Monthly archive: February, 2012

Udeze Lands In Seattle As Coaching Intern

February 15, 2012, by 2 comments

The Vikings have a lot of stories about first round draft picks gone wrong.  In a way, the story of Kenechi Udeze is one of those stories, but in a more important way his story transcends football and is one of hope and inspiration.

The USC defensive end was drafted by the Vikings in the first round of the 2004 NFL Draft.  He played 51 games as a Viking, mostly regarded as a dependable left end, but his career had a premature ending when he was diagnosed with leukemia in 2007.

Udeze’s health is reportedly doing very well, and I was thrilled to hear the news that he is moving up the coaching ladder, and will reunite with his college coach Pete Carroll in Seattle.  He will be a defensive line coaching intern.

Congratulations to Kenechi!

Poll Of The Week: Should The Vikings Go After Moss?

February 14, 2012, by 10 comments

Yesterday, news broke that the freak wants to play, and it’s likely he will end up playing somewhere in 2012. The question we pose to you all this week, though, is whether or not that somewhere should be Minnesota? One of the Vikings biggest positions of need this offseason is wide receiver and it’s very likely the team will pursue one in either free agency or the draft. Should the Vikings go after Moss? It would be the third time Moss plays for the Vikings (after a historic first attempt and a largely unsuccessful second attempt).

Participate in the poll below and then, if you’d like, expand on your reasoning in the comments.

Wilfs Continue To Play Nice

February 14, 2012, by 1 comment

I’m not about to gush over the perceived kindness of a very, very, very rich family and the patience they are showing in their quest for public funds to be spent on a new stadium which houses their football team and maximizes their profits.

Still, it is impressive that Wednesday represents what could have been such a crucial date in this ongoing stadium fiasco, and yet the Vikings are at least putting forth the appearance that they are willing to take the high road.

February 15th represents the Vikings deadline for notifying the NFL that they would like to explore relocation options.  The date is expected to come and go with very little drama.  Instead of raising the stress level, they seem content to put their focus on continued progress revolving around Minnesota-based solutions.

P.R. guru for the team, Lester Bagley, stated on Tuesday that the Vikings will not request permission to seek relocation.  They will, however, continue to push for a financing package to be settled on during this legislative session.

Bagley said that the team hopes to have a financing plan in front of legislators within the next few days.

“There’s nothing to announce yet,” Bagley said, “but we’re all working hard. I think there’s opportunity and appetite to resolve that this session.”

Just imagine, for a second, how different this article would be had the Wilf family requested permission from the NFL to explore relocation options.

That’s an article I hope to never write.

The Freak Wants To Play

February 13, 2012, by 5 comments

He’ll play when he wants to play, and apparently he again wants to play.

Randy Moss took advantage of a slow news week, and the name power he still possesses with NFL fans, to make a splash and announce his desire to unretire from football and make a return to the NFL.

“I just wanna go to a team and play some football,” Moss announced in a Monday webcast that marked his 35th birthday.  “Faith, family, and football, that’s my M.O., bro.  Your boy be back for the upcoming season.”

“I’m coming to tear somebody’s heads off, man,” Moss said via another webcast in the evening.  “I got something on my shoulder and it’s a chip that I need to get it off.”

A Randy Moss with a chip on the shoulder has proven to be the best kind of Randy Moss over the years, but he has a personality that seems to always be forgetting the lessons he had to learn along the way.  Specifically, Moss sounded as if he genuinely would have liked things to end differently when he got his second chance in Minnesota.

“I got regrets of how I left New England, I got regrets of how I left Minnesota, and I got regrets of how I retired,” Moss said.

I’ll admit that I have a soft spot for Randy Moss, as he will always be one of the top receivers to ever play for the Vikings, but if I am willing to put aside sentiment and hope for E.J. Henderson to be replaced then I am certainly able to ignore my desire to see #84 suit up once again in purple.  This team needs to get younger talent on both sides of the ball, and Moss doesn’t fit that description.

The good news for the Vikings is that the already deep free agent class at wide receiver just gained one more name.  Of course, this comes on the heels of a report that the Eagles will franchise DeSean Jackson, so the free agent pickings will continue to get slimmer between now and March.

Still, I will enjoy seeing Moss play again if a team is willing to give him yet another chance… as long as that team isn’t the Chicago Bears.

OFFSEASON PREVIEW: The Second Level

February 12, 2012, by 2 comments
Greenway

[NOTE FROM ADAM:  This is another installation of my position-by-position breakdown of the Vikings offseason.  You can click the links to view previous installments:  The Passers, The Runners, The Wide Outs, The Tight Ends, The Offensive Line, The Defensive Tackles, and The Defensive Ends.]

Last offseason, the Vikings faced a crossroads with former first round pick Chad Greenway, and they decided to invest heavily in the outside linebacker by placing the franchise tag on him and then giving him a huge contract extension.

This year, the Vikings face similar decisions with the other two linebackers slots, and the position could be headed for major transition this offseason.

Let’s take a closer look.

Continue Reading →

Another Front Office Promotion

February 11, 2012, by No comments yet

Following a 3-13 season, many wondered if it was wise to promote Rick Spielman to General Manager without exploring outside options.  Once again, the Wilf family has opened up their wallets, however, to keep the staff they have in place.

Director of Player Personnel George Paton has been one of many candidates interviewed for the General Manager position in St. Louis.  According to some reports the Rams had narrowed their search down to two guys and Paton was one of them.  Some other reports suggest that Paton actually got offered the position, but instead he opted to stay with Minnesota.

Deciding to stay with the Vikings was probably made easier by their willingness to promote him to Assistant General Manager. 

Rick Spielman has worked with Paton not only with the Vikings, but also in their time spent in Miami and Chicago.

“George has been an integral part of our personnel department since he arrived in 2007,” Spielman said. “His work ethic, leadership, professionalism and keen eye for identifying talented football players will continue to be a major asset for our organization as we take on the challenges of competing in the NFC North and winning the Super Bowl.”

Les Snead, from Atlanta, is now going to assume the role of General Manager in St. Louis.

Robison Hits Incentives, Becomes Expensive

February 10, 2012, by 1 comment

A few posts down, I previewed the Vikings current status at the defensive end position, including a section about contracts.

I was purposely non-descript about Brian Robison’s cap hit in 2012 and 2013 because I knew that his signing bonus and incentives would come into play, but I wasn’t sure how.

As it turns out, that answer came quickly.

Tom Pelissero reports that Robison triggered incentives in his contract with his performance in 2011.

As a result, his salary for 2012 will jump from $726,000 to $1.712 million, which still isn’t too bad for a serviceable starting defensive lineman.

In 2013, however, Robison’s salary of $864,000 will skyrocket all the way to $4.4 million.

Prior to the 2011 lockout, the Vikings signed Robison to a three year deal worth a maximum of $14.1 million and it included a $6.5 million signing bonus.  In reaching certain incentives, Robison is close to realizing the full amount of that contract.