By now, you all have seen the video and/or pictures of the Minnesota Metrodome roof collapse due to the intense snow which piled up on the inflatable fallacy. Due to this, the Vikings home game against the Giants has been moved to Detroit to be played in Ford Field.
Now, what happens in this game is almost irregardless. I suppose as a Bears fan I need to root for the Giants to lose, but with them owning the tie-breaker against the Beloved and the Bears owning the tie-breaker against the Eagles, I don’t know who to root for. I’m always inclined to root against the division, so notwithstanding what is best for the Bears I’m sure I’ll be rooting for the New York football Giants.
Now, let’s think about why this is potentially a big deal. Since the 2007 season, the Vikings are have a home record of 23-7. The Dome is a notoriously difficult venue for visiting teams. If this game is moved, Bears fans will show up. When Tight End Desmond Clark was asked about the Vikings game on his website last night, he responded:
First off, where are we going to play them. I hope its [at] a neutral field. That dome is loud up there and I think we would travel more fans somewhere else giving us a home field feel. I think we win no matter what.
However, the fact that the Vikings home away from home appears to be Detroit could pay major dividends to the Bears on the 19th of December. Chicago is scheduled to play a road game in Minnesota. If the stadium is not repaired by then (and I see no possible way that it will be) then does that game get moved to Detroit? The Lions are scheduled to play a road game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers next week, so the stadium would be available.
If the game is moved out of the Metrodome, that is potentially a big deal. The Vikings are 23-7 at home since the start of the 2007 season, one of the best records in the league. The Dome is notoriously loud and a difficult venue for the opposition. When Desmond Clark was asked about the Vikings game on his website, he responded:
First off, where are we going to play them. I hope its [at] a neutral field. That dome is loud up there and I think we would travel more fans somewhere else giving us a home field feel. I think we win no matter what.
Now, you have to love that optimism, especially from a guy that should be getting more playing time. But he’s got a point. If the game moves to Detroit, the Bears are actually closer to the stadium, and Bears fans would almost certainly outnumber the Vikings fans. The Packers are also away next week, leaving Lambeau a viable option however whether or not Minnesota would be willing to play a home-game outdoors is unknown.
The ramifications from next weekend’s games are unheralded. Before the Bears got drubbed at the hands of the Patriots in a home game, in “Bear Weather” even, the Lions helped out Chicago in a big way by knocking out Aaron Rodgers and beating the Packers. That loss not only kept the Packers a game back of Chicago, but dropped their divisional record to 3-2. In contrast, the Bears record is 4-0 against divisional opponents. What this means is with a Chicago victory “at” Minnesota next week, the Packers will have to finish the season with a better record than the Bears, regardless of the outcome of the last game. The head-to-head tie breaker will obviously be a wash, so the next tie-breaker is record vs. the division.
In short, if the Bears win next week against the Vikings (a winnable game) and the Packers lose against the Patriots (a game they won’t be favored in), the Bears sew up the division with two weeks left. That simple, folks. Let’s do work next week, take care of our own business, root for the God-forsaken Patriots next week, and above all else, BEAR DOWN!
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