Storm Brewing in Minnesota

Following the Minnesota Vikings' loss to previously winless Kansas City, a team without two of its three top safeties and without its dynamic running back, Vikings' owner Zygi Wilf let it be known that he was tremendously displeased with the team's results and that he expected far better going forward. Wilf strongly suggested that, given McNabb's performance at critical junctures against KC (if not also throughout the entire season), he expected Vikings' head coach Leslie Frazier to make the proper adjustments.

There is no denying that Wilf's implication was that it was time to make a move at quarterback--a decision that could have meant imposing either Christian Ponder or Joe Webb at quarterback.

Rather than acquiesce, Frazier dug in his heals and insisted that McNabb was not the problem. If the stubborn approach in the face of sound logic to the contrary sounds familiar, it should. It was, after all, the very same approach embraced by Dennis Green, Mike Tice, and Brad Childress. And it likely could lead Frazier to the same fate realized by his three predecessors--and justifiably so.

Through four games, McNabb ranks thirtieth in the league in passing. He ranks far lower--a quite difficult feat--in passing statistics in the second half and, more significantly for a team that has played four close games, in the fourth quarter. There is no denying that McNabb's primary problems are that he cannot put the ball where he needs to put it and that he shrinks in the face of a challenge when the game is on the line. These traits are not unique to McNabb, but they are unique among quarterbacks playing for teams with purported playoff aspirations.

Aside from Frazier's apparent inability or unwillingness to acknowledge that McNabb is not his best option at quarterback--that title now belonging to Webb, followed by Ponder--Frazier is utterly delusional about the Vikings' prospects this year. The only hope that the Vikings' have of making the playoffs this year is to start Webb, a quarterback who can escape the pocket, make plays with his legs, and throw at least as accurately as McNabb has this season.

At 0-4, the Vikings likely would need to finish the season 10-2 to make the playoffs. Frazier still views the 0-4 start as a 4-0 start, however, failing to recognize that most NFL games are decided by what teams are able to do in the fourth quarter. Given that McNabb has done nothing in the fourth quarter, other than look absolutely horrible, the decision to stick with McNabb can only be explained as one of myopia induced by Frazier's initial guarantee to ownership that he could do with McNabb what Philadelphia and Washington could not.

Barring an immediate and overwhelming turn-around, the likes of which is against all odds with the Vikings having not yet faced the Packers or Bears and with two teams in their own division already four games ahead of them, Frazier is committing to a quarterback who not only offers the team little hope for recovery this season, but also little understanding of where the team is headed in 2012. Playing McNabb will ensure that the Vikings know nothing about Ponder after this season and cement the fate of a promising quarterback in Webb--all for nothing.

Frazier's decision to stick with McNabb, already at odds with the his owner's inclination and collective wisdom, not only will jeopardize the Vikings' season but also will jeopardize Frazier's tenure in Minnesota.

Up Next: Kingdom for a Receiver.

McNabb Done as Vikings' Quarterback

With a fourth straight loss in the books to start the 2011 NFL season, the Minnesota Vikings are expected to bench starting quarterback Donovan McNabb in favor of either Joe Webb or Christian Ponder next week. The decision comes more from the Vikings' ownership than from a coaching staff that, offensively, appears oblivious to the on-the-field product.

McNabb again was awful when it most mattered on Sunday, thrice making horrendous passes to nobody in particular during the team's final drive with the Vikings trailing by five. McNabb's erratic performance once again made Adrian Peterson virtually irrelevant and an ownership group that has invested heavily in Peterson, irate.

With McNabb moving to the sidelines--and quite possibly to the waiver wire--the Vikings are left to decide whether to go into full blown rebuilding mode or to try to be respectable this year. Taking a cue from the Carolina Panthers, however, the Vikings almost certainly will opt for a heavy dose of roll-out quarterback packages, something woefully lacking in this year's offense.

Entering the season, the Vikings sold their fan base on a short-passing game predicated on getting the ball to their two dynamic tight ends, Visanthe Shiancoe and Kyle Rudolph, and Percy Harvin and running Adrian Peterson. After four games, the Vikings have used Randolph and Shiancoe only on a limited basis and highly sporadically and, despite obtaining positive results every time Harvin touches the ball, have shied away from Harvin, as well. The only commitment that the Vikings have kept is to get Peterson the ball, but that commitment generally has waned in the second half of games, making Peterson the "highest paid decoy in the game."

As McNabb heads to the bench, scrutiny will only increase of a coaching staff that has not obtained results this season. Of particular concern is the play-calling and personnel management of first-year offensive coordinator Bill Musgrave, whose decision not to have Shiancoe on the field on 4th and 10 on the Vikings' final drive against KC--a decision saved only by KC's decision to call a time-out--brings to mind the play-calling that led to Musgrave's dismissal as Carolina's offensive coordinator only two games into his tenure.

Up Next: Change in Quarterbacks Will Buy Frazier Some Time.