As if this season couldn't get any worse for a Vikings fans, two things happened in the span of about three hours yesterday to convince us otherwise: *Fox showed a montage of memorable plays before the Packers/Eagles game as a promo to some sort of contest they are having. In BACK-TO-BACK sequences, we had to watch two unfortunate plays from Vikings history: The Antonio Freeman/Cris Dishman disaster followed by Steve Young running through about 123 tackles for that famous TD run.
*More importantly, as the game began, we were painfully reminded again that the Packers are a team on the rise. And we are unfortunately convinced that by a combination of their talent/skill and the Vikings' extended season when all went wrong, Green Bay will be going to the Super Bowl. The Packers were definitely the better team Sunday vs. the Eagles. They might not be the better team against the Falcons next weekend, but it is close. Yes, Atlanta is 7-1 at home this season. But five of those victories were by a touchdown or less -- including a last-second victory over Green Bay. This game is a push in our mind. If Green Bay can stop, for one game, from doing really mind-numbing things -- like turning James Jones into Troy Williamson with poor hands -- we believe the Packers will advance to the NFC title game. In that game, they will face either Seattle or Chicago. Would you really bet against them at that point? (And yes, we were convinced the Packers couldn't win three consecutive road games. That was before New Orleans was bounced. This whole thing looks a lot different now. Also: This could be construed as an attempt to jinx the Packers because we do have that impact on things).
Your thoughts on the Packers and how the NFC shapes up in the comments, please.
