Vikings Message Board.Com

I fear a letdown game. After two wins against good teams... I'd hate to see a letdown against a crappy one.

We won't cruise. It's going to be a dogfight, but I think we'll find a way to squeak it out.

I'm going to say 27-23 good guys, but it will be tied after 3 quarters.

Tenn 19
Vikes 30

akvikingsfan wrote:This game could quickly turn into an "upset". Our offense has not been great, it has been functional and we have put up the points we needed to win, but will that always be enough? The Titans have the ability to put up a lot of points. They have a couple good receivers and a good running back who has struggled to get started this year. Our defense has done well to this point giving up about 20 points per game. This could be the game where we finally come out and dominate a team (score wise). But I don't think it'll happen. Peterson will put up around 100 yards and a TD, Ponder will throw for 250 yards and a TD we will end up with 3 field goals and the final score will be Vikings 23 Titans 17.

I worry about the upset as well. This is still a team in building mode(Vikings). Winning in the NFL is never guaranteed or easy.

admvp wrote:I fear a letdown game. After two wins against good teams... I'd hate to see a letdown against a crappy one.

We won't cruise. It's going to be a dogfight, but I think we'll find a way to squeak it out.

I'm going to say 27-23 good guys, but it will be tied after 3 quarters.

I'm a little worried about a letdown, too. But I thought last week would be a letdown after beating the Niners.

Frazier has been telling the team that winning today and then losing next week amounts to nothing. I hope the team comes out motivated and well prepared, as they have the last two weeks. If so, then I think the Vikings can pull this one out, especially in their own back yard.

Vikings 24 Titans 13

Vikes 17, TN 10

I dont expect alot of points from either team. We wont have 14 from our ST I doubt. I think we win if TN is stupid enough to not cover PH 80% of the time.

PurpleKoolaid wrote:Vikes 17, TN 10

I dont expect alot of points from either team. We wont have 14 from our ST I doubt. I think we win if TN is stupid enough to not cover PH 80% of the time.

you don't seem to be giving our team or percy much credit. do you really think he's playing the way he is because teams are forgetting to cover him?! any chance he's just getting open? any chance our schemes and plays are set up to make him successful? any chance that ponder is putting the ball where he needs to sometimes? i just don't understand that take.

i also don't understand why scoring on special teams is looked at as a bad thing by some. it is 1/3 of the game...flashy or not. you find any team you want that is a top tier team, and i can find major special teams wins that attributed to the win. especially in the case with the lions where their special team unit was so bad they allowed two returns the week before. this was something our team WORKED on all week. i think some people think that kick and punt returns are luck or something. there is a ton of strategy and very specific things that need to happen besides just having a fast guy standing near the goal line.

and even if we hadn't scored on speacial teams.....who's to say that our offense wouldn't have scored anyway? we have no idea. but great special teams play doesn't mean your offense can't be good.

vikes>titans. we win by 10.

i think some people think that kick and punt returns are luck or something. there is a ton of strategy and very specific things that need to happen besides just having a fast guy standing near the goal line.

Harvin has about a touchdown a *year* on kick returns? Sherels has one punt return touchdown in 41 touchdowns in his NFL career. So it does seem to come down to luck more than anything. You can't predict at all when they're going to happen, you can't plan for him, you can't come close to expecting them.

If it keeps happening ok...a couple special team touchdowns a year seems about what we've been getting for the last decade, how can it not involve a whole lot of luck?

Vikes 27
Titans 16

Vikes shut down the run game we could be winning this game by two touchdowns. Vikes are much better over last season. Fun team to watch so far. GO VIKES!

Ponder needs to pass on this Titans D. You've got Jerome, Rudolph, and Percy... that combo should get you near 250 yards with a couple of scores. Titans are pretty bad but who knows with Matty Hass.

Demi wrote: Harvin has about a touchdown a *year* on kick returns? Sherels has one punt return touchdown in 41 touchdowns in his NFL career. So it does seem to come down to luck more than anything. You can't predict at all when they're going to happen, you can't plan for him, you can't come close to expecting them.

If it keeps happening ok...a couple special team touchdowns a year seems about what we've been getting for the last decade, how can it not involve a whole lot of luck?

well if it was more luck than they wouldn't even work on anything. they'd have a guy catch the ball and try to score and the guy in front of him block. that's it. in fact, there are many schemes and blocking assignments that special teams work on all week after watching film just like offense and defense.

as for how many times these guys score that boils down to opportunities more than anything. how many kicks does harvin get to return every year? 30? 40? well, now put your qb at the goal line with 100 yards to go and give him 40 tries to score against a defense planning for him all week. you think he's going to score a lot more than a kick returner would?

i just don't think many understand all that special teams entail.

Just the threat of Harvin and Scherels changes the whole dynamic. Teams are not going to want to kick to us so it just makes our field position so much better. Look at how many times a guy like Hester freaks coaches out and they just consistently give their opponent the ball on the 25 to 35 yard line because kicking to him scares 'em?

Then that one time they DON'T keep it away for Schererls or Harvin, they get burned because those guys are fresh as daisies. It has happened to the Vikes a lot. Bad coverage D digs its own grave with a strategy like this against us. Heads we win, tails they lose. Pick your purple poison.

So no, I don't think our Special Teams play is luck. Scherels and Harvin, Walsh and Kluwe, that ain't luck. That is really special special teams talent. Outside of that 49ers game we are a lot better on coverage, too.

If Locker was starting I'd feel better about our chances, but for some reason I'm a little worried now that Hasselbeck is starting. Ya he's old now and probably rusty but he's the kind of QB that could methodically move the ball against us, nibbling away yardage with the short passing game. You can't ignore Chris Johnson either, I don't think he's an elite back anymore because he's so inconsistent but he's still dangerous.

I think it will be a close one, but Vikes pull out the win 24-17

Hunter Morrow wrote:Just the threat of Harvin and Scherels changes the whole dynamic

Harvin, yes. Teams at times have purposely kicked away from him including Jacksonville this year. Sherels? Not so much.

vikeinmontana wrote:well if it was more luck than they wouldn't even work on anything. they'd have a guy catch the ball and try to score and the guy in front of him block. that's it. in fact, there are many schemes and blocking assignments that special teams work on all week after watching film just like offense and defense.

as for how many times these guys score that boils down to opportunities more than anything. how many kicks does harvin get to return every year? 30? 40? well, now put your qb at the goal line with 100 yards to go and give him 40 tries to score against a defense planning for him all week. you think he's going to score a lot more than a kick returner would?

i just don't think many understand all that special teams entail.

That's pretty clear. It's not really about luck at all, unless someone wants to consider having an opponent on the schedule with poor coverage teams to be a stroke of good luck. As you said, there schemes, blocking, assignments, etc. good returns on special teams are primarily about execution, just like good plays on offense.