Just realized the practice squad isn't easy to find so I'll list the players here:
Bobby Felder - CB - 6'1", 200 lbs (Nicholls State)
Chase Baker - DT - 6'1", 298 lbs (Boise State)
Jordan Todman - RB - 5'9", 195 (UConn)
Kevin Murphy - OL - 6'5", 295 (Harvard)
Chris Summers - WR - 6'5", 215 (Liberty)
Ernest Owusu - DE - 6'4", 277 (Cal)
Troy Kropog - OT - 6'6", 315 (Tulane)
Allen Reisner - TE - 6'3", 248 (Iowa)
Friday, October 26, 2012
Chris Cook Injury Update
The Vikings have placed Cook on the IR (injured/reserve) list with a "designated to return" tag - which means he is eligible to start practicing with the team again in 6 weeks and can be "active" in 8 weeks. Assuming that's what happens, Cook can start practicing the week of the 12/9 home game versus Chicago, and (hopefully) play our second-to-last game at Houston on 12/23.
All I have to say is that Josh Robinson had better step his game up! I imagine there'll be some rearranging, but if this means Sherels and Burton get more time, or if we pick up Felder from the practice squad I couldn't say. Of course, AJ Jefferson is Cook's immediate backup on the Vikings depth chart (according to their website), but I'm not sure he's really ready to take on full-time duties. I would LOVE it if the Vikings managed to pull of a Gators-like rotation where two or three defenders come off the field every five or six plays, to be replaced by fresh backups for a couple plays. I swear that and our conditioning are why the Gators are undefeated right now.
Of course, if we just shove AJ Jefferson into Cook's spot and rotate either him or Robinson out every few series with Sherels and Burton, this could change up our special teams assignments too. Percy can't take back every kick or punt (we've GOT to keep him healthy so that we can run slants - hell, I'd be happy with a freaking bubble-screen on occasion, the way things are going!), so it's possible Jarius Wright might get a lot more touches in the foreseeable future. Clearly with Simpson on the mend and Ponder's penchant for targeting him even when Percy and Rhett Ellison are wide open, Wright isn't going to do much in the offense except block.
SKOL!
All I have to say is that Josh Robinson had better step his game up! I imagine there'll be some rearranging, but if this means Sherels and Burton get more time, or if we pick up Felder from the practice squad I couldn't say. Of course, AJ Jefferson is Cook's immediate backup on the Vikings depth chart (according to their website), but I'm not sure he's really ready to take on full-time duties. I would LOVE it if the Vikings managed to pull of a Gators-like rotation where two or three defenders come off the field every five or six plays, to be replaced by fresh backups for a couple plays. I swear that and our conditioning are why the Gators are undefeated right now.
Of course, if we just shove AJ Jefferson into Cook's spot and rotate either him or Robinson out every few series with Sherels and Burton, this could change up our special teams assignments too. Percy can't take back every kick or punt (we've GOT to keep him healthy so that we can run slants - hell, I'd be happy with a freaking bubble-screen on occasion, the way things are going!), so it's possible Jarius Wright might get a lot more touches in the foreseeable future. Clearly with Simpson on the mend and Ponder's penchant for targeting him even when Percy and Rhett Ellison are wide open, Wright isn't going to do much in the offense except block.
SKOL!
Thursday, October 25, 2012
Vikings lose to Tampa Bay - Initial Reaction
Well, my actual initial reaction could only be spelled with capitals and asterisks, so I'm not posting that.
Frankly, I'm devastated. I know we had an extremely short week after a horrific win. I know that we have injuries, both fresh and nagging.
But this was our last "easy" game - unless Detroit all gets the flu and goes belly-up while we play them in two weeks - until St. Louis on December 16th. We NEEDED this game, and we got blown out of the water.
One of the talking heads - don't remember who, my eyes were full of blood from screaming obscenities at the television - said something that makes a lot of sense. That we're a young group, a fresh group, and we need time to become a team before we can make a legitimate playoff run. A team, a cohesive unit that works together and plays together and has a rhythm.
One or two things that made me happy - our boys kept trying all game long. I was particularly encouraged by Harrison Smith hitting harder and harder as the game went on. He was not going to roll over and he let Tampa know it. Jared Allen made some spectacular plays - and so did Everson Griffin. I'm so proud of him, he never gets the slightest bit of recognition, and he continues to go out there and kick some ass. I didn't notice Robison at all (except for what SHOULD have been an interception, ahem), which really is quite a good thing.
I feel we reduced the stupid penalties a teeny bit, at least they weren't quite as blatant as on Sunday.
One thing that encourages me is the tweets from the team after the game:
chris cook @Cook_Isle
Thanks everyone ! We gotta bounce back next week tho!!!
(N.B. Chris Cook has a broken wrist, which is also devastating - no idea when he'll be back.)
TreyTrey @sanford33
Sorry for the way we played tonight. No excuse for the way we played. Back to the drawing board tomorrow. #SkolVikes
(I'm glad he feels the pain of this loss...means he'll work harder, and I love that about these guys.)
Aj Mansour @AjMansourKFAN
Frazier seemed dejected during his post game presser. Said he didn't do a good job getting his team ready for tonight. #Vikings
(Glad he recognizes that.)
Geoff Schwartz @GeoffSchwartz76
Disappointing game tonight. We will bounce back. The Dome was rocking tonight and we do notice that. Love it. #SkolVikings
(Glad he acknowledges the fans, if I had been there I would've appreciated it a lot. Hell, I just watched at home and I still appreciate it a lot.)
Chris Kluwe @ChrisWarcraft
Would like to thank all the fans for staying loud and into it for as long as possible though. You guys showed up, and we appreciate it.
(Again, the appreciation is appreciated.)
So to sum it all up - we have a nice long break, I want them to all go home feeling horrible, and wake up in the morning feeling angry and determined and ready to kick some ass at Seattle.
SKOL!
Frankly, I'm devastated. I know we had an extremely short week after a horrific win. I know that we have injuries, both fresh and nagging.
But this was our last "easy" game - unless Detroit all gets the flu and goes belly-up while we play them in two weeks - until St. Louis on December 16th. We NEEDED this game, and we got blown out of the water.
One of the talking heads - don't remember who, my eyes were full of blood from screaming obscenities at the television - said something that makes a lot of sense. That we're a young group, a fresh group, and we need time to become a team before we can make a legitimate playoff run. A team, a cohesive unit that works together and plays together and has a rhythm.
One or two things that made me happy - our boys kept trying all game long. I was particularly encouraged by Harrison Smith hitting harder and harder as the game went on. He was not going to roll over and he let Tampa know it. Jared Allen made some spectacular plays - and so did Everson Griffin. I'm so proud of him, he never gets the slightest bit of recognition, and he continues to go out there and kick some ass. I didn't notice Robison at all (except for what SHOULD have been an interception, ahem), which really is quite a good thing.
I feel we reduced the stupid penalties a teeny bit, at least they weren't quite as blatant as on Sunday.
One thing that encourages me is the tweets from the team after the game:
chris cook @Cook_Isle
Thanks everyone ! We gotta bounce back next week tho!!!
(N.B. Chris Cook has a broken wrist, which is also devastating - no idea when he'll be back.)
TreyTrey @sanford33
Sorry for the way we played tonight. No excuse for the way we played. Back to the drawing board tomorrow. #SkolVikes
(I'm glad he feels the pain of this loss...means he'll work harder, and I love that about these guys.)
Aj Mansour @AjMansourKFAN
Frazier seemed dejected during his post game presser. Said he didn't do a good job getting his team ready for tonight. #Vikings
(Glad he recognizes that.)
Geoff Schwartz @GeoffSchwartz76
Disappointing game tonight. We will bounce back. The Dome was rocking tonight and we do notice that. Love it. #SkolVikings
(Glad he acknowledges the fans, if I had been there I would've appreciated it a lot. Hell, I just watched at home and I still appreciate it a lot.)
Chris Kluwe @ChrisWarcraft
Would like to thank all the fans for staying loud and into it for as long as possible though. You guys showed up, and we appreciate it.
(Again, the appreciation is appreciated.)
So to sum it all up - we have a nice long break, I want them to all go home feeling horrible, and wake up in the morning feeling angry and determined and ready to kick some ass at Seattle.
SKOL!
Wednesday, October 24, 2012
Arizona @ Minnesota Recap
What a relief to squeak out this win! And believe me, it was a SQUEAK despite the score.
Thank goodness for Adrian Peterson! Without his 153 rushing yards, we'd be sunk. Without that ass-busting first down at the very end of the game to stop the Cardinals from getting the ball back, we'd be sunk. Heck, let's also throw a shout-out to Harrison Smith for his quick hands and presence of mind - that pick-six turned out to be the game winner! Not to mention it happening so early in the second half gave us a boost that our defense held on to, despite our offense looking lost and confused.
Game ball definitely goes to our defense. They never gave up, even when our offense couldn't stay on the field and give them a breather. They held Arizona to a missed field goal after some SERIOUSLY questionable penalties, Antoine Winfield managed to force a stop on a 4th-and-1, Smith's pick-six, and they only gave up two touchdowns after being on the field for 69 plays (the Vikings offense only managed 47 plays). Brian Robison was also quietly awesome for us - I believe he had 8 tackles?
That said, enough already with the missed tackles - I realize you're trying to avoid a FedEx envelope from Goodell, but if I had to watch one more Arizona Cardinal run past a Viking falling down and grabbing at his ankles last Sunday...I might have had to punch something.
Special teams were also great - too bad a block in the back negated Percy Harvin's kickoff return for a touchdown. I think it devastated our offense to go from a touchdown to a 3-and-out. Chris Kluwe had 7 punts and that Peterson guy only managed to return 4 of them, which is pretty damn good. He had a rough day with snaps - don't know which one it was, but one of Cullen Loeffler's snaps came up to about his shoulder and he still punted it off. I hope the two of them get back in sync pronto. We can't afford our special teams to get slipshod, because we WILL lose if that happens.
The offense...it offends me. Two stupid, needless interceptions from Ponder - one with 5 seconds left in the half! Mr. Ponder, I realize you're having a great time in that "early stages lovey dovey" relationship with Miss Steele, but when you're on the field, please forget she exists. At the very least, learn how to throw the football away. The word "uncatchable" needs to be engraved on your eyeballs.
And the stupid penalties!! THIS GOES FOR ALL OF THE PLAYERS - ENOUGH WITH THE STUPID PENALTIES!!!
I am also pissed at the playcalling. Three consecutive passes when Ponder is in such a non-rhythm he couldn't hit the wide side of a barn? His name is Adrian Peterson. He can run the football. We also have a young man named Toby Gerhart, who also has some minimal experience in this area. Keep defenses honest. Also, stretch the damn field!! Percy Harvin can catch long bombs, he did it plenty at the University of Florida, and Simpson is getting better.
I can only hope we keep winning. But these ugly wins are scaring me worse than any haunted house ever could!
Thank goodness for Adrian Peterson! Without his 153 rushing yards, we'd be sunk. Without that ass-busting first down at the very end of the game to stop the Cardinals from getting the ball back, we'd be sunk. Heck, let's also throw a shout-out to Harrison Smith for his quick hands and presence of mind - that pick-six turned out to be the game winner! Not to mention it happening so early in the second half gave us a boost that our defense held on to, despite our offense looking lost and confused.
Game ball definitely goes to our defense. They never gave up, even when our offense couldn't stay on the field and give them a breather. They held Arizona to a missed field goal after some SERIOUSLY questionable penalties, Antoine Winfield managed to force a stop on a 4th-and-1, Smith's pick-six, and they only gave up two touchdowns after being on the field for 69 plays (the Vikings offense only managed 47 plays). Brian Robison was also quietly awesome for us - I believe he had 8 tackles?
That said, enough already with the missed tackles - I realize you're trying to avoid a FedEx envelope from Goodell, but if I had to watch one more Arizona Cardinal run past a Viking falling down and grabbing at his ankles last Sunday...I might have had to punch something.
Special teams were also great - too bad a block in the back negated Percy Harvin's kickoff return for a touchdown. I think it devastated our offense to go from a touchdown to a 3-and-out. Chris Kluwe had 7 punts and that Peterson guy only managed to return 4 of them, which is pretty damn good. He had a rough day with snaps - don't know which one it was, but one of Cullen Loeffler's snaps came up to about his shoulder and he still punted it off. I hope the two of them get back in sync pronto. We can't afford our special teams to get slipshod, because we WILL lose if that happens.
The offense...it offends me. Two stupid, needless interceptions from Ponder - one with 5 seconds left in the half! Mr. Ponder, I realize you're having a great time in that "early stages lovey dovey" relationship with Miss Steele, but when you're on the field, please forget she exists. At the very least, learn how to throw the football away. The word "uncatchable" needs to be engraved on your eyeballs.
And the stupid penalties!! THIS GOES FOR ALL OF THE PLAYERS - ENOUGH WITH THE STUPID PENALTIES!!!
I am also pissed at the playcalling. Three consecutive passes when Ponder is in such a non-rhythm he couldn't hit the wide side of a barn? His name is Adrian Peterson. He can run the football. We also have a young man named Toby Gerhart, who also has some minimal experience in this area. Keep defenses honest. Also, stretch the damn field!! Percy Harvin can catch long bombs, he did it plenty at the University of Florida, and Simpson is getting better.
I can only hope we keep winning. But these ugly wins are scaring me worse than any haunted house ever could!
Monday, October 15, 2012
Vikings @ Washington recap
I think "fiasco" sums it up adequately.
Don't get me wrong - the Skins did indeed deserve to win. But they deserved to win because they executed where we didn't.
I want to know HOW and WHY Leslie Frazier allows our team to dink, dunk, fail during the second and third quarters (hell, we failed in the first quarter too, by scoring FGs instead of TDs), and then suddenly we begin to execute in the fourth - where unfortunately, it's too little, too late. If they want to hire me to jump up and down, scream, and get in peoples' faces to fire the team up during games, Mr. Frazier, Mr. Wilf, I am available!
I think what irritated me most was seeing Jared Allen laughing on the sideline during the fourth quarter during a nailbiter drive by our offense. In my gimpy opinion, when you let a rookie quarterback sneak on past you for a 76 yard rushing touchdown...don't laugh.
What irritated me second-most was Ponder. The man tried hard, and I give him a great deal of credit for not throwing in the towel and giving up. But he has got to work on those desperation plays - three picks thrown when he was flustered and didn't know where to go! I'll tell you where to go - the sideline, ten yards away! NOT over the middle!
N.B. Madieu Williams - really? Can't tie his own shoelaces when he's with us, and he plays against us and suddenly he's an interception machine?!
On the offense, Peterson tried hard, Percy tried hard, and quite a few others - Jenkins, Aromashodu, Kalil, and Fusco did what we asked of them. Rudolph definitely had a few things to work on, but I have faith that he'll bust his ass to get better, because that's the kind of player he is.
On the defense, can I take a moment to applaud Everson Griffin? His mother dies suddenly and unexpectedly while she's visiting him - he finds out while he's at a practice, and four days later he not only comes to the game, but he dresses out and performs?? The man is incredible, and I take my hat off for him, I can't imagine I'd be able to do the same in his place.
Other than that, the defense made some good stands, but some terribly crucial errors as well. I'm wondering just what kind of nagging injury Chris Cook has got, because his coverages have been soft and his ballhawking negligible this season, and it's starting to concern me. Jared Allen has had a very slow season - at least he got one sack yesterday - and the lack of pressure on RGIII was unacceptable. Our D is better than this!
Our special teams were decent, but the only real notes I have are that I'm glad Percy isn't on as many kickoff returns (he was pretty gimpy yesterday), and a standing ovation for Sherels for hanging onto that ball when he got a boneshattering hit from a Skin that made his helmet fly off. I cannot say enough about how important it was he hung onto the ball right there!
Frankly, I want to see if our team can come back from this loss the way we did from a devastating Indianapolis loss to beat a rather good San Francisco (I say good, not great, because of the way they got trounced by the Giants yesterday...now THAT must've been humiliating!), and then rival Detroit and upstart Tennessee. Arizona aren't exactly pushovers, even with talk of Kolb being out with an injury, and we need to want this to win.
Look on the bright side - we're 4-2 and the Packers are 3-3! 4-2 isn't bad, especially when you consider our record from last season.
SKOL!
Don't get me wrong - the Skins did indeed deserve to win. But they deserved to win because they executed where we didn't.
I want to know HOW and WHY Leslie Frazier allows our team to dink, dunk, fail during the second and third quarters (hell, we failed in the first quarter too, by scoring FGs instead of TDs), and then suddenly we begin to execute in the fourth - where unfortunately, it's too little, too late. If they want to hire me to jump up and down, scream, and get in peoples' faces to fire the team up during games, Mr. Frazier, Mr. Wilf, I am available!
I think what irritated me most was seeing Jared Allen laughing on the sideline during the fourth quarter during a nailbiter drive by our offense. In my gimpy opinion, when you let a rookie quarterback sneak on past you for a 76 yard rushing touchdown...don't laugh.
What irritated me second-most was Ponder. The man tried hard, and I give him a great deal of credit for not throwing in the towel and giving up. But he has got to work on those desperation plays - three picks thrown when he was flustered and didn't know where to go! I'll tell you where to go - the sideline, ten yards away! NOT over the middle!
N.B. Madieu Williams - really? Can't tie his own shoelaces when he's with us, and he plays against us and suddenly he's an interception machine?!
On the offense, Peterson tried hard, Percy tried hard, and quite a few others - Jenkins, Aromashodu, Kalil, and Fusco did what we asked of them. Rudolph definitely had a few things to work on, but I have faith that he'll bust his ass to get better, because that's the kind of player he is.
On the defense, can I take a moment to applaud Everson Griffin? His mother dies suddenly and unexpectedly while she's visiting him - he finds out while he's at a practice, and four days later he not only comes to the game, but he dresses out and performs?? The man is incredible, and I take my hat off for him, I can't imagine I'd be able to do the same in his place.
Other than that, the defense made some good stands, but some terribly crucial errors as well. I'm wondering just what kind of nagging injury Chris Cook has got, because his coverages have been soft and his ballhawking negligible this season, and it's starting to concern me. Jared Allen has had a very slow season - at least he got one sack yesterday - and the lack of pressure on RGIII was unacceptable. Our D is better than this!
Our special teams were decent, but the only real notes I have are that I'm glad Percy isn't on as many kickoff returns (he was pretty gimpy yesterday), and a standing ovation for Sherels for hanging onto that ball when he got a boneshattering hit from a Skin that made his helmet fly off. I cannot say enough about how important it was he hung onto the ball right there!
Frankly, I want to see if our team can come back from this loss the way we did from a devastating Indianapolis loss to beat a rather good San Francisco (I say good, not great, because of the way they got trounced by the Giants yesterday...now THAT must've been humiliating!), and then rival Detroit and upstart Tennessee. Arizona aren't exactly pushovers, even with talk of Kolb being out with an injury, and we need to want this to win.
Look on the bright side - we're 4-2 and the Packers are 3-3! 4-2 isn't bad, especially when you consider our record from last season.
SKOL!
Thursday, October 11, 2012
DeJon Gomes vs Adrian Peterson
Peterson: "I’ll make sure I have my shoulders low. (Gomes) might be trying to go for the ankles."
SKOL!
SKOL!
Tuesday, October 9, 2012
Hiatus
So I haven't updated lately - my life is a shambles, and I haven't had the energy to read for fun, let alone dissect the Vikings' performances.
So here's a quick rundown - I'm overjoyed with our record, pleased with our performance (mostly), and interested to see we come out of the next five games before our bye. They're all extremely winnable on paper, but if we come out as low as 3-2, that could still be enough to secure a playoff berth if we bust ass against our brutal conference post-bye stretch.
I'm loving the way our team is growing together, and amazed by our defense's performance in the last couple games. Ponder is trying a little too hard sometimes, but he's a second-year QB. He'll learn.
Enough for now, I'll try to update more regularly later.
SKOL!
So here's a quick rundown - I'm overjoyed with our record, pleased with our performance (mostly), and interested to see we come out of the next five games before our bye. They're all extremely winnable on paper, but if we come out as low as 3-2, that could still be enough to secure a playoff berth if we bust ass against our brutal conference post-bye stretch.
I'm loving the way our team is growing together, and amazed by our defense's performance in the last couple games. Ponder is trying a little too hard sometimes, but he's a second-year QB. He'll learn.
Enough for now, I'll try to update more regularly later.
SKOL!
Saturday, July 7, 2012
Adrian Peterson Arrested
Three words I NEVER EVER thought I would type.
From what I can make out, he was at a club with his wife and some friends, it closed, he tried to get a glass of water before leaving, the cops told him to get out, they "had words" and then he walked out with a bouncer, and then got arrested for "resisting arrest" on the street.
What...the...I...just...don't...even...
Clearly, the cops are Houston Texans fans and want to screw over the Vikings. Google says we play week 4 of preseason (where I'm 100% sure Peterson will be on the preseason PUP and wouldn't play anyway) and week 16 of regular season at their house. Well, there you have it! FBI, please arrest all the relevant members of Houston Police Department for illegally trying to alter the outcome of NFL football games!
Seriously, this is ludicrous. And that's the nicest word in my vocabulary that I can think of. Most of the ones in my head right now are four letters long!!!!!
(N.B. I am not ACTUALLY accusing HPD of trying to take Peterson down for the sake of football. That would be slander, and all I am going for here is a heavy dose of irony.)
Update - apparently a cop jumped on his back as he was walking out and a few more piled on. Still blows my mind. Jokes aside, HPD is a POLICE FORCE - surely they're all smart and well-trained enough to know that a man walking out of an exit is a man who is leaving the club, per their original orders! It seems there's video of the whole incident so hopefully everything will clear up soon. Preferably in favor of Adrian Peterson.
From what I can make out, he was at a club with his wife and some friends, it closed, he tried to get a glass of water before leaving, the cops told him to get out, they "had words" and then he walked out with a bouncer, and then got arrested for "resisting arrest" on the street.
What...the...I...just...don't...even...
Clearly, the cops are Houston Texans fans and want to screw over the Vikings. Google says we play week 4 of preseason (where I'm 100% sure Peterson will be on the preseason PUP and wouldn't play anyway) and week 16 of regular season at their house. Well, there you have it! FBI, please arrest all the relevant members of Houston Police Department for illegally trying to alter the outcome of NFL football games!
Seriously, this is ludicrous. And that's the nicest word in my vocabulary that I can think of. Most of the ones in my head right now are four letters long!!!!!
(N.B. I am not ACTUALLY accusing HPD of trying to take Peterson down for the sake of football. That would be slander, and all I am going for here is a heavy dose of irony.)
Update - apparently a cop jumped on his back as he was walking out and a few more piled on. Still blows my mind. Jokes aside, HPD is a POLICE FORCE - surely they're all smart and well-trained enough to know that a man walking out of an exit is a man who is leaving the club, per their original orders! It seems there's video of the whole incident so hopefully everything will clear up soon. Preferably in favor of Adrian Peterson.
Thursday, June 21, 2012
Breaking: Husain Abdullah MIGHT Retire
According to Twitter (that is, Tom Pelissero) Husain Abdullah is "done with football", having turned down contract offers from the Vikings (and other teams?) to "pursue religious obligations". Also, he has had some concussion problems.
I'm shocked, totally didn't see this coming - I thought he was using football as a platform to show the truth of being a Muslim in America, but I suppose if he's had a lot of concussion problems it makes sense.
Guess we have another roster spot open. Wow. Just...wow!
EDIT - Oookay, just saw this tweet:
Pioneer Press @VikingsNow
Told Abdullah realizes his football future is uncertain but isn't ruling out a return after his pilgrimage.
So...I guess we're waiting and seeing? I'll keep you updated.
I'm shocked, totally didn't see this coming - I thought he was using football as a platform to show the truth of being a Muslim in America, but I suppose if he's had a lot of concussion problems it makes sense.
Guess we have another roster spot open. Wow. Just...wow!
EDIT - Oookay, just saw this tweet:
Pioneer Press @VikingsNow
Told Abdullah realizes his football future is uncertain but isn't ruling out a return after his pilgrimage.
So...I guess we're waiting and seeing? I'll keep you updated.
Tuesday, June 19, 2012
Quick Take
Hey all, I'm still pretty busy (thesis...sigh) but I wanted to post a couple thoughts I've had about what's happened so far this week.
1. Percy Harvin: in the last week of May, he and Adrian Peterson were running a race up a hill to show off to the media how dedicated they were to turn the team around...now, not even three weeks later, he's "disgruntled" about something - no one but he and Frazier seem to know what - and is suggesting a holdout is possible!!
To be honest, he's not paid all that much for a #1 WR - I believe his base salary was $900,000 last year, $1,000,000 this year, and something similar for the two years after that on his rookie contract. If money is all that's the issue, Frazier&co need to do something about it and FAST. We do not need dissent and anger on this team, and if threatening a holdout is unhealthy, so is underpaying your best players.
I'm assuming it's not his health, although I'd be mad if the media wouldn't leave me alone about some stupid bone spurs in my shoulder too, so I can't imagine what else it would be. At Florida, he was super-dedicated to learning the playbook, and would always work to learn a new system as best he could, so I can't imagine the staff changeover is the problem here.
2. Jasper Brinkley: apparently there are still issues with his surgically repaired hip, which really bothers me, because I wanted this to be his season! Hopefully the summer will be long enough for his body to get itself together, and he'll be able to hit the ground running come Week 1.
3. Adrian Peterson: being watched very carefully by the training staff, and fighting as hard as he can to improve. I saw some pictures posted today by Tom Pelissero, and it was reassuring to see action shots of him running and looking concentrated rather in pain. According to Sugarman, they want him for the home opener on September 9th...I'm still not sure that'll happen, or if it's wise Also finally saw a pic of McLeod Bethel-Thompson, looks quite muscled, although his wearing #4 made me laugh.
4. Jared Allen: wants to make 25 sacks this year. I LOVE my players to set awesome record-breaking goals! Especially when they're Jared Allen and can totally do it.
5. Tight Ends: been showing up a LOT in twitter comments, blogs, and camp reports. This makes me very happy - I've been absolutely dying for those two-TE sets we've been promised for years now.
Okay I'm done for now. Time for the Big Bang Theory and some dinner.
1. Percy Harvin: in the last week of May, he and Adrian Peterson were running a race up a hill to show off to the media how dedicated they were to turn the team around...now, not even three weeks later, he's "disgruntled" about something - no one but he and Frazier seem to know what - and is suggesting a holdout is possible!!
To be honest, he's not paid all that much for a #1 WR - I believe his base salary was $900,000 last year, $1,000,000 this year, and something similar for the two years after that on his rookie contract. If money is all that's the issue, Frazier&co need to do something about it and FAST. We do not need dissent and anger on this team, and if threatening a holdout is unhealthy, so is underpaying your best players.
I'm assuming it's not his health, although I'd be mad if the media wouldn't leave me alone about some stupid bone spurs in my shoulder too, so I can't imagine what else it would be. At Florida, he was super-dedicated to learning the playbook, and would always work to learn a new system as best he could, so I can't imagine the staff changeover is the problem here.
2. Jasper Brinkley: apparently there are still issues with his surgically repaired hip, which really bothers me, because I wanted this to be his season! Hopefully the summer will be long enough for his body to get itself together, and he'll be able to hit the ground running come Week 1.
3. Adrian Peterson: being watched very carefully by the training staff, and fighting as hard as he can to improve. I saw some pictures posted today by Tom Pelissero, and it was reassuring to see action shots of him running and looking concentrated rather in pain. According to Sugarman, they want him for the home opener on September 9th...I'm still not sure that'll happen, or if it's wise Also finally saw a pic of McLeod Bethel-Thompson, looks quite muscled, although his wearing #4 made me laugh.
4. Jared Allen: wants to make 25 sacks this year. I LOVE my players to set awesome record-breaking goals! Especially when they're Jared Allen and can totally do it.
5. Tight Ends: been showing up a LOT in twitter comments, blogs, and camp reports. This makes me very happy - I've been absolutely dying for those two-TE sets we've been promised for years now.
Okay I'm done for now. Time for the Big Bang Theory and some dinner.
Monday, June 18, 2012
Position Analysis: Runningback
Hello all - Portugal has made it through to the quarterfinals, and I'm ecstatic!! So I'm taking the time to do another position analysis...I was going to put off the RBs for awhile, but the reports of Peterson's progress have been so good, I decided to go ahead and write it up.
Currently on our roster are:
Derrick Coleman, 6'1", 240 lbs, age 21, 0 years experience
Toby Gerhart, 6'0", 231 lbs, age 25, 3 years experience
Lex Hilliard, 5'11", 240 lbs, age 27, 4 years experience
Adrian Peterson, 6'1", 217 lbs, age 27, 6 years experience
Jordan Todmann, 5'9", 193 lbs, age 22, 1 years experience
I had to look up Derrick Coleman, who doesn't have his own wikipedia page (although it seems there was a rather famous basketball player with exactly the same name), but looking at the 2011 UCLA Bruins football wiki, I could see he was particularly valuable to them in short-yardage situations, and scored quite frequently. Of course, I can't really make any predictions about his longevity with the Vikings since I've never seen him play (barely paid any attention to Pac10 games last year, even though I live in Pac10 country now), but I like short-yardage guys, especially when they're unselfish about blocking the rest of the time.
Toby Gerhart is something of a pet of mine - I really want him to do well, particularly in those short-yardage situations that we really brought him in for, considering his size and the dogged persistence he showed at Stanford. People keep hating on him, but I'd love for him to stick in tandem with Peterson and really show the world what he's got going on.
Lex Hilliard I also had to look up, because I particularly hate the Miami Tuna and only pay attention when they're losing so I can laugh at them. He looks quite stable, but considering the fact we're probably going to have 5-6 WRs on roster, I can't see us having more than 2-3 RBs, and I don't know if he'll make our #3 slot behind Peterson and Gerhart. Maybe he'll be practice squad, as he was the #3 RB for Miami until Williams came back into the picture.
Adrian Peterson - he needs no introduction! I've been following twitter breathlessly, but he really seems to be healing at an incredible pace, although I'll bet good money he's held out of all of the preseason and a few of the first regular season games. No sense in jeopardizing his recovery for meaningless games! I read that he was doing sprints before some of the OTAs for the media...just a few months into recovery! Now THAT is dedication and perseverance! I am so glad and proud that he's a Viking!!
Jordan Todman was another wikipedia trip - it seems that he finished his collegiate career third on the Huskies all-time rushing list before being drafted in the sixth round last year by the Chargers, was waived in late October and resigned to the practice squad before we signed him off their squad in late December.
I'm convinced we're going to keep three runningbacks on the active roster and one or two on the practice squad.
Naturally, Adrian Peterson will be our #1 and Toby Gerhart our #2. HOWEVER, if Frazier thinks like I do, he could keep Peterson on the PUP list for a couple weeks into the season with Gerhart as #1, and two of the remaining three RBs duking it out for active roster and practice squad once Peterson returns. Since I've not seen any of the remaining three play, I'll go purely by size and guess that perhaps Todman will be dropped off first, and it'll be a race between Hilliard and Coleman.
Who knows though, Todman may be a Maurice Jones-Drew in disguise, and he'll race up and become our #3! As long as Frazier&co pick a good one, I don't care what his name is.
Skol!
Currently on our roster are:
Derrick Coleman, 6'1", 240 lbs, age 21, 0 years experience
Toby Gerhart, 6'0", 231 lbs, age 25, 3 years experience
Lex Hilliard, 5'11", 240 lbs, age 27, 4 years experience
Adrian Peterson, 6'1", 217 lbs, age 27, 6 years experience
Jordan Todmann, 5'9", 193 lbs, age 22, 1 years experience
I had to look up Derrick Coleman, who doesn't have his own wikipedia page (although it seems there was a rather famous basketball player with exactly the same name), but looking at the 2011 UCLA Bruins football wiki, I could see he was particularly valuable to them in short-yardage situations, and scored quite frequently. Of course, I can't really make any predictions about his longevity with the Vikings since I've never seen him play (barely paid any attention to Pac10 games last year, even though I live in Pac10 country now), but I like short-yardage guys, especially when they're unselfish about blocking the rest of the time.
Toby Gerhart is something of a pet of mine - I really want him to do well, particularly in those short-yardage situations that we really brought him in for, considering his size and the dogged persistence he showed at Stanford. People keep hating on him, but I'd love for him to stick in tandem with Peterson and really show the world what he's got going on.
Lex Hilliard I also had to look up, because I particularly hate the Miami Tuna and only pay attention when they're losing so I can laugh at them. He looks quite stable, but considering the fact we're probably going to have 5-6 WRs on roster, I can't see us having more than 2-3 RBs, and I don't know if he'll make our #3 slot behind Peterson and Gerhart. Maybe he'll be practice squad, as he was the #3 RB for Miami until Williams came back into the picture.
Adrian Peterson - he needs no introduction! I've been following twitter breathlessly, but he really seems to be healing at an incredible pace, although I'll bet good money he's held out of all of the preseason and a few of the first regular season games. No sense in jeopardizing his recovery for meaningless games! I read that he was doing sprints before some of the OTAs for the media...just a few months into recovery! Now THAT is dedication and perseverance! I am so glad and proud that he's a Viking!!
Jordan Todman was another wikipedia trip - it seems that he finished his collegiate career third on the Huskies all-time rushing list before being drafted in the sixth round last year by the Chargers, was waived in late October and resigned to the practice squad before we signed him off their squad in late December.
I'm convinced we're going to keep three runningbacks on the active roster and one or two on the practice squad.
Naturally, Adrian Peterson will be our #1 and Toby Gerhart our #2. HOWEVER, if Frazier thinks like I do, he could keep Peterson on the PUP list for a couple weeks into the season with Gerhart as #1, and two of the remaining three RBs duking it out for active roster and practice squad once Peterson returns. Since I've not seen any of the remaining three play, I'll go purely by size and guess that perhaps Todman will be dropped off first, and it'll be a race between Hilliard and Coleman.
Who knows though, Todman may be a Maurice Jones-Drew in disguise, and he'll race up and become our #3! As long as Frazier&co pick a good one, I don't care what his name is.
Skol!
Monday, June 11, 2012
Euro 2012
It's the biggest month of the year for futebol, so updates here will be spotty. You've been forewarned.
Just wanted to comment on a couple things:
1. Ben Leber's retirement: 10 years is a good run, especially when you've only been with three teams (Rams, Chargers, Vikings), and I know I was sad when he had to leave the Vikings, all the more so because it didn't seem like he WANTED to leave the Vikings. As one of the posters on First and Skol pointed out, he was incredibly versatile (took over at MLB when EJ Henderson got injured), and he was incredibly valuable as a player. One of those dependable, solid, quiet players that every coach values more than gold, and sadly, most "fans" never even think about.
Thanks for everything you gave to us Ben! This Viking, at least, appreciates your time in purple and gold!
2. We have a stadium-in-progress! Yes, I know this is "old news" but considering the massive fight over it and the years of bitching, back-and-forth, and gnawing fear of my beloved Vikings moving to the capital of all that is fake...I want to celebrate this fact as much as possible!!
3. The team "glue": Following twitter - I'm @carlatheviking there too - as I do, I have noticed a LOT of team dinners, fishing trips, friendly banter between all the "established" Vikings and the rookies. I'm pretty happy about this - I'm convinced that the more friendly they are in real life, the better they'll do together on the field.
4. Team dedication: although I just said the team is tweeting about a lot of fun stuff there are also two other VERY important things reflected in their tweets - they ARE working out (a lot - and competing against each other) and they are NOT tweeting about getting blitzed or eating seven cheeseburgers in one sitting. After the JaMarcus Russell fiasco, I am very, very glad our boys know better than to live on junk. Also, I see tweets like Geoff Schwartz's that read, "After a long night and early morning I made it into Winter Park for meetings. Worst nightmare is missing or late to meetings/practice." - those make me very happy!
5. 2012 Schedule: I don't know if I mentioned this before but I am PISSED that we have no night games. Even vs the Cheeseheads?! Really?! There is no respect for rivalry anymore...and I'm sad our boys won't get primetime experience. That kind of thing is big for rookies, to let them get first-time nerves out of their system.
6. Jasper Brinkley: read a report a couple days ago saying he's FINALLY completely healthy. I am going to be watching him very closely to see if he shows that SEC grind-it-out defense he was "raised" in. I'm psyched that he's finally better, and hopefully he can step into the shoes left for him by Henderson.
Okay that's enough for now, this Ukraine-Sweden game is getting real interesting. Skol!
Just wanted to comment on a couple things:
1. Ben Leber's retirement: 10 years is a good run, especially when you've only been with three teams (Rams, Chargers, Vikings), and I know I was sad when he had to leave the Vikings, all the more so because it didn't seem like he WANTED to leave the Vikings. As one of the posters on First and Skol pointed out, he was incredibly versatile (took over at MLB when EJ Henderson got injured), and he was incredibly valuable as a player. One of those dependable, solid, quiet players that every coach values more than gold, and sadly, most "fans" never even think about.
Thanks for everything you gave to us Ben! This Viking, at least, appreciates your time in purple and gold!
2. We have a stadium-in-progress! Yes, I know this is "old news" but considering the massive fight over it and the years of bitching, back-and-forth, and gnawing fear of my beloved Vikings moving to the capital of all that is fake...I want to celebrate this fact as much as possible!!
3. The team "glue": Following twitter - I'm @carlatheviking there too - as I do, I have noticed a LOT of team dinners, fishing trips, friendly banter between all the "established" Vikings and the rookies. I'm pretty happy about this - I'm convinced that the more friendly they are in real life, the better they'll do together on the field.
4. Team dedication: although I just said the team is tweeting about a lot of fun stuff there are also two other VERY important things reflected in their tweets - they ARE working out (a lot - and competing against each other) and they are NOT tweeting about getting blitzed or eating seven cheeseburgers in one sitting. After the JaMarcus Russell fiasco, I am very, very glad our boys know better than to live on junk. Also, I see tweets like Geoff Schwartz's that read, "After a long night and early morning I made it into Winter Park for meetings. Worst nightmare is missing or late to meetings/practice." - those make me very happy!
5. 2012 Schedule: I don't know if I mentioned this before but I am PISSED that we have no night games. Even vs the Cheeseheads?! Really?! There is no respect for rivalry anymore...and I'm sad our boys won't get primetime experience. That kind of thing is big for rookies, to let them get first-time nerves out of their system.
6. Jasper Brinkley: read a report a couple days ago saying he's FINALLY completely healthy. I am going to be watching him very closely to see if he shows that SEC grind-it-out defense he was "raised" in. I'm psyched that he's finally better, and hopefully he can step into the shoes left for him by Henderson.
Okay that's enough for now, this Ukraine-Sweden game is getting real interesting. Skol!
Wednesday, June 6, 2012
Position Analysis: Quarterback
According to Vikings.com we have four quarterbacks on the roster right now:
Number Name Height Weight Age Experience
#4 McLeod Bethel-Thompson, 6'4", 230 lbs, 23, 0
#7 Christian Ponder, 6'2", 229 lbs, 24, 0
#18 Sage Rosenfels, 6'4", 222 lbs, 34, 11
#14 Joe Webb 6'4", 220 lbs, 25, 2
I know we added Bethel-Thompson in January as a reserve, and from what I can tell we signed Rosenfels in March. What surprises me is that Ponder has a 0 next to his name instead of a 1. Maybe they just haven't updated that bit yet...
Clearly, Ponder and Webb will be battling it out for the top spot, and Rosenfels and Bethel-Thompson for the third slot.
Ponder will remain as a pure quarterback I'm sure; but I'm not so sure I believe Frazier's blithe promises to have Webb focusing on his quarterbacking skill at the expense of trick plays and a modified wildcat. (Because only Miami has any success running an unmodified wildcat...) I have no idea what Bethel-Thompson's skill set is, but he's young enough and there's a sufficient scarcity of experienced backups in the NFL that I'm pretty sure we'll keep Rosenfels unless he does something stupid...like pulling a Rhett Bomar...
To be brutally honest, I doubt that Ponder will be able to carry the team (this year, I'm hopeful for the future) the way the elites - Manning, Brees, Rodgers - did in their early years. But I still liked what little I was able to see last year, and if he shows himself to be a capable game manager, that should be enough for us to win at least six games.
I'm hoping for an 8-8 season. I think we can do it, even with the rest of the NFCN waking up and looking like real football teams. I want at least one win against the Bears and the Lions each.
P.S. I've been looking at Tom Pelissero's twitvids of Ponder throwing at practice and I am SO excited about watching him grow this year! Especially if he grows out of throwing stupid interceptions...haha
Quick Draft Synopsis
Hello all!
I meant to have a super-fancy draft update, complete with names, pictures, and stats, but somehow time got away from me again. Don't feel bad, coming in second place to my thesis isn't bad when you consider that bathing, eating, and sleeping are also all tied for second place!
Since I have to leave for work soon, here's a very quick take on our draft and what I think of it:
1 - Matt Kalil, OT, Southern California (6-7, 306)
1 - Harrison Smith, S,
Notre Dame (6-2, 213)
3 - Josh Robinson, CB, Central Florida (5-10, 199)
4 -
Jarius Wright, WR, Arkansas (5-10, 196)
4 - Rhett Ellison, TE, Southern
California (6-5, 251)
4 - Greg Childs, WR, Arkansas (6-3, 219)
5 - Robert
Blanton, DB, Notre Dame (6-1, 208)
6 - Blair Walsh, K, Georgia (5-9, 187)
7
- Audie Cole, OLB, North Carolina State (6-4, 246)
7 - Trevor Guyton, DT,
California (6-3, 285)
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
Incommunicado
Well, I've been absent for awhile - grad school and my job combined with illness completely threw my life into a whirlwind of insanity and I only just got my head sort-of above water.
The good news: they're still working on a stadium deal.
The bad news: they're STILL working on a stadium deal. Really, Minnesota? The Vikings are good for you, please be good to them back.
The good news: we have a high draft pick.
The bad news: we really, really need it.
The good news: the Vikings can play at TCF Bank field while the new stadium is being built.
The bad news: there are substantially fewer seats (although they say they'll add 3,000 temporary seats in the endzone to make up some of the difference), so that means less revenue, which makes things difficult.
The good news: we're $10mil under cap and it looks like Speilman & Co are doing a really good job of resigning the right guys, restructuring deals, and cutting the "dead weight".
The bad news: with desperate holes in both our lines, our secondary, and at several key positions...we might not hit everything we need this season.
The good news: Adrian Peterson is healing well and right on schedule.
The bad news: Adrian Peterson has now had a bad knee injury and there are some guys in the NFL who will try and take advantage of that...
The good news: I am a Viking fan, and I'm excited for the upcoming season!
Night folks!
The good news: they're still working on a stadium deal.
The bad news: they're STILL working on a stadium deal. Really, Minnesota? The Vikings are good for you, please be good to them back.
The good news: we have a high draft pick.
The bad news: we really, really need it.
The good news: the Vikings can play at TCF Bank field while the new stadium is being built.
The bad news: there are substantially fewer seats (although they say they'll add 3,000 temporary seats in the endzone to make up some of the difference), so that means less revenue, which makes things difficult.
The good news: we're $10mil under cap and it looks like Speilman & Co are doing a really good job of resigning the right guys, restructuring deals, and cutting the "dead weight".
The bad news: with desperate holes in both our lines, our secondary, and at several key positions...we might not hit everything we need this season.
The good news: Adrian Peterson is healing well and right on schedule.
The bad news: Adrian Peterson has now had a bad knee injury and there are some guys in the NFL who will try and take advantage of that...
The good news: I am a Viking fan, and I'm excited for the upcoming season!
Night folks!
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