The Minnesota Vikings - Clueless, Gutless, Hurting, and Doomed

What we've witnessed the past three out of four weeks seems to reveal the Vikings' souls, right to the core. This team is unable to take out a weaker opponent when on the road and when on national television. As such, our hopes for a Super Bowl run are dashed.

There are reasons we can point to this team's struggles:

• The loss of EJ Henderson can't be understated. More and more it is clear that he was their best player on the defensive side of the ball, and his loss is incredibly apparent on the field.
• Winfield is a far cry from the shutdown corner he was before his injury, and the defensive coaches now need to swing safety coverage his way. We're seeing way too much of the back of his jersey.
• Pat Williams' loss was felt last night, especially in the first half when the Bears controlled the ball so well.
• The coaching staff continues its clueless jaunt. It took us over a half to determine that a spread formation can overcome what the Bears had game planned. That was a good quarter too late.
• But the trump card to all of this is simple, gutless perfomances. Winning teams in the NFL step on the necks of their lesser opponents. With the 2009 version of the Minnesota Vikings, we let them kick our ass, and we do it on national television so all the world can see.

I think the best the team will deliver is a Wild Card appearance, which is a shame as they could really use a bye week to lick their wounds. They'll have home field for that game, and given what the Vikes did against Cincinnati a couple of weeks ago, they'll likely win on their home turf. But beyond that, it all gets doubtful. A game outdoors in the cold at Philly will be an absolute drubbing, and a game at the Big Easy will likely have Drew Brees revealing early and often that Antione Winfield is still hurting and is easy to burn (as if the last two games didn't already reflect that). Regardless, we've seen the future, and ladies and gentlemen, it is damned ugly.

Those Kool-aid hangovers are the worst...