It's Friday, fellow Vikings! I'm at work (as I'm sure you are too), but fortunately since I'm a security guard, there's no issue with me researching and blogging my beloved Vikes at this early hour of the day.
Matt Kalil's hip surgery to fix a labrum tear was successful, but he's done for the season with a six-month recovery time. Hope he roars into camp next year and sets his pace for awesomeness throughout the season!
Sharrif Floyd's right knee arthroscopy happened yesterday, not much buzz on how it went or what the doctors saw so far as I can tell.
In direct contrast to yesterday's news about nothing but the meniscus being hurt in Peterson's knee, today there is a report he has a "slight LCL strain that will not require surgery". I do wish people would quit lying! At least I say when something is just a rumor or culled from twitter.
In good news, we beat the Packers with minimal services from both Kalil and Peterson, so here's hoping the team can keep the good energy and strong-arming up without them! Peterson is a vital presence as a leader, but he's also the kind of guy who will be there, day in and day out, rehabbing, watching film, participating in team activities and standing on the sidelines hollering for his teammates. We won't lose that service from him, for which I'm devoutly thankful! Found a byte today saying Peterson chose the full surgery now because it can potentially give him a few more years of his career now, instead of a partial repair or a trim which could risk his entire career all over again. I have to say, I'm salivating at the thought of a full-speed All Day next to a well-rested Teddy Bridgewater, with a year of Sam Bradford to back up, and emergency Shaun Hill, as well as the surprising emergence of Stefon Diggs and Adam Thielen!
Jerick Mckinnon has now won the starting RB spot for the Vikes. Skol, Mckinnon, and all the best of luck when you've got the rock! We've also picked up former Bronco Ronnie Hillman. I had him as a fantasy backup late last season and he was fine. Not a lot of scoring, but if we can use him for misdirection and blocking, and regular runs when Mckinnon is targeted by the defense, all should be "doable" if not "good"!
Lastly, sending out positive thoughts to the o-line in practice this week. Because we need some good breaks there!!
SKOL!
Friday, September 23, 2016
Thursday, September 22, 2016
Onward, Sweet Charlotte!
According to all the news agencies, the Vikings will go ahead with their game against the Panthers in Charlotte, South Carolina. Let's hope nothing bad happens and no one gets hurt.
For the record, I am 100% in favor of peaceful protesting, and have a certain amount of sympathy even when they do silly things like block open roads. What I am not in favor of is molotov cocktails and looting, which I think is a pretty reasonable line to draw.
Anyway, let's forget politics for a few minutes and enjoy some football.
Adrian Peterson's meniscus surgery was successful. Zimmer is still being cagey about the timeline. Guess at least Teddy has a rehab buddy now? Surgeons say there was no sign of damage or anything like that anywhere else in the knee, which is a big relief. He's getting up there in years, lets hope he's still got great healing flesh.
Out of the blue, Sharrif Floyd has had knee surgery today! Just a "cleanup" procedure due to a "cartilage" issue, similar to one he had last year. Then he was out for four games. Let's hope he doesn't take any longer this time around. Should we start praying for Linval Joseph? I'll burn a couple candles to keep him going!!
Xavier Rhodes is practicing and is *said* (that is, rumored on twitter) to be good to go for Sunday. Which is good, because we NEED him.
I'm going to end with this quote I found courtesy of HC Mike Zimmer:
"I feel like we have to go back to work and go play Carolina (on Sunday)," Zimmer said. "I expect (the players) to perform the way I always expect them to perform."
Mike Zimmer = Boss.
SKOL!
For the record, I am 100% in favor of peaceful protesting, and have a certain amount of sympathy even when they do silly things like block open roads. What I am not in favor of is molotov cocktails and looting, which I think is a pretty reasonable line to draw.
Anyway, let's forget politics for a few minutes and enjoy some football.
Adrian Peterson's meniscus surgery was successful. Zimmer is still being cagey about the timeline. Guess at least Teddy has a rehab buddy now? Surgeons say there was no sign of damage or anything like that anywhere else in the knee, which is a big relief. He's getting up there in years, lets hope he's still got great healing flesh.
Out of the blue, Sharrif Floyd has had knee surgery today! Just a "cleanup" procedure due to a "cartilage" issue, similar to one he had last year. Then he was out for four games. Let's hope he doesn't take any longer this time around. Should we start praying for Linval Joseph? I'll burn a couple candles to keep him going!!
Xavier Rhodes is practicing and is *said* (that is, rumored on twitter) to be good to go for Sunday. Which is good, because we NEED him.
I'm going to end with this quote I found courtesy of HC Mike Zimmer:
"I feel like we have to go back to work and go play Carolina (on Sunday)," Zimmer said. "I expect (the players) to perform the way I always expect them to perform."
Mike Zimmer = Boss.
SKOL!
Wednesday, September 21, 2016
Adrian Peterson to Undergo Surgery
Well, there you have it folks. Adrian Peterson has elected to undergo surgery to repair his torn meniscus, and will be out "several months". News reports are saying that "bucket handle tears" have recovery times of 3-4 months (a bit more time off than "running on torn meniscus all season", hey?!) which puts Peterson coming back for the rear end of the season, if at all.
To replace him we've picked up Ronnie Hillman, and made room for him by putting Matt Kalil on IR because apparently he has a lingering hip issue that they've now decided he needs surgery for too.
Salaries and cap hits aside...this is going to be one bumpy ride for the Minnesota Vikings. SKOL!
To replace him we've picked up Ronnie Hillman, and made room for him by putting Matt Kalil on IR because apparently he has a lingering hip issue that they've now decided he needs surgery for too.
Salaries and cap hits aside...this is going to be one bumpy ride for the Minnesota Vikings. SKOL!
Monday, September 19, 2016
All Day Problems
First thing's first: we won!! What a stellar christening present for our brand new stadium! Huzzah!
Now to get down to the bad bits: we've got some problems.
Worst problem first: Adrian Peterson is having a rough season.
I didn't fuss when he only got 31 yards the first game of the season, because he did that last season too and ended up with a monster year.
Last night he had 12 rushes for 19 yards (avg of 1.6 yards) and 2 receptions for 7 yards before being injured in the third quarter. This time it's a right knee injury, and apparently a torn meniscus. I've googled the injury (paging Dr. Google!) and they said that with surgery, it's a 6 week recovery rate. Since Zimmer went on the record saying he won't rule Peterson out for next week, I think we can all safely assume they're not going the surgery route. Apparently the non-surgery route requires rest, ice and physical therapy. We know Adrian does whatever he can on the physical therapy side of things, and the trainers will see him iced up to high heaven. But rest? Ha...that's a bit less likely.
Fortunately, the swelling seems to have subsided substantially, and he's walking around at home. Plus, players have gone whole seasons running on a torn meniscus before - Chris Johnson tore his while playing for the Titans and recorded a thousand yard plus season. So, we'll be hopeful on that front, but he is the "wrong side of thirty" for a football player, and he's had a worryingly slow start. Maybe it's time to start thinking about our other backs.
Next problem: o-line did not make me happy. Now I know perfectly well that of any part of a team, the o-line requires the MOST synchronicity and it's still a young season, and we did cut loose a few pieces late in the preseason, but still, I'm worried. Sam Bradford got sacked four times, and while he bounced up like an india-rubber ball last night, can he do that all season? I realize we won't play Green Bay's defense every week, but all we need is one unlucky hit to lose Sam Bradford the same way my Gators just lost Luke Del Rio for a month.
Finally: Green Bay fumbled like what, four times? And we only got it once? Our defense has GOT to get that! Winning the turnover ratio is how teams win games.
Still, it's a good omen that we won despite injuries. I'm happy that we're sitting pretty at 2-0. SKOL!
Now to get down to the bad bits: we've got some problems.
Worst problem first: Adrian Peterson is having a rough season.
I didn't fuss when he only got 31 yards the first game of the season, because he did that last season too and ended up with a monster year.
Last night he had 12 rushes for 19 yards (avg of 1.6 yards) and 2 receptions for 7 yards before being injured in the third quarter. This time it's a right knee injury, and apparently a torn meniscus. I've googled the injury (paging Dr. Google!) and they said that with surgery, it's a 6 week recovery rate. Since Zimmer went on the record saying he won't rule Peterson out for next week, I think we can all safely assume they're not going the surgery route. Apparently the non-surgery route requires rest, ice and physical therapy. We know Adrian does whatever he can on the physical therapy side of things, and the trainers will see him iced up to high heaven. But rest? Ha...that's a bit less likely.
Fortunately, the swelling seems to have subsided substantially, and he's walking around at home. Plus, players have gone whole seasons running on a torn meniscus before - Chris Johnson tore his while playing for the Titans and recorded a thousand yard plus season. So, we'll be hopeful on that front, but he is the "wrong side of thirty" for a football player, and he's had a worryingly slow start. Maybe it's time to start thinking about our other backs.
Next problem: o-line did not make me happy. Now I know perfectly well that of any part of a team, the o-line requires the MOST synchronicity and it's still a young season, and we did cut loose a few pieces late in the preseason, but still, I'm worried. Sam Bradford got sacked four times, and while he bounced up like an india-rubber ball last night, can he do that all season? I realize we won't play Green Bay's defense every week, but all we need is one unlucky hit to lose Sam Bradford the same way my Gators just lost Luke Del Rio for a month.
Finally: Green Bay fumbled like what, four times? And we only got it once? Our defense has GOT to get that! Winning the turnover ratio is how teams win games.
Still, it's a good omen that we won despite injuries. I'm happy that we're sitting pretty at 2-0. SKOL!
Sunday, September 18, 2016
Slow Start to the Season
Hello fellow Vikings!
I feel crazy that it's already Week Two, and this is only my first blog post of the season. Grad school has been chomping away at me, and I'm more grimly determined than ever that this be my last year. I've realized at the mature age of 28 that I need a more breathable work-life balance, and that the ivory tower just isn't for me. Thank goodness for football to give me some light in my life! It's been a weird and wacky season so far for us. The most traumatic part, of course, has been the miserably-timed Teddy Bridgewater injury.
I find it funny now, looking back to when we drafted him and I growled for about three days, hating him violently and saying dubiously, "I hope I'm wrong that he sucks, but I don't think I am." Well, I was wrong, and I'm sure Me-Back-Then would have found it very strange that Me-Right-Now is so upset at his loss!!!
So far as his injury goes, I feel for him in a very major way: not only have we lost our star QB, I suffered a very similar injury that ended my athletic career in high school and put paid to my dreams of a college swimming scholarship. Hopefully, since he has first-class medical care, and his insurance company actually gives a damn whether or not he runs again, and we're 15 years further into the treatment of horrific knee injuries, he comes out of it much better than I did! Not only that, but he has Adrian Peterson, who is blessed with the most miraculous healing flesh, to mentor him through the ungodly hell known as Rehabilitation (trust me...it's the worst) as well as a team who has been doggedly determined to make sure they bust up every other team on the docket so he can relax and heal without worrying.
Plus, he has Coach Zimmer to tie his shoelaces!
Big ups to Shaun Hill stepping up in a big way, especially last week vs the Titans. What a game that was! I think my heart was in my throat more than in its proper place for at least 50 of the 60 minutes of gameclock.
Which brings us to the big news of the season - trading a first and forth for the perennially lackluster Sam Bradford to replace Teddy.
Unlike a lot of people I was fine with this trade. Sure, Bradford has never lit the NFL world afire the way he did in his Heisman season for Oklahoma. But the Vikings don't need him to light up the night - we need him to not screw up. Sure, he's been battered. But not one of the NFL offenses he's been on has had a show running back like Adrian Peterson. Those defenses come up and start harassing Bradford and All Day is going to be ALL THE WAY into the endzone. We also have some stellar mid-field and short field options, particularly my favorite Kyle Rudolph. Rhett Ellison is solid for blocking, and Adam Thielen and Stefon Diggs have stepped up in nothing short of a spectacular way. If our boys can work together, establish a new rapport, and our line and the lure of Adrian Peterson and potential of Rudolph and Cordarrelle Patterson can keep defenses honest, we'll have our shot at 11 wins and a playoff slot. And best of all - if Bradford gets battered or tired, we have sturdy, loyal, long-timer Shaun Hill there to pick up our pieces. Losing Teddy was one hell of a blow I was not ready for, but we've got plenty to be thankful for.
SKOL!
I feel crazy that it's already Week Two, and this is only my first blog post of the season. Grad school has been chomping away at me, and I'm more grimly determined than ever that this be my last year. I've realized at the mature age of 28 that I need a more breathable work-life balance, and that the ivory tower just isn't for me. Thank goodness for football to give me some light in my life! It's been a weird and wacky season so far for us. The most traumatic part, of course, has been the miserably-timed Teddy Bridgewater injury.
I find it funny now, looking back to when we drafted him and I growled for about three days, hating him violently and saying dubiously, "I hope I'm wrong that he sucks, but I don't think I am." Well, I was wrong, and I'm sure Me-Back-Then would have found it very strange that Me-Right-Now is so upset at his loss!!!
So far as his injury goes, I feel for him in a very major way: not only have we lost our star QB, I suffered a very similar injury that ended my athletic career in high school and put paid to my dreams of a college swimming scholarship. Hopefully, since he has first-class medical care, and his insurance company actually gives a damn whether or not he runs again, and we're 15 years further into the treatment of horrific knee injuries, he comes out of it much better than I did! Not only that, but he has Adrian Peterson, who is blessed with the most miraculous healing flesh, to mentor him through the ungodly hell known as Rehabilitation (trust me...it's the worst) as well as a team who has been doggedly determined to make sure they bust up every other team on the docket so he can relax and heal without worrying.
Plus, he has Coach Zimmer to tie his shoelaces!
Big ups to Shaun Hill stepping up in a big way, especially last week vs the Titans. What a game that was! I think my heart was in my throat more than in its proper place for at least 50 of the 60 minutes of gameclock.
Which brings us to the big news of the season - trading a first and forth for the perennially lackluster Sam Bradford to replace Teddy.
Unlike a lot of people I was fine with this trade. Sure, Bradford has never lit the NFL world afire the way he did in his Heisman season for Oklahoma. But the Vikings don't need him to light up the night - we need him to not screw up. Sure, he's been battered. But not one of the NFL offenses he's been on has had a show running back like Adrian Peterson. Those defenses come up and start harassing Bradford and All Day is going to be ALL THE WAY into the endzone. We also have some stellar mid-field and short field options, particularly my favorite Kyle Rudolph. Rhett Ellison is solid for blocking, and Adam Thielen and Stefon Diggs have stepped up in nothing short of a spectacular way. If our boys can work together, establish a new rapport, and our line and the lure of Adrian Peterson and potential of Rudolph and Cordarrelle Patterson can keep defenses honest, we'll have our shot at 11 wins and a playoff slot. And best of all - if Bradford gets battered or tired, we have sturdy, loyal, long-timer Shaun Hill there to pick up our pieces. Losing Teddy was one hell of a blow I was not ready for, but we've got plenty to be thankful for.
SKOL!
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