Monthly archive: December, 2011

I think Sunday is going to be miserable.

After all, Drew Brees and the Saints should absolutely destroy this disheartened and depleted Vikings team.

Still, we bleed purple, and can’t help but watch and cheer.

Please join me for a game time live chat on Sunday, with the start time being just a few minutes before kickoff.  The Live Chat will be posted right here in the blog.

Vikings Nation doubled over in laughter Thursday when 1500 ESPN reported that a group of Vikings defensive backs expressed concern about the defensive play calling earlier this season, and then felt slighted when their suggestions seemingly fell on deaf ears within the coaching staff.

“According to two sources,” the report says, “a group of defensive backs raised concerns about Pagac’s play-calling — specifically, the timing and frequency of blitzes and man-coverage calls — within the first month of the season.”

Then, the report takes another twist in claiming players refused to execute the plays called and instead called out their own plays as the huddle broke.

I originally opted to ignore the report, simply making it one of my Links of the Week, because I felt the report lacked substance and was quite reminiscent of the ridiculous “schism” reports that spread like wildfire when Brett Favre decided to play a second season with the Vikings.

Since the term “schism” already identified that portion of Vikings history, this story is being filed under the category of “mutiny.”

I, however, would recommend filing this story away for good until, or unless, more information is provided.

There have been many various reactions to this story across the internet, most of which point to the underachieving Vikings secondary and scold them for concerning themselves with the job performances of coaches while they each struggled to effectively do their own jobs well.  These assessments of the situation would be fair and warranted if, and it’s a big “if,” all the assumptions being made are accurate.

This point brings us back to the lack of information in the report.

There is a distinct difference between a “mutiny” and an “audible” and this report leads readers to believe the players were doing this without permission, but does not plainly state it as such.  It also leads readers to believe it was the defensive backs calling out their own plays, but it again does not plainly state this.

Is it possible that E.J. Henderson had permission to call an audible after breaking out of the huddle based off of what he saw the offense doing?  Is it possible he did so on a number of occasions?  I imagine this scenario, or many like it, are incredibly possible and that the same media machine that infamously forced the term “schism” into our daily lives is just trying to liven things up a bit.  After all, most teams have certain players on both sides of the football that are allowed to change things up after the huddle breaks.

Until I have more information, I will assume that what the media might refer to as an “audible” on a 10-3 team is now being referred to as a “mutiny” on 2-11 teams.

Defensive Coordinator Fred Pagac was forced to give up play calling duties to Leslie Frazier for a few weeks, so it is obvious that play calling issues have been noticed by everyone involved with this organization, but I find it hard to believe that a player stepped that far out of line without being benched or cut.

To sum up my feeling on this whole thing… wait to pass judgment on anyone involved until such time that more information comes out.

My guess is that we’ll hear some players and coaches deny the existence of a “mutiny” fairly soon, and then we’ll never hear anything more on the topic.

Here is a look at the best of the best from our friends around the league:

• Adrian Peterson is getting some strange offers from fantasy players wanting him to suit up this week.
• It will be a sad day when this lifelong Viking decides to call it quits.
• In case you didn’t know already, Matt Kalil is a name any Vikings fan will get to know over this coming offseason.
• It now seems to be a consensus that Joe Webb should have a larger role with the Vikings.
• Another parody music video to get you in the mood for Sunday’s matchup against the Saints.
• No doubt, the Vikings are behind the curve, but just how far behind are they exactly?
• After being benched, Christian Ponder’s “pouting face” was worth noting.
• For much of this season, Vikings fans have dreaded the thought of their team playing the second half of the game… and now, you know why.
• Chris Cook is the only player ruled out (as of Thursday) for Sunday’s game against the Saints.
• Cullen Loeffler, the injured Vikings long snapper, received a unique award this week.
• The idea is being floated, at least by the media, that Mike Singletary will be the new defensive coordinator and bring a 3-4 defense with him.
• An in-depth look at how the Vikings can “win” the second draft pick this offseason.
• The owners voted on a renewed NFL stadium fund that could help the Vikings pay for their portion of a Minnesota stadium.
• The Wilfs are backing Leslie Frazier and his desire to rebuild this team.
• The Vikings still haven’t completely paid the University of Minnesota for the use of their stadium when the Metrodome roof caved in over one year ago.
• First-year Viking Remi Ayodele has no regrets about leaving the Championship caliber Saints in favor of the Vikings.
• Leslie Frazier has reportedly been given assurances he will remain the head coach next year.
• Christian Ponder’s progress has slowed of late, but the hope is that he’ll be able to get things turned around before the season ends.
• And now, here it is, your moment of Zen:

In the post below this one, I mentioned that the Vikings are going to have trouble filling their practice squad with quality players that they covet, because even practice squad players stand to benefit financially from being on a playoff team.

As it turns out, I have some proof of this theory, as Packers wide receiver Tori Gurley declined the opportunity to leave Green Bay’s practice squad for a spot on the Vikings active roster.

“If you look statistically, (the Vikings) season is going to be over in three weeks,” said Gurley. “We’re already locked to have a playoff spot.” 

With each playoff game comes extra paychecks of a substantial amount for all players.  Gurley also said the Packers offered him a raise to stay with the team.

Back in my Vikings Gab days I was pretty upset when the Vikings didn’t use a late round pick on the South Carolina receiver.  I was even more upset when the Packers were able to pick him up after he went undrafted.

Gurley is 6’ 4” and 216 pounds and ran a 4.59 at the NFL Scouting Combine.

Alright Vikings fans, you can all exhale now. A week ago today, we reported to you all that Matt Kalil, the offensive tackle from USC who is considered by many to be a top-5 prospect of the 2012 NFL Draft, would be returning to school for another year – effectively eliminating any chances of him becoming a Viking. Of course, the news came from a “source close to the situation” and Kalil immediately came out to say the information was not true. “I’m not close to making a decision. That will probably happen in the next couple weeks. No decision has been made. I just started thinking about the process I’m going to go through to make the decision.”

Well, this time we have a more reliable source: Chris Mortenson at ESPN. Mortenson reported just a few hours ago the Matt Kalil has decided to turn pro.

*Queue the celebration*

Matt Kalil is a very exciting prospect for the Minnesota Vikings who are in dire need of an upgraded offensive line during the offseason. He would be an instant upgrade to the position of left tackle and would help to ensure that Ponder has a long, healthy successful career as a Minnesota Viking. Many believe that the Vikings will land Kalil with their very high pick in the 2012 NFL Draft. In fact, I would estimate that around 60-70% of the mock drafts that can be found online show Kalil as a Viking in 2012.

Well, you all can rest well tonight knowing that Kalil, at the very least, will be an option for the Vikings in April.

We mentioned a few days ago that rookie receiver Stephen Burton was placed on the injured reserve and that CFL import receiver Manny Arceneaux was activated from the practice squad to take his place.

Today, the Vikings made some more moves that filled their practice squad.

Offensive lineman Butch Lewis was released from the squad and the two vacant spots were filled by rookie wide receivers.

Kris Adams out of Texas-El Paso and Owen Spencer from North Carolina State were both added to the practice squad.  Adams had been in Rams training camp this year while Spencer had been with Lions during camp.

Right now, the Vikings are going to have trouble landing high quality players to the practice squad because they are not going to be in the playoffs.  Practice Squad players get paid playoff checks just like regular players, so it is beneficial for street free agents to sign on with teams that appear destined for the post season.

It wouldn’t be much of a stretch to say that the Vikings could have won each of their last two very close games.

Winfield, however, is on injured reserve and has been forced to watch these train wrecks from the couch just like the rest of us.

(Hey, ‘Toine, come join in on the live chat!)

“It’s been tough,” Winfield said of the 2011 season. “No one expected us to be two and – what’s the record now?”

Winfield has two years left on his deal, which features a de-escalator if he takes on a the nickel role, and plans on playing through the remainder of his contract.

“I love the game,” Winfield said today. “I still enjoy going out there, playing. Enjoy the locker room, being around the guys. I have two more years on my contract here and I expect to play those out.”

He is 34 years old but, until being derailed by injury, seems to be playing as well, if not better, than his earlier years.

 He is one of the best tackling corners in the NFL and one of the Vikings biggest offseason priorities has to be getting him into that nickel role on a full time basis so he can play as close to the line of scrimmage as possible and save some money in doing so.

In order to accomplish this, the Vikings need to get healthier and more talented at the cornerback position in a big way.