- With their loss at home to the Green Bay Packers Monday night, the Minnesota Vikings playoff position is locked in. They will be the #6 seed in the NFC. That means if the season ended today, the Vikes would travel to New Orleans the first weekend in January to take on the Saints.
Sure it's a buzzkill the Vikings didn't win the NFC North division and thus will have to be on the road every postseason game they play. But the silver lining is they don't have to go all out on Sunday in their final regular season game against Chicago, which means banged up guys (i.e. RBs Dalvin Cook and Alexander Mattison) get an extra week of rest. And since the Vikes have been one of the more healthier teams in the NFL this season in terms of avoiding catastrophic, season-ending injuries, they should be in great shape for that presumptive matchup against the New Orleans Saints on wildcard weekend.
I'm certainly not ready to proclaim the Vikings D.O.A. come playoff time.
- After a decent start to this NBA season, the Minnesota Timberwolves have reverted back to being hot garbage after losing to a pathetic Golden State Warriors team Monday evening. The Wolves have now lost eleven consecutive games.
But hey, at least they like their head coach.
- Speaking of hot garbage, have you read any of "Twins Twitter" of late? There have been literally hundreds of "fans" lamenting how the club has yet to land the impact starting pitcher which front office brass Derek Falvey and Thad Levine had prioritized going into this offseason. Yes, the usual vapid chanting points are being put forth, whether it's "CHEAP POHLADS" or "This team will never trade prospects to get better, they're content being one-and-done every postseason." The thing I find most amusing is when I convey on social media what is perceived as even a tacit defense of the Twins hierarchy, the angst-riddled "fans" attempt to ridicule my perspective.
Here's the thing. If we arrive at Spring Training in February and the Twins have not made significant improvements on a 101-win team which still has a solid young nucleus, then Falvey and Levine will deserve the wrath which fans will undoubtedly heap upon them. Even though the Twins either lost out on or passed on realistic pitching options via free agency (i.e. Zack Wheeler, Madison Bumgarer and Hyun-Jin Ryu), that doesn't mean they are "punting" on acquiring another starter. Apparently some of these thumb-sucking "fans" don't realize that trades can be made as well.
Bottom line is Levine was in the front office of the Texas Rangers when they went to consecutive World Series in 2010 and 2011. Falvey was part of the Cleveland Indians brass when they were in the Series in 2016. The duo took over a 103-loss team and within three years were at the helm of a club who won 101 games. In my mind, they've earned the trust to make moves necessary to upgrade the club on the field. World Series aren't won in December, folks. Get a grip.
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