Vikings smush Bengals, 30-10, and lock up playoffs
The Minnesota Vikings have locked up a spot in the post-season today with a dominating defensive performance and a 30-10 win over the Cincinnati Bengals, one of the best teams they’ve faced this season. While Vikings fans are Free People (unlike Packer backers), the home Dome was in rare playoff-atmosphere form as the Vikings faced a Bengals team that came into the Dome at 9-3 and looking for a win in their own AFC race.
Adrian Peterson stepped up his game to prove this is still his team, too, not just the Brett Favre show. Peterson rushed for 97 yards, caught three passes for 40 yards, and scored two touchdowns. Favre had an average day, with one touchdown pass, one interception, and tossing for just under 200 yards; but with Peterson played well against the league’s fourth-ranked defense, he proved once again why he’s the reason Favre chose the Vikings as the place to come back out of retirement with; if Favre isn’t throwing like he’s 30, Peterson can pick up the slack!
Yet despite a dozen players on the injured list, including Percy Harvin (who’ll be back soon) and middle linebacker E.J. Henderson (who’s out for the season), the Vikings showed they’re a darn fine defensive team, also, holding Bengals RB Cedric Benson to under 100 yards rushing and Bengals QB Carson Palmer to under 100 yards passing. Also, Chad Ochocinco was held to three receptions and only 27 yards; and although he did score, he did not blow the Vikings’ horn as he had boasted he would do earlier in the week.
The Vikings improve to 11-2, wrapping up a playoff spot; but they remain two games behind the undefeated New Orleans Saints, who bested Atlanta 26-23; the Packers, meanwhile, defeated the Chicago Bears to move to 9-4, so the Vikings still need one more win or one more Green Bay loss to secure their second consecutive NFC North title; the Vikings go on the road next week to face a 5-8 Carolina Panthers squad, where they will likely gain that much-needed win.
After that, it’s all down to playoff positioning, and Philadelphia is the closest division leader behind the Vikes; but at 9-4, they trail Minnesota by two games with three games left to play, so the Vikings can also sew up a first-round bye with either one more win, or one more Eagles loss.
Likewise, New Orleans can sew up home field throughout the playoffs with either one more win, or one more Vikings loss. Over in the NFC, Indianapolis is, like New Orleans, undefeated and can sew up home field throughout the playoffs with one more win or one more San Diego loss. No one else is even close.
The Super Bowl is beginning to look like a battle between the Vikings and Saints in the NFC, versus the Colts and Chargers in the AFC.
