Off-The-Field Issues

Greenway At Camp With Father Doing Better

July 27, 2012, by 7 comments

Linebacker Chad Greenway is the team’s most proven linebacker entering 2012, but his offseason got off to an understandably rough start as he missed most of the OTA’s to tend to his father who is fighting leukemia.

Greenway told reporters that his father’s condition has since improved greatly and he reported to Mankato on time.

“My dad’s actually feeling really well. He’s stable, he’s felt the best he has now than the last three months,” Greenway said. “That’s excellent for me cause once you sort of kick this day off then you don’t have another opportunity to go home for any amount of time. I’m really glad he’s doing well and hope that that obviously continues.”

I think I speak on behalf of all of us at VT in saying that we are all also glad to hear this news and we are all looking forward to seeing Greenway back on the field this season.

Peterson Will “Fight” To Avoid PUP List

July 27, 2012, by 3 comments

Adrian Peterson got into some trouble for allegedly fighting with members of the Houston Police Department, but that isn’t going to deter him from fighting with team officials that may try to put him on the PUP list, sidelining him during training camp.

“I’m going to lobby to get out there. I feel like I can participate a little bit,” Peterson said in Mankato on Thursday.  “”It’s going to be their call. My main focus is just getting out there and trying to get myself ready. To be honest with you, I’m going to try to fight against (PUP) so I can get out there and be involved. Ultimately, I know these guys are going to do what’s best for this team.”

Head Coach Leslie Frazier indicated that he would talk to Peterson late on Thursday and discuss how the rehab is going.  Frazier reiterated that the team plans to include doctors and trainers in the process of deciding what the immediate plan should be for Peterson.

Peterson again insisted that he did nothing wrong during his altercation in Houston, and expressed confidence that the truth will come out in his favor.

Simpson Wants To Quiet Critics

July 27, 2012, by 2 comments

Jerome Simpson could possibly open training camp as a starter today, across from Percy Harvin, after impressing just about everyone that was paying attention during offseason workouts and drills.

The issue there, however, is that we all know that Simpson will not start the regular season as a starter due to his three game suspension.

“I’ll be fresh coming back after those three weeks,” Simpson told the Pioneer Press.

Not only will Simpson miss the first three weeks, he will also gradually be losing reps as training camp grinds on, according to Leslie Frazier.  The plan has to include getting some other guys some reps with the first team so that the Vikings can plan for someone else taking on a starting role during those first three weeks.

Simpson sounds eager to make his Minnesota debut in week four, however, and prove that he hasn’t hit his ceiling as an NFL receiver.

“A lot of people are saying we have a weak (receiving) corps,” Simpson said. “We can prove them wrong.  I just want to bring something here that hasn’t been here before, and I think ya’ll know what that is. A Super Bowl (title). That’s my No. 1 goal.”

Cook Wondered If He Would Ever Play Again

July 27, 2012, by 3 comments

Chris Cook’s felony charges from last year prevented him from playing any games, or participating at all with team activities, following his initial arrest.  Now, he is eager to get back to the field of play.

“I’m more excited than I ever have been to come back to Mankato,” Cook said.

Cook apparently recognized how serious the charges were and how poor behavior off the field could impact his career.

“I definitely had doubts that I would even be playing football again,” Cook said on Thursday. “I’m just blessed to be in this position and very thankful for the position that I’m in and to be able to play football again.”

Cook also talked about how hard it was for him to not be on the field with his teammates, after recognizing in previous interviews that he made things difficult on his teammates by landing himself behind bars.

The Vikings showed incredible patience and generosity in sending Cook home with pay following the incident with his girlfriend, and the best possible outcome of the way they handled that situation is for Cook to truly be a changed man moving forward.

Another off-field issue that continues his pattern of finding himself in trouble, however, will almost certainly end his career as a Minnesota Viking.

TOP FIVE TC STORYLINES: The Defense

July 26, 2012, by 4 comments

Today, the Minnesota Vikings officially will open training camp in Mankato, and there will be plenty of storylines to follow on offense as chronicled here.

The defense provides even more intrigue and drama for us to follow, however, as there is a surplus of jobs up for grabs across the board.  Here is my look at the top five storylines to follow on the defensive side of the football in the coming weeks:

5.  The Alan Williams Show

“Hey, Alan, I have a job for you.  I want you to come to Minnesota and coach up the defense that, outside of Jared Allen, was atrocious last year.  Oh, by the way, I want you to supervise the guy you are replacing and also try to get Singletary to keep his pants on.  Thanks, see you soon.”

New defensive coordinator Alan Williams inherited a mess, to be frank, and the unique arrangement of the coaching staff could prove to be a point of drama moving forward.  It will be mighty interesting to see how he responds to the challenge and how his players respond to him.

Continue Reading →

Vikings Try To Head Off Off-Field Trouble With Untraditional Approach

July 15, 2012, by 8 comments

If you are a professional athlete with the financial ability to spend tens of thousands of dollars in one weekend, and happen to enjoy seeing naked women, then you are the stuff dreams are made of for strip club owners.

Of course, you are also the stuff police blotters are made of.

The Vikings are constantly struggling to keep their players out of trouble (hey, facts are facts) so their efforts to do so have now reached unprecedented heights.

Sean Bishop, a felon and former strip club owner (and current strip club worker) is flown to Winter Park every year to let the team’s rookies know some blunt truths about the industry.

“I don’t need their money,” Bishop said. “I tell them I am a scumbag club owner who will use and abuse you. I just don’t want to see any of them ruin their lives. They need to be protected from themselves.”

So how does a guy with such questionable morals make his way into the locker room of an NFL team?  Well, Bishop himself was once a football player that was coached by Les Pico.  Pico is the executive director of player development for the Vikings.  Oh, and Zygi Wilf is happy to sign the checks to make it happen.

“He’s not a choirboy by any means,” Pico said about Bishop. “I can’t legislate morality. Sean’s a guy who isn’t afraid to talk negatively about the business he’s in. Our owners give us great latitude allowing us to run these programs and put a convicted felon on a plane to come here and talk to our rookies about why they shouldn’t be in strip clubs.”

“We have two gentlemen who own car dealerships in Pennsylvania and lumberyards in North Carolina who don’t pay for anything here, but average about $15,000 per night in tips (and dances), and they’ll do it for 10 straight nights,” Bishop continued. “There’s plenty of money out there. I don’t need (players’) money. I’m in a dark business. It’s almost sad. They’re too easy to push into trouble.”

Bishop also explained why strip clubs can become such traps for young athletes.

“These guys get comfortable in the VIP section and think they’re not being seen and forget where they’re at,” he said. “Being a competitive athlete, it’s hard for them to turn the other cheek or swallow their pride and walk away from bad situations. Instead, they make a scene and forget where they’re at because the owner’s treating them like a king, they’re young and think they’re invincible when all it takes is one snapshot and you’re done.”

Anytime I hear of the Vikings going to extra lengths to keep their players out of trouble it makes me happy.

Maybe one of these days it will start working.

Adam’s Take On Peterson Situation

July 11, 2012, by 12 comments

Brett is busy compiling an extensive “Links of the Week” feature and I have finally gotten a brief moment amongst the chaos that is life to write a quick blurb.  Everybody in the world seems to have weighed in on the Adrian Peterson arrest, so this is probably a little redundant.  Still, it is a topic worthy of discussion, obviously.

I’m not going to rehash all of the TMZ “reports” and supposed eyewitness accounts, and I’m not going to copy and paste all of Peterson’s lawyer’s recent comments.  Instead, I just want to make a few simple points.

1.  Ever since hearing of the news on Saturday I have wracked my brain in an effort to imagine a situation in which it took three police officers and a pair of handcuffs to subdue me.  I couldn’t.  First of all, I’m not Adrian Peterson so one police officer (male or female) could surely take me down easily enough.  Second, I couldn’t imagine a situation in which this would be necessary if I were doing nothing wrong as Peterson asserts was the case in his scenario.  If one cop doesn’t do the trick… I have a hard time believing the guy in handcuffs wasn’t resisting arrest in some fashion.  I’ve never been to Houston, however, so maybe they really do have cops that jump people and rough them up for no apparent reason.

2.  What is the deal with Peterson only being arrested for resisting arrest?  In order to resist arrest you must have been doing something illegal to warrant the initial attempt at an arrest in the first place.  So… what were they arresting him for?

3.  I’m not one to defend criminal actions, but this is probably being blown out of proportion because of Peterson’s celebrity status.  To me, this isn’t the same as a DUI or beating up your girlfriend.  No lives were put in danger and you will be hard pressed to find many guys that didn’t have some late nights that they regret while in their twenties.

4.  I’m guessing this whole thing gets dropped because of the mess Peterson and his lawyer intend to turn this into.  This type of thing will gain extra attention during the slowest part of the NFL year, but I’m guessing it ends up living on as an obscure punch line reference, perhaps a Jeopardy question, but dies a quick death from a legal standpoint.

So, yeah, I’m not calling for his release or trade.  I’m not prepared to get on a soapbox and cry foul on Houston’s finest.  In general, I guess this thing is just kind of a yawner.

And for that I am grateful.