Christmas Eve always is met with great anticipation, children struggle with going to bed knowing that the next day would bring presents, joy, and fulfillment of the year long expectation started with the end of the previous holiday. In Dr. Suess' The Grinch Who Stole Christmas, the Whos of Whoville awoke to find their trees, decorations, presents, and food gone .. stolen by the Grinch.

Last night's decision to pass on the 30th selection was an Xmas that wasn't. Vikings' fans in the know, and even those not, may have uttered a curse or two following the alteration of their celebration. Under the tree of 2010 could have been safety Taylor Mays, a USC grad, who is described as having all the tools of a Joey Browner. Many others felt Chris Cook, from Virginia, would fill the need at cornerback (even with the acquisition of Lito Sheppard). Further, fans lamented that passing of later chosen Patrick Robinson, a CB from Florida State.

Certainly there are plenty of presents sill remaining besides Mays and Cook. Among these possibilities at the 34th selections includes Jimmy Clausen, the Notre Dame quarterback defined as 'most ready' for the NFL. Of course, seeing that Clausen chose not to attend the Green Room, it is apparent that his draft status was never considered first round by the NFL teams that do the selecting. Others include: RB Toby Gerhart of Stanford,"the Great White Hope"; DT Linval Joseph of East Carolina; DT Terrence Cody of Alabama; OT Charles Brown; DE Everson Griffen of USC; and highly rated LB Sergio Kindle of Texas.

We are quick to forgive Vikings' management, much like the Whos would forgive the Grinch, as we have been rewarded by their draft diligence the last few years. Not since Troy Williamson, Demetrius Underwood, and others has there been a blatant poor selection. Most of us have been happy with Phil Loadholt, Percy Harvin, Adrian Peterson, and other selections of the present regime. So we wait...

At 5 PM today we will learn if that wait was worth it. We will sing our songs, hold hands, and celebrate as the Vikings select their first pick. We fans are split on needs, from defensive back to defensive tackle, quarterback to running back, or my personal preference, a guard, And the Grinch will return, hopefully bearing the gift of an earlier 4th round selection and the awaited 34th selection to take place minutes after the day begins.

The question is .. does anyone know the words to the Who's song? No, not Roger Daltry and his raspy version of his 70s hits, but rather the song that tells us Christmas does not come in a box (30th pick).