Players Aren't Only Nervous Ones Before Big Game

In fact, fans might be even more nervous. We're the ones who have no control over what happens. Yet we invest our energy, money, and hopes in our favorite teams. Of course I'm referring to the Vikings NFC Championship game. You'll remember my post a couple months back about the 1998 version of this game that was my first taste of a crushing defeat. I summed the whole affair up in that post so I'll try not to repeat anything. It's now 12 years later and here we find ourselves again. Coming into the season nothing less was expected of this team. We had our ups and downs and even looked like we were fading towards the end, but there we were again against the Cowboys showing why we were a contender. Now, we run into the high-flying Saints. I'm not going to lie, the Saints scare the hell out of me. Of course the Cowboys did too. Even as a player in basketball, once playoffs hit every team we played seemed just a little bigger, stronger, and more athletic than they were when we played them before. Not that I was scared of those teams, it was just a reminder that no matter who we played I had to stay focused. Perhap it stemmed from the Orr debacle my sophomore year. Every Vikings fan knows the nervousness that's been felt all week. We are uneasy, somewhat confident, and excited all at the same time. Vikings fans have been tortured in the past by underachievement. We're one of the most unfortunate fan bases in all of football. The same could pretty much be said of the Saints fans, although they haven't lost 4 Super Bowls. After 1998, I know we all could use a boosting win today to give my generation it's first Super Bowl berth. 18 years of my life have been filled with Super Bowls that I had no rooting interest in. We've never been invited to that party, and I hear it's a rocking one. We have the talent to beat the Saints, and anyone else in the league on our day. Favre has struggled on the road this year, but with the Super Dome he seems to have found a home away from home. He's taken care of the ball all year and proven his doubters wrong. I would know because I was one of them. Perhaps I didn't factor in his shoulder injury when looking at his year last year. Yet even before that he was always a gunslinger. I didn't think he could change, but he has. I have no problem admitting I'm wrong (well sometimes), especially when it turns out to benefit my team. Favre, you went from my most hated athlete to someone I root for on a weekly basis. I never thought I'd say that. Brett Favre reads my blog by the way, in case you didn't know. He might just be my most famous reader. Now let's go to a breakdown of the matchup.

Offense:

Brees is a top 3 quarterback in the league these days. If you give him time he will pick a defense apart with a plethora of receivors that he's made into stars. Favre is Favre. What Favre has impressed me with the most is his ability to convert on 3rd downs. We haven't had that for years and today we will need him to come up big.

The Saints have 3 good running backs. They have Pierre Thomas, who is their most consistent back. Reggie Bush is the playmaker. Mike Bell is the 3rd down type. We have Adrian. He has had a bit of a down year by his lofty standards, but he's due for a big game. He needs needs needs to hold onto the ball. We can't afford crippling turnovers. Chester Taylor is a selfless player who takes over on key third downs.

I think our receiving corp is just as dangerous as the Saints. They have Colston and Henderson primarily, while we have Rice, Harvin, and Berrian. Rice has evolved into a superstar this year and looks to be Favre's favorite target. Harvin has overcome migraine issues and should be playing. Shockey for the Saints is questionable. Shiancoe has become a huge weapon that should feature prominently.

Defense and special teams

We absoluteluy must pressure Brees. If we don't, we may as well just give the Saints their normal 30-40 points. Allen and Edwards need to terrorize the backfield. The Williams wall needs to eliminate the rushing options for New Orleans. The biggest key on defense is our secondary. We've been weak at times this year and that will not cut it against a team as good at passing as the Saints are. Rookie Jasper Brinkley will be targeted as a weak link in the middle linebacker spot and he must step up.

Longwell has been near perfect all year. He's as reliable as they come. The Saints have Hartley who has done as well as expected all year. Bush is a threat on returns after his rampage last week, but Harvin is just as dangerous.

This game should be a good one and hopefully we can come out on top. The Sains have had some extremely fortunate breaks in the regular season, but that doesn't mean they aren't a daunting task. 1998 still haunts many of us fans, but 2010 is a new year with a new oppurtunity. Let's do what the Falcons did to us. Let's go to the Saints dome and leave their fans heartbroken. Let's give us young fans our first Super Bowl appearance.