Don’t expect the 0-4 Vikings to emotionally collapse starting with next Sunday’s home game against Arizona. The winless start has surprised the players and coaches but while fans are bailing out the Vikings won’t.
First year head coach Leslie Frazier was the choice of the players after being interim boss last season and before that the defensive coordinator. He’s liked by his players and his calm demeanor generates support.
The locker room leadership will keep spirits in place, too. Jared Allen, Chad Greenway, Adrian Peterson and Ryan Longwell are veterans committed to helping the team turnaround.
Part of the Vikings’ fan base has quit on this team already and the boos will come fast and furious at Mall of America Field next Sunday if things don’t go to the fans liking. There have been lots of empty seats in the upper deck at the Metrodome for the first two home games and why wouldn’t there be even more for the Arizona game? Looking for a $20 upper level ticket next Sunday? See your first ticket hawker on the street Sunday.
The Vikings have lost four games by a total of 19 points. That’s indicative of a team which is far from incompetent, but not making enough big plays to win games.
What’s particularly troubling is that the Vikings haven’t been able to make Peterson a dominant weapon for most or all of each game. With limited talent among the receivers and at quarterback, the Vikings’ hope going into the season was to ride Peterson’s powerful legs for consistent yardage and big plays. In four games Peterson has rushed for over 100 yards only once.
Opposing defenses are placing a lot of defenders at the line of scrimmage. The Vikings’ offensive line, mediocre at best by NFL standards, too often can’t move the tacklers for Peterson. This is a line that never has recovered from the departure of center Matt Birk and is even seeing its best blocker, the 34-year-old Hutchinson, growing older.
It was the 0-3 Chiefs, not the 0-3 Vikings, who got a win yesterday. Down in K.C. some folks had been vocalizing this: “Suck for Luck.” The implication being to have such a bad season the Chiefs could draft Stanford quarterback phenom Andrew Luck with the first pick in next year’s NFL draft.
Somebody will adopt it here in the North Country.