Let’s get this out of the way… grabbing crow from freezer… Putting into microwave safe dish… de-thawing in the microwave… Salt… Pepper… Gulp!  This is the best tasting crow ever!

That’s right, the Vikings blew by the Bengals today, winning by a margin of 30-10. 

While more detailed analysis will come later, here are some initial thoughts:

  • Favre still worries me.  He was 17 of 30 for 192 yards, a touchdown, and a pick.  This is two weeks in a row that this does not seem to be the same Favre as we saw through the first 12 weeks of the year.  It will be interesting to see if this trend sticks.
  • I mentioned earlier that Peterson needs to overcome adversity or else the negative consequences will be too great.  He did just that today.  His 97 rushing yards, 2 touchdowns, and 40 receiving yards proved to be his best game in a while. 
  • The offensive line seemed like a mixed bag today.  While their run blocking appeared to have improved, their pass protection lef a little to be desired. 
  • 9 penalties for 69 yards at home?  Something needs to change there.
  • Welcome back Winfield!  A team-high 9 tackles, including numerous huge hits and a forced fumble just goes to show why we missed this guy so much since he was gone.
  • What was up with Ocho not doing anything after his touchdown?  Personally, I was disappointed.
  • Play of the game goes to Cedric Griffin rocking Ochocinco.  Sure it was a penalty, but when a guy has a mouth that loud… he has it comin’.
  • Wait another week before forming opinions on Jasper Brinkley.  This game was neither impressive or unimpressive when it comes to Jasper Brinkley, in my opinion.  We will have to wait before we know exactly what we have there.  Benson’s big run probably would not have happened with E.J. in there, however.
  • Could it be that our last pick of this year’s draft will beat out our first pick of last year’s draft?  While he needs to calm down a bit, I liked what I saw of Jamarca Sanford and would be opposed to playing it “very safe” when it comes to inserting Tyrell Johnson back into the lineup.
  • This was the best pass defense we’ve played this year.  Other than the one breakdown which resulted in Ocho’s touchdown, holding Carson Palmer to 94 yards is a huge accomplishment and a huge confidence booster.  The pass rush was effective put not dominant today, which makes the secondaries performance all the greater.
  • Ryan Longwell and Darius Reynaud had very nice days.  Sure, Reynaud had a fumble today, but he averaged 12 yards on 5 punt returns.  Longwell was as dependable as ever.
  • Our special teams coverage was fantastic.  End of story.

So here we are folks, one win (or Packer loss) away from clinching the North.  We’re guaranteed to play in the post season.  What else can we ask for? 

This is fun again!