One Mississippi, two Mississippi, three — precious time passing away

One Mississippi. Two Mississippi. Three Mississippi. Four Mississippi.

Down goes Tarvaris Jackson.

The Minnesota signal caller didn't have a lot of time in the pocket on Monday night against the Giants. But when he did have time, Jackson didn't do a lot to impress in the Vikings' 21-3 loss against New York as Minnesota fell to 5-8 on the season.

And I don't know how long it's been going on. But there's no denying it anymore — the Minnesota offensive line is a far cry from where it used to be, even when Steve Hutchinson is on the field.

The Giants threw Justin Tuck, Osi Umenyiora, Jason Pierre-Paul and Rocky Bernard at the Vikings and dominated the line of scrimmage. New York tallied four sacks and 10 quarterback hits on the game and kept Jackson running for his life.

It was that constant pressure, coupled with a dominant run defense that forced Jackson and the Minnesota offense to punt the ball nine times, including four in a row in the second half as the Giants built a 14-3 lead.

Adrian Peterson carried the ball 14 times for a season-low 26 yards. For the most part, when Peterson got the handoff he was smothered in the backfield. Even the League's fifth-leading rusher couldn't power through that many defenders.

Eli Manning was sacked once by Jared Allen, but you could have counted his time in the pocket with a sun dial at times. And with New York's success on the ground with Bradshaw and Jacobs — who combined to carry the ball 25 times for 219 yards and two touchdowns — Manning's two interceptions and decent play didn't come back to bite the team.

Instead, the two New York running backs made it look easy because it was easy with the way the Giants' offensive line was blocking — potentially with a few Vikings' defensive mistakes adding to that too.

Before this loss I was in denial. Favre wasn't taking that many more hits than last year. Peterson can break out of any tackle. The offensive line isn't that big of a problem.

It makes a difference, though. This game magnified an issue that has lasted all season.

Hutchinson hasn't been as dominant as he has in recent years. His spot in the Pro Bowl is not a guarantee like it has been every other year. And he didn't play Monday night due to injury.

Plus, the normal right guard, Anthony Herrera was placed on injured reserve after the loss at Green Bay in week 11.

So Ryan Cook, a versatile backup on the offensive line, has had to fill in for him.

And Bryant McKinnie has always had problems with speed rushers he can't get his hands on. Not to mention, Phil Loadholt is still developing at right tackle.

The result? Minnesota has allowed 27 sacks and 77 quarterback hurries in 13 games. Not alarming numbers, but the sacks don't completely tell the story.

It's the uneasiness that Favre and Jackson feel in the pocket. It's the pressure that has them scrambling outside the pocket out of necessity. It's the extra guy that gets a shot at Peterson before he hits full steam and reaches the second and third level. It adds up.

The offensive line didn't hold its own on Monday night against a talent New York front four. And time's running out on the Vikings' season to try and fix yet another problem that has plagued Minnesota all year.