Thread: Important Games for the Vikings in Week 13

OK, so obviously the Vikings - Lions game is important.
Division rival, wild card race, etc.
But if we want to cling to the very thing thread of hope that the Vikings will be playing ball in January, then there are some other games that we should be paying attention to as well.

First, the cold hard facts.
The Vikings can NOT win the division.
We are mathematically unable to win the NFC North.
So we are reduced to aiming for a wild card spot.
Fortunately, the wild card spot is by no means out of reach at this point.
A win against Detroit would pull us even with them record wise, and could move us as high as third in the race.
Here are the other games that we should be watching in week 13:

49ers at New Orleans Go 49ers!
The Saints have the same record as the Vikings, but are actually favored to get the last wild card spot at playoffstatus.com.
A 49er win would drop the Saints to 5-7, and bring their conference record down to 4-4.
But it is the 49ers, so this one might be a long shot.

Browns at Arizone Go Browns!
Arizona is hosting the 7-4 Browns, which is good for us.

Bills at Washington Go Bills!
Washington is probably reeling after the horrible news about Taylor.
Add to that the fact they are hosting the Bills, an AFC team who is also fighting for its playoff life, and this will be a tough game for the Redskins.

NYG at Chicago Pick em.
NYG currently have the 5th wild card spot pretty much locked up.
It isn't a guarantee by any means, but it would take a complete collapse by the NYG in order from them to finish outside the playoffs.
That being said, I am pulling for them to beat the Bears in Chicago.
I think a 5-7 Bears team would be better for the Vikings than a 7-5 NYG team would.
But either way, I will be happy with the outcome of this game.

Seahawks at Philly Go Chicken Hawks!
The Seahawks are in the NFC West, easily the weakest division in football this year.
They are more than likely going to take the division, so it would be better for us for them to knock Philly down another notch on Sunday.

So, best case scenarios, this is what the Wild Card race would look like on Monday:
5. NYG 8-4
6. Lions 6-6
--------------------
7. Vikings 6-6
8. New Orleans 5-7
9. Arizona 5-7
10. Washington 5-7
11. Chicago 5-7
12. Philly 5-7

The Lions would still have the tie breaker on us because of their division record, but that will be taken care of come week 14...
OK, to be honest, I expect NO to win, and they will be ranked ahead of us.
But I will be cheering for the 49ers either way...

even better news!! Your wrong the saints are not playing the bills they are playing the Bucs!!!! Go Bucs they should win....

Good analysis.

Personally, I'd like to see the Giants lose to the Bears. We own the head-to-head against the Giants, and that sets us up to knock the Bears down hard when we play them on that Monday night.

I enjoy looking at the scenarios as well.
Simple side of it of course is to just win and then everything works out.

9-7 looks pretty real for a playoff spot. 8-8 maybe, but probably have tons of tie breakers coming into play.
That means winning 4 games out of the last 5.
We do that, and playoffs or not, it will be a great finish to the
year and help create giant expectations going into next.

We win against Detroit, we will definitely be in the hunt, riding a 3 game winning streak nonetheless after our season looked completely lost.
Optimism will be flying. We lose and ... well we know what that means.
Either way this will be a roller coaster game for fan's emotions.
Lets hope its a high with a healthy AD coming in for the stretch.

"tastywaves" wrote:

I enjoy looking at the scenarios as well.
Simple side of it of course is to just win and then everything works out.

9-7 looks pretty real for a playoff spot. 8-8 maybe, but probably have tons of tie breakers coming into play.
That means winning 4 games out of the last 5.
We do that, and playoffs or not, it will be a great finish to the
year and help create giant expectations going into next.

We win against Detroit, we will definitely be in the hunt, riding a 3 game winning streak nonetheless after our season looked completely lost.
Optimism will be flying. We lose and ... well we know what that means.
Either way this will be a roller coaster game for fan's emotions.
Lets hope its a high with a healthy AD coming in for the stretch.

I agree with that... it's going to be a strenuous few weeks here down the stretch. Looking forward to each one.

"C" wrote:

"tastywaves" wrote:

I enjoy looking at the scenarios as well.
Simple side of it of course is to just win and then everything works out.

9-7 looks pretty real for a playoff spot. 8-8 maybe, but probably have tons of tie breakers coming into play.
That means winning 4 games out of the last 5.
We do that, and playoffs or not, it will be a great finish to the
year and help create giant expectations going into next.

We win against Detroit, we will definitely be in the hunt, riding a 3 game winning streak nonetheless after our season looked completely lost.
Optimism will be flying. We lose and ... well we know what that means.
Either way this will be a roller coaster game for fan's emotions.
Lets hope its a high with a healthy AD coming in for the stretch.

I agree with that... it's going to be a strenuous few weeks here down the stretch. Looking forward to each one.

Jesus, go put some clothes on....LMAO

It's too bad that the Vikings have to win and other things have to happen too.
Thankfully the mathematical elimination hasn't happened yet.
I'm hoping for a strong finish.

"Prophet" wrote:

It's too bad that the Vikings have to win and other things have to happen too.
Thankfully the mathematical elimination hasn't happened yet.
I'm hoping for a strong finish.

We have already been mathematically eliminated from winning the division.

It's a exciting part of the year, and to have a outside chance to make the playoffs as we head down the stretch.

The schedule looks favorable, but I never take those division games lightly, they usually are a dogfight. But having the Lions at the Dome this weekend a must win a critical game for us, as we have to treat each game like a playoff game from here on out. You gotta love it, Lets go Vikings!

"singersp" wrote:

"Prophet" wrote:

It's too bad that the Vikings have to win and other things have to happen too.
Thankfully the mathematical elimination hasn't happened yet.
I'm hoping for a strong finish.

We have already been mathematically eliminated from winning the division.

That much is obvious.
I'm just thankful there is still a glimpse of hope.
If they Vikings play like they are capable of playing they can compete.