best chance to win? They just decided it was too far in the weather to make the free kick IMHO.


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[Demi]

They knew. If you recall, Sherels asked them if he should fair catch for free kick just before the punt. Rewatch it & you will see. Why else fair catch when a punt return is likely the best chance to win? They just decided it was too far in the weather to make the free kick IMHO.

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Their tiny little balls shrunk at the thought of a possible return by the Packers so they decided to tie.

pathetic.

It's a glorified kickoff. He's made it through the uprights before, and it was the only possible chance the team had to win, "play to win the game" until your spineless earthworm gutless self shows up and you'd rather take a tie.

[CalVike]

Their tiny little balls shrunk at the thought of a possible return by the Packers so they decided to tie.

pathetic.

It's a glorified kickoff. He's made it through the uprights before, and it was the only possible chance the team had to win, "play to win the game" until your spineless earthworm gutless self shows up and you'd rather take a tie.

Not exactly. No tee. No possible way he makes it. Evidence: none of his kickoffs were unreturnable. Bigger mistake was the fair catch itself. A Sherels return was the only chance to avoid a tie IMHO.


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[tmscr]

quote]

They knew. If you recall, Sherels asked them if he should fair catch for free kick just before the punt. Rewatch it & you will see. Why else fair catch when a punt return is likely the best chance to win? They just decided it was too far in the weather to make the free kick IMHO.

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Their tiny little balls shrunk at the thought of a possible return by the Packers so they decided to tie.

pathetic.

It's a glorified kickoff. He's made it through the uprights before, and it was the only possible chance the team had to win, "play to win the game" until your spineless earthworm gutless self shows up and you'd rather take a tie.[/quote]

Not exactly. No tee. No possible way he makes it. Evidence: none of his kickoffs were unreturnable. Bigger mistake was the fair catch itself. A Sherels return was the only chance to avoid a tie IMHO.


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I agree. There was really no way he was going to make that kick from that distance with that weather. I wanted to see Patterson return those last several punts. Nothing against Sherels, he's done a great job this year. But Patterson is always the biggest threat and he should have been returning the last few punts. The fair catch essentially ended the game.

[maembe]

Jennings, Patterson, and Wright can all catch. They've proven it already. I'd rather have Patterson over Allen. Wright, too. Both Patterson and Wright have made big plays this year and they'll get better in time, especially if the Vikings don't one-note them.

I don't know about Wright. He dropped a game-winner against the Bears as well already this year. Maybe he can use the "it was cold" excuse since the ball was thrown with a fair amount of velocity, but Patterson dropped a perfect lob, and Jennings dropped one of the easiest passes possible.

[tmscr]

I really want an explanation as to why the vikings snapped the ball with 11 seconds left on the play clock on the play in which Ponder bobbled the snap. I understand maybe not wanting the packers getting a jump on the ball if you snap it with one second left, but I just can't imagine you'd give up 10 seconds when you're trying to run down the clock. Just poor game management.

[Mothman]

If the Packers would have kicked a FG instead of going for to 2 points, they would have won this game tonight

Thankfully, they made the mistake of going for two!

Both teams had their share of "what ifs" on this one. I guess that's how you end up with a tie.

If the Vikes had been able to finish a few more drives with TDs instead of field goals, that game could have been a route!

[losperros]

I don't know about Wright. He dropped a game-winner against the Bears as well already this year. Maybe he can use the "it was cold" excuse since the ball was thrown with a fair amount of velocity, but Patterson dropped a perfect lob, and Jennings dropped one of the easiest passes possible.

I know about Wright. He was the best deep target the Vikings had last season and caught two TDs against the Seahawks a week ago. Patterson is absolutely loaded with talent as a returner and receiver. I'm not the least bit worried about him. He's only going to get better, as is Wright. Jennings had proven he's a pro receiver long before he became a Viking. Sometimes a WR, even a good one, will have a bad game or drop a pass.

What I'm most concerned about with the four WRs (including Simpson) is that they're presently playing on a broken offense. I don't worry about the four WRs because I've seen much worse performances from all three supposed QBs this year, not to mention some shoddy hit and miss blocking from the OL for both the pass and run. Plus I've questioned the playcalling and some of the offensive decisions in other areas this year, too. The offense is a broken machine and needs some serious fixing. No way am I putting the blame for its inconsistency solely on the WRs.

[Purple Reign]

Naw.

This was actually not a bad thing. We screw up the Packer's record, plus we now officially have the worst record in the league.

FYI, vs. the Pack I'd always want to win no matter what's at stake...

Sorry to inform you but 2-8-1 is a better record than 2-9. There are currently 3 teams with a worse record at 2-9, Atlanta, Houston and Jacksonville.

[JBrowner47]

Do we get #1 pick now? Bridgewater to Peterson and Patterson.

[JBrowner47]

Sorry to inform you but 2-8-1 is a better record than 2-9. There are currently 3 teams with a worse record at 2-9, Atlanta, Houston and Jacksonville.

Well we know the Falcons don't need a QB. Houston and Jacksonville would scoop up Teddy and Marcus which would leave us Manziel.

[Mothman]

The more I think about it, that was a pretty epic defensive collapse by the Vikings. Ina season where the defense has let the team down repeatedly late in games, this collapse might have been the defining moment. Just look at this:

http://www.startribune.com/sports/vikin ... 59301.html

At the 14:22 mark of the fourth quarter, the Packers had 11 first downs, 207 total yards and were just 2-for-8 (25 percent) on third downs. In seven possessions after that, they scored four times while racking up 19 first downs and 287 total yards. They converted only one of eight third downs but also converted twice on fourth down.

In the fourth quarter alone, the Packers had three consecutive possessions in which they drove 80 yards for an Eddie Lacy 3-yard touchdown run, 76 yards in 12 plays for a 6-yard Jarrett Boykin touchdown reception and 60 yards in 10 plays over 1:41 for Mason Crosby’s game-tying field goal with 46 seconds left in regulation.

[dead_poet]

The more I think about it, that was a pretty epic defensive collapse by the Vikings. Ina season where the defense has let the team down repeatedly late in games, this collapse might have been the defining moment. Just look at this:

http://www.startribune.com/sports/vikin ... 59301.html

Does this surprise you? I was kind of following the play-by-play gamecast and saw they were only up by three with a couple of minutes left in the fourth, Packers ball inside the Vikings 20. I was pleasantly surprised later to learn they didn't lose the game by the end of regulation. From that perspective, it was a move in a positive direction. Normally in that situation it's pretty much an assumed loss.

Frankly, I don't know what the reason is for their complete and utter collapse in fourth quarters, particularly late/last drives. Execution or play calling? Or both? But it's absolutely ridiculous and unacceptable from a fan, owner and GM perspective. How many games have the Vikings been in position to win this season with less than five minutes to go in the fourth quarter? If memory serves, it's now at least four, with losing or tying three of them. If the defense holds in those situation they're, what, one game out of first place in the division? I'm really starting to sour on Allan Williams after a relatively decent 2012. Granted, injuries and player execution have also contributed. B