Daunte's Big Chance
At 3:30 this afternoon, the Vikings and Packers will kick-off with a half-frozen football and play for the first time ever in the post season. The Packers have Brett Favre. They have Ahman Green. They have been to the Super Bowl with those players. Twice. They have won it once.
The Minnesota Vikings haven't been to the Super Bowl since the days of Ancient Greece, well before Culpepper, Moss, Bennett and Burleson were names anyone had ever heard. They have played in two NFC Championship games, losing one in heartbreaking fashion and the other in back-breaking fashion. As I write this, mere hours stand between the Vikings and this year's quest.
In a way, I like where the Vikings are right now. Admittedly, they are sliding, having lost seven of their last ten games. They are out of sinc, out of confidence and out of time. They can't afford to mess around any more. But I think that urgency is their greatest strength.
Going into the Washington game, Mike Tice thought the Vikings would have a great chance of winning if they didn't turn the ball over. Well, they didn't, and they even forced two of their own. And they still lost. Now is the time to forget passive strategies. It's the time to put the conservative play-calling in the back pocket and think more along the lines of calling a Randy Moss pass to the end zone. It no longer matters if it backfires again. Laying it all on the line is the only chance they have.
Here is where Daunte Culpepper comes in. He is known around the league as one of the greatest quarterbacks in the world. His ability to run as well as throw puts him in an elite club with the likes of Michael Vick and old Randall Cunningham. But the question I have about Culpepper is this: Can he win a Super Bowl?
Granted, John Elway didn't win the big one until the final years of his career, so maybe I'm being too hard on Culpepper. Daunte also has a sub-par defense to compensate for, which can sometimes be impossible. But if he could do it, if he could overcome the inevitable defensive miscues and lead his team to victory today at Lambeau Field, who's to say it will stop there? After all, this is the team that was given the third best odds to win the Super Bowl in pre-season polls. This is a team with plenty of talent to beat Green Bay. And if they can manage that, this could be the team that Daunte Culpepper leads to the promised land.
Get ready. Kick-off is coming up.
The Minnesota Vikings haven't been to the Super Bowl since the days of Ancient Greece, well before Culpepper, Moss, Bennett and Burleson were names anyone had ever heard. They have played in two NFC Championship games, losing one in heartbreaking fashion and the other in back-breaking fashion. As I write this, mere hours stand between the Vikings and this year's quest.
In a way, I like where the Vikings are right now. Admittedly, they are sliding, having lost seven of their last ten games. They are out of sinc, out of confidence and out of time. They can't afford to mess around any more. But I think that urgency is their greatest strength.
Going into the Washington game, Mike Tice thought the Vikings would have a great chance of winning if they didn't turn the ball over. Well, they didn't, and they even forced two of their own. And they still lost. Now is the time to forget passive strategies. It's the time to put the conservative play-calling in the back pocket and think more along the lines of calling a Randy Moss pass to the end zone. It no longer matters if it backfires again. Laying it all on the line is the only chance they have.
Here is where Daunte Culpepper comes in. He is known around the league as one of the greatest quarterbacks in the world. His ability to run as well as throw puts him in an elite club with the likes of Michael Vick and old Randall Cunningham. But the question I have about Culpepper is this: Can he win a Super Bowl?
Granted, John Elway didn't win the big one until the final years of his career, so maybe I'm being too hard on Culpepper. Daunte also has a sub-par defense to compensate for, which can sometimes be impossible. But if he could do it, if he could overcome the inevitable defensive miscues and lead his team to victory today at Lambeau Field, who's to say it will stop there? After all, this is the team that was given the third best odds to win the Super Bowl in pre-season polls. This is a team with plenty of talent to beat Green Bay. And if they can manage that, this could be the team that Daunte Culpepper leads to the promised land.
Get ready. Kick-off is coming up.
posted by Joe Siple | 9:21 AM
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