View from Section 123:
Another Sunday, another opportunity for the Vikings to win yet another game. What’s the scene inside Mall of America Field, Section 123? (South end zone view). We’ll let you know. That’s our advantage for Sunday’s Vikings-Broncos tilt. We’ll follow the game, keep our eye open for amusing text from abroad and generally make smart-aleck comments…but not always in that order:
3:20: FINAL — BRONCOS 35, VIKINGS 32. Prater hits 26-yard FG as time expires.
3:12: Interception Denver. Andre Goodman intercepts Ponder at the 35, brings it back to the Vikings’ 15. Vikings fans head for the exits.
3:12: Vikings have the ball at the 20-yard line with plenty of time left. It’s Christian vs. the Christian. (Sorry.)
3:10: VIKINGS 32, BRONCOS 32 — Prater hits 46-yard FG to tie it up again. 1:33 left in the game.
3:00: Defense hits the field for game-winning stop with 3:06 to go.
2:59: VIKINGS 32, BRONCOS 29 — Longwell hits 39-yard FG to put Minnesota back on top.
2:49: Vikings defense on field trip. Not sure when they’re coming back.
2:47: VIKINGS 29, BRONCOS 29 — McGahee 24-yard TD run. Tebow runs it in for two-point conversion and tie.
2:42: VIKINGS 29, BRONCOS 21 after Ponder hits Harvin again for a 48-yard touchdown pass.
2:29: As third quarter ends, Vikes have had ball for 30 minutes for the game, as opposed to Broncos’ 15.
2:19: VIKINGS 22, BRONCOS 21 — After a 63-yard kickoff return by Quan Cosby, Tebow hits Thomas on a 41-yard TD strike. One point game.
2:17: VIKINGS 22, BRONCOS 14 — Ponder hits Percy Harvin, who turns it into a 52-yard touchdown scamper.
2:00: Vikes’ add another to walking wounded: Brian Robison out right now with concussion symptoms.
1:58: VIKINGS 15, BRONCOS 14 after Tebow tosses 21-yard TD pass to Demaryius Thomas.
1:49: Second half starts, Broncos suddenly have the ball at Vikings’ 35. Have more first downs in this possession than they had in entire first half.
1:40:Loved this Tweet from KARE-TV’s Dave Schwartz: “In TV timeout, guy trying to throw a ball through an inflatable phone. Does it on 3rd try…John Fox now running after him with a contract.”
1:37: Best first half stats: Broncos 1 first down, compared to Vikes’ 15. Also: Aromashodu…5 catches for 74 yards so far.
1:35: VIKINGS 15, BRONCOS 7 — Longwell 25-yard FG turns fumble into three more points as half ends.
1:31: Jared Allen sack forces fumble at Denver 21-yard-line, Vikes take over with :34 seconds left in half.
1:20: KFAN’s Dan Barreiro checks in with cleverest Tebow Tweet: “Most NFL teams have scripted plays. Broncos have scripture plays.”
1:19: Remi Ayodele sacks Mr. Tebow, killing Denver’s drive.
1:15: Vikings’ PR guy Jon Ekstrom Tweets: “Rudolph has big hands….” We’re not entirely sure where he’s going with that…
1:15: VIKINGS 12, BRONCOS 7 — Ponder hits TE Kyle Rudolph with 19-yard TD pass. Awesome catch.
1:11: Pretty certain this will never happen in this building:
1:08: Reality check Tweet from VikingsUpdate blog: “Tim Tebow 57.3 rating. Christian Ponder 39.6. Ponder can’t stay upright. Ugly stuff.”
12:58: Broncos tally first first down for the game, with 11:53 left in first half.
12:56: Back to Ruben Studdard (and why not?). Here, he sings “Flying Without Wings,” which is sort of like Denver’s offense “Leading Without Scoring”….
12:49: Vikes’ Stephen Burton makes first NFL catch, a 21-yarder at midfield.
12:48: Best stats of first quarter: Denver, no first downs and had the ball for only 3:07, but still have the lead.
12:44: BRONCOS 7, VIKINGS 5— Minnesota creeps closer with 30-yard Longwell FG.
12:39: Vikings recover fumble on Broncos 36. The drive for 5! (points).
12:38: Week in, week out — you can always count on Strib’s Jim Souhan to say the first funny thing on Twitter: “Watching the Vikings’ offense raises one important question: What time does the Wild game start?”
12:28: While sportswriters try to come up with the next clever Twitter focusing on miracle-worker Tebow, general Vikings fans in Twitter-verse have common theme: “Vikings suck.” We’ll continue monitoring.
12:26: BRONCOS 7, VIKINGS 2— Mario Haggan intercepts Ponder from Vikings 16-yard-line and runs it in to put Denver on top.
12:22: In person, Tebow is a worse slinger than you can possibly imagine. Which means Denver will likely win this thing, 6-2.
12:18: Disaster! Ponder fumbles in red zone. Denver’s Jason Hunter returns it to midfield.
12:11:VIKINGS 2, BRONCOS 0— Vikes start with a safety after Jared Allen stops RB Willis McGahee. Allen ties NFL record with most career safeties with four.
12:07: Drive stalls at 48. Tebow time! He’ll have to start at his 1-yard line after Eric Frampton comes alive with a great save after the punt.
12:01: Vikings win toss. Start on road to Win #3 glory.
11:57: American Idol’s Ruben Studdard sings national anthem. Guy Limbeck, Rochester Post-Bulletin remarks: “Looks like he could play guard.” Sure it’s not spelled “Rueben”?
11:53: Found a fabulous claymation cartoon from yesteryear that Tim Terrific might like:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mbu7jQ3HhMg
11:51: Broncos introduced. Not exactly an orange crush, but quite a few Denver fans in the building.
11:34: We will not use any cheap lines to exploit Tim Tebow’s strong belief in a higher power. On a different matter, Mall of America Field is quieter than a church mouse 30 minutes before game time.
