Week 12 Thoughts

Man, I hate the Chicago Bears.

Bears 28 Vikings 10. The good is that the Vikings get another shot at these clowns in two weeks. The bad is that the Vikings lose 28-10. They could have tied the Bears at 7-4 for the top spot in the NFC North. Now, they are two back and need help in catching up.

Down 28-10 at the beginning of the 4th quarter, the Vikings had a 3rd and 2 from the Bears 8. I have no idea as to how running back Adrian Peterson doesn't get the ball at least once. Instead, quarterback Christian Ponder throws two incomplete passes in the end zone and the Bears have the ball at their own 8. Game over. Even though a field goal there makes it a two possession game, I like that the Vikings went for it on 4th down. I just don't see how Peterson doesn't get the ball. He's the best player on the football field and he was starting to heat up.

Rookie receiver Jarius Wright adds a little spark to a mostly plodding Vikings offense. He got his chance when Percy Harvin hurt his ankle. Having both play making receivers at the same time will open up the offense.

Ponder is probably going to be bashed by a lot of fans but I actually think that he played pretty well. Now, he needs to play better than pretty well but he needs some help. He was really hurt by several drops. Jerome Simpson had three of those drops. Even the interception that Ponder threw to Chris Conte was due as much to Devin Aromashadu's less than eager effort to catch the ball as the throw itself. Ponder needs more help than he's been getting from his receivers.

Rookie safety Harrison Smith and tight end Kyle Rudolph left the game with apparent concussions. Smith, in particular, didn't look like he had a clue as to where he was. The Vikings need both players healthy. Badly.

The Vikings defense was horrible at getting the Bears off the field on third down. That was the biggest difference in the game throughout the game.

A ridiculous pass interference penalty on Antoine Winfield as he was defending Bears receiver Brandon Marshall didn't help. It led to a gift touchdown for the Bears. At worst, it should have been a no call. In reality, Marshall should have been called for interference. The game got a little desperate for the Vikings after that.

Early in the game, Marshall turned a 7-yard  pass completion into a 7-yard loss. It was one of the worst examples of running after the catch that I've ever seen.

Despite that comical play, Marshall played great. The Bears incredible success on third down was mostly due to Marshall showing great hands and concentration on several contested receptions. He had about a dozen catches and at least healf of them converted third downs. It was especially annoying to see Marshall doing all this against the Vikings with a great big smile. He was smiling way too much. I prefer to see him all pissy like he was against the San Francisco 49ers last Monday.

I was hoping that the Bears offensive line would be letting defenders run free like they did against the 49ers. They decided to actually block yesterday. I think that they just made a greater effort to block for Jay Cutler. After what he went through last week, I think that backup quarterback Jason Campbell is going to hate watching this game film.

Bears receiver/returner Eric Weems is an ass. I didn't care much for him when he was with the Falcons. He's even worse with the Bears.

Adrian Peterson was great. Again. He went over 100 yards for the fifth straight game. The loss and a fumble will stick with him longer than any of the great things that he did. He's carrying the team right now. The Vikings need to get Harvin back on the field. As great as Peterson has been the Vikings need other players to match his effort. Harvin does when he's in but to get back in the playoff race Ponder, Rudolph, John Carlson, Simpson, the line have to step up. The defense has to stop teams on third down.

I've seen teams winning the coin toss defer to the second half more often. I like that strategy. I don't care about any statistical study of the strategy. It's about what you feel comfortable doing. I like getting the ball to start the second half.

49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick looks great about 2.5 games into his NFL career. I can't help but feel bad for Alex Smith. He's always had the pressure of being the first overall pick. Going to a terrible team that shuffled coaches and offensive coordinators as a matter of routine made any kind of progress difficult. Smith led the 49ers to the NFC Championship game last year. He was playing well before his injury. He deserves to start. So does Kaepernick. You start the quarterback that gives you the best shot to win each week. I think that's Kaepernick. It seems that Jim Harbaugh does too. That's why I feel bad for Smith.

I still hate seeing Saints linebacker Jonathan Vilma play each week.

49ers running back Kendall Hunter and receiver Kyle Williams were carted off the field on the same play. It should be no real shock that Vilma was involved in both injuries. I don't trust his intentions, at all, when he's on the field. I think that actually playing football is secondary to him.

I love watching the 49ers linebackers play each week.

Were the replacement officials back this week? There was the ridiculous pass interference call against Antoine Winfield. 49ers receiver Michael Crabtree was called down when nothing but the soles of his feet were touching the turf. The worst was when 49ers receiver Randy Moss threw the Saints Malcolm Jenkins to the ground about 10 feet from the official. Those were only in the games that I saw. They were the kinds of calls that make you wonder if the offending officials were even watching the game.

Tremendous gesture by the Indianapolis Colts cheerleaders that shaved their heads in support of leukemia research. Colts mascot, Blue, challenged the cheerleaders to go through with the shearing if he was able to raise over $10,000 for cancer research. He did his part and the cheerleaders did theirs. Head coach Chuck Pagano was diagnosed with leukemia earlier this season. His fight and the way everyone associated with the team has rallied around him has been truly inspiring.

And the sprinklers went on in Miami in the third quarter. The Dolphins scored 17 points on their own wet field to beat Seattle 24-21.

I think that the New York Giants handled their bye week much better than the Vikings.

Next week is bad news for the Green Bay Packers.