The 1998 Season

Note: 1998 was the second season that I wrote down thoughts the entire year. Therefore, the 1998 season summary will come in multiple additions to my blog. Today's 1998 entry will be Week 3, Detroit thoughts.

Week Three: Detroit; Vikes 29, Lions 6

Gary Anderson kicked 5 field goals to move into second place on the all-time scoring list and Randall Cunningham threw a scoring pass to rookie Randy Moss as the Minnesota Vikings beat the Detroit Lions, 29-6 in an NFC Central showdown.

Anderson was the difference for the unbeaten Vikings (3-0) in their battle of backup quarterbacks with the winless Lions (0-3). With his second field goal, he passed Jan Stenerud for third place on the all-time scoring list, breaking the 1,700-point plateau. He finished the game with 1,713 points, vaulting Nick Lowery for second place with his final field goal.

"I think it was a game where we knew we might have to slug it out," Vikings coach Dennis Green said. "We're extremely happy we're 3-0. Now we'll get some rest and look forward to playing to Chicago on the road."

While Detroit rookie Charlie Batch was given his first NFL start because of the ineptitude of Scott Mitchell, Cunningham was in because of an injury to Brad Johnson last weekend. Cunningham, who is in his 13th NFL season and second as a backup with the Vikings, completed 20-of-35 passes for 220 yards and 1 touchdown.

"I think it is the right situation for me at this part of my career," he said. "It's a group of great people. I am always enthusiastic about playing, but I know my role, and it's that of a backup quarterback. I knew they would be a tough defense, especially in the red zone. They get tight, like Tampa Bay, and they do not let you score touchdowns."

Batch was 20-of-40 for 160 yards with 2 interceptions and carried 8 times for 63 yards.

"We started beating ourselves. We made drive-killers here, drive-killers there," Batch said. "We would be driving, moving the ball, and something would happen. Once we got down, it put us in a passing situation and their defensive linemen just teed off."

"The score is not evidence of how he played," Vikings cornerback Corey Fuller said. "The guy did a good job of keeping some drives alive. When that guys gets some games, he is going to be a good player."

The Vikings also finally succeeded in containing superstar Barry Sanders, who had five straight 100-yard rushing games against Minnesota. Today, he was limited to 69 yards on 22 carries and caught 5 passes for 29 yards.

"I think when you look at the game, we just wanted to concentrate with the inside game and not give Batch a lot of good looks downfield," said Vikings nose tackle Jerry Ball. "What we tried to do was put our strength against their weaknesses. Our strategy was to get into the gaps and cover the gaps. We tried to get him (Sanders) to bounce outside away from their scheme."

It took nearly 20 minutes for Cunningham to get out the rust. He found the tight end combination of Andrew Glover and Greg DeLong 3 times for 36 yards, leading to Anderson's 27-yard field goal at the 8:36 mark of the second quarter. He threw passes of 27 yards to Jake Reed and 18 yards to David Palmer en route to Anderson's 28-yard tying field goal with less than two minutes left in the first half.

That was the field goal that put Anderson over the 1,700-point mark and past Stenerud, who played for the Vikings, among other teams, during a long career.

Cunningham connected with Moss, who has 3 touchdowns in as many NFL games, on a 5-yard score 3:19 into the third quarter to make it 13-6. Palmer returned a punt 44 yards to the 22 to set up the score.

"Randy came up with a play," Cunningham said. "He was double-covered and I just threw it in there and he caught it."

Anderson converted from 42 and 29 yards in a 2:34 span late in the third quarter to increase the Minnesota lead to 19-6. The last field goal was set up when linebacker Ed McDaniel recovered a fumble by Pete Chryplewicz at the Detroit 29.

Leroy Hoard added an 11-yard touchdown run 15 seconds into the fourth quarter to make it a 20-point game. Anderson passed Lowery with less than two minutes left in the game when he kicked a 34-yarder to make the final margin.

"It was exciting," said Anderson, a 17-year veteran who is 39 years old. "I am really blessed to play as long as I have injury-free. Records don't mean a lot if you lose, but it's nice to break records and have your team win."

Anderson trails only George Blanda, who recorded an astounding 2,002 points in his career as a kicker and quarterback.

"I think George Blanda played until he was 50, so at least I have a couple of years left," Anderson quipped. "Some days you're not going to be able to score 5 touchdowns. I just came in and did my part."

In his first drive as a professional, Batch moved the Lions 61 yards in 14 plays over 6:41, leading to Jason Hanson's 37-yard field goal that opened the scoring. Batch completed 4-of-8 passes for 32 yards on the drive and ran for 11 yards on a 3rd-and-5 to the Minnesota 21. Sanders ran 4 times for 25 yards and caught Batch's first pass, a 16-yarder that started the drive.

But the Vikings allowed the rookie only one more scoring drive, a 9-play, 42-yard march that led to Hanson's 49-yard field goal that gave Detroit a 6-0 lead just over two minutes into the second quarter.

Minnesota's Robert Smith was limited to 39 yards on 15 carries a week after rushing for a career-best 174 against St. Louis. Minnesota's receiving was well-balanced. Moss led the way with 5 catches for 37 yards, while Glover, Reed and Cris Carter added three catches apiece.

Herman Moore caught 9 passes for 66 yards and Johnnie Mortonadded 5 for 57.

"I think there were two things to that game," Lions coach Bobby Ross said. "We went along fairly well in the first half and it was a 6-6 ballgame and we were playing fairly competitively and doing things fairly well. In the second half, the tents unfolded. We had poor field position and we never started with the ball beyond our 25. Our special teams, our kickoff return was poor, I don't know exactly what happened."

Posted by maasx003 at November 16, 2004 09:07 AM