Posted on Thu, Nov. 15, 2007

By Tony Moss, Sports Network
The Sports Network

For the Minnesota Vikings, it’s a matter of pick your poison.

When the Oakland Raiders invade the Metrodome on Sunday, the Vikings’ fan base will see two quarterbacks with whom they have great familiarity, and to whom they would not relish losing.

The first is Josh McCown, who ripped the hearts out of the Purple Nation while with the Cardinals back on Dec. 29, 2003. In that game, his only career appearance against the Vikings, McCown completed 20-of-33 passes for 224 and two touchdowns, including a 28-yard TD pass to Nate Poole as time expired, in a 18-17 Arizona win that knocked Minnesota out of the playoffs.

The second, and the likely starter, is Daunte Culpepper, who made three Pro Bowls as a member of the Vikings from 1999 through 2005 before an acrimonious departure that culminated in a trade to Miami prior to the ‘05 season. Culpepper washed out with the Dolphins and hasn’t exactly reclaimed his elite form in five appearances with Oakland, though his play has been more consistent than anything the Vikings have received out of the quarterback position since he left.

Minnesota figures to play with a bit more edge on Sunday given those circumstances, and also given the team’s humiliating 34-0 loss to arch rival Green Bay one week ago. The shutout was the first of the Vikings in a regular season game since 1991, and also cost Brad Childress’ team the services of dazzling rookie running back Adrian Peterson for at least one week.

Peterson suffered a ligament tear in his right knee, but is expected to return later this season.

Oakland makes its trek to the Twin Cities as a similarly struggling football team, one that is riding a five-game losing streak. The Raiders, who were 17-6 home losers to Chicago last week, have averaged just 11.2 points per game during their current skid.

SERIES HISTORY

The Raiders have a 8-3 advantage in their all-time regular season series with the Vikings, including a 28-18 home win when the clubs last met, during the 2003 season. Oakland also prevailed in its last trip to the Metrodome, a 22-17 win in 1999. The Vikings last beat the Raiders in 1996, and are 0-2 in home games with the Silver and Black since last taking them down within friendly confines in 1987.

The most famous meeting between the franchises took place following the 1976 season, a 32-14 Raiders win in Super Bowl XI from Pasadena.

The Raiders’ Lane Kiffin and Vikings’ Brad Childress will be meeting each other, as well as their counterpart’s respective franchise, for the first time as head coaches.

WHEN THE RAIDERS HAVE THE BALL

Culpepper (817 passing yards, 4 TD, 4 INT) and McCown (760 passing yards, 5 TD, 9 INT) have alternated in trying to spark the Raiders offense, and both have experienced little success. The Oakland attack enters Week 11 ranked just 30th in NFL passing offense (157.4 yards per game), and opposing defenses have had little fear of either the quarterbacks or top receivers Ronald Curry (34 receptions, 3 TD) and Jerry Porter (21 receptions, 3 TD). The running game has been better, ranking fifth in the league (136.3 yards per game) thanks in large part to the recent emergence of Justin Fargas (518 rushing yard, 1 TD, 15 receptions). Fargas has totaled 185 yards and a touchdown in his last two games, though he did lose a fumble in last week’s loss to Chicago. Dominic Rhodes (23 rushing yards) and LaMont Jordan (521 rushing yards, 2 TD, 24 receptions) have been backing Fargas. An Oakland offensive line that is much- improved over last year’s unit has surrendered 26 sacks in nine games.

If the Vikings have been reliable in one aspect during the Childress era, it has been in their ability to stop the run, though their reputation took a major hit in that regard against Green Bay. The Packers, who remain dead last in NFL rushing offense, received a 119-yard effort from first-year-pro Ryan Grant in the game, including a 30-yard first-quarter touchdown run that put Minnesota in a hole to stay. A run-stopping group led by tackles Pat Williams (32 tackles, 1 sack) and Kevin Williams (18 tackles, 2 sacks, 1 INT) along with middle linebacker E.J. Henderson (78 tackles, 1.5 sacks) will be out for improvement against Fargas and company this week. The Vikings are dead last in the NFL against the pass (285.9 yards per game) in 2007, with a less-than- stellar pass rush and an underachieving secondary helping to aide that total. The Vikings were attacked for 351 passing yards and three touchdowns by Brett Favre last Sunday, and will need veteran secondary members like cornerback Antoine Winfield (54 tackles, 1 INT) and safety Darren Sharper (36 tackles, 2 INT) to begin making more plays. Winfield is expected to return from a hamstring injury that forced him to miss the Packer game.

WHEN THE VIKINGS HAVE THE BALL

The Vikings enter Sunday’s game leading the NFL in rushing offense (172.3) and yards per carry (5.8), though maintaining their top-tier standing will be difficult with Peterson (1081 rushing yards, 15 receptions, 9 TD) out of the lineup. Minnesota will turn back to its former starter, Chester Taylor (304 rushing yards, 1 TD), to move the chains, and will also require a long-overdue contribution from its passing game. Returning to the lineup after a one-week absence due to a concussion will be second-year quarterback Tarvaris Jackson (600 passing yards, 2 TD, 5 INT), who has played poorly in five starts for the NFL’s 31st-ranked passing offense (152.6 yards per game). Bobby Wade (26 receptions) and Sidney Rice (18 receptions, 2 TD) have been the best of a below-average group of receivers, and Robert Ferguson (15 receptions) notched a team-high six catches and 59 yards against Green Bay last Sunday. Ferguson was playing in place of the injured Rice (hamstring), who is questionable for Sunday. The Vikings offensive line has surrendered 24 sacks of Minnesota quarterbacks this year.

The Vikings should be able to generate a ground game against a Raiders team that has allowed a league-high 13 rushing touchdowns on the year and is giving up an NFL-high 4.8 yards per rush. That said, Oakland did a solid job against the Bears and running back Cedric Benson last week, limiting Benson to 76 yards on 29 attempts for the day. The return of tackle Gerard Warren (9 tackles, 3 sacks), who had two tackles and set up linebackers Robert Thomas (35 tackles), Kirk Morrison (68 tackles, 3 INT, 1 sack), and Thomas Howard (60 tackles, 4 INT, 1 sack) for several stops, had a positive effect on the group. At the same time, the Raiders did a poor job against the pass, with cornerback Stanford Routt (16 tackles, 3 INT) getting burned by Bernard Berrian on a decisive 59-yard pass play in the fourth quarter. The Raiders did manage three sacks of Chicago QBs in the game, including one by underachieving former Pro Bowl end Derrick Burgess (14 tackles, 2 sacks).

FANTASY FOCUS

With Peterson on the bench, good luck finding a sure-fire fantasy starter in this game. Both defenses might be worth taking a flier on, since the Vikings can stop the run and the Raiders’ offensive strength is the passing game, and also because Tarvaris Jackson is likely to gift-wrap some turnovers for Oakland. Taylor might also have a decent day, though he was a fantasy disappointment more often than not when he was the full-time starter. Take one of the kickers in this game only if desperate.

OVERALL ANALYSIS

The only remotely interesting storyline in this game is Culpepper’s return to Minnesota, and based on the way he played against his other former team, Miami, earlier this year, you can bet on getting the ex-Viking’s best effort for this one. The trouble for Culpepper is that he won’t be playing the Dolphins defense, and figures to cough up a couple of his customary turnovers to set Minnesota up with some short fields. Will Jackson and the Vikings offense be able to cash in? Probably not often, but Taylor will give the Minnesota attack enough to work with in a game that figures to come down to the last couple of possessions.

Sports Network Predicted Outcome: Vikings 13, Raiders 10

© 2007 Kansas