Vikings-Jaguars Preview

SCOUTING REPORT

Balanced Jaguars should pull out a win at homeThis is a must-win game for the Jaguars, who pretty much have to run the table and get to 10-6, if they have any chance at making it back to the playoffs. It is not as big a game for the Vikings, but they are in a tight NFC North race. Jacksonville head coach Jack Del Rio is a former Vikings player, so this one will have a little more meaning for him. The Vikings' defensive line was controlled last week at the point of attack, and it remains to be seen if they will be able to bounce back versus the mediocre Jaguars offensive line.

· Full Scouting Report

Matchup
	W-L	PF	PA	HOME	ROAD	DIV	CONF
MIN	10-6	379	333	6-2	4-4	4-2	8-4
JAC	5-11	302	367	2-6	3-5	2-4	3-9
· Complete Standings

Individual Leaders

Minnesota Passing   CMP% YDS TD INT Favre 68.4 4202 33 7 Jackso... 66.7 201 1 0

Jacksonville Passing   CMP% YDS TD INT Garrar... 60.9 3597 15 10 McCown 33.3 2 0 0

Minnesota Rushing   CAR YDS AVG TD Peters... 314 1383 4.4 18 Taylor 94 338 3.6 1

Jacksonville Rushing   CAR YDS AVG TD Jones-... 312 1391 4.5 15 Garrar... 77 323 4.2 3

Minnesota Receiving   REC YDS AVG TD Rice 83 1312 15.8 8 Harvin 60 790 13.2 6

Jacksonville Receiving   REC YDS AVG TD Sims-W... 63 869 13.8 7 Holt 51 722 14.2 0

Full Player Stats: Minnesota | Jacksonville

TEAM AVERAGES & NFL RANKS
TEAM OFFENSE	TEAM	PER GAME AVERAGE
Total Yards	MIN	331.0
	JAC	319.0
Yards Passing	MIN	184.8
	JAC	208.3
Yards Rushing	MIN	146.1
	JAC	110.9
TEAM DEFENSE	TEAM	PER GAME AVERAGE
Yards Allowed	MIN	292.4
	JAC	330.9
Pass Yds Allowed	MIN	215.6
	JAC	224.1
Rush Yds Allowed	MIN	76.9
	JAC	106.8

HEAD TO HEAD MATCHUPS (SINCE 2001)
Minnesota leads 2-1
Nov 28, 2004	MIN 27, @JAC 16
Dec 23, 2001	MIN 3, @JAC 33

With their sixth loss last week, the Jacksonville Jaguars were knocked out of the AFC South race and all but eliminated from playoff contention.

They'd have a far rosier outlook in the NFC North, where the Minnesota Vikings maintain a share of the lead despite a .500 record.

In the thick of the race in one of the NFL's weakest divisions, the Vikings look to pull out of a three-way first-place tie on Sunday when they visit the dejected Jaguars.

Jacksonville (4-6) lost 24-14 to undefeated division rival Tennessee last Sunday, eliminating the Jaguars from the AFC South race and putting their chances for a third playoff appearance in four years in serious jeopardy. Even if the Jaguars win out, they're not guaranteed a trip to the postseason.

Coach Jack Del Rio didn't sound optimistic after last week's game.

"It's absolutely as dismal an outlook as you can have and not be out," he said after his team blew an 11-point halftime lead by getting outscored 21-0 in the second half. "We'd have to win every one to have a chance to qualify. It's a very remote possibility."

On Monday, however, Del Rio vowed his team wouldn't give up on the season.

"Our guys are professional," he said. "The coaches and players are going to continue to do our jobs to the best of our ability and be professional about it. We all recognize this is a very competitive game and we want to be at our very best at all times, finish strong and play good football and have fun doing it. We're going to focus on execution and let it rip."

While Del Rio searches for ways to keep his team motivated, Vikings coach Brad Childress shouldn't have a problem doing the same for his club. Though Minnesota (5-5) has just one more win than Jacksonville, it's tied atop the NFC North with Chicago and Green Bay.

The Vikings missed a chance to take sole possession of first place last week, when they were outscored 13-0 in the second half of a 19-13 loss at Tampa Bay.

"Tough outcome. We knew that we'd have to come down here and play error-free football," said Childress, whose team has four losses by seven points or fewer. "Probably the only positive is that we've got a chance to win the NFC North. Everybody is 5-5."

Minnesota running back Adrian Peterson followed up a season-high 192-yard effort with just 85 rushing yards last week, snapping his streak of four straight 100-yard games -- one shy of the franchise record set by Robert Smith in 2000.

The league leader with 1,100 yards on the ground this season, Peterson will try to bounce back against a Jaguars defense that's held opponents to an average of 97.6 rushing yards in five games at Jacksonville Municipal Stadium.

A big game from Peterson could be particularly important if the Vikings are without some of their top defensive players Sunday. Three of the team's star defensive linemen went to New York this week to meet with NFL officials regarding recent transgressions that could result in suspensions.

Defensive end Jared Allen was fined $25,000 -- his third fine of the season -- for a recent spate of late hits, but won't be suspended. Tackles Pat Williams and Kevin Williams, who are unrelated, are still awaiting word from the league after testing positive for a weight-loss diuretic that is on the list of banned substances. They could face four-game suspensions for violating the NFL's substance abuse policy.

Allen leads the team with eight sacks and Kevin Williams is second with seven. All three linemen play pivotal roles in Minnesota's second-ranked run defense. Childress was asked about the situation Monday.

"I understand the question and I wish I could give you some insight, but those things are going to be between the league and who the league deals with," he said. "So it's difficult for me to comment on that."

While the Vikings hope to be at full strength defensively, the Jaguars will try to prove they're not mailing in their season.

"It's been worse," said Jacksonville running back Fred Taylor, averaging a career-low 3.6 yards per carry -- down significantly from his career-best 5.4 mark from last season. "You still want to play. You still want to play to win them."

The Vikings have won two of three all-time meetings with the Jaguars, including a 27-16 victory in the teams' last matchup Nov. 28, 2004. They're making their first trip to Jacksonville, where the Jaguars have dropped four of five this season.

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