Like it or not, Brad Childress is sticking with Tarvaris Jackson for next Sunday’s home game against Carolina. “He will definitely start,” Childress said.
The Vikings’ third year quarterback, consistently inconsistent, completed 14 of 24 passes in yesterday’s 18-15 loss to Indianapolis. The Vikings didn’t convert one third down opportunity in the first half, settling for three Ryan Longwell field goals. In the closing minutes of a 15-15 game the Vikings started from their three-yard line and ran three conservative plays, an apparent decision not to ask too much of Jackson.
Childress said it’s important that Jackson not lose confidence. The coach’s commitment to continue on with Jackson, who has one touchdown pass this season, is a statement that speaks to Childress’ faith in his quarterback who sometimes didn’t complete passes because his receivers dropped the ball.
Childress and most everyone else knows the Vikings need to balance the offense between the run and pass. Adrian Peterson ran for 118 yards in the first half and a total of 160 for the game. In two games, both losses, the Peterson has rushed for 263 yards.
Tight end Jim Kleinsasser has been with the Vikings for 11 seasons and was asked about the passing game. “We moved the ball pretty well out there,” he said. “When you get in that red zone you gotta put touchdowns on the board. It’s fine to have field goals but at some point you gotta punch it in.”
If the 0-2 Vikings’ didn’t hit the guard rail yesterday with their loss, they came close enough to at least see it. They have Carolina (2-0) on Sunday before playing at Tennessee (2-0) and New Orleans (1-1). All three teams can be considered among the NFL’s top 10. A 0-5 start would put the Vikings through the guard rail and into the ditch for their 16 game regular season. The results could be better but for sure this team will be no better than 3-2 after its first five games and it requires a confident outlook to foresee that.