With the Vikings' 2013 Regular Season schedule recently announced, I thought I'd make some preliminary predictions about the games. Keep in mind that this is all before OTA's, Training Camp, etc., and before the final roster is even close to being set. I figured it would be fun, and then closer to the season opener make some revised predictions. Here we go: Week One: At Detroit The Lions don't usually put up a fight against the Vikings. While the Vikings have definitely made strong improvements in the off-season, the Lions are the Lions. Roster changes, the release of Titus Young, and the other distractions have put the Lions in the bottom of the NFC North. Vikings win. Week Two: At Chicago The Vikings will always play the Bears tough, no matter the venue. It will still be nice in Chicago, and the Vikings have Adrian Peterson. The Bears no longer have...

The 1975 Vikings, by many experts' estimations, were perhaps the best Vikings team of all time. They started off the season on a 10-0 tear, averaging 16.2 more points per game than their opponents. In their 14 games that year, the team's defense gave up ten or less points 6 times, and 13 points or less an amazing 8 times. They were 3rd overall in the NFL in points scored (377) and 3rd overall in points allowed (180). They had one shutout (a 38-0 beating of the Atlanta Falcons) and two games allowing 3 points. It seemed that the team could do no wrong. Strong both offensively AND defensively, the team was destined for greatness. The Vikings began their climb to the top of the NFC back in 1968, the year of their first division championship. Winning the Central Division of the NFL (before the NFC and AFC were formed), the...

Injuries. That one word. It’s the one that’s been running like a jackrabbit through my head for the past few days. It all kinda’ started to get me thinking when I was watching the Wild’s first playoff game against the Chicago BlackHawks. Seeing Niklas Backstrom go down in warm-ups wasn’t something we see very often. It forced the Wild into emergency mode and yes, good dude Josh Harding was great. Had he been injured, who knows what would have happened. We see it all the time.  Look at the Boston Celtics and how they are adjusting to losing team leader Rajon Rondo for the season. They are making it a great series against the NY Knicks with a dramatic win, on the road, in Madison Square Garden to shrink the Knickerbockers lead to a game at 3-2. Wing west and the former SeattleSuperSonics turned OKC Thunder have their hands full with...

The Vikings wrapped up the NFL Draft last Sunday and now that the dust has had a chance to settle, the Vikings clearly plundered the college ranks grabbing three top talents at key positions of need. The Norsemen had treasure fall into their laps on April 25th, grabbing Florida defensive tackle Shariff Floyd (who unexplicably fell to them) at pick 23, Florida State cornerback Xavier Rhodes at pick 25, and then traded with New England to get back in the first round to address the wide receiver corps with Tennessee wideout Cordarrelle Patterson at pick 29.  Rarely does a team have three picks in the first round and what makes every Viking fan excited is that on paper, Minnesota vastly improved three team needs in one night.  This is a playoff team that just got a lot better—and that was just Thursday.  On Saturday, day three of the draft, the Vikings...

Last Thursday, I had the privilege to attend the Vikings' 2013 Draft Party at the Metrodome, MOA Field. I had attended previous events at Winter Park, but this was the first time I had attended at MOA Field, and also the first time I attended in the VIP Red Zone area. The first thing I was impressed about was the field setup. There were plenty of things to do while there. The new uniforms were placed on mannequins for all to see up close, the Vikings Locker Room was set up in the middle of the field, and there seemed to be plenty of tables and chairs for people to sit on. There were also booths set up from various vendors, as well as food and drink for plenty to consume. I saw a sea of purple, it was amazing. Everyone was dressed in his or her own version of uniforms,...

The Vikings find themselves on the day of the NFL draft with a real chance to fill their team needs.  By now the consensus is the Purple People Eaters need depth and upgrades at a few key positions, MLB, WR, DT, CB.  They own picks 23 and 25 in the first round, which is set to commence in less than 24 hours at Radio City Music Hall and the Vikings have plenty of options.  Last year the Vikes also had two picks in the first round and immediately added two excellent young players in LT Matt Kalil and FS Harrison Smith, whom they traded back up in the first round.   Here are some players that make sense for Minnesota show they decide to stand pat with the 23rd and 25th picks. Many of the top mock sites have the Vikings targeting a wide receiver in the first round, as Percy Harvin...

After splitting their last two regular season games with the Colorado Mammoth (7-9), the National Lacrosse League’s (NLL) Minnesota Swarm (7-9) are headed to the postseason for the fourth-straight season and seventh time in the last nine years. The Swarm will play at the East Division champion Toronto Rock (10-6) Sunday April 28 at 2 p.m. in the first round of the playoffs. Minnesota has already faced Toronto twice this season, each game decided by just one goal. The Swarm lost 13-12 in the first matchup on the road January 25, despite strong efforts from their foursome of first round picks. Kiel Matisz recorded his first career hat trick in the contest, scoring his first goal in a Swarm uniform just four minutes into the game. Transition player Brock Sorensen scored the first goal of his promising NLL career in the game as well, finding the back of the net with...

With the 2013 NFL Draft upon us tomorrow, Thursday, April 25th through Saturday April 27th, I thought I would offer my two cents worth on the Top Twenty Vikings' Draft Picks of All Time. To add a little suspense, I'll start with number 20 and work my way up to number one. Along the way, I'll give some information on what year they were drafted, what round, what school they came from, and so on, along with why I think they deserve to make the list. The first part of my task consisted of looking at all the Vikings' draft picks from 1961-2007 (2008-Present was excluded because I don't feel players who were drafted in those years have played long enough to merit consideration). Consideration was taken for number of All-Pro or Pro Bowl seasons, number of seasons played with the Vikings (longevity), impact on the team over the course of...

The Wild haven’t made the playoffs in nearly a decade and look like they can break that streak this year.  It is probably to late to move up to a higher seed but the organization moved their American Hockey League affiliate Houston Aeros up--to Des Moines, Iowa.  The team will be renamed, and Iowa Wild will certainly cut down on travel expense for the parent club, but its noteworthy that the old Aeros couldn’t secure a lease agreement with the Toyota Center in Houston (by far, the largest metro on the continent without an NHL club).  Unfortunately, our Wild have been in mini freefall since the last two weeks and now may be bringing back memories of 2012 all over again.  April fools indeed.  Ever since the calendar turned past March, Minnesota has struggled in all phases of the game.  They desperately need to win some games to recapture momentum for...

And finally, it comes to an end. And in the end, with all that’s happened over the course of an 82-game marathon, you gotta’ like this ending. As the Western Conference rumbled with playoff positioning at stake between the Lakers, Jazz, Rockets and K-Durant sat for the penthouse Thunder, the Timberwolves quietly did what they had to. That is ending with a win after this season of misery. As games go, it was impressive. To say it had no bearing on the Wolves slice of this NBA world would be incorrect. Players played with purpose. Perhaps to underscore what they were feeling as a collective unit prior to the start of the season. Perhaps, just to end on a high note. Perhaps, we’re all overthinking this one. After a great start and then injuries that threw the team off course, the Wolves have been a better team with many of their...

The Minnesota Twins have played thirteen or so games this season and have probably exceeded expectations at this point.  They’ve hung tough against some pretty good teams and some inclement North Land weather.  They’ve yet to play any division rivals except for the Royals so again, it’s early!  Two themes so far—they’ve got to get the staff to miss more bats, and there are some impact bats down on the farm. At 6-7 and a minus 10 in run differential many teams would be ambivalent but the 2012 Twins were a disaster with injuries taking a major toll.  So far, there have been a lot more positives then negatives thirteen games in.  Even though the Twins pitching is the major concern (4.38 ERA-- 23rd in MLB, tied for last with four quality starts) they’ve been able to avoid homeruns and limiting runs in general.  They can’t expect to win many games...

The National Lacrosse League’s (NLL) Minnesota Swarm (7-8) won their second road game of the season last Saturday at the Colorado Mammoth (6-9). While beating a division rival in their house is always a good feeling, this game was very meaningful for the Swarm since the win clinched the franchise’s fourth-straight playoff berth. The playoff-clinching road win was achieved through the Swarm’s aggressive defense. “Everybody says we’re young and athletic and we are,” head coach Joe Sullivan said. “That shows in us being able to track balls down, get hungry, and do the dirty work in a very important game.” The Swarm certainly tracked down balls, recording 67 loose balls to Colorado’s 36 Saturday night.  One of the big reasons for that was Jordan MacIntosh. The Oakville, Ontario native scooped up a game-high 12 loose balls and is second in the league with 173 on the season. MacIntosh also won 70%...

You know what they say, one week good.  The next, uh, not so. And so goes it for the Timberwolves. The chase to secure Coach Rick Adelman’s 1000th career coaching win was exciting and took essentially two games to get it done. Kudos to the team.  A season ago, that might have stretched into the new season. This week, the Wolves find themselves on the left coast against playoff teams with much for which to play and a shooting slump. It’s drawn the ire of GameON! TV watchers who regularly pound my in-box with thoughts, suggestions, stats and their “expert” opinion. I love it.  Here’s a handful as the snow flies outside my office, making it feel like a warm & fuzzy December in mid-April-when-it-should-be-spring-and-I-should-be-cleaning-off-my-clubs. That said, now, to the SimonsSays e-mail box. This from Eddie in Hutchinson: Hey Rod! Love your show but give me some more Wolves and less...

The Minnesota Swarm (6-8) opened up their doubleheader weekend with an emphatic 21-7 victory over the Buffalo Bandits (5-9) Saturday night on Treasure Island Field at Xcel Energy Center. Five of the franchise-record 21 goals came from Jordan MacIntosh, who scored a career-high of eight points. MacIntosh also scooped up a team-high 11 loose balls in the game. The win was Minnesota’s third in a row and the team’s 14-goal advantage is the Swarm’s largest margin of victory in team history. The franchise is 5-2 at home this season and recorded a stretch of 11 unanswered goals from the end of the second quarter to the start of the fourth. In all, 11 different players scored for Minnesota. Just hours removed from the monumental victory, the Swarm hopped on an early-morning flight to Philadelphia, where the team fell short in an afternoon matchup with the Wings (6-8) 15-13. Despite the loss,...

Very quietly, this has been a VERY good week for the Timberwolves. Yes, it’s been lost in the shuffle.  The pomp and pageantry of Major League Baseball’s Opening Day for the Twins at Target Field.  Both Gopher Hockey teams with their seasons winding down.  The Wild continue to be one of the NHL’s stronger teams and big trades to the league deadline. The Gopher basketball team finding its new bench boss. But for the first time since the Christmas buying season was in full force, the Wolves have won back-to-back games. Hard to believe but it’s true.  And it puts an exclamation mark on a heck of a week. The Wolves have been impressive and it helps to restock the cupboard and get healthy players back on the team. I’m impressed with a gutsy win in Beer town against the Bucks 107-98 and that after beating the Celtics on April fool’s...

Less than two weeks removed from the franchise’s “Hive Cares Night” in which the Swarm raised thousands of dollars for the Randy Shaver Cancer Research and Community Fund and broke several records on the floor, Minnesota set another milestone Friday night on Treasure Island Field. For the first time in the organization’s history, the Swarm tallied 20 goals in a convincing victory over the Philadelphia Wings (5-7) behind stellar play from Callum Crawford. The Ottawa, Ontario native finished with seven points (4g, 3a) and now has scored 25 points over his past three games. Minnesota has been on a streak of its own as of late, winning consecutive games for the first time in 2013 – and doing so in convincing fashion. They bested the Washington Stealth 12-5 on March 16 and then took down the Wings 20-11.  “The whole team is playing offensively,” Crawford said. “We started out a little...

Barely a week after Tubby Smith was fired as the Minnesota Gophers' men's basketball coach, they've made a new hire, and his last name is Pitino. No, not THAT Pitino. OK, well, SORT of... Minnesota announced Wednesday that they have hired Richard Pitino, son of Louisville coach Rick Pitino, as their new head coach. Richard most recently was the head coach for Florida International University, a team that plays in the Sun Belt Conference. In his only season with the Panthers, Pitino led the team to an 18-14 record, 11-9 in the conference - the team's first winning season in 13 years. He's spent time as an assistant coach under Florida's Billy Donovan and his father at Louisville. Those are some pretty big names to have spent time with, learning the coaching craft. He's about to turn 31, and supposedly is one of the top up-and-coming young coaches in the game....

One streak done.  Another continues. For me, the wrong one ended. Away from the action at Target Center as the Wolves tangle with the LA Lakers, the main NBA TV event was Miami’s effort to extend its 27-game winning streak in Chicago. By now you know the Bulls were going to have none of it and good for them. It’s tough to win on the NBA road, even for a team as good as the Heat. And for a kid who grew up (albeit very young) watching Wilt, Jerry West, Gail Goodrich, Happy Hairston, Pat Riley and Jimmy McMillen set the modern record of 33-straight wins, I was glad to see that mark stay in place. That was then and this is now and I can’t say the same for the current Lakers hex on our Wolves. For 10-years, the Wolves haven’t been able to beat the Lake show. It’s a...

What a difference two weeks make! Since we last gathered the Minnesota Wild (20-10-2) were fighting to separate themselves from the pack and aim for a nice six seed in the playoffs.  The grinders of the north land, the Minnesota Wild are the hottest team in the Western conference, winners of seven straight thanks to a surging offense, staunch defense, and the increased physicality we saw peeks of in early March.   The Wild, as you may recall, were dead last in goals for in the National Hockey League as late as February 26th. With serious concerns about making the playoffs after big splashes in free agency.  Now, as of, March 28th, the Wild are 14th in the league in goals per game (2.7) and have gotten even better on preventing goals, ranking 5th.   The offense has been on fire as of late, averaging 3.64 goals since February 26th, outscoring opposing...

Last Thursday, March 21st, when the Gophers won their first game in the 2013 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament in convincing fashion, 83-63 over the UCLA Bruins, fans of the team were feeling good. The Gophers had showed the rebounding, toughness and defense that had helped them to a 15-1 start, and signature wins over Michigan State, Illinois and then-number-one Indiana. The team was going up against the Florida Gators next, the number one team from the SEC. At the beginning of the tournament, a fair number of experts were picking the Gophers as a "sleeper" team, one that could go deep into the tournament. It turns out the Gophers played like a perfect version of their late-season selves. Florida jumped out to a 21-point halftime lead, and kept Minnesota at bay, as the Gophers never got closer than 7 points in the second half. Florida won running away, 78-64. The following...