Sunday, November 3, 2013

Effort strong yet team comes up short in Dallas


The Vikes come in to Dallas with a 1-6 record and face a team that lost on a last second touchdown to Detroit last week.  Some of the story lines coming into the game: Ponder was named starter, 3 of the starting secondary are out of the game, Adrian is playing in front of family and friends. Do the Vikings have a chance?

I thought the first half the Vikings did a great job in taking control of the clock, running the ball and even Ponder making some key plays. I also loved the no huddle offense early and was pleasantly surprised.

The halftime found Minnesota up and to my delight I could hear Cowboy fans booing. It is nice to know other teams feel the pain.

The Vikings pass rush was as good as I have seen in the last few weeks getting three sacks of Romo. Is America going to see a huge upset? The effort was there by the Purple. I was so proud of the way they played up to half. It seemed the team finally has a spark.

The call for going it on 4th and 1 I really liked even though a field goal probably should have been called for.

I thought the Vikes would roll Ponder out and either run it or play action. The handoff to Peterson had no chance but I still liked the chance with the team being 1-6 and nothing to lose.

The next surprise at halftime was listening to the halftime crew and hearing Jimmy Johnson compliment Ponder’s play. The play by play team of Buck and Aikman I thought Troy did a nice job of giving Vikings players credit when due in the first half.

The way the third quarter started out with the Cowboys scoring 2 touchdowns in 10 seconds in the first four minutes of the third quarter made me concerned that the players would start to think here we go again.

The team did not quit as the second half they did not quit. The two touchdowns the Vikings did score was great effort. The catch by Rudolph and the beating he took but yet forced his way in for 6 was awesome. It is a shame he got hurt on that play. The replay showing his ankle get rolled up looked terrible.

The 11 yard touchdown by Peterson could not have shown any more effort than he did. The assist by Chase Ford to get him will not be in the stats but as a fan I sure appreciated the effort. The shock which I will be in the majority was to see Blair Walsh push the ball wide right. I could not help but worry this will come back to haunt the team.

The way the game ended just does not shock me. This team just can’t get the break. This season has been full of heartbreak. I may be alone or even laughed at but I will say I was so proud of this team fighting until the end.

The positives-

-Christian Ponder used 9 different receivers on Sunday including finally getting Jarius Wright involved. I thought it was his best game of the year minus some key mistakes.

-The Vikings outgained the Cowboys in total yards along with advantage in time of possession.

- The determination by Adrian Peterson and getting 140 yards

- The interception by AJ Jefferson was unbelievable and so much needed.

- Marcus Sherels led the team in tackles with 8 tackles

- Chad Greenway breaking the 1000 tackle mark in his career with 4. He is only the 7th Vikings in their career to do so.

- I know the Vikes lost but the play of the secondary was better than I thought considering they were facing Tony Romo.  Marcus Sherels, Robert Blanton, Mistral Raymond, Andrew Senedjo I will assume most NFL fans have never heard of them.

- The hit by Mistral Raymond on the Cowboys receiving causing an incomplete pass should be a ESPN highlight this week. The flag thrown and then picked up was finally a break for the team.

The negatives

-The fumble by Ponder in the end zone and the Cowboys recovering in the end zone for a touchdown just typifies the season.

- Ponder at times looked good but when he looked bad it was magnified. The ball thrown short of Greg Jennings resulting in an interception along with the last Hail Mary pass of the game were both terrible. I have seen Ponder throw a very good deep ball in Mankato but this one just seemed flat and no good.

- 2 injury concerns- Kyle Rudolph (foot) and Phil Loadholt (concussion). This team is getting unhealthy very quickly and is concerning.

Thoughts in the end

I loved the effort and not getting blown out on the road. The postgame interviews saw players such as Jared Allen and Chad Greenway expressing frustrations and disappointment.

 It is so hard because if the team wins too many games the rest of the way the draft pick choice will drop into the teens. I want the team to win but yet I want a high draft choice. I know it sounds wishy washy but it is a tough subject. I will love this team until the day I die win or lose.

Thanks for reading

Purplestick

 

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