Week 12 Thoughts

The Minnesota Vikings are alone in first place in the NFC North. At 8-3 they are game up on the 7-4 Green Bay Packers.

They got to there by defeating the Falcons 20-10 yesterday in Atlanta.

Ball control and defense were the difference.

The Vikings had about a seven minute advantage in time of possession. That advantage came mostly on the legs of running back Adrian Peterson. He was terrific and offensive coordinator Norv Turner kept feeding him the ball. 29 carries for 158 yards. Not one of those carries came against a defense with fewer than eight men in the box. The Falcons came into the game with the top rushing defense in the league. Their intentions in this game were to keep Peterson from messing with that ranking. He did.

Peterson's first career touchdown came against the Falcons. That first touchdown was a 60-yard catch and run. Mostly run. His two most recent touchdowns (#'s 98 and 99 of his career) were also at the expense of the Falcons. He opened the scoring with a 1-yard plunge in the first quarter. He iced the game with a 35-yard burst with just over four minutes to play.

The Vikings lead the league in rushing. That's hardly unusual. Since Peterson entered the league in 2007 the running game has been a strength. Despite that success on the ground the Vikings have often struggled at eating time off of the clock to seal games. Mostly because all eleven defensive players key on #28 even more so than usual in these situations. Peterson's chain-moving running against the Falcons yesterday was nearly as important as the scoring. The Vikings ate up over eight minutes of the fourth quarter on a 14-play, 67-yard drive that ended with a 39-yard field goal. Those three points made it a two-score game at 13-3. Most of those yards came on Peterson runs.

Peterson burst into the Top-20 on the NFL career rushing list. He passed O.J. Simpson, Corey Dillon, and John Riggins. Steven Jackson is next.

Defense has been a big reason for the Vikings eight wins this season but defense was a concern going into this game. Safety Harrison Smith was out with a knee injury. Smith does a lot of everything at each level of the Vikings defense. He's a team leader and one of their best defensive player. If not their best defensive player. The defense had to make adjustments without Smith on the field. Especially with a player as dangerous as Falcons receiver Julio Jones on the opposite side of the field. Antone Exum Jr. stepped in for Smith. Exum has a lot of natural talent but he's only in his second year and still learning the nuances of the NFL and Mike Zimmer's defense. Exum made a couple of big plays that went a long way in keeping the scoring down for an explosive Falcons offense. He recovered a fumble in the first quarter that ended a Falcons scoring opportunity. With the Falcons on the Vikings 10-yard line, threatening to take the lead, Exum tackled Terron Ward for a four-yard loss. That forced a 3rd-and-goal from the 14. Terrence Newman intercepted a Matt Ryan pass in the end zone on the next play to preserve the lead. The Falcons never threatened after that.

I wouldn't mind seeing Exum lined up with Smith at the back of the Vikings defense in the coming weeks.

The back of the Vikings defense was further challenged when their other starting safety Andrew Sendejo went down with an apparent knee injury. Robert Blanton replaced him. The Vikings had to play nearly the entire game with backups at both safety spots. They did a decent job. Matt Ryan finished with 230 yards passing and 80 of those yards came on the final drive of the game with the Vikings defense sitting back in a prevent defense that didn't prevent much.

If Smith isn't the Vikings best defensive player second-year linebacker Anthony Barr might be. He's had some great moments in his short career but he might have played his best game yesterday. Like Smith he does a lot of everything and a few of his plays yesterday showed why he's one of the best young defensive players in the entire league. On the Falcons second possession of the game running back Tevin Coleman got to the outside and was off down the sideline. Barr was pursuing the play 46 yards downfield and punched the ball out of Coleman's grasp. Exum recovered the fumble. It was a tremendous play. It showed his speed, athletic ability, and awareness. It was a game-changing play. Coleman had a shot at a touchdown on that play but Barr and/or Exum might have got him to the ground. Even if they had only tackled Coleman the Falcons would have been set up nicely in Vikings territory. Barr ended that with his great play. He made a couple more, very different, plays at the end of the game. With just over six minutes to play, and the Vikings holding a 13-3 lead, a 44-yard kick return by Eric Weems gave his team a spark and decent field position at their own 39-yard line. On first down Ryan threw deep to Coleman. Barr had the coverage. A linebacker covering a running back downfield is usually an advantage for the offense. Barr knocked the ball out of Coleman's hands. Again. Two plays later it was 4th-and-1 at the Falcons 48-yard line. Barr showed off his pass rushing ability in sacking Ryan and forcing a fumble. The Falcons recovered but it was the Vikings ball on downs. Barr's big play ended any hopes that the Falcons had at a comeback. All three big plays showed off Barr's unique ability to do just about everything asked of a linebacker. Ranging far and wide to gather in ball-carriers, playing in coverage, and rushing the passer. Some linebackers do one, maybe two, well. Barr does all three exceedingly well.

"He's a guy that can ruin a lot of things for the offense."
     -Mike Zimmer talking about Barr

Anthony Barr is a game-changing player now and he's just getting started.

This game was 20-3 until the Falcons scored a late touchdown after the game had been decided.

The Vikings offense was proficient.
191 yards rushing
174 yards passing
no sacks

The Vikings defense was great.
10 points allowed
329 yards-80 of which came on the final drive
3 turnovers-1 fumble, 2 interceptions
2 sacks-one on third down, one on fourth down

Vikings quarterback Teddy Bridgewater had the sort of game that brings about the "game-manager" comments. That's simply a substitute for thinking. He completed 20 of 28 passes for 174 yards. He made one big mistake early in the second quarter when he threw an interception in the end zone. The Vikings had the ball on the Falcons 22-yard line looking to take a 14-0 lead. Instead the Falcons had the ball heading the other way.

This interception flipped the momentum to the Falcons. Their offense had the ball for most of the second quarter and they opened the third quarter with a time-eating, chain-moving drive. The Falcons were moving the ball and had some scoring opportunities in this quarter-plus stretch of the game. A Captain Munnerlyn interception ended a scoring threat before the half. A Terrence Newman interception in the end zone ended that scoring threat to open the second half. The Falcons even had a touchdown taken off of the board due to a penalty a few plays before the Newman interception. The Falcons threw some bullets and the Vikings dodged them. They even caught a couple of them.

Vikings cornerback Xavier Rhodes did a nice job of covering Falcons receiver Julio Jones. It was the second season in a row in which Rhodes kept him in check. Jones had five catches for 56 yards yesterday. Rhodes wasn't always alone in his coverage of the game's best receiver.

Vikings receiver Mike Wallace didn't have any catches but he did draw two pass interference penalties. The two penalties totaled over forty yards in the Vikings favor. The first one set the Vikings up on the Falcons one-yard line and led to Peterson's first touchdown. This game might have been Wallace's most productive game of the season. That's kind of sad.

Falcons running back Devonta Freeman was held out of this game with a concussion. He's really burst on the scene this season. Coleman played well in his place. He was the biggest offensive threat on the day for his team. 18 carries for 110 yards. His fumble hurt.

One Falcons player that has a bright NFL future is rookie defensive end Vic Beasley Jr. He was their top pick (8th overall) so he's supposed to be great. I've heard about his first step but seeing it live is different. There were a couple of snaps in which he was breathing on Bridgewater before right tackle T.J. Clemmings was even out of his stance. It looks like the Falcons use him as a situational pass rusher now but when he's ready for full load he's going to be an every down nightmare for offenses. I'm not sure how he gets away with wearing #44. Maybe he moves too fast to notice.

Players of the Game for the Vikings:
Adrian Peterson
Anthony Barr

Falcons
Tevin Coleman
Desmond Trufant

Trufant is right there with the Bills Stephon Gilmore as the best young corners in the game. I'd sure like Xavier Rhodes join them. He has some games, like yesterday, in which he plays like he belongs but then he has a game in which he struggles.

This game was a lot like most of the Vikings wins. The defense is mostly great and the offense does enough. The Vikings scoring totals would look a lot better if they didn't settle for so many field goals. Two more yesterday. And a miss. Field goals are nice but touchdowns are so much better.

The Vikings next two games will be a real challenge. This was the stretch that worried me the most when the schedules came out in the spring. At home against the Seattle Seahawks next Sunday. Four days later they visit the Arizona Cardinals on Thursday night. Those Thursday night games are ridiculous and the Seahawks and Cardinals are rough combo with three days of recovery in between.

In other action yesterday.

Hey, how about Ndamukong Suh? The Miami Dolphins overpaid defensive tackle called out his defensive teammates last week, saying that they are responsible for the team's struggles.

"Only a handful of guys are good enough to play with me right now."
    -Suh

Nice. He also bitched about his coaches, saying that the schemes and techniques weren't up to his supposed high standards either. Ndamukong Suh is an idiot. He's a big part of the problem in Miami. He was signed to a ludicrously huge contract in the offseason to be a defensive savior. He's been much closer to a decent defensive lineman. A lineman that makes a fraction of what he makes.

Suh's Dolphins were thumped by the New York Jets 38-20. I saw him blocked to the ground a couple of times and not very active on others.

My goodness, what has happened to the St. Louis Rams. Heading into a game against the Vikings a few weeks ago they were quite happy with themselves. They were 4-3 and thinking about a playoff run. They lost to the Vikings that week and have lost every game since. Now they are 4-7. They were taken apart by the Cincinnati Bengals yesterday. 31-7. The Rams will have to get on a tear over the last five weeks for Jeff Fisher to get to his usual 8-8 record.

Rams rookie running back Todd Gurley had all of 19 yards against the Bengals.

The Houston Texans have won four straight games after their 24-6 win over the New Orleans Saints. The Saints fired defensive coordinator Rob Ryan during their bye week because their defense has been a disaster for a couple of seasons. It looks like their offense has some problems as well.

The Indianapolis Colts took care of the sometimes-high flying Tampa Bay Buccaneers 25-12. Don't look now but the Colts have won more than they have lost. 6-5 on the season and 4-0 with Matthew Hasslebeck heaving the football. The 40-year old quarterback heaved that football 42 times yesterday.

There have been a lot of laughs thrown in the direction of the AFC South. The Colts and Texans are now tied for the division lead and on the right side of .500. The same can't be said for the NFC East.

The Washington Redskins have yet to win a game on the road this season. So, naturally their win over division foe New York Giants came at home yesterday. That win put the Redskins and Giants in a 5-6 tie at the top of the NFC East. The Philadelphia Eagles are a game back at 4-7. Even the Tony Romo-less Dallas Cowboys are still in play at 3-8. Sad. Very sad.

Injuries have eaten away at the San Diego Chargers offense. Quarterback Philip Rivers has been doing his best to keep it afloat. He succeeded yesterday with four touchdown passes and 300 yards. That was enough to hold off the Jacksonville Jaguars. 31-25.

Buffalo Bills receiver Sammy Watkins had six catches for 158 yards and two touchdowns in the first half against the Kansas City Chiefs. He finished the game with six catches for 158 yards and two touchdowns. The Chiefs defense deserves a lot of credit for Watkins and the game under control. The Chiefs plugged in another running back and got terrific production in return. Spencer Ware had 114 yards on 19 catches and a touchdown. The surging Chiefs have won five straight after losing five straight. They are 6-5 after their 30-22 victory over the Bills.

The Oakland Raiders ended a three-game losing streak with a 24-21 win over the Tennessee Titans. The exciting Derek Carr-Amari Cooper combo came back to life after some quiet games. They connected seven times for 114 yards.

The Titans are struggling through a 2-9 season. The losses count no matter the margin but five of the Titans nine losses have been by a total of 15 points. This is a team that is pointed in the right direction with an exciting young quarterback in Marcus Mariota.

The Arizona Cardinals had a tough time with the feisty San Francisco 49ers. A 19-13 Cardinals win. With about a minute to play 49ers quarterback Blaine Gabbert completed a 19-yard throw to Anquan Boldin at the Cardinals 21-yard line. It was a nice throw and catch. The only problem was that it was 4th-and-20. That failed conversion sealed the hard fought win for the Cardinals.

The 49ers committed 13 penalties and converted zero third down attempts. That's not good. They still managed to stay with one of the best teams in the league.

The Seattle Seahawks and Pittsburgh Steelers played a wild game. The Seahawks put up a few more points than the Steelers to win 39-30. Both quarterbacks, Russell Wilson and Ben Roethlisberger, posted big numbers. Wilson threw for 345 yards and five touchdowns. Three of those went to Doug Bladwin. Roethlisberger shredded the Seahawks defense for 456 yards. Markus Wheaton had nine catches for 201 of those yards. Unfortunately for the Steelers, Roethlisberger had to leave the game late to be checked for a possible concussion. Landry Jones didn't have much of a shot at leading a Steelers comeback.

Apparently Roethlisberger self-reported the concussion symptoms. That's a good sign. It seems to get lost on most in the media as well as the general public these days but the players do deserve some of the blame for the severe concussion issue in football. This is especially important to remember with a ridiculously one-sided movie set to be released soon. Players have been hiding, ignoring, and playing through concussions for years. Concussions aren't a new thing. And their risks aren't a new thing. Players have known about the risks since the 1800s when the game was far more violent than it is now. That's why they tried to protect their heads even if it was only with a big, bushy head of hair. That's why helmets were introduced and steadily improved just about every year since. The particulars of concussions are new but the risks are not. I was aware of them in my high school days and that was a long time ago. The worst thing that ever happened to the movement to prevent or avoid head injuries occurred when players discovered that big hits could get them an NFL career, airtime, and more money. That's on the players. Leading with a helmet that was designed to protect is on the players and the coaches that instructed them to do so. The players are hardly innocent victims in this concussion issue. It's way past time to stop pointing fingers and work on this together. So, it's good to see players like Roethlisberger finally taking it seriously. No one involved is innocent.

Back to the football fun.

The Seahawks are over .500 for the first time this season at 6-5.

The New England Patriots-Denver Broncos nightcap was excellent. The Broncos defeated the Patriots 30-24 in overtime. It's the Patriots first loss of the season. The two teams combined for 10 points in the final minute of regulation. The Broncos scored seven points to take a 24-21 lead. The Patriots scored three as time expired to force overtime.

The Patriots had the ball first in overtime. They did nothing with it and punted. The Broncos won on a 49-yard touchdown burst by C.J. Anderson.

As great as this game it was it was sadly marred by injuries. Injuries are part of the game but it's still terrible to see them. The Broncos lost defensive starters in tackle Sylvester Williams and safety T.J. Ward early in the game. The Broncos also lost guard Louis Vasquez. The Patriots lost tight end Rob Gronkowski to a knee injury late in the fourth quarter when Broncos safety Darian Stewart went at him low on an incomplete pass. It looked really bad but Gronkowski was walking carefully, but on his own, in the locker room after x-rays. Gronkowski is one of the most difficult to stop offensive forces in the game. The Patriots have lost several offensive playmakers this season but the possible loss of Gronkowski is on a whole other level.

Other than the injuries this was a great game. The Broncos, led by quarterback Brock Osweiler, rallied from down 21-7 in the fourth quarter to take the late lead. Osweiler might not have been great all night but he made a lot of plays when he had to make them. Especially late in the game. He can play but I don't even want to get into the Broncos quarterback debate that is all the rage in the media. I'll just let it play out when Peyton Manning is healthy enough to play.

The Cleveland Browns host the Baltimore Ravens tonight to close Week 12.