Frerotte brings spark to Minnesota passing attack

By Eric Krupka  |   Wednesday, September 24, 2008  |  Comments( 4 )

Minnesota Vikings
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It was only one week, but the Minnesota Vikings’ offense looked a lot better with Gus Frerotte under center on Sunday.

The 15-year veteran, making his first start as a Viking since filling in for the injured Daunte Culpepper in 2003, was solid during his team's 20-10 win over Carolina. Frerotte, who spent the past few seasons with the Dolphins and Rams before returning to the Vikings, completed 16 of 28 passes for 204 yards, a touchdown and an interception. (It's important to note that the pick wasn’t his fault -- the pass caromed off the hands of receiver Bernard Berrian and into the waiting arms of Panthers cornerback Chris Gamble.)

“I’d love to have some of those early [passes] back where I’m trying to get [the ball] down the field,” said Frerotte. “I think the longer were together (he and Berrian), the better it will be.”

Last week, Vikings head coach Brad Childress decided to bench incumbent Tarvaris Jackson in favor of the veteran Frerotte, citing the timid play of the younger signal-caller.

"I'm just not seeing right now the aggressiveness from Tarvaris that I saw throughout the offseason, training camp, the two preseason games that he played in," said Childress. "And part of it may be experience. I know Gus will give us that. And I know his approach will also lend itself to that."

After lacking a legitimate passing threat during its disappointing 0-2 start, Minnesota needed a spark. Frerotte was that spark, luckily, as the Vikings came out throwing early and often last weekend. Despite a slow start that saw him complete just four of his first 10 throws, Frerotte rebounded in the second half by hitting on 7 of 11 passes for 117 yards and a score.

When Childress switched to Frerotte, ESPN’s Marcellus Wiley noted the trouble the Minnesota offense had been having throwing the football down the field in its first two games.

“[The Vikings want] someone in there who can have a fear factor when the defense lines up and may complete a ball over 20 yards,” said Wiley. “And that’s what they weren’t getting out of Tarvaris Jackson.”

Early in the third quarter, Frerotte provided that fear factor. On third-and-7, he avoided the Carolina rush, stepped up in the pocket and delivered a 48-yard pass to Berrian. Two plays later, Frerotte found tight end Visanthe Shiancoe in the seam for a 34-yard TD. Currently, those two connections are the Vikings' longest plays of the season.

The Frerotte-to-Shiancoe hookup proved how little opposing defenses respect the Vikings’ passing game. It was second-and-15, an obvious passing down, and the Panthers put nine defenders in the box to stop the threat of a run. Frerotte’s ability to read the defense and make that throw was exactly what Jackson wasn’t doing.

Frerotte also engineered a 19-play drive in the second half that lasted 11 minutes, 37 seconds. Minnesota moved the ball at will on that possession, ultimately settling for a field goal after penalties wiped out a touchdown. It was the type of everlasting drive that is just about unheard of in today's NFL, and it was the knockout punch for the Vikings, who wore Carolina's 'D' out.

“That long drive ... just to see the guys’ faces in the huddle, it was incredible and really a lot of fun to play today,” said Frerotte, who is 3-0 as the Vikings' starter (dating back to his first stint with the organization).

"I thought he did a nice job managing the football game both in our run game and in our pass game,” said Childress.

The terrific start by Frerotte brings up an important question: Why didn’t Childress hold an open competition for the quarterback job in training camp and the preseason?

At the very least, Jackson would have had to earn the starting job. All summer, the propaganda coming out of Minnesota was that Jackson was ready to take the next step and guide the Vikings to the playoffs. In fairness, he did look sharp in the preseason, actually outplaying Frerotte.

Nonetheless, Jackson’s poor performance in the first two games of the regular season and Frerotte’s solid play Sunday only adds fuel to the argument of those who feel Frerotte should have been given a chance to win the starting nod entering the campaign.

What if the Vikings had named Frerotte the starter at the beginning of the year? Well, you’d have to think they would have at least pulled out one of the close losses to Green Bay and Indianapolis. In all likelihood, it would have been Week 2's game against the Colts that saw the Vikings settle for five field goals and a blow a 15-0 lead en route to an 18-15 defeat.

“It’s tough to win games in the National Football League. I don’t care who you’re playing against,” said Childress. “It is doubly tough when you go on the road. The margin for error is thin. You got to get one before you can get two.”

Frerotte and the Vikings will go for two this Sunday on the road in Tennessee, which is leading the AFC South at 3-0.

-Eric Krupka is a senior writer for RealFootball365.com. He can be contacted at .
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About Eric Krupka

Eric Krupka joined RealFootball365 as a Vikings columnist in November 2005.
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