That was nuts. The Minnesota Vikings and Baltimore Ravens battled in the snow in Baltimore. It was 12-7 Vikings with just over two minutes to play. The Ravens won 29-26. There were five touchdowns scored in the final 125 seconds. The Vikings thought that they had scored the winning touchdown twice. The Ravens thought that they had scored the winning touchdown twice before their third actually did win the game.
Dennis Pitta catches a 1-yard touchdown pass with 2:05 left. 15-12 Ravens.
Toby Gerhart runs 41 yards for a touchdown. 1:27 left. 19-15 Vikings
Jacoby Jones returns the short kickoff 77 yards for a touchdown. 1:16 left. 22-19 Ravens.
Cordarrelle Patterson takes a short pass 79 yards for a touchdown. 0:31 left. 26-22 Vikings.
Marlon Brown catches a 9-yard touchdown pass. 0:04 left. 29-26 Ravens.
It was nuts.
The Vikings have lost four games in the final seconds this year. A fifth saw a score in the final seconds to force overtime. The Vikings are about a minute or two from an 8-5 record and a game lead in the NFC North. Instead, they are 3-9-1.
There were a few snow games around the league. The snow was even deeper in Philadelphia.
"It's like falling on pillows."
-Eagles back LeSean McCoy on playing in snow
"It's like falling on pillows."
-Eagles back LeSean McCoy on playing in snow
Vikings running back Adrian Peterson left the game in the second quarter. It looked like an ankle injury. Hopefully, it was only an ankle injury and minor at that. Some may bitch that Peterson shouldn't have been playing in the snowy conditions. He's been battling groin and hamstring issues for a few weeks. Adrian Peterson is a football player. If he's cleared to play, he plays. There's really no question or argument.
Peterson's appearance on the Vikings bench in the second half was a great relief.
In Peterson's place, Toby Gerhart ran well, ran tough.. He always does. His 41-yard touchdown was beautiful. Great play call. He wasn't touched for about the first fifteen yards then it was all power.
Vikings quarterback Matt Cassel played pretty well considering the conditions. Completing 17 of 38 passes isn't terribly efficient. His passes were more accurate than his completion percentage would indicate. 265 yards and two touchdowns are nice numbers. No interceptions was huge. The Vikings only turnover shouldn't have been a turnover.
The Vikings offense seems to have more of a spark when Cassel is playing. They didn't start scoring touchdowns until the fourth quarter but the offense threatened the Ravens defense throughout the game.
The Vikings offense seems to have more of a spark when Cassel is playing. They didn't start scoring touchdowns until the fourth quarter but the offense threatened the Ravens defense throughout the game.
After reading Peter King's excellent series on a week in the life of an officiating crew, my respect was on the rise for the officials. That respect dropped quickly in the Vikings-Ravens game. I have no idea how the fumble by Gerhart was not overturned on review. Gerhart was clearly kneeling on the ground when the ball came loose. It wasn't even close to a fumble. An absolutely ridiculous call. Four plays later the Ravens had a 7-0 lead.
Maybe the snow confused the officials. They couldn't quite see things clearly on the field or on replay. The officials gave the Ravens three first downs when they looked clearly short to me. The Vikings challenged the middle one and had it reversed. I kinda wish that they had challenged the other two. The third led to one of the go-ahead touchdowns in the fourth quarter.
If the officials weren't the most hampered by the snow, it was probably the Vikings defensive line. All the players were playing on the same surface but the Vikings defensive line seemed to be more unsure of their footing. They had two sacks but they should have had many more. Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco had way too much time to throw.
Fortunately, the Vikings secondary played well. Perhaps their best game. Rookie corner Xavier Rhodes has been terrific the last few weeks. He continued that level of play yesterday. He left the game in the fourth quarter with an injury. It looked like the trainers were checking his leg on the sideline. Hopefully, he won't miss any games.
Little Marcus Sherels replaced Rhodes. He has a size disadvantage against pretty much every receiver in the league. He did get an interception. It was only the second interception by a Vikings corner this season.
This might have been the Vikings best defensive game. I'm sure that the snowy conditions helped keep offensive production down but the Vikings defense played a nice game. They could have used a couple of stops at the very end but they played well. Three interceptions. A fourth was negated by a mysterious pass interference penalty.
I would love for the Vikings to find a big guy like Ravens nose tackle Haloti Ngata. The Vikings have never replaced big Pat Williams. Three years and counting.
With the snow, Vikings receiver Greg Jennings looked right at home. He only had five catches for 53 yards but they were five big catches and 53 big yards. One was a terrific one-handed grab. Cassel seems to have a nice connection with Jennings.
Jerome Simpson scored his first touchdown with the Vikings. It took about two dozen games but he got one.
Vikings rookie receiver Cordarrelle Patterson is a beast with the football in the hands. He's tough to tackle. He's tough to catch. He's a threat to run a long way on every kick return. His 79 yard touchdown to take that late, unfortunately fleeting lead, was a beauty. He's a dangerous football player with an incredible future. Percy who?
It's a little strange to watch the Ravens without Ray Lewis and Ed Reed.
Ravens running back Ray Rice has been one of my favorites. He's a treat to watch run with the football.
There were a lot of punts in the snow of Baltimore. The Vikings Jeff Locke punted nine times. Sam Koch punted six times for Baltimore.
Undrafted out of Georgia, Ravens rookie receiver Marlon Brown looks like a nice find. At 6'4", he has excellent size. He made a terrific, toe-tapping catch for the winning touchdown yesterday. 7 catches for 92 yards, he made some plays, broke some tackles. Playing opposite Torrey Smith, the Ravens may have a nice receiving combo going forward.
The Vikings departure from Baltimore was delayed for a few hours after their plane was struck by the catering truck.
The Vikings departure from Baltimore was delayed for a few hours after their plane was struck by the catering truck.
It doesn't get any easier. The Vikings host the surging Philadelphia Eagles next week.
Also playing in the snow, the Eagles cut loose running back LeSean McCoy for 217 yards on 29 carries. 97 of those yards came on touchdown runs (40,57).
I haven't seen the Indianapolis Colts play for a while. I'd like to see them play because I'd like to know what is wrong with the team. Their prolonged funk is mystifying. Andrew Luck seems to be pedestrian. The Cincinnati Bengals were all over them 42-28.
The scoring excitement at the end of the Vikings-Ravens game kept me glued to my seat. It kept me from seeing how in the hell the New England Patriots came back against the Cleveland Browns. 27-26 Patriots. An onside kick recovery allowed Tom Brady the opportunity to throw two touchdowns in the final 61 seconds.
Huge loss for the Patriots if tight end Rob Gronkowski does, in fact, have a torn ACL.
Huge loss for the Patriots if tight end Rob Gronkowski does, in fact, have a torn ACL.
Browns receiver Josh Gordon has been playing out of his mind in recent weeks. 498 receiving yards in the last two weeks. He had seven catches for 151 yards against the Patriots. One of those catches was an 80-yard touchdown. He also added another 34 yards on a run.
Congratulations to Denver Broncos kick Matt Prater on his NFL record 64-yard field goal. Tom Dempsey kicked a 63-yard field goal for the New Orleans Saints in 1970. That stood by itself until 1998. Jason Elam of the Denver Broncos equaled that distance. It was matched by Sebastian Janikowski of the Oakland Raiders in 2011 and David Akers of the San Francisco 49ers in 2012. Elam, Janikowksi, and now Prater all made their kicks in Denver.
The Denver Broncos had some early difficulties with the Tennessee Titans. Considering that, it's surprising that the Broncos ended up with 51 points. Peyton Manning can score a lot of points. The 51-28 win got them a spot in the playoffs.
The Washington Redskins looked great in the first half of their game against the Vikings in week 10. They've been a mess ever since.
Congratulations to Denver Broncos kick Matt Prater on his NFL record 64-yard field goal. Tom Dempsey kicked a 63-yard field goal for the New Orleans Saints in 1970. That stood by itself until 1998. Jason Elam of the Denver Broncos equaled that distance. It was matched by Sebastian Janikowski of the Oakland Raiders in 2011 and David Akers of the San Francisco 49ers in 2012. Elam, Janikowksi, and now Prater all made their kicks in Denver.
The Denver Broncos had some early difficulties with the Tennessee Titans. Considering that, it's surprising that the Broncos ended up with 51 points. Peyton Manning can score a lot of points. The 51-28 win got them a spot in the playoffs.
The Washington Redskins looked great in the first half of their game against the Vikings in week 10. They've been a mess ever since.
I find it very entertaining when Seattle Seahawks corner Richard Sherman questions the sportsmanship of another. Sherman's never-ending antics shows that he has none. He's a fantastic football player. He's also an ass.
I didn't know that Seahawks defensive end Michael Bennett and Chicago Bears tight end Martellus Bennett were brothers. They just seemed to be so different that I never would have guessed a relation.
Sports Illustrated had an eye-opening article about Martellus Bennett. I've known for a while that he wasn't much like most football players. I didn't realize that he was so....interesting.
The San Francisco 49ers are a very different team with Michael Crabtree on the field.
Good game in San Francisco. The 49ers defeated the Seahawks 19-17. If the 49ers could have scored touchdowns rather that field goals, this game isn't close. Four Phil Dawson field goals. Two were reasonably long kicks. Two were snapped from inside the ten-yard line. Those short ones should be touchdowns.
Heated rivalries are usually the best rivalries. 49ers-Seahawks is a heated rivalry. These teams really don't like each other. Jim Harbaugh and Pete Carroll have had issues since their Stanford and USC days.
The Carolina Panthers and New Orleans have a battle going for the NFC South title. They may not have the venom of the 49ers and Seahawks but they are very talented teams eyeing the same thing.
The field goal thing plagued the Panthers as well. They opened the game with two effective drives. They settled for field goals on both drives. The Panthers didn't get a touchdown until 5:15 was left in the game.
The Saints controlled this game after those quick Panthers field goals. 31-13.
The Saints and Panthers meet again in Carolina in two weeks. It's great that the schedule-makers have division games at the end of the season but I don't like having both games so close together.
Others have said it and I agree. This was a pretty wild day of football. There was fun in the snow. There were some big plays. There was another great Patriots comeback. The furious ending to the Vikings-Ravens was the wildest action of all.
Good game in San Francisco. The 49ers defeated the Seahawks 19-17. If the 49ers could have scored touchdowns rather that field goals, this game isn't close. Four Phil Dawson field goals. Two were reasonably long kicks. Two were snapped from inside the ten-yard line. Those short ones should be touchdowns.
Heated rivalries are usually the best rivalries. 49ers-Seahawks is a heated rivalry. These teams really don't like each other. Jim Harbaugh and Pete Carroll have had issues since their Stanford and USC days.
The Carolina Panthers and New Orleans have a battle going for the NFC South title. They may not have the venom of the 49ers and Seahawks but they are very talented teams eyeing the same thing.
The field goal thing plagued the Panthers as well. They opened the game with two effective drives. They settled for field goals on both drives. The Panthers didn't get a touchdown until 5:15 was left in the game.
The Saints controlled this game after those quick Panthers field goals. 31-13.
The Saints and Panthers meet again in Carolina in two weeks. It's great that the schedule-makers have division games at the end of the season but I don't like having both games so close together.
Others have said it and I agree. This was a pretty wild day of football. There was fun in the snow. There were some big plays. There was another great Patriots comeback. The furious ending to the Vikings-Ravens was the wildest action of all.
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