Game Day Thoughts

Just my opinion but Kurt Warner should lose that mustache.

Today is the 45th Anniversary of the Heidi Game. I've always been amazed by the impact a little Swiss girl had on the NFL. The movie cut into the end of a big game between AFL powers New York Jets and Oakland Raiders in Oakland. Games didn't go three hours in those days. A game with often throwing quarterbacks like Joe Namath and Daryle Lamonica did. As the clock hit 7 pm eastern time, the Jets were leading with just over a minute remaining. People wanting the movie flooded the switchboards. Jets fans that wanted the game crashed the switchboard. The network decision-makers made the decision to switch to Heidi on the east coast. The Jets fans didn't see the Raiders score two quick touchdowns to win. Heidi changed network programming forever. The networks will not leave live game telecasts, except for emergencies, going forward. We can all thank a little Swiss girl for that.

The Minnesota Vikings visit the Seattle Seahawks this afternoon. Most people give the Vikings about no chance of winning this game. I'm not most people. This game is rough with Percy Harvin's debut for the Seahawks. It was a sad day when the Vikings traded Harvin. Made even worse when Seattle was the destination. They were already loaded with a surprising number of Vikings players. They didn't need another. Especially that one. Sidney Rice and Percy Harvin were two of my favorite Vikings receivers of the past decade. That was probably helped by the fact that the Vikings have had few skilled receivers since the days of Cris Carter and Randy Moss. Sadly, Rice and Harvin are now in Seattle. The Harvin trade had to happen. I wish that it wasn't with Seattle but that's beside the point. For whatever reason, the relationship between player and team had soured to such a state that the relationship had to end. As for today's game, the Vikings will have no chance if they tackle like they did last week against the Washington Redskins. Running back Marshawn Lynch and Harvin don't go down easy when a defense is on top of their tackling game. Quarterback Russell Wilson might be a little fellow but he's one of the most difficult football players to catch. The Vikings have to tackle and tackle very, very well. That would be a pleasant change from the previous nine games.

This is game #800 in Minnesota Vikings history. Some game around 2025 will provide a bigger milestone but #800 is still a milestone. Here's hoping that #800 is a big win.

One of the Chris' that produce Rich Eisen's podcast had a new responsibility added to his NFL Network job. He now spends part of his work week talking football with Marshall Faulk to develop talking points for Sunday's Game Day program. It's simply stunning to me that people are paid to do things like this. I need to find some job in football. Talking football with Faulk would be a dream job. He has one of the most perceptive football minds. I'd talk football with a fern. Talking football with someone like Marshall Faulk would be an honor. I'd race to work everyday.

Speaking of Game Day, it's a little depressing when the cast pulls up clips of teams playing the Vikings to show what those teams are doing well. The Vikings have had a tendency to make teams feel better about themselves this season.

There was probably little doubt but Cal has now proven to be the worst team in the Pac-12. Cal and Colorado were both without wins in conference. Cal visited Colorado yesterday to see which team would finally get a Pac-12 win. Colorado won 41-24. At least Cal kept them under 50. This has been a rough season for first year coach Sonny Dykes. 1-10 with only Stanford remaining. Anything can happen in the Big Game but Cal is looking seriously at a 1-11 season. A defeat of Portland St. was their only win. Cal has continued to fight through this difficult season. Dykes should get credit for that. Despite the same number of wins, this season is/was much more promising than the last season of Tom Holmoe's Cal coaching career. I think that Cal wins over half of their games next year.

I wish that the San Francisco 49ers-New Orleans Saints and Kansas City Chiefs-Denver Broncos games weren't opposite the Vikings-Seahawks. I'd love to see all three games. DVR!?!?