Another gift win?

From the Star-Tribune:

"Adrian Peterson should have been penalized 15 yards for removing his helmet on the field after scoring the winning touchdown against the Packers on Sunday."

Yeah, I thought the same thing. And I was just praying (in a metaphorical sense) that the officials wouldn't notice and make the call. If they had, then Packers kicker Mason Crosby might only have had a 37-yard field goal instead of a 52-yarder to win the game at the end of regulation.

So that brings the Vikings' win total up to 2 and the officials' up to 3. Hooray?

* With Charles Gordon's gruesome ankle injury finishing his season, Benny Sapp will move into the nickel role in the secondary and Aundrae Allison should take over most of Gordon's punt-return duties. I don't know much about Sapp, but I've been stumping for Allison as a return man for over a year now. He averaged 28.7 yards on 20 kick returns as a rookie (with one touchdown) and, in limited action this year, has managed 7.1 yards per punt return.

Best of all, he's about fourth on the wide-receiver depth chart, making him more expendable than Chester Taylor, who has inexplicably returned eight kicks this year. Which still brings up the question of why we signed Maurice Hicks in the offseason. Maybe Allison is the new Mewelde Moore -- great return guy who the team absolutely refuses to use. (Although if his recent stint as a starter in Pittsburgh is any indication -- 4.1 yards a carry -- then maybe he was more than a return man all along. Gosh, who knew?)

* Speaking of former Vikings, Chris Hovan is still playing, believe it or not, and he'll face off against his former team this Sunday in Tampa. After John Randle and before Kevin Williams, Hovan was the force in the center of the defensive line for the Vikings and was a crazy, tattoo-wearing disruptive force for several years. His production dropped off significantly after Williams' arrival and the team jettisoned him after the 2004 season, when he latched on with the Bucs.

About his experiences in Minnesota, Hovan says, "It was tough my last year in Minnesota, I'm not going to lie. I was deactivated, I didn't get along with the head coach [Mike Tice]."

Hm. So Hovan didn't like Tice, Randy Moss didn't like Tice. Gee, maybe it wasn't Hovan and Moss we should have gotten rid of after the 2004 season. I'm just sayin'...

* And one more former Viking returned to the NFL this last weekend to the tune of 5-for-10 passing for 104 yards and one interception. Good to see you back, Daunte. Can't wait to play you in four weeks.

* If you've ever read Matthew Berry's columns on ESPN.com or had the pleasure (?) of seeing him on TV, you know that he's about as good at his job as you or I -- namely that he's a reasonably experienced fantasy football player who doesn't offer anything useful beyond the basics of the game (hey, draft running backs early!) and offers up lackluster advice (hey, Adrian Peterson is good) while making the occasional far-fetched prediction and hoping it'll come true so he'll look like a genius.

In fact, Berry made about 50 such predictions at the start of the season, and I've taken it to myself to check out every one at the end of the year and see how he did. He admits that "The idea is not that I nail every prediction," and that his claims might at least steer you toward players who won't necessarily match his predicted numbers but who at least will be worth looking at. So I'll take all that into account (as well as things like Tom Brady's injury -- heck, I thought he'd throw for about 40 TDs this year, too) when I evaluate him at the end of the year.

Even so, there are some major clunkers in the list:

3. Michael Turner will finish with fewer than 1,000 yards rushing and seven touchdowns.

Turner has 890 yards and 7 TDs through nine games.

16. James Jones will have 800 yards and seven touchdowns.

Jones currently has 43 yards and one TD.

21. Reggie Williams will catch double-digit touchdowns again.

He has one TD.

40. Marc Bulger and Torry Holt will return to fantasy prominence. Specifically, Bulger will throw 3,500 yards and at least 24 touchdowns. Holt will get 10 scores.

Bulger: 1,373 yards, 6 TDs. Holt: 2 TDs.

44. Ben Obomanu will reach 800 yards and six touchdowns.

Obomanu (a Seattle wide receiver, in case you didn't know) has 180 yards and 2 TDs, so maybe with a strong second half he can...wait, those are his 2007 numbers. He has zero catches in 2008.

I have to give him credit for #10 (Brady Quinn will start for the Browns by Week 9) and #46 (Chris Johnson will be the leading rusher for the Tennessee Titans), but by and large, it looks like a bloodbath. Hey, how about that Troy Smith in Baltimore (#5)?

And you didn't draft Quinn anyway, did you?