Rick Weegman column: Vikes on brink of historic collapse

The Minnesota Vikings are poised to join a club no NFL team wants to join.By going 2-6 after a 5-0 start, the Vikings are on the cusp of being one of the league’s biggest all-time regular-season flameouts.Remaining games against Indianapolis, Green Bay and Chicago will determine whether the Vikings make a list that includes their 2003 brethren, who started 6-0 but finished 9-7 and lost out on the playoffs in the most heartbreaking fashion on the final play of the regular season.Other teams that likely would make anyone’s list would be the 1993 Dolphins, who started 9-2 but didn’t win again after Leon Lett’s Thanksgiving Day gift allowed Miami to beat Dallas; the 1987 Chargers, who turned an 8-1 start into an 0-6 finish that ended with Dan Fouts and Kellen Winslow’s retirements; and the 2009 Broncos, who followed a 6-0 start with a pair of four-game losing streaks and a .500 record.
Since winning the NFC North would require a three-game sweep and a three-game losing streak by the Detroit Lions, the Vikings’ only realistic chance of making the postseason is by finishing as the second wild-card. That still would require winning out and having Tampa Bay and Washington slip up on the way.The former will be hard enough since it would necessitate a Christmas Eve victory at Lambeau Field against the resurgent Packers, but the latter isn’t a shoo-in, either. The Redskins finish with underachieving Carolina, the lowly Bears and a New York Giants team that already might have sewn up its playoff spot; the Bucs, on a five-game winning streak, face a slightly more difficult path with road games at Dallas and New Orleans and a home finale against Carolina.A myriad of reasons exist as to why the Vikings have collapsed, from injuries that claimed Adrian Peterson, Teddy Bridgewater and vast swaths of the offensive line to the total lack of a running game and a kicker with a mental block.But, unlike the teams mentioned above, Minnesota still has a chance to turn the season around starting with a visit from a similarly schizophrenic Colts team.Unfortunately, there isn’t time to turn around my Pigskin Picks season. Akin to the purple-clad team, I rested near the top before plummeting straight down to the bottom as my gunslinging picks tanked quicker than Macaulay Culkin’s career.Indianapolis (6-7) at Minnesota (7-6): Vikings haven’t won in this series since the late-1990s but must end that streak to keep their playoff hopes alive. Colts blew their best chance at postseason with home loss to Texans over the weekend. Neither team runs the ball very well, while Minnesota’s defense is better in all phases. Harrison Smith is impossible to replace, however. Expect a close, low-scoring game.Line: Vikings by 4Rick’s Pick: Vikings 23, Colts 17 Green Bay (7-6) at Chicago (3-10): Packers seem intent on making Aaron Rodgers’ “run the table” proclamation a reality as they seek a fourth straight win and sixth consecutive victory at frigid Soldier Field. Bears, 0-5 against the spread at home in this series, won’t put up much of a fight despite return of WR Alshon Jeffery.Line: Packers by 6½Rick’s Pick: Packers 27, Bears 13 (best bet) Los Angeles (4-9) at Seattle (8-4-1): It’s not often a team will fire a coach on a short week, but that’s what Rams did with Jeff Fisher. It won’t matter, the team already has quit as it showed when it fell behind 42-0 to Falcons. Seattle and Russell Wilson were embarrassed in Green Bay, but that won’t last more than four days.Line: Seahawks by 15Rick’s Pick: Seahawks 27, Rams 6 Miami (8-5) at N.Y. Jets (4-9): The NFL Network must be salivating over the thought of a Matt Moore vs. Bryce Petty matchup. Miami is on the march to the playoffs in Adam Gase’s first year, but often times stubs its toe in the Big Apple. Bilal Powell might run wild against a defense allowing 6.6 yards per carry in its last three games.Line: Dolphins by 2½Rick’s Pick: Jets 23, Dolphins 20 Detroit (9-4) at N.Y. Giants (9-4): The Cubs’ run of futility ended after 108 years so is it time to put an end to the Bobby Layne curse? Lions and Matthew Stafford are sure playing like it, especially in the fourth quarter. Eli Manning, on the other hand, doesn’t deserve to be at the helm of a playoff contender. But he and Odell Beckham Jr. always seem to find a way to team up on a gamebreaker and they do it again.Line: Giants by 4Rick’s Pick: Giants 20, Lions 17 Jacksonville (2-11) at Houston (7-6): Vegas still doesn’t think very highly of the Texans, who are just a touchdown favorite against a team on an eight-game losing streak despite posting a big win at Indianapolis on Sunday. The Gus Bradley countdown is on, though, and Jags are still playing hard. Houston, which has failed to cover only three of its last 17 division games, has more to play for.Line: Texans by 6Rick’s Pick: Texans 23, Jaguars 13 Cleveland (0-13) at Buffalo (6-7): The realization that the Browns will join the 2008 Lions in infamy is drawing closer. Cleveland has lost five straight games by 13 points or more and not scored more than 13 points in that span. Winning here may not be enough for Rex Ryan to save his job, though Bills’ last five losses have come against likely playoff teams. Line: Bills by 10Rick’s Pick: Bills 30, Browns 13 Philadelphia (5-8) at Baltimore (7-6): Teams will be hesitant to start rookie QBs after watching Carson Wentz’s troubles. Eagles are 2-8 after once-promising start, with Wentz being turnover prone. Ravens are lucky this must-win game is at home, where opponents average 13 points and 55 yards rushing per game.Line: Ravens by 6Rick’s Pick: Ravens 16, Eagles 13 Tennessee (7-6) at Kansas City (10-3): Is there any better coach in the NFL than Andy Reid? (Hold all your emails Bill Belichick lovers). Reid does as much with less than anyone and this Chiefs team is an example. Home-field edge is always big at Arrowhead, but doubly so in December. Titans have accomplished wonders this season but won’t have the answers here.Line: Chiefs by 5Rick’s Pick: Chiefs 27, Titans 10 Pittsburgh (8-5) at Cincinnati (5-7-1): One of the AFC’s most-heated rivalries is lacking some bite with the Bengals’ down year. Pittsburgh, meanwhile, has won four in a row and will take pleasure in kicking division foe while they are down. Speaking of kicking, who will be doing that for Bengals now that they’ve cut Mike Nugent? Maybe they should follow Steelers’ lead and go for two.Line: Steelers by 3Rick’s Pick: Steelers 24, Bengals 13 New Orleans (5-8) at Arizona (5-7-1): Which disappointing team will play harder? Saints offense has disappeared down the stretch - Sean Payton’s half-life as New Orleans coach must be nearing a radioactive end - and the defense has never been top-notch. The Cardinals have better athletes and return to the desert, where they haven’t lost since early October.Line: Cardinals by 2½Rick’s Pick: Cardinals 27, Saints 20 San Francisco (1-12) at Atlanta (8-5): Let’s see, Atlanta averages 33.5 points per game at home and 49ers allow 34.7 per game on the road, so that works out to a halfway point of 34.1. San Fran’s 12th straight loss may have been its worst, melting down to lose in OT to lowly Jets. Is the Chip Kelly experiment over? Let’s hope so.Line: Falcons by 14Rick’s Pick: Falcons 34.1, 49ers 16 Oakland (10-3) at San Diego (5-8): Raiders excelled on the road until a speed bump in KC. It’ll be much warmer here, however, meaning Oakland wideouts won’t need to try and catch the ball with their hands in their pockets. Chargers are facing harsh realities after recent downturn: no playoffs, a coach in limbo and a franchise heading north to LA.Line: Raiders by 3Rick’s Pick: Raiders 31, Chargers 27 New England (11-2) at Denver (8-5): Tom Brady vs. Trevor Siemian doesn’t quite have the same ring as Brady vs. Peyton Manning. For the first time, Brady doesn’t have his longtime foil to compete against. Pats lost AFC title game here a year ago but catch punchless Broncos at a good time. Expect LeGarrette Blount to batter Denver defense before Brady goes up top. Home team run of seven straight series wins comes to an end.Line: Patriots by 3Rick’s Pick: Patriots 24, Broncos 12 (best bet) Tampa Bay (8-5) at Dallas (11-2): When is the last time Bucs have been flexed into a prime-time game? Never would be a good guess. But this is a different Tampa Bay team that won’t be intimidated by playing a quality team after earlier wins over Seattle and Kansas City. Still, Cowboys’ running game and offensive line are unparalleled and will dictate the outcome.Line: Cowboys by 7Rick’s Pick: Cowboys 27, Bucs 13 Carolina (5-8) at Washington (7-5-1): Kirk Cousins gambled with a one-year contract and, after another 4,000-yard season, is poised to profit from his decision. One of the last deep-ball passers in the league will attack a Panthers secondary whose best player from last year, Josh Norman, plays for Washington now. For those interested, Carolina has covered one of last 10 road games and last eight Washington home games have been over the over-under line.Line: Redskins by 5Rick’s Pick: Redskins 31, Panthers 23 Last week (season) - straight up: 8-8 (125-82-2); against the spread 5-10-1 (104-95-8); best bets 1-0 (7-4). Rick Weegman is the News Tribune sports editor and is not a member of the Macaulay Culkin fan club.The Minnesota Vikings are poised to join a club no NFL team wants to join.By going 2-6 after a 5-0 start, the Vikings are on the cusp of being one of the league’s biggest all-time regular-season flameouts.Remaining games against Indianapolis, Green Bay and Chicago will determine whether the Vikings make a list that includes their 2003 brethren, who started 6-0 but finished 9-7 and lost out on the playoffs in the most heartbreaking fashion on the final play of the regular season.Other teams that likely would make anyone’s list would be the 1993 Dolphins, who started 9-2 but didn’t win again after Leon Lett’s Thanksgiving Day gift allowed Miami to beat Dallas; the 1987 Chargers, who turned an 8-1 start into an 0-6 finish that ended with Dan Fouts and Kellen Winslow’s retirements; and the 2009 Broncos, who followed a 6-0 start with a pair of four-game losing streaks and a .500 record.
Since winning the NFC North would require a three-game sweep and a three-game losing streak by the Detroit Lions, the Vikings’ only realistic chance of making the postseason is by finishing as the second wild-card. That still would require winning out and having Tampa Bay and Washington slip up on the way.The former will be hard enough since it would necessitate a Christmas Eve victory at Lambeau Field against the resurgent Packers, but the latter isn’t a shoo-in, either. The Redskins finish with underachieving Carolina, the lowly Bears and a New York Giants team that already might have sewn up its playoff spot; the Bucs, on a five-game winning streak, face a slightly more difficult path with road games at Dallas and New Orleans and a home finale against Carolina.A myriad of reasons exist as to why the Vikings have collapsed, from injuries that claimed Adrian Peterson, Teddy Bridgewater and vast swaths of the offensive line to the total lack of a running game and a kicker with a mental block.But, unlike the teams mentioned above, Minnesota still has a chance to turn the season around starting with a visit from a similarly schizophrenic Colts team.Unfortunately, there isn’t time to turn around my Pigskin Picks season. Akin to the purple-clad team, I rested near the top before plummeting straight down to the bottom as my gunslinging picks tanked quicker than Macaulay Culkin’s career.Indianapolis (6-7) at Minnesota (7-6): Vikings haven’t won in this series since the late-1990s but must end that streak to keep their playoff hopes alive. Colts blew their best chance at postseason with home loss to Texans over the weekend. Neither team runs the ball very well, while Minnesota’s defense is better in all phases. Harrison Smith is impossible to replace, however. Expect a close, low-scoring game.Line: Vikings by 4Rick’s Pick: Vikings 23, Colts 17Green Bay (7-6) at Chicago (3-10): Packers seem intent on making Aaron Rodgers’ “run the table” proclamation a reality as they seek a fourth straight win and sixth consecutive victory at frigid Soldier Field. Bears, 0-5 against the spread at home in this series, won’t put up much of a fight despite return of WR Alshon Jeffery.Line: Packers by 6½Rick’s Pick: Packers 27, Bears 13 (best bet)Los Angeles (4-9) at Seattle (8-4-1): It’s not often a team will fire a coach on a short week, but that’s what Rams did with Jeff Fisher. It won’t matter, the team already has quit as it showed when it fell behind 42-0 to Falcons. Seattle and Russell Wilson were embarrassed in Green Bay, but that won’t last more than four days.Line: Seahawks by 15Rick’s Pick: Seahawks 27, Rams 6Miami (8-5) at N.Y. Jets (4-9): The NFL Network must be salivating over the thought of a Matt Moore vs. Bryce Petty matchup. Miami is on the march to the playoffs in Adam Gase’s first year, but often times stubs its toe in the Big Apple. Bilal Powell might run wild against a defense allowing 6.6 yards per carry in its last three games.Line: Dolphins by 2½Rick’s Pick: Jets 23, Dolphins 20Detroit (9-4) at N.Y. Giants (9-4): The Cubs’ run of futility ended after 108 years so is it time to put an end to the Bobby Layne curse? Lions and Matthew Stafford are sure playing like it, especially in the fourth quarter. Eli Manning, on the other hand, doesn’t deserve to be at the helm of a playoff contender. But he and Odell Beckham Jr. always seem to find a way to team up on a gamebreaker and they do it again.Line: Giants by 4Rick’s Pick: Giants 20, Lions 17Jacksonville (2-11) at Houston (7-6): Vegas still doesn’t think very highly of the Texans, who are just a touchdown favorite against a team on an eight-game losing streak despite posting a big win at Indianapolis on Sunday. The Gus Bradley countdown is on, though, and Jags are still playing hard. Houston, which has failed to cover only three of its last 17 division games, has more to play for.Line: Texans by 6Rick’s Pick: Texans 23, Jaguars 13Cleveland (0-13) at Buffalo (6-7): The realization that the Browns will join the 2008 Lions in infamy is drawing closer. Cleveland has lost five straight games by 13 points or more and not scored more than 13 points in that span. Winning here may not be enough for Rex Ryan to save his job, though Bills’ last five losses have come against likely playoff teams.Line: Bills by 10Rick’s Pick: Bills 30, Browns 13Philadelphia (5-8) at Baltimore (7-6): Teams will be hesitant to start rookie QBs after watching Carson Wentz’s troubles. Eagles are 2-8 after once-promising start, with Wentz being turnover prone. Ravens are lucky this must-win game is at home, where opponents average 13 points and 55 yards rushing per game.Line: Ravens by 6Rick’s Pick: Ravens 16, Eagles 13Tennessee (7-6) at Kansas City (10-3): Is there any better coach in the NFL than Andy Reid? (Hold all your emails Bill Belichick lovers). Reid does as much with less than anyone and this Chiefs team is an example. Home-field edge is always big at Arrowhead, but doubly so in December. Titans have accomplished wonders this season but won’t have the answers here.Line: Chiefs by 5Rick’s Pick: Chiefs 27, Titans 10Pittsburgh (8-5) at Cincinnati (5-7-1): One of the AFC’s most-heated rivalries is lacking some bite with the Bengals’ down year. Pittsburgh, meanwhile, has won four in a row and will take pleasure in kicking division foe while they are down. Speaking of kicking, who will be doing that for Bengals now that they’ve cut Mike Nugent? Maybe they should follow Steelers’ lead and go for two.Line: Steelers by 3Rick’s Pick: Steelers 24, Bengals 13New Orleans (5-8) at Arizona (5-7-1): Which disappointing team will play harder? Saints offense has disappeared down the stretch - Sean Payton’s half-life as New Orleans coach must be nearing a radioactive end - and the defense has never been top-notch. The Cardinals have better athletes and return to the desert, where they haven’t lost since early October.Line: Cardinals by 2½Rick’s Pick: Cardinals 27, Saints 20San Francisco (1-12) at Atlanta (8-5): Let’s see, Atlanta averages 33.5 points per game at home and 49ers allow 34.7 per game on the road, so that works out to a halfway point of 34.1. San Fran’s 12th straight loss may have been its worst, melting down to lose in OT to lowly Jets. Is the Chip Kelly experiment over? Let’s hope so.Line: Falcons by 14Rick’s Pick: Falcons 34.1, 49ers 16Oakland (10-3) at San Diego (5-8): Raiders excelled on the road until a speed bump in KC. It’ll be much warmer here, however, meaning Oakland wideouts won’t need to try and catch the ball with their hands in their pockets. Chargers are facing harsh realities after recent downturn: no playoffs, a coach in limbo and a franchise heading north to LA.Line: Raiders by 3Rick’s Pick: Raiders 31, Chargers 27New England (11-2) at Denver (8-5): Tom Brady vs. Trevor Siemian doesn’t quite have the same ring as Brady vs. Peyton Manning. For the first time, Brady doesn’t have his longtime foil to compete against. Pats lost AFC title game here a year ago but catch punchless Broncos at a good time. Expect LeGarrette Blount to batter Denver defense before Brady goes up top. Home team run of seven straight series wins comes to an end.Line: Patriots by 3Rick’s Pick: Patriots 24, Broncos 12 (best bet)Tampa Bay (8-5) at Dallas (11-2): When is the last time Bucs have been flexed into a prime-time game? Never would be a good guess. But this is a different Tampa Bay team that won’t be intimidated by playing a quality team after earlier wins over Seattle and Kansas City. Still, Cowboys’ running game and offensive line are unparalleled and will dictate the outcome.Line: Cowboys by 7Rick’s Pick: Cowboys 27, Bucs 13Carolina (5-8) at Washington (7-5-1): Kirk Cousins gambled with a one-year contract and, after another 4,000-yard season, is poised to profit from his decision. One of the last deep-ball passers in the league will attack a Panthers secondary whose best player from last year, Josh Norman, plays for Washington now. For those interested, Carolina has covered one of last 10 road games and last eight Washington home games have been over the over-under line.Line: Redskins by 5Rick’s Pick: Redskins 31, Panthers 23Last week (season) - straight up: 8-8 (125-82-2); against the spread 5-10-1 (104-95-8); best bets 1-0 (7-4).Rick Weegman is the News Tribune sports editor and is not a member of the Macaulay Culkin fan club.