Jeff: The Monday Musings

* Despite their 30-20 victory over hapless Detwah, which brings your Minnesota Vikings to 6-7 and still very much in the hunt in the woeful NFC, I am not excited about the Vikes. I'm just not. They still have no passing game, and that means if they do make the playoffs, they're not going very far. I think they're better served to get Jackson some time under center to see what the kid can do.

* After last night's New Orleans routing of Dallas in Big D, it's apparent that there IS no "Best Team in the NFC", so can we please stop touting a different team every week? You know who'll be the NFC's best team? Whoever plays in the Super Bowl. Who's that going to be? I have no idea, and anyone who tells you they do is lying. The Bears are still in great position to win homefield advantage, but with the way QB Rex Grossman has played, they're just as likely to be one-and-done. Dallas showed last night they've got major holes, the Seahawks lost to an Arizona team just playing out the string, and despite how good New Orleans looked last night, do you REALLY trust them yet as a contender? Me neither, but don't get me wrong, the Saints would be a very fun team to watch in the Super Bowl.

* In the AFC the Chargers...well maybe we need the same rule here too. I want to crown the Chargers as the AFC's best, but the AFC's Best Team should handle Kansas City next Sunday night. If the Chargers stumble, then what? Baltimore? Cincinnati? It's certainly not Indianapolis or Denver or New England after watching all of them get rolled yesterday. It SHOULD be San Diego, and I can't tell you how much I would enjoy a San Diego/New Orleans Super Bowl, but there's just no way to tell with so much parity from week to week.

* I have no such problem telling you who the best player in football is. If LaDanian Tomlinson doesn't win the MVP this year, they should just stop handing it out. He is that much better than everybody else right now.

* Len Pasquarelli is one of the best pro football writers alive, and I read his work whenever I can. However, his column this morning says that Indy's D will keep Peyton Manning from winning a Super Bowl this year makes me wonder if Manning is taking Favre's place as the new guy people will not blame no matter how they pla. Is it true about the Colts D? Absolutely. After giving up an astounding 375 rushing yards at 8.9 yards per carry to Jacksonville yesterday, it's obvious that no matter how good Manning and the COlts offense is, they are definitely not winning a Super Bowl with that defense. Hell I don't think they're winning a playoff game with that defense. As the Sports Guy has pointed out numerous times, this is definitely Indy's worst team in the last 4 or 5 years, and after getting blown out 44-17 on Sunday, there's no longer any doubt. However, is Mr. Pasquarelli forgetting that the reason Peyton Manning didn't get to a Super Bowl in years past was because of none other than Peyton Manning? Has Mr. Pasquarelli forgotten that Manning is the NFL's best regular season quarterback EVERY YEAR before he has his playoff meltdown? All the defense will do for Manning this year is deflect the blame for the Colts playoff shortcomings for a season. As I said, when did Manning become BRett Favre? When did he start being able to do no wrong no matter how poorly he plays in big games?

* In NBA matters, there's still a YUGE buzz in this town about the possibility of Allen Iverson coming to Minnesota. Although the possibilites seem slimmer by the day, as noted by Strib beat writer Steve Aschburner, the Wolves still do look to be in the running (despite reports in the Pioneer Press Saturday which quoted Wolves owner Glen Taylor saying dealing for Iverson would be too expensive, he's thankfully backed off those claims. This isn't baseball, this is the NBA, where you have to match contracts, so Iverson wouldn't be anymore expensive for the next 3 years than keeping his current roster together), and I guess we can't rule anything out until he's dealt. ESPN.com's Chris Sheridan reports that a deal could happen as soon as today or tomorrow, which makes you wonder, as Marc Stein does, why the Sixers are in such a rush to get rid of him? As Stein notes, the Indiana Pacers were in a similar situation last year with Ron Artest, but they sat him, took their time, and ended up getting Peja Stojakovic for him, which at the time was a much better return than anyone thought they'd get. Sixers GM Billy King's track record has been, well, McHale-esque thus far, and rushing into a trade for Iverson could speed up King's exit out of town. And all Sixers fans pause from beating themselves to death with a blunt object to rejoice.

Boston definitely has the best package to offer, but you've got to think the Sixers don't want to trade Iverson to their biggest rival. The next couple of days promise to be interesting.