Vikings Getting Hyped as Super Bowl Contenders

Yesterday I wrote that the Vikings had made themselves contenders in the NFC and that would put some pressure on coach Mike Tice. I also heard Chris Berman of ESPN call the Vikings contenders over the weekend.

And now this.

I would get a lot more excited about this guy agreeing with me, but he picked the Colts to face the Vikings in the Super Bowl. As Dubya senior used to say 'Not gonna happen!' He is also predicting a fast rise by the Texans. Doubtful.

I just hope all this hype isn't the kiss of death. Very few teams live up to that kind of hype. Tampa Bay took 5 years to do it.

Pressure is on Tice

It was a good draft for the Vikings, but it has been a great offseason. The Vikings have transformed themselves into NFC contenders. Red "Scrooge" McCombs has opened up the bank vault and Minnesota has brought in the talent to make the Vikings an elite team.

Now they must perform. And nobody is on the hook like Mike Tice. Especially now that he has made these statements.

"We certainly said when we started this thing, if you all recall three years ago, that we want to build our football team from the front back," coach Mike Tice said. "I think we've shown everybody we meant that, and adding another first-round lineman to the mix is going to do nothing but get us better."

For now we'll ignore the fact that all of the positive changes under Tice have occurred this offseason.

"We have excellent players on our offensive football team, and I'm a pretty good offensive coach," Tice said, "so we're going to find a way to move the ball and score points. … We're still going to be a good offensive football team."

I didn't know that pretty good offensive coaches finished each season 3-7, but we'll take Mike's word for it.

So with all of the moves they've made, a somewhat weak schedule, playing in a weaker division, and having a "pretty good offensive coach", Minnesota should be thinking about nothing less than a division title and a serious NFC Championship run.

If the Vikings live up to expectations Tice could find himself the object of a bidding war next year. If they don't win the division and make the playoffs, Tice will have to re-evaluate his abilities and should find himself back coaching an offensive line. In college.

I will support Tice and the Vikings 100%, I always do. But the murmurs of dissatisfaction concerning him will only grow louder if the Vikes don't win 11 games make some noise in the playoffs.

Clarett Pick Not So Mysterious

Surfing the web the last 2 days I have seen many articles questioning the Broncos' pick of Maurice Clarett. The way I see it, this pick shows a lack of confidence in Quentin Griffin. Griffin has had 2 stellar performances against questionable defenses, but has not done well in other games. He is also small and a bit fragile.

The Clarett pick provides a more suitable backup to Tatum Bell and Mike Anderson, and also provides a little long-term insurance against a big contract dispute with Bell in the future. The great thing about being deep at a position is that you can't be held hostage by one player who is successful and wants to cash in. The Broncos have enough salary-cap issues without that adding to it. Just ask the Eagles.

The Clarett pick is a big gamble, but there is a lot of upside if he can get himself back on track in Denver.

Vikings Go For Speed

Troy Williamson was picked for his speed. Period. Braylon Edwards and Mike Williams would have been nice, too, but the Vikings got the best receiver for their offense. Williamson's speed will spread the defense and open up the running game that Mike Tice says he wants to emphasize more next season. It was a good pick.

I know there are a lot of people who will criticize this pick, but it was the right choice to make. And I don't usually say that about this coaching staff and big decisions.

Vikings Don't Need to Move Up

There's been a lot of talk about the Vikings moving up or down in the draft. Moving down might be a smart move, but it is hard to see how moving up would really help. Minnesota doesn't really need running backs or quarterbacks. If they move up, it would be to get Braylon Edwards. But there are drawbacks to that.

Moving up for Edwards would probably mean trading the 7th and 18th picks overall for the 3rd pick. And they would be paying for a #3 salary. The money to stay where they are would be roughly the same, but they would have filled 2 positions with quality players rather than just one.

The other thing to consider is that there are really 3 excellent receivers that will go in the first round; Edwards, Mike Williams of USC, and Troy Williamson of South Carolina. Any of these 3 would help the Vikings.

The Vikings would be wise to stand pat or even trade down to get some additional picks. As long as they can get one of those top receivers, they will be in good shape.

The big question to me is what they will do with the 18th pick.

ESPN Gets MNF

ESPN is taking over Monday Night Football. It's the end of an era for ABC. The good news for Monday and Sunday night football is the earlier kickoff times on the new networks.

The only possible bad news here is that Joe Theisman might be doing MNF! Hopefully, ESPN will look for a totally new team to call the MNF games, and they won't just recycle some of the personalities they have on hand.

Minnesota Vikings Schedule

The Vikings' 2005 schedule is out, and it is not a strong one. The Vikings only play 5 games against teams that made the playoffs last year, 2 are against Conference Championship losers Atlanta and Pittsburgh, and 2 of those are against the diminished Packers. They also play 4 games against teams that came close to the playoffs.

The Vikings are 24th in the league this year in strength of schedule. Which means a little easier schedule than last year. And when you look at how improved Minnesota is on defense and the number and position of their draft choices, you can see that the Vikings should have a great season.

My early prediction is the Vikings go 11-5 and win a weak division.

What T.O. Really Deserves

So now Terrell Owens says he got a raw deal. TO believes he got the Eagles over the hump and into the Super Bowl. And for that, and his immense talent, he should get more money. Here's a wake-up call for Owens.

1. He did NOT get the Eagles over the hump and into the Super Bowl. He didn't play in a single playoff game!!
2. Philadelphia's defense, led by Jeremiah Trotter, and Donovan McNabb got the Eagles over the hump and into the Super Bowl.
3. TO played well in the Super Bowl, but much was due to what the Patriots were giving them. And many of his yards came when the game should have been out of reach. Only a bonehead defensive call by New England allowed the Eagles to remain close at the end.
4. TO whined and cried until he got his way last year. Andy Reid went to great lengths to get Owens, and was one of the few people who thought TO and his mouth and antics were worth the risk.
5. Some players on the Eagles willingly re-structured their contracts to make room for TO last year and this year. Apparently TO doesn't give a damn about them, his teammates, the guys blocking for him and doing all the things necessary to help the team win.

Owens is so adamant about a new contract that he has disrespected his coach, insulted his quarterback, and belittled every other player's contributions to the successes of last season. He is an arrogant player with no concept of what a team is.

The Eagles should grant him his wish! If Owens believes he is underpaid, the Eagles should trade him to a team that wants a superstar of his magnitude and is willing to pay him what he wants. Maybe playing on a lower tier team with a sub-standard QB and winning 3 games a year while getting paid what he wants would help him appreciate what he has in Philly now.

If the Eagles give in to Owens they are complete fools! He is a loudmouthed troublemaker that will bring nothing but problems to the Eagles locker room from this point on. Trade him, cut him, put him on the practice squad, but don't renegotiate.

Denver Broncos Schedule

This season's Broncos schedule is out. They got lucky with the away games! They only play three away games against opponents with winning records last season. Meanwhile, they get their toughest opponents at Invesco, New England and Philadelphia. They also get the Jets and Ravens at home.

Denver plays its last 3 games on Saturdays, including Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve and they also play at Dallas on Thanksgiving. What a Holiday season for the Broncos. They play 9 national games, which includes both of last year's Super Bowl teams, but only once on MNF.

Overall, a pretty weird schedule, but a good one considering where they play their toughest opponents. I will make an early prediction of 10-6.

Here's the whole NFL schedule.

That Didn't Take Long! Owens Wants New Deal

Remember last year when T.O. was traded to Baltimore? Remember the fit he threw to get traded to Philadelphia? Remember how happy he was? Owens got his way and was traded to the Eagles. He went to great pains to try to convince people he wasn't the arrogant, spoiled, demanding athlete so despised by football fans these days.

The Eagles coaches and management bent over backward to acquire and appease Owens. They took a chance on a "problem" player with great potential. Their reward? Owens wants to renegotiate his contract after only one year, and he is threatening to stay away from workouts and training camp to get his way. Andy Reid was willing to sport spandex for this?

After one season of doing and saying the right things, Owens has reverted to form and is once again the crying, whining, spoiled athlete we all suspected him to be.

Super Bowl success has gone to the heads of Owens and several other Eagles. Judging by this, it is a pretty good bet that the Eagles won't be returning to the Super Bowl next season.

Broncos Keeping Pryce?

Some of the best news out of Broncos camp recently is in this story. It looks like the Broncos may keep Trevor Pryce. When healthy, Pryce is among the best defensive lineman in the league and it would have been a blow to Denver's defense to lose him.

And with all of the additions from Cleveland, it is also possible that Pryce could be moved to a position where his talents as a pass-rusher would be better utilized.

The Broncos have not done a great job during free agency. Their defensive backfield is weaker now than last season, and that's not good news with the Chiefs high-powered offense and the changes the Raiders have made offensively. Keeping Pryce will improve the Broncos' pass rush and help make up for the losses in the backfield.

The only question now is, can the Broncos clear up enough cap space to sign their draft picks?

Vacation's Over

We just returned from a vacation in Vegas and Southern California. It is a mystery to me why anyone would live in the Los Angeles area! It took us 2 hours to drive 18 miles!

I returned to find that the Browns had relocated to Denver. Well, at least the Browns' defensive line had. And Rueben Droughns is now in Cleveland. It just proves that you should be careful what you wish for. Droughns will be a starter now, but it will be for Cleveland.

There are also rumors flying that the sale of the Vikings to Reggie Fowler may be in trouble. It makes me snicker to think of tightwad Red McCombs finally opening up the purse strings when he thought it was someone else's money, only to be left holding the bill. And he could be "stuck" with the best football team of his ownership era. The Vikings look like a contender in the NFC now.

This week, we will begin looking at how the teams have fared in free agency so far. And we will also begin to look at how free agency will impact the 2005 Fantasy Football season.