On paper the Vikings had no business ever being in the contest. For the better part of three quarters that was the case as Oakland opened a 27-7 lead. That lead came despite some horrendous officiating, inconsistent offense and the occasional defensive lapse.

But before you could say “not again” it was happening all over again.

We saw this in Buffalo and it was looking like Minnesota was going to do the same.

Hue Jackson opted to get conservative. The defense decided to dial it down. The Vikings gladly accepted the open invitation to get back in the game.

Michael Bush might as well buy property in the 100-yard club. It seems like every time he gets a start in the NFL you can pen him in for over 100. That is pretty much usual. What was unusual was for Bush to cough up the rock late allowing Minnesota to make this an unnecessary nail biter.

But that mistake can be forgiven considering the Raiders are all alone atop the AFC West.

What is unforgiveable are all the yellow flags that follow the Silver and Black wherever they go. Now to be sure there was plenty of reason to wonder if the men officiating the contest had any clue as to what they were doing out there. On the first drive alone the Raiders were flagged for three personal fouls that were either phantom calls or were just made up. Those same officials also forgot how many downs there were as they nearly stripped the Vikings of a play.

Those types of mistakes are unforgiveable.

What cannot be excused or pawned off on the officials are pre-snap penalties. Say what you will of the horrendous officiating but they didn’t miss on any of the false starts or illegal formations the Raiders committed.

Coach Jackson has plenty of work to do there.
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On Sunday the Minnesota Vikings will take the field with a secondary depleted by injuries, arrests and general poor play. If Carson Palmer doesn’t throw the rock at least 30 times it had better be because Michael Bush has more than 200 yards rushing.

Last week Hue Jackson unleashed his bully on a San Diego Charger offensive line that was as weak as Mr. Burns trying to bench two plates. This week Jackson needs to let his bully fly. More specifically he needs let Palmer let it fly.

Now attacking the secondary is one thing. Finding enough time to scan the field and make good throws when the NFL’s best pass rusher is coming after you is another.

It will be Jared on Jared violence as Veldheer will be pitted with trying to contain Allen.
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When it comes to the unexpected, JBB specializes in doing things differently to get our great readers ready for the game. As usual we reached out to the best Vikings blog on the net and threw our patented 5 quirky questions at one of the best writers on the net.

Dan Zinski of The Viking Age has been keeping Vikings fans worldwide in the loop on all things purple. His wicked sense of humor, sprinkled with some well placed sarcasm and all-around knowledge of the Minnesota Vikings made it an easy call when it came time to conduct our weekly questionnaire.

Enjoy!

Q: If the Vikings’ season thus far were a movie which flick would it most resemble and why?

A: I think the last three years for the Vikes have sort of been like The Matrix Trilogy. 2009 was like the first Matrix…really awesome and exciting (even if we didn’t seal the deal with a Super Bowl). That created high expectations for 2010 with Brett Favre coming back, but like the second Matrix movie, that season proved a huge let down. After that disappointment we all hoped the team would be able to get their act together for the third installment. No such luck. Like the third Matrix, this season has been a complete unmitigated disaster. Unlike the third Matrix, I can’t just walk out.

Q: Adrian Peterson and Michael Bush combine for 4 TDs or Christian Ponder and Carson Palmer combine for 4 INTs: Which is more likely to happen Sunday?

A: Adrian Peterson and Michael Bush combine for 4 TDs. It’s not even close. Ponder only throws picks against the Packers and the Vikings never get interceptions against anyone. Carson Palmer could throw four passes right into the hands of Viking DBs and still escape the game with no picks. Here’s a telling stat: With Antoine Winfield now on IR, Jared Allen has as many interceptions (1) this season as all our active cornerbacks combined. And I honestly can’t remember the one pick cornerback Asher Allen got. It must’ve happened while I was totally hammered.
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