It takes a lot of work to figure out why an NFL team is lousy.

In the Vikings' case, hours of film study and covert conversations with NFL insiders who are so inside they don't even reveal their own names to themselves reveals that this team's X receiver fails to execute dig routes out of the stack formation in the red zone when facing zone blitzes out of the Tampa 2 scheme.

There is that, and there is this: The gentlemen who wear purple just aren't very good.

They keep saying they are. Late Monday night, after the Packers eased to a 45-7 victory over the Vikings at Lambeau Field, tight end Visanthe Shiancoe kept speaking of the disappointment he feels when he sees such a talented offense fail to move faster than a minivan in a school zone. "We have so much talent," he said.

Shiancoe is a good player and an earnest guy. He's also wrong.

Nine games into the 2011 season, the Vikings are 2-7. Over the past two seasons, they are 8-17. They have squandered chances for victories; they were also lucky to beat a bad Carolina team. Their record is an accurate reflection of their aggregate abilities.

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Offensive tackle Phil Loadholt's expression showed the mood of the Vikings during their 45-7 loss to the Packers on Monday night.

Let me insult this team by saying it's playing as hard as it can.

At a glance, the NFL appears to be a star-driven league. In reality, quarterback play, roster depth and coaching have much more to do with success than individual greatness at any position other than quarterback.

The Vikings are proof. Running back Adrian Peterson and defensive end Jared Allen are two of the best players in the league, and together they will miss the playoffs for a second consecutive season.

Because the Wilfs are pursuing a stadium, the front office craves job security and Leslie Frazier is trying to prove himself as a head coach, the Vikings have been desperate to wring every victory possible out of this season.

They should stop. High draft picks are more valuable to this franchise than meaningless 2011 victories.

For realists, the meaningful portion of the schedule ended when the Vikings started 0-4. Even an idealist can see now that the best this team can do is win a handful of games. Here's how the Vikings should approach the last seven games of the season:

1. Rest Peterson: Most great running backs have the shelf life of organic, whole-wheat bread. Don't waste Peterson's legs chasing a third or fourth victory. Save him for the future, when he might be of some use in a playoff race.

2. Test Christian Ponder: No more rollouts to take advantage of his running ability and simplify the game. He needs work running an NFL offense from the pocket. Give him lots of practice.

3. Go young: Hold tryouts on the offensive line, defensive line and in the secondary. The current players aren't getting it done; see if you have any surprises on the roster that can fill a hole.

4. Evaluate Frazier and his staff: Everyone admires Frazier as a human, but he and his staff have yet to prove that they're capable of running an NFL team. While Jim Harbaugh is proving what a dynamic coach can do, the Wilfs have seven more games to decide whether they made the right hire.

5. Stop blaming Brad Childress: The Wilfs blamed Mike Tice for the team's mediocrity in 2005, then blamed Childress for the team's downturn in 2010. Both teams were flawed in ways that coaching couldn't fix. So even if the Wilfs blame Frazier for this season, they need to recognize that the roster must be overhauled, too.

6. Get more out of Chad Greenway: He's going to have to collect sacks and create turnovers to justify his contract.

7. Cut ties with fading veterans: Steve Hutchinson and Antoine Winfield will be considered for the NFL Hall of Fame. E.J. Henderson and Cedric Griffin have admirably played with pain. But this is not a sentimental league. If they can't justify their 2012 salaries, they shouldn't be back.

The Wilfs have to take a hard look at everyone in their employ. Losing is no longer an aberration, or even a trend. It has become a matter of routine for the gentlemen in purple.

Jim Souhan can be heard Sundays from 10 a.m. to noon and weekdays at 2 p.m. on 1500ESPN. His Twitter name is Souhanstrib. • jsouhan@startribune.com