Well, look on the bright side- after a week of being mocked for their off-the-field shenanigans, the Minnesota Vikings can once again look forward to becoming the object of derision for their on-the-field play. That's what happens when you lose 28-3 to the lowly Chicago Bears, in the process committing 14 penalties, 2 turnovers, and 4 sacks, including one on fourth down on their own 1-yard line, leading to a Bears touchdown on the next play. Ugh.
- Mike Tice must be fired, now. In every way imaginable, the Vikings have suffered through the most embarrassing season in franchise history- even worse than the 3-13 campaign under Les Steckel in 1984. Tice, who makes Steckel look like Vince Lombardi, has clearly run out of chances, and ultimately, the buck must stop with him. His firing should be announced tomorrow, and he should be replaced for the rest of the season by either defensive coordinator Ted Cottrell, or consultant Foge Fazio.
- Normally I skip the pregame shows, but I just had to tune into ESPN's "Sunday NFL Countdown," to see what Michael Irvin would say about the sex cruise scandal, considering that he's football's foremost expert on such matters. To his credit, Irvin began by saying "obviously, I can't pass judgement on what happened, considering my own history." He went on to say that this "must have been a tough week for the players involved," [yea, my heart bleeds for them], and that the hardest part was probably facing their wives afterwards. Aw, nice to know Mike has his heart in the right place. If anyone should've worn an Irvin jersey after the game this week, it's Fred Smoot.
- And if you thought the Vikings' loss today was embarrassing... did you see the Gophers' last-minute self-destruction against Wisconsin on Saturday? Former Gopher coach Lou Holtz jinxed his old team on ESPN, breaking into the game with three minutes left to proclaim "the Gophers won Paul Bunyan's Axe!" Then the Badgers scored a touchdown, followed by a botched onside kick that trapped Minnesota deep in their own territory, leading to a Gophers' punt from their own 10. And after a botched snap, Gophers punter Justin Kucek tried to... punt it again, leading to a block and the inevitable winning touchdown that kept the Axe in Madison for one more year. And you thought Notre Dame and Penn State had heartbreaking losses...
- All in all, what a horrible year for Minnesota sports. After every team went into their seasons as championship contenders, the T-Wolves missed the playoffs for the first time in years, as did the Twins, and now the Vikings have out-embarrassed both of them. And making things even worse, word came this week that there will be no special legislative session to consider new Twins, Vikings, and Gophers stadiums this year. So now they'll continue to suck in a substandard facility.
Posted by Stephen Silver at October 16, 2005 05:49 PMIn the Vikings four losses they have committed more penalties - 41 - than points scored - 34.
By the way on Tice's weekly show on channel 5 tonight, his cell phone rang during the telecast. Talk about a man with too much on his plate.
Posted by: Matt at October 17, 2005 01:48 AMTice will be gone at the end of the season...what good is an interim coach?
The Vikes need to be broken up, torn down and rebuilt. That might include Culpepper.
The North is horrid...can 7-9 win it?
Posted by: John B. at October 17, 2005 10:07 AMTice will be gone at the end of the season...what good is an interim coach?
The Vikes need to be broken up, torn down and rebuilt. That might include Culpepper.
The North is horrid...can 7-9 win it?
Posted by: John B. at October 17, 2005 10:08 AM