The Vikings put up a good fight late in this game after sleepwalking through the first half last night.  Brett Favre completed 14 of 34 passes for 264 yards with 3 TD passes and 1 INT (it was returned for 26 yards for a TD by Jets’ CB Dwight Lowery with 1:30 left in the game).  Favre also fumbled three times in this game losing two of them.  Adrian Peterson was effective carrying the ball 18 times for 88 yards (4.9 ypc) but he didn’t get as much work as he should have because the Vikings fell behind quickly in this game.  Percy Harvin (5 rec, 97 yards and 2 TD grabs) and Randy Moss (4 rec, 81 yards and 1 TD grab) led the way for the Vikings in the passing game last night.  The Vikings finished up with 96 yards rushing on 24 carries (4.0 ypc) and they also completed 14 of 34 passes for 240 yards as they had possession of the ball for only 26:05 in this game. 

OLB Chad Greenway (10 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss) and DE Ray Edwards (7 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss, 1.5 sacks and 2 QB hits) led the way for the Vikings’ D in this game.  The Vikings just couldn’t stop the Jets’ running game and it killed them in the end.  The Jets finished up with 155 yards rushing on 32 carries (4.8 ypc) and they also completed 21 of 44 passes for 173 yards.  The Vikings are now a very disappointing 1-3 after this loss.

Rookie 2nd round pick (CB) Chris Cook will at least the next two weeks due to a tear in his right meniscus.  Cook has played in all three pre-season games for the Vikings and he made 7 tackles, forced a fumble and he defensed 1 pass.  Cook will miss at least the season opener against the Saints next Thursday Night in New Orleans.  That means that Lito Sheppard will have to step up.  He played in 11 games (9 starts) for the Jets last season and he had 31 tackles, 8 passes defensed and 1 interception.

The Vikings will be without 23-year old WR Sidney Rice for at least the first 8 games of the 2010 season due to hip surgery.  Rice really broke out last season for the Vikings.  He played in 16 games (14 starts) for the Vikings last season and he caught 83 passes for 1,312 yards (15.8 avg) with 8 TD grabs.  Rice seemed to really jell with Brett Favre after having a disappointing first two years of his NFL career.  Rice played in 26 games (7 starts) in his first two years in the NFL and he caught 46 passes for 537 yards (11.7 avg) with 8 TD grabs.  This is a very bad break for both Rice and the Vikings as Brett Favre will have to find a new go-to guy.

The Vikings have lost 29-year old starting linebacker E.J. Henderson for the season due to a broken femur.  Henderson played in 12 games for the Vikings this season and he made 83 tackles, had 6 tackles for a loss, 2 sacks and he defensed 1 pass.  The Vikings will miss Henderson big time as he was the teams’ leading tackler at the time of his injury.  24-year old rookie Jasper Brinkley will replace Henderson in the starting line-up.  Brinkley was a fifth round pick out of South Carolina in last April’s NFL Draft.  He has played in 12 games for the Vikings this season and he has made 10 tackles this season.  It will be interesting to see if Brinkley can handle the pressure of replacing a player like Henderson.

Vikings’ CB Antoine Winfield has a 85% chance of returning to the Vikings this weekend against the Seahawks.  He has played in 6 games this season for the Vikings and he has 30 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss, 4 passes defensed and 1 interception.  Winfield is strong in run support and the Vikings need him back big time.  Benny Sapp has done a decent job replacing Winfield as he has 12 tackles and he has defensed 2 passes in his 3 starts this year.  With Sapp playing decent the Vikings could decide to error on the side of caution with Winfield as they need him healthy to help the D down the stretch.

The Minnesota Vikings will be without Antoine Winfield for the next 4-6 weeks due to a fracture in his right foot.  Winfield has played in 6 games this season for the Vikings and he has made 30 tackles, defensed 4 passes and picked off 1.  28-year old Benny Sapp will replace Winfield in the starting lineup and that is a huge downgrade.  Sapp has played in 7 games for the Vikings this season and he has 16 tackles and he has defensed 2 passes.  This injury will definately hurt the Vikings as Winfield is a force defending the run or the pass.

Adrian Peterson’s back is tired from carrying the entire Minnesota Vikings team so far this season.  He injured his back in the Vikings week two win over the Detroit Lions but it won’t keep him out of the Vikings’ game Sunday against the San Francisco 49ers.  Peterson says the injury “is not a big deal.”  In two games so far this season Peterson has rushed for 272 yards on 40 carries (6.8 avg) and has four touchdowns.  That 6.8 yards per carry is pretty amazing and Peterson is probably the best player in the NFL right now, if you don’t believe me check out some of his highlights here:

The Vikings will likely be without starting linebacker E.J. Henderson on Monday Night against the Saints due to swelling in two dislocated toes.  This will hurt the Vikings’ defense as Henderson has 27 tackles and a sack so far this season.  David Herron will replace Henderson if he can’t go on Monday Night and he has 6 tackles this season.

The Vikings have lost safety Madieu Williams for the next 6-8 weeks because of a neck injury.  This will hurt the Vikings big time as rookie Tyrell Johnson could be thrown into the fire and have to start when the season begins.  Williams is an enforcer type against the run and he also makes big plays against the pass.  He played in 13 games for the Bengals last season and he made 58 tackles, had 2 sacks, 2 interceptions, defensed 7 passes and he forced a fumble.  The back end of the defense will miss Williams.

The Vkings have placed linebacker Heath Farwell (injured knee) and DE Jayme Mitchell (torn ACL) on the Injured Reserve List ending the season before it began for them.  Farwell is a special teams ace.  He played in all 16 games for the Vikings last season and he made 30 tackles.  Farwell has played in 39 games in his NFL career and he has made 65 tackles.  Mitchell played in 13 games for the Vikings last season and he made 9 tackles, had 3 sacks and forced 1 fumble.  Mitchell has now played in 23 games in his NFL career and he has made 17 tackles, has 4 sacks and he has forced a fumble.  This will hurt the depth of the Vikings’ defense and special teams but neither Farwell or Mitchell is an impact player.