Same story as Vikings are killed by mistakes

You can safely say this about this year's Vikings: They're just good enough that they won't get blown out.

The Vikings have been in just about every game, with chances at the end to win. Even in the game at Tennessee, they had the ball with four minutes left down seven before turning it over.

That's been a recurring problem this year. The Vikings keep beating themselves with either penalties or turnovers.

In Sunday's 19-13 loss at Tampa Bay, the Vikings had only five penalties for 28 yards, but those penalties came at critical times.

One of those penalties was a questionable pass interference call on wide receiver Bobby Wade deep into Buccaneers territory just after the final two-minute warning. You seldom see offensive interference called, and this one was questionable.

And then came another killer mistake. Two plays after Wade's penalty, Gus Frerotte completed a short pass to running back Chester Taylor, who in advancing the ball upfield was tackled hard from behind by defensive lineman Jimmy Wilkerson and fumbled. Bucs cornerback Ronde Barber recovered the ball.

Two typical mistakes for this team, an offensive pass interference call and a fumble. Yes, the odds were against the Vikings rallying, but they still had a chance , down only six points with the ball.

Garcia has big day Monte Kiffin, the former Vikings assistant who has been the Buccaneers defensive coordinator since 1996, said he thought the key to his team's victory was Jeff Garcia. The veteran quarterback had a big day passing, completing 23 of 30 passes for 255 yards, with no touchdowns or interceptions. Garcia also ran six times for 21 yards.

"They got a good rush, but he just stepped up and moved around and avoided the rush, you know," Kiffin said.

Kiffin said one of the biggest keys to the game was veteran linebacker Derrick Brooks busting up the Vikings' fourth-and-1 attempt at their 49 in the third quarter. Barber pressured Frerotte, who in turn threw incomplete to Adrian Peterson sprinting up the field.

Kiffin said the Vikings gave Tampa Bay a real battle. He also said the bye week gave the Bucs an edge. Tampa Bay had two weeks to prepare for this game.

"The Vikings are a good football team, their offense has gotten better and better," Kiffin said. "... The bye is nice just because it's the middle of the season and you can catch your breath a little bit. But they're a good football team. That was a big one for us."

"He's always so great because he plays so hard," Kiffin said. "My son Lane recruited him trying to get him to go to Southern Cal, but he went to Oklahoma. So, I've kind of known about him for a long time, and Lane said he was a great young man way back then. One or two sometimes can't get him down. It takes the third or fourth or fifth guy."

Peterson follows suit Peterson had a decent day, but he fell short of 100 yards rushing. The Bucs held him to 85 yards on 19 carries (4.5 yards per carry), with the longest run 22 yards.

Tampa Bay has had success stopping some of the NFL's top running backs, and it has surrendered only one rushing touchdown this season. Against Dallas, the Bucs held former Gophers standout and Pro Bowl running back Marion Barber to 71 yards on 25 carries (2.8 yards per carry).

Other outstanding backs who have had trouble moving against the Bucs defense include Atlanta's Michael Turner (14 carries for 42 yards, 3.0 average); Chicago's Matt Forte (27 for 89, 3.9); Green Bay's Ryan Grant (15 for 42, 1.3); and Carolina's DeAngelo Williams (11 for 27, 2.5). New Orleans' Reggie Bush had only 51 rushing yards on 14 carries in the season opener, but he also managed 112 receiving yards on eight receptions in a 24-20 Saints victory.

Tough finish One of the statements you hear Vikings coach Brad Childress repeat is that what counts in the NFL if you are going to be successful is not how you start but rather how you finish.

All three teams have three home and three road games remaining on their schedule.

But it appears that the Vikings have the toughest remaining schedule, with the Bears and Packers in a much better position. The combined record of the Vikings' remaining opponents is 31-29, a .517 winning percentage.

The Vikings haven't played very well on the road this year, but their remaining road games include two against losing teams, Jacksonville (4-6) and Detroit (0-10), as well as a trip to NFC West leader Arizona (7-3). Their home games figure to be tougher, with Chicago (5-5), Atlanta (6-4) and the Giants (9-1) visiting the Metrodome.

The Bears' remaining opponents are 24-36 (.400), and none of their remaining opponents has a winning record. The Packers' remaining opponents are 25-35 (.424), with Carolina (8-2) the only team with a winning record on the schedule -- and the Panthers play the Packers at Lambeau Field.

So it's pretty obvious that the Vikings have the tougher schedule over the final six weeks of the regular season among their competition for the NFC North championship.

Tom and John Ruud were great football players at Bloomington Jefferson and went on to have great careers at Nebraska. Now Barrett Ruud, the son of Tom who also played football at Nebraska, is Tampa Bay's leading tackler. The middle linebacker had a team-high eight tackles, including one sack, to go along with two quarterback hurries.