By “short bus” I of course meant a “short week”, being that we played last Thursday, which already feels like a million years ago, and holy crap do Thursday night games suck.
Listen. You could lie to yourself all you wanted to last week, thinking that maybe the Vikings were going to let Teddy Bridgewater play on a bad ankle, on a short week, and that even if he DIDN’T play, what’s the worst that could happen? We have to suffer through Christian Ponder? Dude, Ponder beat the Packers before! And this Vikings team just dropped like two bills in rushing yards on a Falcons team the week prior … And the Packers rush defense is awful … So maybe we can rush, Ponder will play out of his mind, the defense will be legit, and we can squeak out a win?
Sounds silly in retrospect, right? This was a throw away game, and I kind of feel like Mike Zimmer knew it. I don’t think he really gave a shit. He was happy to toss Ponder out there to get beat up for a while, and if he ended up playing like an idiot savant, so be it. Clearly, that didn’t happen, but Zimmer knew it wasn’t going to happen, and he was fine with it.
Come later this year though with Teddy under center, on our home field? Bite the pillow Packers, we’re going in dry. Here’s what else we learned from that debacle:
– Christian Ponder is done. I mean, DONE done. Done with the Vikings wanting to pretend he can even be a third string quarterback, and maybe done in the NFL. Those back-to-back interceptions were an absolute thing of Ponder beauty, but that’s about the last I’ll ever need to see of him. That poor son of a bitch.
– Just when I thought Robert Blanton was starting to look like a serviceable NFL safety, he goes and gets trucked by Eddie Lacy. That was poor form, Blanton.
– Harrison Smith is still an awesome football player, one I’m glad we have on our team. Even though he came from Notre Dame.
– Too bad about Tom Johnson getting arrested this weekend. He’s been having a solid season and has been a nice rotational player for the defense. Guess that’s just more time for Shamar Stephen?
– Where the hell has Cordarrelle been? Is he really hurt? Is Norv Turner stupid? Don’t answer that. Why can’t even Christian Ponder get him the ball? Since Adam Thielen led the team in receptions this game, is that just evidence that Zimmer treated this as preseason game number five?
Nothing too surprising this season yet, aside from the whole Adrian Peterson thing. I figured Bridgewater would be starting by week five (it was actually week 3 and a half), and that the Vikings would be looking at – at worst – a 1-4 record. We’re instead 2-3 and only one game back from the division lead since the Lions and Bears both decide they want to be twat waffles all the time instead of play real football. Which is fine by me, the Vikings need all the help they can get, but it’s just weird.
Either way, a hurt Lions team next week, then the Bills, Bucs, and Redskins, the Vikings could turn this SOB around real quick. I kind of expect them too, actually. Hope prevails!
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