Smash Articles
14 Playoff Teams 
Rule Changes
17 Game Season
Low Lights

-
-
-
-
-
-

 

Additional Minnesota Viking Commentary

Theilen Fly's Again -
Yes, the ghost & I were there in old fashion purple, amongst  a sea of green, located almost right on the 50 yard line, intently listening for messages.  The first message came during the our tail gate that the game would go under 46 points, which it did.  It was expected to be a shoot out with much greater scoring ... that just didn't happen.  There was another message given, that cannot be disclosed.  All I understood was that we needed to take care of business here in Philadelphia, PA ... and that exactly what we did.  

Holding firmly onto 57 years of dread, the play of fate unfolded for me to witness in absolute silence.  No words could be spoken within that crescendo ... amongst this hostile environment.  You'd get rolled for a nickel by just looking at the right person the wrong way.  If you think the conflict on the grid was tough ... try serving it up at the Linc.  In just a brief moment in time, I got to see Theilen fly again.  It wasn't to the extent of what I saw down in Charlotte, North Carolina, the year after the Panther's Super Bowl appearance but it was a wake up call.
 

Within me, I knew what was about to unfold, knowing the outcome many months before the tilt, always knowing that I had to be it's witness.  For many months, following specific instructions not to purchase a ticket until 24 hours before the event (after October 6, 2018 at 4:25 pm EST).  Never being allowed to plan or prepare until that window opened.  From that moment on, finding & then smoking the meats, assembling "Grandma's Special Red Eye Pork Chops" (Which are not even my grandmothers recipe), followed by baking bread in the morning to catch an 11 am ride to the Linc.  It was a great day for tailgating, once the hatred of the green wave had subsided in the lot.     

So, you might be asking, how valuable was Roc Thomas yesterday.  That sweep that he ran was an eye opener and it sent an immediate message to both the Philly defense ... and more importantly to Latavius Murray.  You'd expect that pounding brute would be used first, but in fact what we got was a whole bunch of misdirection from Flip.  Was it a masterpiece ... hardly ... but it was the first step toward figuring out those pieces.  Roc never got the chance to catch that ball out in front, at full speed, after bleeding through the line, but he was a force of reckoning.  Murray loaded the box whereas Roc uncomfortably spread the field.  If Flip ever gets "The Roc" & Cook going ... all those nasty dominos will fall.  What resulted was Murray's rips, after Flips largess & finesse, which is a testament to these two key cogs.  Imaging having a better version of McKinnon along with an even still better version of McKinnon.  You thought the Saints had something ... just wait for this thing to evolve as Flip just might evolve into the evil scientist. 

Sometimes it was hard watching Kirk Cousin's take all those shots after delivering the ball ... trying to understand how anyone could take that kind of punishment ... but his work on the field was a wonder to behold.  Last year, we faced Cousin's in Washington ... the game Teddy returned to our sidelines ... where Cousin's connected with what was a practice team player in the corner of the end zone.  Initially it was ruled incomplete ... because of course it was an impossible catch.  That ball & catch was so counterintuitive that even instant replay had to rub its metaphorical eyes, all the while thinking to itself, "No Way did this just happen".  Trae Waynes didn't get beat on that play as there was no better coverage possible.  For that result to have occurred there has to be a message given so clear & concise that you couldn't ignore it.  It was like Reggie White sacking Warren Moon by throwing Cris Carter at Moon's legs who was standing about ten yard away from Reggie in the back field.  It would happen only once in my lifetime where I'm certain that the gods were displeased with Hercules for allowing his anger to be unleashed in such a manner. 
  
Take heart Viking fans, as you watch the Ram's accumulate victory after victory on their way to that number 1 seed.  There was a point made when the commentators announced how well these Viking fans turned out in mass numbers on that Thursday night contest.  It gave the Ram's a great confidence boost playing this squad in almost complete disarray.  Some say that from over confidence comes arrogance, but who am I to say.  Those Viking fans might have left that game disappointed
.  They felt something very strong but it was just out of sequence.  In some ways, it was like jumping the gun.  In other words, the schedule makers can sequence events to give the maximum possible to the outcome ... but that will not be possible come playoff time.  On that day, the grid will be the same and the stars will be in an entirely different arena.  

Jimmy Smith & Keenen McCardell
Their is an unmistakable & completely unexplainable bond between Adam Theilen & Stefon Diggs that just doesn't happen by simple occurrence or happen stance.  Their bond has hurdled every possible obstacle.  Typically, within a franchise, there is one outstanding athlete, along with a slew of also rans ... but that is not in Minnesota.  The question is ... why???  Well, if you've ever seen an interview by either Diggs or Theilen their responses are both measured & guarded ... in many ways.  However, there is a historical link to the past that too many youngsters just don't understand where the answer to this sole-bonding between these two starts with asking Stefon Diggs what he knows about Jimmy Smith & Keenem McCardell.  He just might have something to say about these figures of our NFL history that might help explain how both Diggs & Theilen carry themselves & the burdens within this franchise.  This just doesn't happen ... as it is counter to everything in this franchises history.  We all just might learn a thing or two from this simple character by the name of Diggs ... that just might help us all in our daily lives.  There is a bit of wisdom there that transcends the A-typical.         

Back in the day, the Jacksonville Jaguars became one of the newest franchises in the NFL.  In creating this franchise, they were allowed to assemble players in what one might describe as absolute desperation ... others might say ... a complete crap shoot.  What evolved from that process were two unknown receivers being fed by a man named Brunell that turned the NFL on its head.  McCardell & Smith were a marvel in an absolute environment that could be best described as a fledgling trying to find its way in life.  They took that impossible task and turned it into a series of master pieces.
 
 
Although there is no confirmation or evidence to this whatsoever, somehow that McCardell & Smith bond has found its way into the Modern era because when I see Diggs do his thing on the grid, I see an extension of a bygone era.  It was as if that bond was somehow infused into Diggs & Theilen giving a rebirth to something that we thought we'd never see again.  It's more than refreshing ... it is profound.  

Side Note:

There were numerous messages for me on this day.  On my right, were two Viking fans too afraid to wear their purple & cheer overtly for their team.  On the left was a family of four all wearing green.  My introduction on the right was with a message that was so forthright & direct as to bring me directly to my knees.  Just in case I didn't hear it, it was repeated for me.  For the next 3-1/2 periods ... not much more was said.  From behind I was asked by some loud mouthed & overtly disrespectful woman, "Are you a real Viking?"  This question wasn't a mistake to which people sometimes have no control over what they might blurt out.  To which, the mother of the group on my left responded wearing her green attire, "How would I know what he is ... I'm just trying to enjoy the game ... Peace Symbol (with two fingers in the air).  I thought very hard about that question for a moment not believing what I just heard being uttered.  I then leaned over to the mom on my left and asked, "Did I hear that right ... Did she just ask me if I was a Viking?"  She nodded yes, to which I said boldly for all to hear in that quieted group, "Yes, I am a Viking".  Astounded the mother asked for the woman behind her as well as her group, "How do you know that?"  Then I thought ... how do I get her to understand 57 years of my history ... and just nodded yes, and restated it again. 
After a while, she told me that her husband, one further seat away from me, wearing his Eagle Green, was also a Viking Fan.  She said that he just had his birthday where his birthday cake was adorned in purple & gold, which should tell you something about the father.  Then he opened up to tell me that he traveled with his son last year to watch the Super Bowl in our new stadium which brought a twinkle to his eye trying to describe it.  It was his first & only visit to that new stadium, where it was too painful for me to ask, were you torn up inside knowing how you felt about the Vikings not being there.  Sometimes what we fail to understand is that just might have been his one & only opportunity to get that close to it ... even though he clearly understood that it wouldn't be adorned in purple & gold.   

Profound Statement:
"God made us ...  The devil puts us together". 
Along time ago, as a boy, I had tried to understand this reoccurring loop  by asking the question, "Why haven't the Vikings won that Super Bowl Championship?'  To which I was given this profound jewel.  I have heard many people speak in regard to just a small part of what Joe Paterno brought & did for Penn State.  It was his love, his mistress & his passion, barring maybe his family.  What destroyed him was his association with what turned out to be pure evil that hid his true intentions for all to see.  To drive out the innocence that represent the region that is Minnesota would be a sin but on the other hand it is not hard to see a mans true intentions.  Not to be disrespectful, but for Head Coach Mike Zimmer ... it has nothing to do with a crystal ball ... that can only forecast a future that can be cursed to know.     
 
 

The Viking Ghost Writer
http://MyVikingBlood.org
Date: October 8, 2018


ng