The Minnesota Vikings played a solid football game yesterday.  But the win wasn’t sealed until their were 26 seconds left in the game when Panthers’ kicker Olindo Mare missed a 31-yard field goal.  Christian Ponder was impressive again for the Vikings yesterday as he completed 18 of 28 passes for 236 yards with 1 TD pass and 0 INTs.  Adrian Peterson had another outstanding game as he rushed for 86 yards on 21 carries (4.1 ypc) with 1 TD run.  He also caught 5 passes for 76 yards (15.2 avg) with 1 TD grab for the Vikings in this game.  Toby Gerhart pitched in with 26 yards rushing on 5 carries (5.2 ypc) in this game.  WR Percy Harvin also had a good game with 4 grabs for 58 yards and 3 carries for 16 yards with 1 TD grab.

The defense gave up a lot of yards yesterday, but they played hard.  LB Chad Greenway led the way for the Vikings in this game with 13 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss and 1 fumble recovery.  Safety Husain Abdullah (7 tackles, 1 sack, 1 tackle for a loss, 2 passes defensed and 1 QB hit), CB Cedric Griffin (7 tackles and 1 pass defensed) and DE Jared Allen (5 tackles, 1 sack, 1 pass defensed and 1 fumble recovery) also had decent games.  The Panthers finished up with 140 yards rushing on 27 carries (5.2 ypc) and they also completed 22 of 35 passes (62.9%) for 265 yards.  The Vikings are now 2-6 on the year.

The Vikings showed signs of life in Christian Ponder’s debut as the starting QB last week in their 33-27 loss to the Packers.  The Vikings have had issues on the road though as the are 0-3 and have been outscored 85-44 so far this year.  The Panthers are coming off a nice win at home against the Redskins last weekend.  They have played solid football at home this year where they are 2-2 on the season.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Vikings have the ball:  The Vikings are going to run the ball a lot this Sunday with Adrian Peterson against a Panthers’ D that is giving up 133.4 yards rushing and 4.7 yards per carry so far this year!  Peterson’s success will make it easy for Christian Ponder to look down the field off of play action.  Percy Harvin is likely going to be available this weekend, giving Ponder another weapon as he tries to spread the field and attack with longer passes.  Michael Jenkins also stepped up last weekend and the Vikings need him to keep up the good work this Sunday in Carolina.

When the Panthers have the ball:  The Vikings are a good run defending team as they are only allowing 87.9 yards rushing and 3.6 yards per carry so far this year.  That being said, the Panthers run the ball really well with DeAngelo Williams, Jonathan Stewart and QB Cam Newton splitting the carries.  The Vikings need to get a lot of pressure on Cam Newton (they have 21 sacks already this year), while containing him in the pocket.  That will be the job of DEs Jared Allen (11.5 sacks) and Brian Robison (4.5 sacks) and they are plenty capable of doing that.  Because if Cam Newton has time to throw the ball, the Vikings will likely be in deep trouble.  Steve Smith has been one of the very best WRs in the NFL this year as he is very explosive down the field.  Brandon LaFell and TEs Jeremy Shockey & Greg Olsen give Newton more targets in the passing game.

PREDICTION:  PANTHERS 27, VIKINGS 23

The Vikings have changed QBs and the WRs seemed to respond well.  They need to keep up the good work.  Michael Jenkins has been the best receiver on the Vikings so far this year as he has caught 27 passes for 332 yards (12.3 avg) with 3 TD grabs.  He has never been a #1 WR in his NFL career, so it will be interesting to see if he keeps up the pace he is on right now.  Percy Harvin has caught 27 passes for 276 yards (10.2 avg) but he has yet to catch at TD pass.  Maybe with the change at QB, the Vikings will be able to start taking advantage of Harvin’s speed with throws down the field.  Devin Aromashodu can really get down the field but Vikings’ QBs have only completed 5 of 18 (27.8%) passes when throwing in his direction.  But, his five receptions have been good for 133 yards (26.6 avg) and 1 TD grab.  The Vikings finally got Greg Camarillo out of mothballs last weekend as he has now caught 3 passes for 58 yards (19.3 avg) so far this year.  The Vikings hope that Christian Ponder will get the most out of his WRs going forward.

The Vikings have waived 30-year old WR Bernard Berrian.  Berrian played in 5 games for the Vikings in 2011 and he caught 7 passes for 91 yards (13.0 avg).  He played in 51 games in his four years with the Vikings and he caught 138 passes for 1,925 yards (13.9 avg) with 11 TD grabs.  The Vikings phased out Berrian in the offense this year, so they shouldn’t miss him too much going forward.

The Vikings have lost 31-year old, starting left guard Anthony Herrera for the next two weeks due to a torn PCL in his left knee.  Herrera has played in 7 games (all starts) for the Vikings so far this year.  Rookie Brandon Fusco will likely replace Herrera in the starting lineup.  He has played in 1 game (0 starts) for the Vikings so far this year.  The Vikings hope that Herrera will be ready to return in a couple of weeks, as they are going to suffer a drop in production while he’s out of action.

24-year old cornerback Chris Cook of the Vikings in still in jail after being arrested over the weekend on suspicion of domestic assault.  Cook has played in 6 games for the Vikings so far this year and he has 20 tackles, 4 passes defensed and 1 tackle for a loss.  He has now played in 12 games in his first two years with the Vikings and he has 41 tackles, 6 passes defensed and 1 tackle for a loss.  Cook is not the most dependable guy around due to his health and off the field activities.  He could be wearing out his welcome in Minnesota.

UPDATE:  (10/26/2011) – The Vikings have suspended Chris Cook without pay.

The Packers built up a 33-17 heading into the 4th quarter but the pesky Vikings fought back and almost upset them yesterday.  Chrisitan Ponder completed 13 of 32 passes for 219  yards with 2 TD passes and 2 INTs.  He also carried the ball 4 times for 31 yards (7.8 ypc) in a solid starting debut.  Adrian Peterson had a monster game for the Vikings yesterday with 175 yards rushing on 24 carries (7.3 ypc) with 1 TD run.  WR Michael Jenkins (3 rec, 111 yards, TD) and TE Visanthe Shiancoe (4 rec, 45 yards, TD) led the way in the passing game for the Vikings yesterday.  The Vikings finished up with 218 yards rushing on 31 carries (7.0 ypc) and they also completed 13 of 32 passes (40.6%) for 217 yards as they had possession of the ball for 27:54.

The defense was pretty lousy yesterday for the Vikings.  CB Asher Allen (11 tackles, 1 pass defensed), LB Chad Greenway (11 tackles) and DE Jared Allen (6 tackles, 3 tackles for a loss, 2 sacks and 3 QB hits) led the way for the Vikings’ D in this game.  The Packers finished up with 114 yards rushing on 26 carries (4.4 ypc) and they also completed 24 of 30 passes (80%) for 307 yards in this game.  The Vikings are now 1-6 on the season.

The Vikings are a team in disarray right now.  They are going to be without both starting corners tomorrow while also breaking in rookie QB Christian Ponder in his NFL starting debut.  The Packers have looked indestructible so far this year.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Vikings have the ball:  The only chance the Vikings have in this game is to feed the ball to Adrian Peterson.  The Packers are only allowing 84.0 yards rushing per game so far this year, but 4.1 yards per carry.  Most teams are playing from behind and give up on running the ball against the Packers.  The Vikings need to play keepaway in this game.  The Packers have an outstanding pass rushing team, led by OLB Clay Matthews.  Even if the Vikings give Ponder time to throw the ball, he could still have a rough game as the Packers already have 11 pickoffs so far this year.  He is going to have to try to get the ball to Percy Harvin a lot in this game.

When the Packers have the ball:  The Vikings better hope that DEs Jared Allen and Brian Robison can get to Aaron Rodgers, or they are going to be in big, big trouble.  I look for Rodgers to spread the field and to throw the ball to whoever is open.  The Packers average 325.2 yards passing per game and the Vikings are going to be without their starting corners which could lead to disaster.  The Vikings have a good run defense, and the Packers won’t test it too much, because they won’t have to.

PREDICTION:  PACKERS 31, VIKINGS 10

The Minnesota Vikings are running the ball really well so far this year.  They are averaging 142.2 yards rushing per game and 5.1 yards per carry so far this year, which is pretty darn impressive.  Adrian Peterson has played in all six games for the Vikings so far this year and he has carried the ball 122 times for 537 yards (4.4 ypc) with 7 TD runs.  He has also caught 10 passes for 49 yards (4.9 avg) in 2011.  Toby Gerhart gives Peterson a break once in a while.  He has played in all six games for the Vikings this year and he has carried the ball 11 times for 70 yards (6.4 ypc).  Gerhart has also caught 4 passes for 54 yards (13.5 avg) this year.  He is a lot better runner than most “experts” think he is.  Lorenzo Booker has played in all six games for the Vikings in which he has carried the ball 2 times for 22 yards (11.0 ypc) and he has caught 2 passes for 25 yards (12.5 avg).  WR Percy Harvin has also pitched in for the Vikings in the running game as he has carried the ball 14 times for 158 yards (11.3 avg).  The Vikings are likely going to have to start running the ball even more with rookie QB Christian Ponder at QB.

The Minnesota Vikings are inserting rookie 23-year old Christian Ponder into the starting lineup this weekend against the Packers.  Ponder made his NFL debut against the Bears last weekend in the second half.  He completed 9 of 17 passes (52.9%) for 99 yards with 0 TD passes and 0 INTs (70.5 QB Rating).  Ponder also carried the ball 1 time for 8 yards against the Bears.  The Vikings will likely open up the playbook much more with Ponder in charge, because he has the arm strength to get the ball down the field.  34-year old Donovan McNabb looked like he is toast for the Vikings.  He has played in 6 games for the Vikings so far this year and he has completed 94 of 156 passes (60.3%) for 1,026 yards with 4 TD passes and 2 INTs (82.9 QB Rating).  He also has carried the ball 14 times for 59 yards (4.2 ypc) with 1 TD run so far this year.  This was the right move for the Vikings are they aren’t going anywhere fast at 1-5 on the year.