Tarvaris Jackson Can't Save the Vikings and a Long Year Finally Ends in Denver

If you didn't know any better, you would have thought the Broncos were the team with a shot at the playoffs and the Vikings were playing out the string of a bitter season. After all, it's usually teams that have already mentally quit on the season who make monumental blunders to cost their teams a game and that's just what Minnesota did in the first half of the 22-19 overtime loss in Denver this afternoon.

Their first drive was an excellent combination of Chester Taylor running and Tarvaris Jackson passing that got the ball inside the Bronco five-yard line. Taylor took the ball for an apparent touchdown but, after a review, he couldn't hold the ball long enough to break the plane and the Vikes got no points. Then, in the second quarter, Jackson found Troy Williamson with a perfect parabola only to see the ball bounce off his shoulder pads as if he were a six-year old playing catch for the first time. Williamson would have had a sure six but Taylor fumbled again two plays later.

The Vikings made other mistakes later and, for most of the game, looked like a team that didn't show up. That reflects badly on Brad Childress but, just when all hope seemed lost, there was at least one reason to smile through a playoff-less January.

Jackson, erratic and frustrating all season, led a stirring comeback from 19-3 down in the fourth quarter. He threw every play of an eight-play, 69 yard drive that culminated with a touchdown pass to Bobby Wade and then capped it off by running in a two-pointer. He would repeat both the pass to Wade and two-point scamper later in the quarter to tie the game. It would all be for naught, both because the Redskins cruised to victory and because Alvin McKinley forced a fumble in overtime which lead to Jason Elam's winning kick.

So there will be no playoffs for the Vikes but Jackson showed what he was capable of doing and that's something to feel good about heading into the offseason. They won't be feeling as good about the rest of the team. Adrian Peterson managed just 36 yards on 11 carries, good enough to win the NFC rushing title but not good enough against such a poor rush defense. Even more distressing was his benching for disciplinary reasons for the game's first series. Not the best last taste to leave in a mouth.

The Broncos, on the other hand, get to end a year that began with horrible tragedy with a celebration. Jay Cutler threw two touchdown passes and Brandon Marshall became the third second-year man to catch 100 balls in a season. Elvis Dumervil recovered a fumble and got a half-sack to finish with 12.5 in a strong season. Those three will be the core of this team going forward and having all three play well to end their sophomore campaigns is one to grow on in a season best forgotten.

Tuesday will be the first anniversary of Darrent Williams' death. As insignificant as a football season is in the face of a human life, Williams' passing, along with Damian Nash's later in the winter, were harbingers of what was to come. The Broncos win today showed perseverance and a willingness to see things out, important building blocks for next season.