Purple passion

Vikings look to be the cream of the NFC crop in 2004

NFC Since 1999 Record and playoff appearances Team W L T PA Rams 56 24 0 4 Eagles 51 29 0 4 Packers 51 29 0 3 Buccaneers 49 31 0 4 Vikings 41 39 0 2 Giants 40 40 0 2 49ers 39 41 0 2 Redskins 38 42 0 1 Saints 37 43 0 1 Bears 35 45 0 1 Panthers 34 46 0 1 Cowboys 33 47 0 2 Falcons 30 49 1 1 Lions 27 53 0 1 Cardinals 25 55 0 0 Seahawks * 17 15 0 1   * -- Seattle was in the AFC West before realignment in 2002. The Seahawks were 24-24 from 1999-2001, with one playoff season.

Already on record with Miami as my really early preseason AFC representative in Super Bowl XXXIX, the next logical question is: Which team from the NFC will the Dolphins beat?

One thing is certain: It will come from a field of six. And while it's easier to divide the AFC into haves and have-nots, the NFC is as muddled as it is strung out. Only Arizona can be deemed a pretender in a conference of contenders; since 1999, every NFC team has been to the playoffs at least once ... yep, except for the Cardinals.

Ten AFC teams over the past five years have played .500-plus ball. The NFC boasts of six, including a conference-leading 56-24 mark by St. Louis (tied with Tennessee for the best record in the NFL since 1999).

So which NFC team is most likely to make the trip to Jacksonville? Again let's work from the bottom up:

• Atlanta -- The Falcons may have the game's most exciting player in Michael Vick, but he is only a part of the puzzle. And the other pieces of a championship team have yet to be put into place, specifically on defense. That said, drafting CB DeAngelo Hall was a great first step for new head coach Jim Mora Jr.

• New Orleans -- This is the make-or-break season for Aaron Brooks. And is it too soon to say the same thing about 2002 draft pick Donte Stallworth? Both of these guys need to find their 'A' games and live up to the expectations. Is it any wonder the Saints took WR Devery Henderson in Round 2?

• Carolina -- Just as the one-armed man kept The Fugitive on the run, this one-receiver team will run and run and run some more. It's been three years since WR Muhsin Muhammad had a 1,000-yard season, and Ricky Proehl (coaxed back for a 15th season) was a rookie during the first Bush administration.

• Tampa Bay -- This team is too talented -- even with its offseason losses -- not to compete for a playoff berth. Then again, judging by DT Warren Sapp's recent seasons, can he be considered as a 'loss' for the Bucs? Rookie safety Will Allen won't make fans forget John Lynch -- this year. But in time ...

• Green Bay -- Hey, I appreciate Brett Favre as much as the next fan, but this team cannot win on his wing alone. And raise your hand if you believe CB Ahmad Carroll can be a shutdown corner against Randy Moss twice a year -- or Philly's Terrell Owens in the playoffs. I'm still dumbfounded that Mike Sherman bypassed DE Jason Babin -- especially when the Packers took another CB, Joey Thomas, with their second pick.

• St. Louis -- The Rams' recent drafts should begin to pay dividends this season. And with the free-agency losses of DE Grant Wistrom and DT Brian Young, second-year DT Jimmy Kennedy needs to catch up with fellow 2002 draftee LB Pisa Tinoisamoa. Rookie DE Tony Hargrove will be worth watching, especially once he gets back into football shape.

• Philadelphia -- Yep, bridesmaids -- again! Adding DE Jevon Kearse two years after Hugh Douglas departed is a step in the right direction, but losing Bobby Taylor and Troy Vincent in the same offseason ... that's two steps back. I'd like Philly's chances a lot more if Andy Reid would scrap the traditional fullback/tailback tandem for a split backfield with Correll Buckhalter and Brian Westbrook.

• Minnesota -- The Vikings came one Josh McCown-to-Nathan Poole answered prayer away from making the playoffs last season. This year, I don't think Minnesota will have any trouble putting away a postseason berth before the fourth-quarter clock strikes 0:00 in Week 17.

Minnesota's top four draft picks -- DE Kenechi Udeze, LB Dontarrious Thomas, DE Darrion Scott and T Nat Dorsey -- were on target and fifth-round LB Rod Davis is another keeper.

Even though RB Michael Bennett missed eight games last season, the Vikings still managed to lead the league in offense (393.4 yards per game). With Bennett back at 100 percent, Minnesota's passing game will become even more effective. Daunte Culpepper is now sixth on the NFL's all-time passer rating list, while the emergence of WRs Kelly Campbell and Nate Burleson makes double-teaming Randy Moss a huge gamble. (Not to mention the addition of free-agent Marcus Robinson and the re-signing of TE Jim Kleinsasser.)

However, the storyline of free agency was the theft -- what else to call it? -- of Antoine Winfield from under the noses of the Jets. All but signed sealed and delivered to the J-E-T-S, Minnesota cut the purse strings and signed the cornerback to a six-year, $34.8 million deal (including a signing bonus of $10.8M), the biggest free-agent contract in franchise history.

If the Vikings advance to face the Dolphins in Super Bowl XXXIX, it will be the 10th time the title-game teams have played in multiple Super Bowls. Dallas is 2-0 against Buffalo, San Francisco is 2-0 against Cincinnati, Pittsburgh is 2-1 against Dallas and Washington and Miami split two games.

A Minnesota-Miami matchup would be the same pairing as Super Bowl VIII, when Larry Csonka rushed 33 times for a then-Super Bowl-record 145 yards, while Bob Griese completed 6 of 7 passes for 73 yards in the Dolphins' 24-7 victory.

Sadly for Vikings fans, I can see -- through the thick summer smog -- Ricky Williams and Jay Fiedler doing similar things as Minnesota falls to 0-5 in the big game.

B. Duane Cross is a senior producer for SI.com.