I just don’t understand all of the Minnesota Vikings love going around these days. Sure, Brett Favre and the Vikings’ offense is the sexy topic of the league, but if you look at the facts you’ll notice this team hasn’t proven much.

Minnesota’s quality wins are again average teams, at best, and the “vaunted” offense self destructed in its only true test this season.

So please, explain why these Vikings are so good.

Minnesota’s seven victories have come against teams that have a combined record of 18-33 this season. The quality wins the Vikings possess are against squads just one game over the .500 mark in Green Bay and Baltimore (4-3).

And remember, if it weren’t for a miracle hail mary against San Francisco and a fluke missed field goal against the Ravens in the dome the Vikings would be sitting at 5-3.

They’ve beefed up on the seller dwellers — Cleveland (1-7), Detroit (1-6) and St. Louis (1-7) — while beating up on a Green Bay team twice, exploiting the Packers horrendous offensive line.

Add to that Adrian Petersen, who everyone loves to call the greatest back in the NFL right now — and maybe ever (wow, really?), has been held to under 100 yards rushing in six of the eight games. His best rushing performances have come against Cleveland (180 yards) and Baltimore (143).

Brad Childress has underutilized Petersen, putting the ball in Favre’s hands for at least 30 attempts a game. The best example being in Pittsburgh, when Petersen ran over William Gay for a first down on a screen pass only to be on the sidelines when another screen pass slipped through Chester Taylor’s hands and went the other way for a Steelers’ touchdown.

You have to give a team credit for going out and beating who they should beat. However, the way this team is playing and being managed will eventually end in a short stint in the playoffs.

Brad Childress’ use of Favre will end up wearing the veteran QB down. His ingorance of Petersen will hurt them, too.

Most importantly, when this team faces legitimate competition it will fold. The Vikings haven’t proven us to believe anything otherwise yet this season.

That is, if you’ve paid attention to the facts.

The last-minute victories and suspenseful rivalry games are great now. However, teams like New Orleans, Philadelphia and New York will be waiting in the playoffs.

That’s where it will end. So enjoy it for now, Minnesota.

It will all be over shortly.

After Week 3, still so much is up in the air.

You’ve got the inconsistencies of the Big Ten, the steadiness of the SEC and the surprises in the Big East. One thing, for sure, came from this week: the BCS has the right conferences receiving automatic bids.

Nothing left to do but rank ‘em!

#1: SEC

Status: STEADY

Once again, it’s hard to argue against this conference.

All the SEC did was go 6-0 in non-conference games and place five teams in the latest AP Top 25, four of which are in the top 10 — No. 1 Florida, No. 3 Alabama, No. 4 Ole Miss, No. 7 LSU.

That highly ranked talent helps, but what helps even more were the close games. Tennessee challenging Florida in ‘The Swamp’ and Arkansas matching Georgia blow-for-blow show that the bottom of the conference can compete as well.

#2: Big 12

Status: STEADY

I said last week that there are a lot of questions surrounding this conference, but for the time being they are rolling along rather steady.

That’s still the case.

Kansas snuck in to the top 25 somehow … I guess beating Duke at home puts you over the top. Nebraska also lost, unable to hold on against Virginia Tech in Blacksburg in a 16-15 loss.

However, there’s still so much top-tier talent in this conference. Along with No. 20 Kansas and No. 25 Nebraska are No. 2 Texas, No. 10 Oklahoma and No. 16 Oklahoma State. That’s enough to put the Big 12 ahead of the rest.

#3: Pac 10

Status: QUESTIONABLE

This conference went from one that looked like it could challenge for the top spot to one that is tough to figure out.

Washington’s win over USC is the obvious example of where things get confusing. Is USC overrated? Are the Huskies for real? Both of those questions will take time to answer.

Personally, I don’t see why Washington is ranked. I think there are more deserving teams and wouldn’t be surprised if the Huskies are a sub .500 football team at the end of the season.

But you never know. Sometimes wins like these can propel a team, causing them to play better than they really are.

We’ll see.

Cal is also hard to figure out. They’ve rolled up some big-time points, but haven’t really beaten anyone. The Bears also struggled at Minnesota and couldn’t break free from the Gophers until the fourth quarter.

The Pac 10 did go 6-2 in non-conference play, which is good. However, Oregon State really needed to beat Cincinnati at home.

#4: ACC

Status: QUESTIONABLE

Everyone is high on Miami right now, and rightfully so. The Canes seem to have their swagger back and are back in the top 10 — No. 9 in the latest AP poll.

However, they can’t hold up the entire conference. The ACC was 4-3 in non-conference play in Week 3 and suffered some weak losses — Maryland lost at home to Middle Tennessee St. and Southern Miss beat Virginia.

Also, N.C. State’s win over Gardner-Webb — the Wolfpack’s second win against a I-AA team (they haven’t beaten a D-I team yet this year) — and Wake Forest over Elon prove nothing to me.

UNC did beat East Carolina and VT outlasted Nebraska. Florida State proved they are still a very confusing team by whipping BYU.

#5: Big East

Status: RISING

I’ve had the Big East rising for two weeks now and the only reason the conference isn’t higher is because just one team is in the top 25 — No. 14 Cincinnati.

However, I think Pitt is more deserving of a ranking than some of the lower-ranked teams right now (Kansas, Washington).

The Big East just keeps proving it’s for real while no one is watching. The eight teams are a combined 17-6 this year. Cincinnati went on the road and beat Oregon State, UConn went on the road and beat Baylor, Syracuse beat Northwestern and Pitt took care of Navy.

All are quality wins and nobody is talking about it.

If only Louisville and West Virginia could have won their games on Saturday.

Nevertheless, the conference was 6-2 this week and deserves some credit. There are more statement opportunities as Pitt travels to play N.C. State and Cincinnati hosts Fresno State. If Matt Grothe weren’t out for the year, I’d give them a chance at Florida State as well.

#6: Big Ten

Status: STEADY

Saying the Big Ten is steady is not a compliment right now. The conference continues to underachieve.

Big Ten teams combined to go 6-4 in non-conference play this past weekend, watching Purdue lose to Northern Illinois, Michigan State lose to Notre Dame and Northwestern fall to Syracuse.

All of those losses proved one thing: there’s nothing consistent about this conference.

And that’s what makes the Big Ten’s #6 ranking STEADY — as a whole, the teams are consistently inconsistent.

No. 5 Penn State must continue to win and win big to give this conference something to hang its hat on. I’m not sold on them yet, though, nor am I with the resume of Ohio State and Michigan thus far.

The Rest

With BYU and Utah losing, I will no longer give explanations on any other conference. The reason being, they will no longer have an impact on the BCS picture this year.

Boise State might, but the WAC as a whole is not worth wasting keystrokes on.

However, I will rank them:

7. Mountain West Conference
8. Conference USA
9. Western Athletic Conference
10. Sun Belt
11. Mid-American Conference

Stop, think, repeat.

You are a talent at wide receiver, true, but it’s clear that you didn’t pick up much common sense in getting a Texas Tech education.

You were the 10th selection in the NFL Draft in April and you want more money than the receiver taken ahead of you, Darrius Heyward-Bey. Thus, you have been a hold out — the only first-round draft pick unsigned at this point.

You don’t deserve the money of a first-round pick, which you think you do. You say you’re prepared to re-enter the draft next year if you don’t get what you want.

When will the common sense kick in?

By sitting out an entire season, you are first hurting yourself physically. While Heyward-Bey and every other receiver in the league are getting game experience, you’ll be training by yourself or sitting at home watching.

Holding out is also a horrible reflection on your character, which is as big as anything right now in a league full of legal issues. You won’t be worth the risk — at least not for the $$$ you’re asking for.

Not many people can make Al Davis look like a smart man these days, but you’ve found a way! While you were watching Monday Night Football, Heyward-Bey was catching touchdown passes and proving why he was much more deserving of the money and high draft pick than you.

By re-entering the draft, you’ll be a third-rounder at best. I understand that as of right now the 2010-11 NFL season is capless.

However, no team will risk more money on you than the 49ers are right now — which is head and shoulders above the deals of any other No. 10 pick in draft history.

You’re setting yourself up for a rough road in professional football. And don’t think for one minute that, if you do get a deal you like, defenders across the league won’t look for you on the field.

They’ll see this rookie who acts holier than thou, expecting the world served to him because he played great at school.

You’ll get served the first time you run between the hashes my friend.

–

Chris | TBP

The Mountain West, many said, should take the Big East’s place and earn an automatic bid for its conference champion.

Well, after two weeks things have changed. The Big Ten is still the Big Ten — just not good enough in big games. The ACC dropped two games to D-1AA teams as well as losing marquee matchups as well.

With what I’ve seen so far, this is how the conferences match up against each other after two weeks.

#1: SEC

Status: STEADY

With four teams in the top 10, including the nation’s No. 1 team in Florida, it’s hard for anyone to argue that the SEC is the country’s top conference. Florida, No. 4 Alabama, No. 5 Ole Miss and No. 9 LSU are all in the top 10 in the latest AP poll.

Add to that No. 23 Georgia and you’ve got a solid top five.

Auburn deserves a look as well, being 2-0 under new head coach Gene Chizik.

When you evaluate a conference’s power, you have to consider the conference as a whole.  As a whole, from top to bottom, there’s no other conference in the nation that’s better than the SEC.

#2: Big 12

Status: STEADY

Oklahoma’s loss of Sam Bradford against BYU hurt not only the Sooners, but the conference as a whole. Oklahoma is now No. 12, far behind No. 2 Texas.

Even though the Sooners weren’t doing much offensively against BYU before Bradford got hurt, you’ve got to imagine that his presence would have likely pulled out a win with an extra half of football to play. Nevertheless, they lost and dropped in the rankings.

Texas wears the conference’s fate on its shoulders this year. Behind the Longhorns and Sooners are No. 16 Oklahoma St., No. 19 Nebraska and No. 22 Kansas.

It’s hard to figure out how strong Oklahoma St. is after losing at home to Houston. Nebraska seems to be on its way up and the Jayhawks frankly still have a lot to prove with two wins over clearly inferior opponents (Northern Colorado and UTEP).

There are more questions revolving around this conference, which places the Big 12 below the SEC. However, depth with teams like Baylor and Texas Tech gives it a clear advantage over No. 3 in the power rankings thus far.

#3: Pac 10

Status: RISING

This one might come off controversial, but as a whole the Pac 10 has been outstanding in Weeks 1 and 2.

No. 3 USC is coming off a statement win at Ohio State. Add to that the steady and dynamic offensive/defensive approach from No. 8 Cal — 111 points in two games — and you’ve got possibly the strongest top two teams of any conference.

But where the Pac 10 strives is its depth. You’ve got a wealth of other 2-0 teams — Arizona, Oregon St., UCLA.

The Bruins win at Tennessee was another statement for the conference. Stanford is 1-0 in the conference and Oregon, despite the chaotic start, always has the potential to win any game.

#4: ACC

Status: SHAKY

Being No. 4 is nothing to have pride over for the ACC. From #3 down the rankings are a jumble.

The ACC has four teams — No. 13 Virginia Tech, No. 14 Georgia Tech, No. 20 Miami and No. 24 North Carolina — that are GOOD. The problem is, there is not one GREAT team in the conference. Someone has to separate itself from the pack and its a mystery as to who that team might be.

Often a conference has to prove itself in non-conference play. The Hokies failed to do that in Week 1 against Alabama — the marquee non-conference game for the ACC.

Miami beat Florida St. in Week 1, but no one really knows if Florida St. is any good.  Or the Canes for that matter.

The ACC must have a team pull away for any type of conference supremacy. The depth is there but it needs a clear-cut star.

#5: Big East

Status: RISING

Going under the radar for most of the opening weeks has been the Big East. The respect has been unidentified as well.

Cincinnati quickly proved it’s a powerful squad as well, moving up to No. 17 in two weeks and piling up 117 points.

Pitt is right behind the Bearcats, putting up 92 points. Granted, both teams have played rather inferior opponents. But they did what they were supposed to do — earn convincing wins.

The Big East as a whole is 11-4 in two weeks. Each team seems to be moving along quite convincingly, deserving some respect.

In comparison, no Big East team has lost surprising non-conference games like Michigan States, Virginia and Duke all have. That’s why this conference is on the rise.

Watch out for Pitt, West Virginia and South Florida, which are all knocking on the door to break in to the top 25. Preseason rankings are the reason none of these teams are ranked just yet.

This might be the year the Big East silences all the critics.

#6: Big Ten

Status: FALLING

This conference has failed almost every test so far this year.

No. 5 Penn State is now considered the marquee team for the Big Ten. After wins over Akron and Syracuse at home, I’m not so sure that they’ve proved anything so far.

No. 11 Ohio State had to beat USC at home to save the conference. All the Buckeyes did was show that they still can’t close the big games. Losing at home to USC was a huge loss for the conference.

Then there’s No. 25 Michigan, which beat Notre Dame at home in Week 2. It was a big win for the program and the conference, but we need to reevaluate what we think about Notre Dame so far. The Irish didn’t prove anything in beating Nevada. The media will always want to crown the Irish because they are who they are.

The fact is, it’s just too early to tell whether Michigan’s win was a quality one or not. It’s also too early to tell how good or bad Notre Dame is. With both coming off losing seasons in 2008, I’m not ready to crown either as elite just yet.

And let’s face it, Michigan State’s loss to Central Michigan hurt. So did Illinois’ loss to Missouri and Iowa’s near loss at home to Northern Iowa — both in Week 1.

#7: Mountain West

Status: STEADY

The Mountain West is top heavy, no doubt about it. However, for the time being the top of the the conference is only surpassed by the SEC, Big 12 and Pac 10.

No. 7 BYU, No. 15 TCU and No. 18 Utah get it done. Colorado St. has been a good surprise for the conference with a 2-0 start, which helps.

The problem is, BYU, TCU and Utah all benefit from beating up on everyone else. I’m convinced that every other conference previously listed has more power overall than Air Force, San Diego St., UNLV, Wyoming and New Mexico.

By the end of the year either one of the top three teams will prove superior and win out — likely BYU — or they’ll all beat up on each other and be ranked in the teens come season’s end.

Either way, the winner will have an inflated record. I’m not dishing a BCS bid to this conference yet.

–

Chris | TBP

The previous record of 2,721 hits held by the Iron Horse stood for 73 years until number 2 ripped a patented Jeteresque line drive down the first base line for hit number 2,722 as a Yankee.  The New York faithful ignored the rain storm that began to pour in the Bronx Friday night and packed the new Yankee stadium.  With flashbulbs popping and camera phones rolling, Jeter delivered yet again going 2-4 at the dish to make the Yankee hit record 2,723 and counting…

With this prestigious record broken, the question has been posed whether or not Derek Jeter is among the top five New York Yankees of all time.  The list of top Yankees in history is pretty much a universally known fact, and very rarely will anyone argue the players atop this catalog:

#1 Babe Ruth. The player many still consider to be the greatest to have ever played the game of baseball.  The Great Bambino retired with 714 home runs and of course, with the historic curse cast upon the Boston Red Sox.

#2 Lou Gehrig. The game’s greatest first baseman of all time and one of the toughest players to ever take the diamond.  Gehrig, along with Pittsburgh Pirate legend Roberto Clemente, is one of only two players in history to enter professional baseball’s hall of fame without having to wait the required five years after retirement.

#3 Joe DiMaggio. One of the most graceful and beloved players both on and off the field, the Yankee Clipper is considered by many to be one of the top center fielders ever.  Not to mention, Joltin’ Joe holds the most “pure” record in all of baseball, his timeless, and many say unbreakable, 56 game hit streak that dates back to 1941.

#4 Yogi Berra. The famous catcher for the Bronx Bombers, Berra was the Most Valuable Player of the American League three times.  He is one of only four players in baseball history to accomplish this feat.

Jeter acknowledging the crowd after his 2,722 hit as a Yankee to pass Lou Gehrig for most in franchise history.

#5 Mickey Mantle. The blonde haired, blue eyed All-American boy patrolled center field for the Yanks for 18 years, and in his prime was one of the greatest to ever play his position.  Mantle retired with the record for most career home runs in World Series history with 18.

Derek Jeter is every bit as important to the current Yankees of the millennium and the dynasty of the 1990’s that won four World Championships in 5 years as each one of these previously mentioned legends that have donned the famous pin stripes.  Jeter is not only the all time hits leader for the Yanks, but he also holds the franchise record for at-bats and hit-by-pitches, while also ranking in the top 5 in 4 other statistical categories including career batting average and stolen bases.

And everyone knows that when you play for the Yankees you only get remembered for what you do in October.  Well, Jeter has the all time record for postseason hits (and counting) and has an unforgettable walk-off home run of his own in Game 4 of the 2001 World Series.  Jeter is the first to make his legend not in October, but November.

As of this moment, there may not be much of a debate.  The list of the top 5 New York Yankees is still pretty much a known fact.  However, let’s keep in mind… Derek Jeter just turned 35 years old this season.  If he chooses to play five or six more years and has just average seasons for his standards, Jeter may rack up 500, 600, or even 700+ more hits to his resume.  At this point in his hall of fame career, Jeter is ahead of Pete Rose’s pace for 4,000 hits.  Not to mention how many more wins and possibly more World Series titles he could bring home with a hero’s welcome to New York.

There are an awful lot of people who like to say that Derek Jeter is an overrated ballplayer.  These people either don’t know much about the game of baseball, or just refuse to acknowledge his greatness because it’s often overshadowed by his class.  Since his first full season in the big leagues in 1996 when he won the Rookie of the Year, Derek Jeter has played the game with grace and has shown how superstars can still be humble and classy on and off the field.  He is a multi gold glove award winning shortstop defensively, and currently has the second best career batting average by a shortstop behind the one and only Honus Wagner.  In my mind, Derek Jeter is an underrated ballplayer.

When he does choose to hang ‘em up, Jeter will certainly be immortalized with his number 2 retired in monument park of Yankee Stadium.  But, if he keeps going at it like he is, don’t be surprised to see his name and number cracking the list of top 5 Yankees to ever play.

Joey ~TBP

The two most glaring knocks against the conference come in losses to Division I-AA (FCS) teams.

Knock #1:
Duke, a team that many though could be a darkhorse in the ACC this year, laid more than an egg in Saturday’s opener again Richmond. They looked like District 5 in Mighty Ducks before Emilio Estevez became head coach after drinking and driving.

The Blue Devils managed only a safety in the first quarter and trailed 7-2 going in to the second. The Devils then traded twouchdowns with the Spiders in the second quarter, trailing 14-9 at halftime. After a scoreless third quarter, Richmond outscored Duke 10-7 in the fourth to win 24-16.

An eight-point loss to a I-AA team is a big deal, regardless of your preseason standing.

Knock #2:
If Duke was District 5, then Virginia was the entire D3 movie (the biggest mistake in film). The Cavaliers lost by 12 points … 12 POINTS! … to William and Mary, more or less ending Al Groh’s career as a head coach.

Virginia led 14-13 at halftime and were subsequently shut out in the second half, 13-0.

The combination of both were enough to cloud the Big Ten’s weak showing. That’s not all for the ACC, though.

Knock #3:
North Carolina St. started the college football season off with just three points in a Thursday night loss to South Carolina.

Knock #4:
Wake Forest dropped a rather large game at home to Baylor, 24-21.

Knock #5:
In one of the marquee games in Week 1, Virginia Tech could not produce much offensively, nor hold off Alabama’s offense in a 34-24 loss.

Knocks #3, #4, and #5 are just as damaging to the conference as losing to Division I-AA teams. They show that the conference can’t compete with other power conferences in supposedly equally-matched games at both the mid- and upper-levels.

Add to that the inability of the lower-tier teams to take care of clearly inferior opponents and you have a conference that — from top to bottom — isn’t very good.

–

Chris | TBP

From top to bottom, the conference pretty much underachieved in the opening weekend of college football for 2009.

Knock #1:
First and foremost, you’ve got to look at Ohio State’s game at home against Navy. The Midshipmen just outplayed the Buckeyes and were a 2-point conversion short of sending the game in to overtime.

Navy chose to pass on the conversion attempt and the ball was picked off by Brian Rolle, who returned it all the way. Ohio State was awarded two points for the return and won 31-27.

Sure, there are some cobwebs to brush off for every team at the beginning of the season. However, title contenders are able to brush them off and still earn a convincing W.

Ohio State was far from convincing, which leads me to believe they are not a championship caliber team this season. And, to be honest, the rest of the conference appears to be following suit.
Knock #2:
On Thursday night, Indiana barely snuck out a home win against 1-AA (FCS) opponent, Eastern Kentucky. The Hoosiers were shut out in the second half, but managed to pull out a 19-13 win.

Knock #3:
Minnesota rolled in to Syracuse against a putrid Orange team from last year. The Golden Gophers needed extra time, winning with a field goal in overtime. And had it not been for a silly mistake from Greg Paulus in his first game in four years — he was picked on Syracuse’s first drive — Minnesota could have very well lost.

Syracuse is probably improved from last year, especially with good leadership at the quarterback position. However, the Orange are not a bowl team and Minnesota is expected to earn a bid.

Knock #4:
No. 22 Iowa needed not one, but two blocked field goals in a row to beat 1-AA Northern Iowa at home. That’s not a performance worthy of a national ranking.

Knock #5:
Wisconsin faced Northern Illinois of the Mid-American Conference at home, barely sneaking out a win. The final score was 28-20 in favor of the Badgers, which had to fend off a comeback by the Huskies. NIU scored 14 points in the fourth quarter, nearly coming back to tie the game.

Now the good thing is that all of these teams won. However, the manner in which they won was less than impressive.

There has been a lot of conversation leading in to the 2009 season about whether conferences like the Mountain West should have a BCS bid. Many pointed to the Big East as the weakest conference, saying it is undeserving of a bid given the fact that not one school was in the preseason top 25.

Maybe the Big Ten should worry as well.

–

Chris G.