The touchdown pass and catch from Brett Favre to Greg Lewis was nothing less than spectacular.  The play was not a fluke catch, a tipped ball, or some kind of trick play.  The play as originally designed was not perfect.  One could probably make the argument that the play was just backyard football.  Lewis ran a go route and cut across the back of the endzone when he realized Favre was out of the pocket.  Was the play design perfectly executed?  Probably not.  But the result turned out to be the perfect pass followed up by the perfect catch.

When the play first started it was obvious that the protection was going to be decent.  Favre was given adequate time to scan the field.  Right after Favre released the ball he was taken down by a 49er defender.  If Favre would have released the ball a second later he would have been sacked.  The pass was placed in a perfect spot at the back of the endzone giving the receiver only a chance to make a play.  The pass was a 50 yard bullet.  The timing and accuracy of the pass were incredible.  Brady, Manning, or even Joe Montana could not have made a better throw.  It was the perfect pass.

At the back of the endzone Greg Lewis, of all people, was being trailed by two defenders as he went up for the ball.  Lewis positioned his body in such a way that after the catch he would have enough room to get both feet down.  Lewis did not wait for the ball but rather went after it.  After the catch Lewis did a tremendous job getting his left foot down and dragging his right foot.  It was the perfect catch.

This play will without a doubt go down as one of the best finishes in Minnesota Vikings history.   Where will it rank?  Only time will tell.  As far as a perfect pass and a perfect catch in such a clutch situation, this one will be hard to beat.

Paul Gantner

Week 2 is in the books and the Minnesota Vikings are 2-0.  The game was similar to last week in that the Vikings started off slow and ended strong.  A few things in the game looked good and a few things caused reason for concern.  Lets start with a couple of the positive observations.

Brett Favre continued to play well. He was 23 for 27 without any interceptions or turnovers.  Favre played very smart and for the most part made quick decisions and used multiple receivers.  Favre did not try to force passes and was content with hitting the check down receiver when needed.

Percy Harvin had a good game and contributed in multiple ways.  Harvin again scored a touchdown and has shown to be fairly consistent as compared to last weeks numbers against the Browns.  Harvin has shown to be very tough in a couple plays after the catch picking up several additional yards with players attempting to bring him down.  He also looked good returning kicks.  Harvin finished the day with an average of 26 yards per return. 

Now for a couple of areas of concern.  The Vikings run defense at times did not look good against a not so good running team.  The first two plays from scrimmage for the Lions were gains of 11 and 13 yards.  The Lions continually had success running to the left part of the line and straight up the middle.  The Lions finished with 129 yards rushing.  Fortunately after the Stafford interceptions and Smith fumble the Lions had no choice but to switch to the passing game.

Secondly, on a lot of passing downs the Lions defense sent multiple players in after Favre and the Vikings did not have an answer.  Future opponents may use this as a blueprint until the Vikings can come up with a solution.

Through all of the observations it is important to remember a few things.  Some of the areas of concern could possibly get worked out after the Vikings have played a few more games and get to work together more as a team.  Also the first two opponents were not strong teams and will be lucky to win 8 games this year.  But most important is the big picture in all of this.  The Vikings are 2-0, won both games on the road, have not suffered any major injuries, and are at the top of the NFC North.  Things are looking good for the Minnesota Vikings heading into week 3 at home against the San Fransisco 49ers.

Congratulations to Chad Greenway for the two interceptions and a fumble recovery.

Paul Gantner

Let me first start by saying I enjoyed watching the Vikings start off the season on a good note against the Browns.  They were not spectacular but did a great job in many areas to get the win.  I have been a Vikings fans for many years and still remain optimistic about the Childress regime.  As any Viking fan I question decisions and wonder if Mr. Childress is the right coach to lead the Vikings to the Super Bowl.  But as of now I am still satisfied with the job that he is doing.  

However, one thing I continue to see that I am having trouble understanding is the play calling on Third and 1, or any short yardage play.   I believe they were stopped three times against the Browns, once on the goal line.  The play calling for the most part is bad and very predictable.  It is the same play over and over again.  They usually have Peterson or Taylor lined up 10 yards behind center without a lead blocker.  By the time Peterson or Taylor get close to the line of scrimmage at least one defender is in the backfield to make the stop or at least have a good chance to make the stop. 

I love Adrian Perterson, as we all do.  But he is not a great short yardage runner.  I think it is his instinct to try to break a play outside or to hesitate and look for an opening.  Although he is tremendous at doing so we need a back on short yardage to put his head down and pick up the yard.  Remember the Packers game last year when he got stopped on third and 1 and was screaming at Childress to go for it on fourth and 1?  Childress gave in and Peterson not only didn’t make the first down but fumbled as well.   

My favorite play of the game against Cleveland was not the Peterson run or the Harvin touchdown.  It was a play that I believed happended in the second quarter on a third and 1.  What I have been screaming at my television to happen since Brad Childress took over as head coach finally happened.  The play was a quick handoff to the fullback Jeff Dugan.  Dugan was not ten yards behind the line of scrimmage but maybe three.  Jeff dugan had two hands on the ball and ran straight ahead to pick up the first down.  Not only did he pick up the first down but four more yards as well.  When they run this play on short yardage it doesn’t give the defenders time to get in the backfield.  Thats what I been waiting for on a short yardage play.  And best of all, the drive continued.  Unfortunatley the Vikings did not go back to this play later in the game.  We will see what Childress decides to do this week against Detroit on third and 1.     

Paul Gantner