Competitive road games not translating into Viking victories

Emboldened by the fact they are a member of the mediocre NFC North, the Vikings mantra coming out of Sunday's defeat in Tampa Bay was that they remain in the thick of the division race. That can't be disputed given that Chicago, Green Bay and the Vikings are tied for the division lead at 5-5.

But if the Vikings are going to have a legitimate shot at their first division title since 2000, they are going to have to find a way to win away from the Metrodome. That hasn't been easy for this franchise for several seasons, and there hasn't been any improvement since Brad Childress arrived as coach in 2006.

The Vikings' 19-13 loss to the Buccaneers dropped them to 1-4 on the road this season and 7-14 under Childress. Not exactly good news for the Vikings considering they are in a stretch of playing four of five games away from home, including this Sunday's game at Jacksonville.

"It's tough to win on the road," Vikings quarterback Gus Frerotte said. "The advantages of playing at home are huge. With your fans, the crowd, the other team not being able to hear the cadence. All those kind of things. You're not traveling, you're not flying on a plane, you're not staying in a new hotel or somewhere different."

No cold, but no help

In the Vikings' case, being at home also means not playing outdoors. Childress' team does not have a cold-weather game on its schedule this season, but that hasn't made things any easier for this franchise when it plays on natural grass and with no roof overhead.

The Vikings' only road victory was a 30-27 decision against New Orleans on Oct. 6 at the Superdome. Losses have come at Green Bay, Tennessee, Chicago and Tampa Bay. The one bit of consolation is that the Vikings gave themselves an opportunity to win in each case.

"The road is the road," said Childress, who has a 12-9 record at the Metrodome. "You have to have a road mentality as you get on the plane and go and know that it is obviously going to be a noisy environment. ... Places like the Louisiana Superdome are hard places to play because it is noisy down there. You talk about the environment. I don't think it becomes a mindset thing. It's not, 'Oh boy, here we go again. We are playing outdoors on the road. We are 0-4.' I don't think that ever enters into a professional athlete's mind."

The Vikings are one of seven teams with only one road victory this season. Of those, only the Saints and Vikings are at the .500 mark. Four teams have yet to win an away game. This includes the 0-10 Detroit Lions, who could be looking for their first victory of the season when they play host to the Vikings on Dec. 7. Of course, Ford Field is indoors, and the Vikings' final road game on Dec. 14 will be played in Arizona's retractable roof stadium.

If the Vikings can take any comfort out of their road struggles, it's that they are not alone. The Bears and Packers are both 2-3 when they play on the road, making the division the only one lacking a team with at least a .500 road record.

Familiar faces in Jacksonville

Sunday's game will mark the Vikings' first appearance ever in Jacksonville Municipal Stadium, an outdoor venue with natural grass.

The Jaguars (4-6), though, have won only one of five home games. There will be added motivation for certain members of the Jaguars organization. Coach Jack Del Rio played linebacker for the Vikings, and Mike Tice, who was fired as Vikings coach by owner Zygi Wilf after the 2005 season, is the Jacksonville assistant head coach and tight ends coach.

Vikings cornerback Antoine Winfield, asked Monday on KFAN Radio about how badly he thinks Tice would like to embarrass his old team, said: "I'm sure very bad. But it's going to be a tough game. We definitely need to play better on the road. Our record is 1-4, and in order for us to try to win this division we can't continue doing that."

But turning that around isn't going to be easy. The Vikings have not finished at .500 on the road since 2000 and have not had a winning record since 1998, when they went 7-1 en route to 15-1 regular season.

Some coaches have tried to alter things in order to turn their teams' fortunes, but Childress doesn't sound as if he's about to make any changes in how his club travels.

"We are big on schedule," he said. "Guys like to have a schedule. ... We talk about that with the leadership group and how we travel and what the reason for it is. There have been a couple of amendments made in the last couple of years just in how we dress, which has nothing to do with us winning, just like probably [playing] outdoors on the road has nothing to do with it. It is just about whether you play better than the other team."