Week 2 Thoughts

Minnesota Vikings 30
Chicago Bears 31

The Bears really had no business winning this game. Perhaps, I'm just bitter.

Really, the Vikings should have won. They completely outplayed the Bears in the second half until that final drive. I like it so much better when Bears quarterback Jay Cutler is sad. He was sad for most of the second half. Just sitting on the bench looking sad. He does sad so very well. It was so sad that his last pass made him happy.

The Bears signed tight end Martellus Bennett as a free agent this past offseason. He gives Cutler are real nice, real big receiving target to go with giant receivers Brandon Marshall and Alshon Jeffery. Too often last year, Marshall was the only real target for Cutler last year. Bennett scored the first and last touchdowns for the Bears yesterday. He's listed at 6'6" but he looks much taller than that. He's a significant weapon.

After the Bears took the lead 31-30, they kicked off with 10 seconds left. A squib kick found Vikings tight end John Carlson. He should have downed the ball where he found it at around the 30-yard line. Instead, he ran with ball and looked to lateral to extend the play. With about 8 seconds and timeouts to use, the Vikings could have run a play, maybe even two, and had a chance for a field goal. It was desperation time but Carlson's mistake took away the opportunity.

Thank you Baltimore Ravens. I thank the Ravens for making the draft day trade in 2012 that allowed the
Minnesota Vikings the opportunity to draft Notre Dame safety Harrison Smith.

The Vikings have missed having a difference-making safety since Joey Browner in the '80s. Smith is making a difference now. His interception of Jay Cutler stopped a steady Bears drive in the fourth quarter. The offense turned it into a field goal and a 27-24 lead.

As big, probably bigger, was defensive tackle Letroy Guion's beautiful strip of the ball from Matt Forte. The Bears have long perfected this technique. It was wonderful to see it done to them. This led to another field goal and a 30-24 lead.

It's rarely good when you see field goals of 28, 28, and 22 yards. When a team gets inside of the opponents 12-yard line, you have to see some touchdowns. Vikings kicker converted those three short field goals. If even one is a touchdown, Vikings win.

It was a strange game in the sense that the Vikings played much better in the second half but scored only 9 points. They were mostly shaky in the first half and scored 21. Defensive and special teams touchdowns were the difference.

Rookie Cordarrelle Patterson took the opening kickoff back 105 yards for the first score of the game. A receiver most of the time, this exciting rookie has to touch the ball more on offense.

Brian Robison picked up a fumble, caused by a Jared Allen sack, and returned it 61 yards for a touchdown. This was a critical play as the Bears were starting to take complete control of the game.

Quarterback Christian Ponder threw a touchdown to tight end Kyle Rudolph for the only offensive touchdown of the game.

I didn't get to see that touchdown as FOX had the absolutely worst broadcast of an NFL game that I have ever seen. They were apologizing for technical difficulties for the entirety of the game. The worst stretch of those difficulties started on the snap of the Vikings only offensive touchdown. I was left with the audio of that play, the following kickoff, and the Bears first offensive play. Instead of continuing with the audio for the last 50 seconds of the first half, which sucks but is better than nothing, the idiots at FOX go to the halftime show. Thanks FOX! Pathetic.

Speaking of shitty FOX efforts, it's getting real difficult to listen to Thom Brennaman and Brian Billick. They covered the Vikings-Lions game last week as well. It's more on Billick than Brennaman. It seems that Billick is doing something else in the booth and finds the game a distraction. He hacks up names all of the time. He often talks of plays as if he's watching a game other than the one that he's calling. The game itself ended up being disappointing. The presentation of it was so much worse.

Despite the lack of touchdowns in the second half, Ponder did seem to get in a rhythm. He was shaky last week. He was shaky in the first half yesterday. A ton of criticism has been heaped upon him. All quarterbacks have to plow through criticism. They have to play with confidence even when all those around him are calling for his head. I think that Ponder has the skills to be successful. He now has the offensive weapons to be successful. Yesterday, I saw two different quarterbacks playing for the Vikings. If the quarterback that played in the second half is the one that leads the team the rest of the way, I think that Vikings will be fine this season.

But, they still need touchdowns rather than field goals. Especially, when they move the ball so close to the goal.

The Vikings play their home opener next week against the Cleveland Browns. Then they travel to London to face the Pittsburgh Steelers. Starting 0-2 sucks. Starting 0-2 in the NFC North sucks even more. They can get those games back when the Lions and Bears come to Minnesota later in the season. The Vikings can take the Browns and Steelers and get to 2-2. That's not bad for a team that's getting real close to finding their way.

The NFL is just showing off with their shiny, on field product. Every morning game yesterday was a close, one score game but the Green Bay Packer-Washington Redskins. It looks like the Redskins continue to play like a team with a quarterback that didn't take a preseason snap. The Packers were all over them early and won 38-20. The Houston Texans beat the Tennessee Titans in overtime. Several games ended with least second scores. Exciting stuff. Roger Goodell must be smiling brightly.

Too bad two of the marquee games, Denver-New York Giants and San Francisco-Seattle, were more one-sided.