The Vikings have to face the prospect of replacing running back Robert Smith, maybe with rookie Michael Bennett. But no matter who fills Smith's speedy shoes, it will be done against the best competition the NFL has to offer.

When the NFL released its 2001 schedule, some teams annually get the short straw. It seems like every year for the past five, the Vikings have had the toughest schedule, but this year it’s even a bit worse.

To start, the NFC Central plays the AFC Central, which should be thought of as good news, but the Vikings get the short end of the stick in that regard. Minnesota is the only team in the NFC Central that doesn’t get to play either Cincinnati or Cleveland — two of the worst teams in the NFL. Tampa gets the Bengals, the Packers get Cleveland and the Bears and Lions get them both.

Next comes the timing factor. Bad weather games are typically viewed as games played vs. teams in cold weather cities after the start of November. The Vikings get three — at Philly Nov. 11, at Pittsburgh Dec. 2 and at Green Bay (either Dec. 30 or Dec. 31 if that becomes the lucky game switched to Monday night by the NFL).

Adding to the fun is the chance to play both of the Super Bowl teams on Monday night — at Baltimore Sept. 17 and vs. the Giants Nov. 19, not to mention closing out the home schedule with Tennessee and Jacksonville — the AFC’s two best records over the last three seasons.

But perhaps the most difficult hit to take will be in Week 4. When the NFL in its infinite wisdom added just one team when the Browns returned to the NFL, it created the problem of having to schedule bye weeks every week of the season. Most people consider the Tampa Bay Bucs as the Vikings’ top competition for the division title. When the Vikings host Tampa Sept. 30, the Bucs will have been able to prepare two weeks for the Vikings, since Tampa Bay has its bye week in Week 3. This additional preparation time will give the Bucs a huge advantage in what promises to be a key early-season matchup and could help tip the tide in the favor of the Bucs.

The NFL knew the Vikings schedule before it was released — the opponents were determined by a league formula that VU printed the day after the regular season. But, it seems like the league went out of its way to make the Vikings work harder to get to the playoffs than just about any team in the league. If the Vikings are going to succeed, they’ll have to earn it, because the NFL didn’t do them any favors.