Vikings Message Board.Com

Purple bruise wrote:Wow. I did not notice that Frazier was giddy. Upbeat maybe but giddy That is the attitude that a good coach should present when they find out 2 hours before the game that they lost their starting QB that had beaten the Packers in a must win the week before. In my opinion, he was trying to instill confidence in the team but I am sure that he was devastated and realized what a disaster playing Webb would be. But hey, he should have come out, with his head hanging down and said something like, " God we do not have a prayer to win this game" .

Mothman wrote: It's no easier to bag on the receivers than it is to bag on the QB, which is about as easy as it gets these days. Nobody is blaming receivers for bad mechanics, late reads or terrible throws. However, they deserve blame for poorly run routes, dropped passes, failure to get open, etc. We'd be naive to think that stuff had no influence on Musgrave's playcalling this season.
... and as the season moved forward, he did.
If you're dismissing WR performance, it's not a complete picture. One of the reasons Ponder struggled as teams took away the short passing game is because the Vikings didn't have receivers who could win battles on deep and intermediate routes with much consistency. It's not the only reason but it was definitely a factor (and a pretty big one at that).
The top 3 passing offenses in the league this year were New Orleans, Detroit and Dallas. They didn't compete for HFA in the playoffs.

QBs don't win championships and passing offenses don't win championships. Teams win championships and if a team is too imbalanced, they're unlikely to get the job done, which is why Falcons fans shouldn't get their hopes too high for a Super Bowl win this season.

2 of the 4 teams remaining in the playoffs were among the top 10 rushing teams in the NFL this year. A third (the Ravens) was ranked #11. All 4 of the remaining playoff teams finished in the top 12 in scoring defense. The Pats and 49ers are both among the top ten in run defense and the Pats, 49ers and Ravens are all in the top 10 in average rushing yards allowed per carry. Most of these teams aren't playing for a shot at the Super Bowl because of their passing attacks. They are where they are because they have enough going for them as teams. Meanwhile, teams like Green Bay and Minnesota are at home because they weren't sufficiently balanced.

I don't think anybody is going to argue that the Vikings don't need to improve their passing attack to win a championship but there's clearly nothing wrong with an establish the run/stop the run philosophy as a basis to build upon. It needs to be accompanied by a more effective passing game (and of course, a team needs to be able to defend the pass as well). That takes time to build and although it may start with the QB, it sure doesn't end there.

9. Dangerous balance: Here's the biggest difference in New England this year compared to other years: Its offense is balanced. The team can run the football as well as it can throw it. In fact, the Patriots finished this season seventh in the NFL in rushing. Everyone knows how good Brady is. But combining Brady with a formidable rushing attack makes New England's offense downright lethal. In other years, New England struggled to run the ball, and it cost the Patriots in the playoffs, most notably in their two Super Bowl losses against the New York Giants. But this year, they have recommitted to the run, and it shows. New England threw for 34 touchdowns and rushed for 25. The Patriots even are running out of the no-huddle attack, finding bigger lanes and keeping defenses such as Houston way off-balance. And if there's one area in which Baltimore's defense has been vulnerable this season, it is against the run. The Ravens ranked 20th in the NFL in run defense. It has a tough matchup against New England's newly vaunted rushing offense.

dead_poet wrote:Supporting evidence.
http://espn.go.com/nfl/playoffs/2012/st ... ewis-raven

Mothman wrote:As an aside, am I the only one who finds the tendency (particularly at ESPN) to refer to teams as "it" a little jarring? I know it's a small thing but when I read a pair of sentences like "The Ravens ranked 20th in the NFL in run defense. It has a tough matchup against New England's newly vaunted rushing offense" it just sounds wrong to me. Why not use the collective "they"? It sounds more natural.

I know, I have a problem...

Mothman wrote:As an aside, am I the only one who finds the tendency (particularly at ESPN) to refer to teams as "it" a little jarring? I know it's a small thing but when I read a pair of sentences like "The Ravens ranked 20th in the NFL in run defense. It has a tough matchup against New England's newly vaunted rushing offense" it just sounds wrong to me. Why not use the collective "they"? It sounds more natural.

I know, I have a problem...

J. Kapp 11 wrote:From a professional writer (me), here's the explanation of how it's supposed to work. Forgive me if you already know this.

If you use Ravens -- plural -- the correct pronoun reference is also plural ... "they."

If you use Baltimore -- singular -- the correct pronoun reference is singular ... "it."

So if ESPN said (or wrote) the sentence the way you've shown it here, they'd be wrong. Ravens are "they."

From what I can recall, ESPN's anchors typically get it right, but of course I have no evidence.

As for former players serving as analysts, all bets are off. When Ray Lewis can do a commercial and be allowed to say, "Why can't you guys AX great questions like that?" ... well, it's not exactly Schoolhouse Rock.

losperros wrote:Having reread what you're saying, I see what you mean. I agree. It should be "they."

OTOH, I imagine you'd only be satisfied if ESPN referred to the Vikings as "Jim Nelson's Minnesota Vikings team."

9. Dangerous balance: Here's the biggest difference in New England this year compared to other years: Its offense is balanced. The team can run the football as well as it can throw it. In fact, the Patriots finished this season seventh in the NFL in rushing. Everyone knows how good Brady is. But combining Brady with a formidable rushing attack makes New England's offense downright lethal. In other years, New England struggled to run the ball, and it cost the Patriots in the playoffs, most notably in their two Super Bowl losses against the New York Giants. But this year, they have recommitted to the run, and it shows. New England threw for 34 touchdowns and rushed for 25. The Patriots even are running out of the no-huddle attack, finding bigger lanes and keeping defenses such as Houston way off-balance. And if there's one area in which Baltimore's defense has been vulnerable this season, it is against the run. The Ravens ranked 20th in the NFL in run defense. It has a tough matchup against New England's newly vaunted rushing offense.

Demi wrote:I'd just like to point out, both of those seasons they finished with a higher seed in the regular season, and both of those seasons they made it to the super bowl.

Don't think the evidence was all that supporting...

dead_poet wrote:Christian Ponder - QB - Vikings

The Minneapolis Star-Tribune stresses the Vikings will not be looking for a quarterback to compete with Christian Ponder this offseason.

Minnesota will be looking to upgrade on Joe Webb as the team's No. 2 to Ponder, though, and the Tribune points to veteran backups like Matt Moore, Derek Anderson, David Carr, Jason Campbell, and others. The belief is that Webb could be pushed down the depth chart to No. 3, and the Vikings could use him all over the field as an "athlete." One thing seems certain, GM Rick Spielman will be scouring the market.
Source: Minneapolis Star-Tribune
http://www.startribune.com/sports/vikin ... 58191.html

Ponder threw only one interception in the final four games and closed the regular season with his best game as a professional. Knowing it was a win-and-you’re-in-the-playoffs situation against the Packers, Ponder had a career-high 120.2 passer rating, tied a career high with three touchdown passes and didn’t turn the ball over. How is that not impressive?

And, no, Joe Flacco isn’t a possibility. His contract is up after this season, but … he … isn’t … leaving … Baltimore.
Remember, the Vikings are looking at experienced veteran backups who will be available in free agency. They aren’t elite QBs. They’re guys like Derek Anderson, Matt Moore, David Carr, Matt Leinart, Byron Leftwich, Bruce Gradkowski, Jason Campbell and Rex Grossman.
We’ll assume the Vikings will pass on a T-Jack reunion.

This decision has many layers and reasons to worry. Webb still has value as an athlete and someone with potential to run the read-option attack that’s spreading throughout the league. Finding a way to use him could really help an offense that needs more playmakers and unpredictability.

Therefore, the Vikings could go back to an earlier plan that positioned Webb as the No. 3 QB behind a more experienced veteran backup. In that spot, the risk of injury would be diminished, so Webb’s speed and athleticism could be used in some capacity other than holding a clipboard on game day.