Catching up on the weekend:

-The Vikings' offense looked awful against the Jaguars' first-team defense. But while the immediate concern from Vikings fans seemed to evolve around Kirk Cousins having his first unproductive series (or series of series) in a Minnesota uniform, I think Latavius Murray's two fumbles were more pivotal, and gave reason to not panic about the patchwork offensive line. If Murray had held onto the ball, the offense probably would have produced points, and Cousins would have had more opportunities to find openings in an excellent defense.

The big takeaway from that game, for me , was that Mackensie Alexander injured his ankle just as he was emerging as a legitimate NFL starter. Mike Hughes has looked great in camp, but Alexander would have been a better choice to start the season as a nickel corner. It's a tough position to play, and tougher for a rookie.

-The atmosphere at Lynx games is as good as it gets in the Twin Cities. That was proven again on Sunday night as the team and fan base honored Lindsay Whalen. I had friends who were attending their first Lynx game and they were impressed. It's the rare fan base that doesn't spend all of its time berating opponents and officials.

-Stephen Gonsalves has, statistically, been the Twins' top pitching prospect for years, yet he's been passed over in favor of Fernando Romero, Adalberto Mejia and others. What's intersesting is that he has averaged 9.5 strikeouts per nine innings during his minor-league career, and averaged 11.1 per nine innings at Double A this year.

So the notion that his stuff won't be effective against big-league hitters doesn't dovetail with his statistical profile.

But as someone who has had a million conversations with scouts over the years, I have to say that when they predict that a pitcher won't survive in the majors, they're almost always right.

-Washington looking to sign Adrian Peterson is a mistake. It was a mistake when the Saints and a great offensive thinker in Sean Payton tried it last year, and it will be a mistake of Washington signs him. He needs to run in an offense built around his skills, and those skills have diminished. It won't work.

-Thank you, Brandt Snedeker, for winning a golf tournament with your short-hitting, old-school putting ways. It's nice to be reminded that you don't have to be a powerlifter to win a golf tournament.

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