NFL Wire Notes | Minnesota will keep an eye on scoreboard

MINNEAPOLIS — In a league full of teams that pride themselves on taking it one game at a time, never worrying about things they can't control and countless other cliches designed to foster unity, the Minnesota Vikings are certain to break ranks from the rest of the NFL for at least one day.

That's because as Minnesota plays a late-afternoon game Sunday in Denver, players and team personnel are sure to direct plenty of looks at Invesco Field's out-of-town scoreboard. The focus will be on what is transpiring between the Cowboys and the Redskins at the same time in Washington.

After losing to Washington on Sunday night, the only way the Vikings can get into the postseason is by beating Denver and having the Cowboys defeat Washington. So how will Vikings coach Brad Childress feel about having his team's focus in two places at once?

"I am not going to mandate anything or ask [Broncos coach] Mike Shanahan not to put the scores up there or anything like that," Childress said. "It is what it is. They certainly know what is at stake, and it's the way it is today. There is going to be a time where the scores are going to flash up there, and I am sure somebody is going to whisper."

Those whispers potentially could include some very nasty words directed toward the Cowboys. Dallas has locked up home-field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs and has little incentive to play its starters.

Vikings cornerback Antoine Winfield admitted he doesn't expect Dallas to treat this like a normal game.

"You've already clinched home-field advantage," he said during a radio interview. "What you're trying not to do is get any of your starters hurt. ... Of course, they'll try to win the game, but I don't think they'll have enough to beat Washington."

No matter what the Cowboys do Sunday, Childress made it clear he won't be upset. That's in part because Childress was in a similar situation when he served as Philadelphia's offensive coordinator in 2004.

That season, the Eagles were 13-1 and had clinched the top spot in the NFC with two games left. Coach Andy Reid decided to rest many of his players, and Philadelphia lost its last two in the regular season. But it proved to be a good call as the Eagles went on to beat the Vikings and Atlanta in the playoffs before losing to New England in the Super Bowl.

"That's the nature of the business," Childress said. "[The Cowboys are] looking at, I'm sure, being able to give it their best shot in their playoff run. We've done it before; when you have nothing to gain in terms of positioning you kind of weigh where you think you're going to be freshnesswise and sharpnesswise to what you need to do in the game you're playing."

Notes

• The NFL won't discipline Packers LB Nick Barnett for making contact with an official during a skirmish in Sunday's loss to Chicago. But coach Mike McCarthy still isn't happy about the situation.

With four minutes left in Green Bay's loss, Barnett became tangled up with Bears OT John Tait, emotions boiled over, and pushing and shoving ensued. Umpire Jim Quick grabbed a kneeling Barnett around the neck from behind to pull him away and maintained his grip as Barnett tried to stand up. The frustrated player ended up pushing the official away.

"I'll tell you what, I've never seen anything like that in all my years," McCarthy said, according to the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. "I didn't see the whole thing, but I thought the official was totally out of line the way he grabbed Nick around the neck and pulled him out of there."

• QB Brodie Croyle is questionable for the Chiefs' season finale Sunday because of a hand injury. But even if he doesn't play, coach Herm Edwards believes he has seen enough in Croyle to make him the incumbent for 2008. The Chiefs (4-11) could be staring at a top-five draft pick, but Edwards sees too many other needs on the team to spend it on a quarterback.

• Many Giants fans are selling their tickets for Saturday's game to Patriots fans who want to see QB Tom Brady and his teammates go for a 16-0 record in their final regular-season game.

Internet auction sites have seen a surge in ticket sales for the game by Giants fans, The Star-Ledger of Newark reported Tuesday.

"It looks like it's on pace to be one of our top 25 events for all time," Joellen Ferrer, a spokesman for Internet auction site StubHub.com, told the newspaper. "Although it's meaningless to the Giants, it's still going to be a great game to watch."

In the first 24 hours after the Giants beat the Bills, more than 200 Giants ticket holders put their seats up for bid on auction site eBay. Tickets on StubHub.com have gone for as much as $1,600 apiece, Ferrer said.

The (Minneapolis) Star Tribune, ESPN.com and The Associated Press contributed to this report.