Well, Mrs. Warwas and I made it back from the motherland (Minnesota) safe and sound and are working to get ourselves settled back into the daily routines.  Being back in Minny was a very good time that included bowling and beer with old pals, a nice dinner at Chianti Grill with family, watching one of my best friends get married at the beautiful Northwestern Chapel, celebrating my mom’s birthday, doing some paranormal investigating (yes, I’m a nerd) with my brother at the Mounds Theatre, and overall enjoying ourselves to no end.

The great week was capped by having amazing tickets to the Ravens game which, as always, was a real treat.

As I listened to the 93X “Half-Assed Morning Show” discussion throughout the week, there were discussions as to whether this team was better than the ’98 team.  I thought this was a ridiculous statement, as the ’98 team won games because of their superiority, not because of blunders by the other teams.  Either way, I wanted to pose that question to you all to hash out in the comments section.  Is this team better than ’98?

Also, I know you all have heard, seen, and read about the Ravens game to no end by now, so I’ll give only some brief notes about what I saw before moving onto talking Steelers.

  • Brett Favre was great.  There… I said it.  I still have to wonder about the wisdom of relying on a forty-year old arm down the stretch, but I have to admit I was impressed with Favre’s play on Sunday.  When he dropped back I wasn’t worried, but rather felt like something big was about to happen… and usually it did.

 

  • Sidney Rice is a beast.  Rice is quietly going to become one of the better receivers in the game if he keeps this up.  He is on the verge of putting up Pro Bowl numbers, believe it or not.  His 409 yards is 11th in the NFL.  He is averaging 17.8 yards per reception, which is the most among receivers with at least 20 catches.  Only Desean Jackson has more catches for over 40 yards than Rice does (3).  Add those numbers to his two ever-important onside recoveries against the Packers, and this kid is really making a name for himself.

 

  • The zone blocking isn’t working quite right.  Brad Childress wants the best of both worlds, I think, in that he wants giant offensive linemen for their power, but wants a zone blocking scheme too.  Braynt McKinnie and Phil Loadholt in particular are really struggling in a system that is usually better suited for smaller more versatile and athletic players.  Even Steve Hutchison seems to be having issues (see the play where Adrian got hurt).  I don’t mind the zone-blocking scheme, but now more than ever, the Vikings do not seem to have personnel that properly fill out the scheme.

 

  • The Vikings controlled the time-of-possession clock by almost 10 whole minutes more than the Ravens.  That’s impressive.  Imagine how much more impressive it would have been if they had converted more than a lousy 35% of their third downs (5 of 14).  Seriously, the defense would have been less tired heading into the fourth quarter and the Vikings could have done to the Ravens what the Patriots did to the Titans.  Instead, overly-conservative playcalling combined with an unjustified abandonment of “what is working” allowed the Ravens to get back in the game.  The Vikings coaches are lucky they have Karl Paymah to blame that one on.

 

  • This team looks too rigid, as they don’t seem to have an inspirational leader.  Instead of going out and playing football like the Inglorious Basterds, this team looks like a bunch of accountants afraid of making a mistake.  Childress is leading a team that looks uninterested on the sidelines and have principles so strictly ingrained in their heads that they look afraid to make a play in fear of making a mistake.  I’d love to see someone get this team really amped and open that throttle.

 

  • The fans of section 108 need to realize they’re watching a football game.  It seemed to me that every other section of the Dome was intense… standing on their feet and yelling every defensive down.  There were a few fans like that in section 108, but the rest of the section were constantly yelling at them to sit down and shut up… that’s just wrong.  Homefield advantage is important, and some of those season ticket holders need to dislodge whatever object is rammed up their bums.

 

  • Madieu Williams and Tyrell Johnson need to start tackling better.  I know the cover two means these guys are unsung heroes most of the time as they’re used as the last line of defense in the strictest sense, but watching Ed Reed tackle Adrian Peterson in the open field made me jealous.  Williams and Johnson are missing too many tackles, plain and simple.

Well, there are just a few quick notes.  Over the next couple of days I will be looking ahead towards the Steelers game and also towards the upcoming offseason, so make sure to check back.