Vikings post-game reaction (Part II)

By Krupka  |   Tuesday, December 05, 2006  |  Comments( 3 )

Minnesota Vikings
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In part II of the Minnesota Vikings' post-game reaction, yours truly will now look at what went right in Sunday's 23-13 loss. To read yesterday's article on what went wrong, click here.

The running game- Minnesota racked up 192 yards on 35 carries, good for an average of 5.5 yards per rush. And they did it with more than one running back. Starting back Chester Taylor surpassed the 1,000-yard barrier for the season in gaining 99 yards on 17 carries. Second-year Florida alumnus Ciatrick Fason had a solid day, setting career bests in carries with 11 and yards with 75. He also scored a touchdown on a 4-yard plunge in the fourth quarter. Mewelde Moore added 13 yards and the Vikings' quarterbacks accounted for the final 5 yards on the ground.

The efficiency in the running game allowed the Vikings to control the game - holding the ball for 19 more minutes than the Bears - and helped them gain more than triple the yardage the Chicago offense mustered. Still, it wasn't enough thanks to poor execution, penalties and turnovers.

The defense- It's become about as automatic as Joe Namath when he makes a guarantee. Week in and week out, you can expect to see the Vikings' defensive unit on a positive list, usually because of its suffocating run-stuffing prowess. Sunday was a total defensive effort against both the run and pass, as the unit stymied the Bears into just 107 yards of total offense, permitting a meager 2.4 yards per play, forcing seven punts, five three and outs and five turnovers.

Bears running back Thomas Jones entered Sunday's game having rushed for 100 yards or more in four of his last seven games. Jones was held to 32 yards on 12 carries. Quarterback Rex Grossman was booed constantly by the home crowd as the Minnesota defense held him to a pitiful 6 of 19 for 34 yards and three interceptions. For a while, the Bears' signal caller was stuck with the same number of completions (three) as interceptions.

Brooks Bollinger/Tarvaris Jackson- When the atrocious day of Brad Johnson was finally over, backup Brooks Bollinger played well. He orchestrated a touchdown drive in which he completed seven out of eight passes for 70 yards. The fourth-year pro out of Wisconsin looked more comfortable than he previously has, and it showed. While the third-stringer, rookie Tavaris Jackson, didn't play long, the fact that he got some on-field time is encouraging for the Vikings. He did fumble, but overall, Vikings coaches and fans should be satisfied with how he looked.

How long until the "Bench Brad" chants grow louder?

Eric Krupka is a senior writer for RealFootball365.com. He can be contacted at ekrupka@realfootball365.com

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CommentsComments: 3  |  Sign Up  View all comments
No.1
TJ		12:21 PM
12/05/2006
Brad should have been a few games ago. Let's see what the future holds-put in Tarvaris & get him used what the NFL holds for him
No.2
Archangel		06:40 PM
12/05/2006
Actually, I thought that Bollinger looked pretty damn good. Right up to being injured for who knows how long. TIME FOR TAVARIS....
No.3
wayne		06:33 AM
12/06/2006
I think we should play the rookie, tj.should get ready for next year,the vikes are done this year,so lets play TJ.give the fans...
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