Ok, so let me talk about the team that's nearest and dearest to my football heart, the Vikings. Their season hinges on one person, Brad Johnson. More to the point it hinges on his health.
The Offense - Brad looks perfectly suited for the west coast offense. He's smart and accurate and doesn't rely on the deep ball. He's good at finding the open receiver for a small gain. The wideouts on this club have some talent but no real star power. The ball will be spread around quite a bit. The running game should be good. The preseason didn't really show that, but the Vikes faced three good run defenses in Pit, Bal and Dal. The O-line should be very good. Hopefully, that means very few knockdowns and sacks for Brad.
The Defense - The Vikes look like they could have a dominant D-line this year. Both DE's, James and Udeze, look like they may have finally developed into the players they were projected to be. The DT's, Kevin and Pat Williams, look like forces to be reckoned with. If they can get consistent pressure, the Vikes D will have a great year. The 'Tampa 2' defense is based on pressuring the QB into making bad throws and then picking those throws off. That's how it worked in the preseason and that gives hope for the year.
Special Teams - No idea. They've had good and bad moments so far, mostly bad. But they have a quality kicker and punter. And lots of new people on coverage.
If Brad stays healthy, the offense will work. If he gets hurt, the offense will drop off of a cliff. If the defense gets turnovers, this will be a tough team to beat. If they don't get to the QB, it'll be a long season.
Their schedule is front-loaded. They open at Washington, which has looked cover-your-eyes awful so far. Especially in pass blocking. Then they host Carolina, a trendy Superbowl pick. Week three brings the Bears to the dome. Their quarterback situation is dreadful right now and might not be fixed by then. We should know quite a bit about this team by then. They only play one playoff team after October. Their December opponents had a combined 2005 record of 19-45 so a strong finish is likely.
1 comment:
So...they're not going to the Super Bowl this year? I'm confused, because Hans told me that "this is the year, baby". Oh wait. He tells me that EVERY year. Well, I admire his optimism.
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