Seeing Red...Again?

It's December 28th, 2003, and the Vikings are on the road in Arizona playing the red-clad Cardinals. If the Vikings win, they are NFC North champions, are in the playoffs, and even host a playoff game at the dome. Meanwhile at Lambeau Field, the Packers need help. If the Vikings lose, they can make the playoffs with a victory. Leading the 31-3 over the Denver Broncos, the Packers can only watch and hope.

The Cardinals, with nothing to gain, fight and score on the last play of the game. The Vikings see red as the Cardinals dance and celebrate a come-from-behind victory in the desert sun. At Lambeau, the Packers dance, too.

It's 2004 and I can still hear Paul Allen's voice in the distance yelling "No!" (Paul Allen is the play-by-play voice of the Vikings. He does a great job and his calls are often featured on ESPN and the NFL Network). His call of the catch that ended the Vikings' season is part of history. I can't help but look at next week's game at the red-clad Washington Redskins and think...

Last year was confusing. The Vikings came out hot, went to 6-0, then struggled going 3-7 to end the year. The winning ended when the New York Giants flew into Minnesota and beat up the Vikings soundly (17-29) at home. The Vikings never regained their form and 2003 ended with a long flight home from Phoenix.

Publicly, the Vikings addressed last year as some kind of fluke and wouldn't happen again. But this year, Tice told us things are different. Suuuuuuure, they are.

Well, I guess this year is different, isn't it? We were comforted by Tice with a 'weak' schedule to end the year. The Vikings were not undefeated this year but also started hot. Six weeks in the Vikings rebounded from last year's debacle and were 5-1. Then the Giants came to town, shellacked the Vikings 13-34, and things have never been the same since.

So this Sunday, it looks like 2003 again. The early promise of having a playoff club again rests in the hands of a bad Washington team awaiting the Vikings in the nation's capital. Anyone care to guess how this story ends?

 

Congrats to Tice

No matter what happens Sunday, the Vikings were smart to renew Mike's contract. Anyone who wants Tice out has to also recognize that getting rid of Mike Tice means restarting, throwing away the last two years, and risking hiring a bad coach. The current Vikings are young and should have a young coach to build around them. This one-year extension is not solid vote of confidence for Tice but look for an extension midway through 2005 if Mike does well.

Fluke or Destiny?

In Arizona, the struggling Saint Louis Rams were playing the Arizona Cardinals. The Cardinals are driving down the field and Emmitt Smith fumbles. The score is within reach and if the Rams can recover the ball, they can attempt to score and make this a closer game.

Earlier in Detroit, the Minnesota Vikings seem to control the game but the Detroit Lions fight back to score and pull within one point. With a made extra point, the Lions will force the Vikings to overtime where anything can happen.

There are three Rams tackling Emmitt Smith when the ball breaks lose. The Lions snap the ball to kick the tying field goal.

The ball harmlessly goes out of bounds unrecovered. The Cardinals continue their drive, score, and crush the Rams. In Detroit, the snap was low, the Vikings tackle the ballcarrier, and seal a dramatic one-point victory.

Was this a fluke or destiny?

Vikings fans have to wonder what's next. With two games left, the Minnesota Vikings and Green Bay Packers can both win the division. The Packers own the tie-breaker and Minnesota can win the NFC North title with a victoy over Green Bay at home and a win on the road at Washington.

Because of losses by half the NFC, the Packers have already clinched a playoff spot. The Vikings meanwhile can still not make the playoffs. For me, this is very familiar territory. Didn't this happen last year? Weren't the Vikings a 'lock' before faultering?

It's odd because I have to wonder, when Emmitt fumbles out of bounds and when Detroit botches an extra point, is that a fluke? Is it destiny?

Is this the year the Cardinals under head coach Dennis Green make the playoffs? Remember they are still mathematically alive and it would take some help. On the other hand, is this the year the Vikings capture the NFC North to host a playoff game? Heck, maybe this is the year Minnesota can host Green Bay and end the Favre era?

We have to wait a couple of weeks to find out but I wonder, is this a fluke or some kind of destiny?