Written By Sam Ekstrom
UPDATE: Friday afternoon, Vikings RB Adrian Peterson was indicted on charges of child abuse and deactivated from Sunday's game. While there certainly are more pressing matters on many people's minds concerning this troubling issue, here is a preview of Sunday's game against New England.
LAST WEEK
The Vikings took down a shoddy Rams team 34-6. Matt Cassel managed a turnover-free game, Cordarrelle Patterson rushed for 102 yards and a touchdown and Harrison Smith returned an interception 81 yards for a score. “We pretty much blew them out,” said running back Adrian Peterson.
The Patriots’ Week 1 matchup took a turn for the worst in the second half. After leading 20-10 at halftime in Miami, the Patriots surrendered 23 unanswered points in the second half and fell by a 33-20 score. Tom Brady fired 56 passes but completed just over 50 percent of them, and the Patriots allowed 191 rushing yards.
RECENT MEETINGS
As with any inter-conference matchup in the NFL, teams only play each every four years. The last time the Vikings and Patriots met, New England defeated Minnesota 28-18, which was followed by a bizarre Randy Moss press conference and Moss’s subsequent release from the Vikings. Quarterback Brett Favre was knocked out of the game with a hit to the chin, and Tarvaris Jackson had to finish.
In 2006, the Vikings were riding high with a 4-2 record and had the mighty Patriots coming to the Metrodome for a Monday Night Football showdown. But the Patriots hammered the Vikings on their own turf 31-7 as Brady threw for 362 yards and four touchdowns.
Go back a dozen years to 2002 where the Patriots defeated the Vikings 24-17. The Purple were entrenched in a losing season and a 15-game road losing streak, while Tom Brady was just beginning to build his dynasty in New England. The Vikings lost three fumbles in the game and never led.
Minnesota’s last win against New England was on Sept. 17, 2000 – a 21-13 win in Foxboro.
COMMON LINK
The Patriots were the team that gave Vikings QB Matt Cassel a chance in the NFL. A seventh-round draft pick in 2005, Cassel learned the ropes under Tom Brady and then took the reins for New England when Brady went down with a knee injury in 2008. If Cassel hadn’t gone 10-5 in place of Brady that year, he probably wouldn’t have signed a long-term deal with the Kansas City Chiefs a year later and eventually continued his career in Minnesota.
ZIMMER STUMPED BELICHICK
The Patriots lost to Mike Zimmer and his Cincinnati Bengals defense last year after being held to just 248 yards and six total points. Bengals coach Marvin Lewis gave Zimmer the game ball afterward for his gameplan that halted Tom Brady’s touchdown passing streak at 52 games.
Zimmer doesn’t believe that last year’s success will translate to Sunday, however. “It’s a different team, different situation,” he said Wednesday. “It rained like crazy the last minute of the ballgame, so it’s completely different. Obviously you look at the tape, but you don’t think everything is going to be the same.”
ENCOURAGING STAT FOR MINNESOTA
New England was the third-worst team in the NFL last season stopping the run (2,145 yards allowed) and, as mentioned, were awfully porous against Miami last weekend. Minnesota’s Cordarrelle Patterson, who rushed for 102 yards against St. Louis, will certainly be involved.
Careful, though, in asking Patterson about his role on Sunday. He might try and mislead you. “Coach Turner’s offense, he has so much in it,” said a mischievous Patterson. “This week, I probably won’t even have no runs or no carries.”
Sly, Cordarrelle. Very tricky. But the truth is visible behind that subtly-placed double negative.
DISCOURAGING STAT FOR MINNESOTA
Tom Brady is 18-1 after a loss since 2003 … and the Patriots lost last Sunday.
Their lone two-game losing streak occurred in Weeks 2 and 3 of the 2012 season against Arizona and Baltimore.
Also discouraging: Tom Brady shaved his beard this week following the team’s dud in Miami. No team wants to be on the other side of newsworthy facial hair alterations.
LAST 2-0 START FOR MINNESOTA: 2009 (the year they appeared in the NFC Championship Game)
LAST 0-2 START FOR NEW ENGLAND: 2001 (the year they won Super Bowl XXXVI)
MATCHUPS TO WATCH
CB Darrelle Revis vs WR Greg Jennings – Revis is an excellent cover corner, so he’ll probably be matched up against the Vikings’ best route-runner. “Revis Island” is trying to prove his relevance in the NFL after a tough stint in Tampa Bay.
LT Nate Solder vs DE Everson Griffen – Tom Brady has plans to play until he’s in his 40s. It would be hard to believe if he hadn’t perpetually been protected by such a solid offensive line. Nate Solder is the latest left guard to defend Brady’s blind side. Griffen and his high-energy motor – and mouth – should give Solder plenty to deal with.
WEEK 2 BLUES
Oddly, the Vikings almost always lose heartbreakers in Week 2 of the NFL season. Took a look back at six of the last seven years:
2013: Chicago 31, Minnesota 30. The Bears scored a TD with 10 seconds left to stun the Vikings at Soldier Field.
2012: Indianapolis 23, Minnesota 20. Adam Vinatieri nailed a 53-yard field goal with eight seconds left to win it for the Colts.
2011: Tampa Bay 24, Minnesota 20. The Vikings blew a 17-0 halftime lead, and LeGarrette Blount scored a touchdown with 31 seconds to go that gave the Buccaneers the victory.
2010: Miami 14, Minnesota 10. Brett Favre threw three interceptions, including two at the Dolphins’ goal line, and Adrian Peterson was stuffed on 4th and goal from the 1-yard line to preserve the win for Miami.
2008: Indianapolis 18, Minnesota 15. The Vikings lost a 15-0 lead late in the game as Peyton Manning brought the Colts back from the dead to beat the Purple on yet another last-second Adam Vinatieri field goal.
2007: Detroit 20, Minnesota 17. Kicker Ryan Longwell clanked a game-winning field goal off the upright at the end of regulation, QB Brooks Bollinger fumbled in overtime and the Lions ended it with a Jason Hanson field goal.
PREDICTION
The Vikings will be valiant competitors against the Patriots, but Belichick and Co. will be ultra-focused after last week’s slip-up. Minnesota will show they can hang with the best, but the secondary will ultimately be exploited when it matters most. New England 30, Minnesota 24.
Sam Ekstrom is a staff writer for Cold Omaha at 105 The Ticket. He has previously served as a play-by-play broadcaster in Iowa and South Dakota and has covered Minnesota sports since 2012. Follow him on Twitter @SamEkstrom for further insights.