The walk to the dome seemed to have a different beat to it Sunday. The energy on the plaza seemed to be extra. It is such a different feeling walking through and listening to fans excited for a game when the team is winning. Words cannot describe the emotion, it is just something to be a part of and take in.
I do enjoy seeing the scalpers in action. The funniest sight to me is when a guy has a sign around his neck that says “Need tickets,” when he is already holding 3 tickets in his hands.
The national anthem was sung by Matt Kalil’s sister, Danielle. She did one of the best jobs I have heard.
The team is off to a great start especially at home but something weird and that is all 3 home games there are 30-40 empty seats around us. The 3 rows in front of us are 20-30 empty seats and in my row there are at least 8 empty seats. In looking around our section seems to be the barest. We are in 215 with a good view. It is hard to understand but we are still having a blast watching the Vikes play so well.
The biggest ovation early came without the Vikings even making a play. The stadium announcer gets on the PA and says we have an out of town scoreboard update which went as follows the Packers 27 and the Colts 30. The crowd went wild.
One of the refreshing thoughts from today was the not only a victory but that the offense contributed with the 3 touchdowns.
The only negative from Sunday’s game was the unfortunate decision made by safety Harrison Smith. I listened to an interview of Harrison Smith done by Greg Coleman on KFAN radio on the way home and Smith sounded like he understood the mistake and is willing to take his punishment. In making matters worse was Commissioner Roger Goodell was in attendance at the game and got to witness the incident first hand.
The positives were many and I will start with kicker Blair Walsh. It sounds like a broken record but the kickoffs Sunday were awesome to watch. Titans kick returner Darius Reynaud lines up every kick around the end line and all he could do was helplessly watch the ball go by. It does not get old watching Walsh’s magic.
The defensive line continues to dominate not so much with sacks but the pressure constantly on quarterback Matt Hasselback. I was concerned with the experienced Hasselback quick rhythm passing but thanks to a team effort of pressure it just did not happen.
The crowd was big Sunday standing as one on every 3rd down attempt by Tennessee. The noise fans create never gets old. You can just feel it in your heart. The screaming, clapping, yelling all is huge.
The Vikings defensive team speed was evident as for the third home game the team shut down a big time running back. Sunday, Chris Johnson was the latest victim of a theme of the year and it is called team tackling. Last week Johnson runs for 141 and Sunday he had 117 less coming up with 24 for his effort. In being at the game you can see everything watching safeties running up and joining in the tackles.
Toby Gerhart after suffering a miserable game against the 49ers really had some powerful runs Sunday. I like the coaching staff giving Toby more chances and so far so good.
The passing game is a long way from being great but the efforts are getting better by the receivers. Devin Aromashodu and Michael Jenkins both had very nicely timed catches. The stats are very average but these 2 players both had catches when their number was called.
Throw in a beautiful catch in double coverage by tight end Kyle Rudolph for a touchdown and it was a day sending 63,000 happy Purple fans home.
It is funny because the game Sunday I came in my usual nervousness hoping for a win, but as the game went on I really never got the nervous feeling.
The call in show on KFAN is so much more fun to listen on the way home as the team continues to win.
How many games have the Vikings come into and they were expected to dominate and in the end they either lose or barely squeak out a victory? Sunday’s victory was a sweet domination.
This 2012 season has really started out special and Vikings fans that have patiently waited are being rewarded early on.
Go Vikes
Thanks for reading
Purplestick
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