Friday night August 17th, the first home game of the season was simplest put in one word, crazy. The drive up there seemed liked forever, but when I arrived at Mall of America Field it was all worth it. The amount of people in purple just never gets old. It is the most beautiful sight as a fan.
Jack Jablonski blew the Gjallahorn to start the procession of players come running onto the field. It was an awesome sight to see this young man to participate like this.
I really like the first string offense. Christian Ponder looked sharp. Toby Gerhart is looking determined and what an asset on the team to have. I feel very comfortable with him taking the work load until Adrian Peterson returns.
The catches made by Simpson last night is just a continuation from Mankato and what I saw. The leap of the defender was just amazing to be at the game and hear all the ooh and aah’s from the crowd. I am telling you we have something here in Simpson. I believe after his 3 game suspension he is going to be the man who is talked about week in and week out. His athleticism is truly remarkable to watch.
I know the offensive line is a work in progress, but I believe 2 games in we are seeing a better start at this group. The 2 guys to keep an eye on yet will be Brandon Fusco and Phil Loadholt. They will be a bigger key than most people imagine. Loadholt is in his contract year so I am expecting him to perform at a higher level. Fusco is his 2nd year just needs continuation of reps and he will be fine.
I liked the attempts to stretch the field with the deep ball. We have the players to get it done. Michael Jenkins made a great deep sideline catch. Devin Aromashodu was seemingly inches from being able to stay in bounds on the deep balls. He made some great efforts. I also enjoyed the flea flicker the Vikes tried with Ponder hand it off to Gerhart and promptly returned the ball to Ponder to try it. It did not work but it was at least an effort.
Place Kicker, Blair Walsh was truly remarkable, and if last night was regular season fantasy players would have had a big night out of Walsh. 5 out of 6, wow what a first night at home for this young man. The kickoffs were everything I hoped for and more. I was sitting at the opposite end as I watched Walsh kickoff through the uprights. I honestly don’t know if I have ever seen that happen.
The defense played as I had hoped. The run defense looked much better and still has room to develop. The push for starting safety I really thought Mistral Raymond played a whale of a game. His hustle really stuck out. I also believe the team has one of the safety positions filled with Harrison Smith. I have been impressed late in camp with him and last night watching him blitz to knock the ball done. It is early but still the signs are encouraging.
I just thought the defense as a whole showed some life and hustle. A home game and a crowd behind them I was interested to see how they would react. It is a start in the right direction. San Diego comes to town next so will be a major test against Quarterback Phillip Rivers and the rest of the Chargers offense.
It is hard not to mention Audie Cole and his game. His first touchdown was so fun to watch but when it was reviewed I thought please give it to him with his determination to get across the goal line. We were at the opposite end so it was hard to see the original if he scored.
A preseason game can bring unusual things. The Vikings have on their roster 2 jersey number 60’, 2- 62’s and 2’66’s. Defensive end Nick Reed made a great rush and knocked the ball down. The PA announcer said play made by Tyler Holmes. The problem is Tyler Holmes is an offensive guard. He does wear 66 but the guy that made the play was the other 66, Nick Reed.
The other observation came from the replacement officials. The field goals made seemed like it took extra-long for the officials to put their arms up signaling good. The crowd reacted before the signal was made.
The other item worth mentioning was the wave. I listened to people’s thoughts that one side said it was awesome and the other side said it was embarrassing to witness. All I know is I sat and watched it go for 30 minutes and it seemed to get louder. I was taking pictures of the flying programs. I even caught one out of midair. We listened to fans behind us shredding their books and turned into confetti. It was the most amazing sight. I got a feeling this might be a new tradition at Mall of America Field. We will see.
The game was awesome to be at and it is preseason so I cannot get too pumped up. It is encouraging to see progress in the team. The win is a nice self-esteem boost to know that hard work can pay off.
Thank for reading
Purplestick
No comments:
Post a Comment