MinnesotaSportsScene.com

Cancel the reservations for Las Vegas hotels, the party this Monday Night is on the gridiron! The Minnesota Vikings will open their season tonight against the Green Bay Packers, and for the first time in 16 seasons, the Pack will be without Brett Favre under center.

Since the Vikings have a refurbished pass rush threat with NFL sack leader Jared Allen on the same D-line as the Williams Wall, the purple certainly aren’t going to make the debut of Favre’s successor, Aaron Rodgers, an easy night.

Right now, Tavaris Jackson has more game experience and more wins on his belt that Rodgers as a pro, and with Adrian Peterson in the backfield for the Vikes, and Bernard Berrian competently catching passes, it’s our hope that tonight’s game will be a blow-out favoring the purple.

Of course, historically the series has usually been close; but we’re entering a new era, and on paper, the Vikes look solid for the win. Of course, the X-Factor in all of this is the Green Bay defense, which tried to end Adrian Peterson’s career last season and will likely be cheap-shot artists again tonight, which is why we chose our nickname for them: Murderer’s Row.

Somehow, though, I have a feeling the Green Bay Assassins will miss their target tonight.

Alarmists are already looking to take out a burial policy on the Minnesota Vikings after last weekend’s shocking injury to rookie RB sensation Adrian Peterson, who, now that the dust has settled, appears to be headed toward missing anywhere from one week to the rest of the season after tearing his lateral collateral ligament in a severe knee sprain caused by a helmet-leading hit on Peterson by Packers cornerback Al Harris.

The hit came early in the second half of the game - the half in which Peterson is known for becoming his most explosive - and although Peterson has gone the classy, Kirby Puckett-style route, saying the hit was clean, game footage clearly shows Harris aiming at the knee and leading on the tackle with his helmet. It’s clearer than the Zapruder film.

For this reason, MinnesotaSportsScene.com has decided from this point forward, as long as Al Harris is on the Packers defense, that rather than “America’s Team” or “God’s Team,” the Cheeseheads’ defense will now be referred to as Murderer’s Row. If they want to play like thugs, they’ll get called on it here.

As for Peterson, no one wants to say it out loud, but this type of injury is typically a six-week recovery period, though Peterson wants to attempt a return much sooner, if possible. The great debate is whether the Vikings should allow Peterson to attempt a return and risk a longer-term, more career-threatening injury, or play it safe, bench him the rest of the way, and allow him time to heal completely, and perhaps even get surgery, if that’s needed.

Only time will tell.