Speculation

COIN TOSS: A Matter Of Character

June 10, 2012, by 28 comments

This week here at VT we are bringing back our weekly “Coin Toss” column where Adam and I go head to head on a variety of different topics. This week, we’ll be debating the fate of Vikings new fullback Jerome Felton.

We’ve been talking about it a lot here at Vikings Territory, but in case you missed any of that coverage, let me bring you up to speed: Jerome Felton was arrested a few days ago for driving while intoxicated… at a McDonald’s drive-through. Since then, Felton has publicly apologized for his actions and the trouble he got himself into. The team has really taken no stance on Felton’s future with the team giving the typical “we’re waiting to gather more information” line. The NFL on the other hand is currently reviewing the case to determine if Felton should be suspended as this, apparently, isn’t his first run-in with authorities for getting behind the wheel after drinking.

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Everyone Is Entitled To Their Opinion, BUT…

June 8, 2012, by 10 comments

Okay, so, here is the deal.

  1. The Vikings could use an upgrade at wide receiver.
  2. Chad Ochocinco was been released by the Patriots.

So, naturally, Twitter and Facebook are instantly flooded with Vikings fans stumping for Ocho to join the team.

Sound ridiculous?

Well, it isn’t so ridiculous if a guy like Mike Florio of PFT, who actually gets paid lots of money to think about these things, makes a comment like this:

“Look at the depth chart,” writes Florio.  “He’d instantly be the second-best receiver on the roster, behind Percy Harvin.”

So, if Florio wrote this, it must have some merit to it, right?

Wrong.

Now, I like Florio more than many of you do, but I just can’t see how anyone who is paying attention to anything about this year’s Minnesota Vikings can think that there is a place for the 34 year old receiver on this roster.

Last year, playing in one of the league’s best offenses with one of the NFL’s best quarterbacks ever, Ochocinco rarely made any sort of impact.  He played in 15 games, starting three, but managed only 15 catches.  He turned those grabs into 276 yards and a touchdown.

The Vikings receivers had a combination of Donovan McNabb, rookie Christian Ponder, and Joe Webb throwing to them.  Still, many of them managed to out-perform Ocho in 2011.

In 11 games, Michael Jenkins managed 38 receptions for 466 yards and three scores.  Devin Aromashodu had 26 receptions for 468 yards and a touchdown.  With the Bengals, Jerome Simpson had 50 catches for 725 yards and four touchdowns.

I fail to see how the stats, or common sense, could lead someone to believe Ochocinco would “instantly” become the Vikings second best receiver.

The only thing he would instantly become is the Vikings oldest receiver.

Burton Makes An Impression At OTA’s

June 8, 2012, by 2 comments

Stephen Burton was a late round flier that the Vikings took last year, and he didn’t get a whole lot of chances to prove himself in the post-lockout arena.

However, Burton may be benefiting from a full offseason and could be an interesting guy to keep an eye on as the preseason progresses.  According to Mike Wobschall of Vikings.com, Burton is making an impression during OTA’s and Leslie Frazier has noticed his progress.

“You can see the confidence and that’s a big thing for a receiver, big thing for any young player,” Frazier said. “He has tremendous athletic ability and he is one of those guys who can jump out of the gym and make the acrobatic catch, but his confidence, that’s the one thing that you can see is coming through now.”

Burton is 6’ 1” and weighs 224 pounds, so he has the size and athleticism to be a solid option at wide out, but Wobschall also indicates that Burton will get a chance to prove himself as a return man.

We don’t have the same video evidence as we do with Jerome Simpson (click here), but I can’t help but get a little giddy every time I hear about a young guy progressing… because that is what this offseason is all about.

I had Burton sticking to the 53 man roster in my early projections.

2012 Vikings Predictions – Game By Game Record Predictions (Part 1)

June 6, 2012, by 14 comments

We’re about two months away from the official start of the 2012 season. The Vikings will travel all the way to San Francisco to face off with the 49ers to kick-off their preseason schedule. I’m considering preseason the “official start” of football because I’m desperate for things to begin and don’t want to admit that the real start probably isn’t actually until a month later when the regular season commences.

With football right around the corner, I thought it would be fun to start making some predictions about the 2012 season. Who will win key battles, what players will have breakout years, what games we will win and lose, what our record will be, etc… So today, I’m going to kick off this series by looking at the first quarter of the 2012 season and making a win/loss prediction for each game.

Dislaimer: Don’t put too much weight in these predictions. My ‘predictions’ in the past have, let’s just say, not always been spot on. Just ask anyone that was around here for our draft coverage and live draft chat – I was off on just about everything. It’s also still really early. We don’t even have a final roster set in place yet. Nevertheless, making these types of predictions are fun for everyone and typically start good conversation.

Also, on a side note, I want to sincerely apologize for not being around much lately. All I can say is that sometimes the “real world” can just get in the way. More specifically, the wife and I just purchased our first home. Between dealing with the builder, lendor and actually doing the moving, things have been very busy to say the least. We’re settled in to our new place now though and I plan on picking up my contributions around here more again. It should be said that Adam has done an awesome job of keeping fresh new content up during a time where there really isn’t much (Post-draft/Pre-season).

Alright, so back on topic. Join me after the jump to dive right in to the Vikings 2012 season.

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Some Wide Receiver News On Tuesday

June 5, 2012, by 8 comments

In filling their last remaining roster spot, the Vikings signed South Florida receiver A.J. Love as an undrafted free agent on Tuesday.

This isn’t really anything earth shattering, but I can remember in the flurry of UDFA signings right after the Draft finished it was reported by numerous outlets at that time that Love was signing with the Vikings.  At the end of the day those reports were erroneous, but in the long run I guess they turned out to be correct.

Love stands at 6’ 2” and weighs 208 pounds.  In 2008 and 2009, combined, he managed 56 catches for 843 yards and six scores.  In 2010, he had to sit out due to a knee injury, and his production lacked big time in 2011 where he only had nine grabs for 122 yards and a lone touchdown.

The story sounds similar to that of Greg Childs, which we discussed here, and Love could end up having some upside.  Childs, coincidentally enough, has not been participating in OTA practices due to a calf strain.

Some good news, however, is that Percy Harvin has rejoined the team during practices after initially sitting out and rehabbing as a result of his bone spur procedure from April.  Chad Greenway has also reportedly joined the team after dealing with a family issue.

Another Interesting Acquisition

June 5, 2012, by 7 comments

Rick Spielman and his scouts have had an interesting offseason when it comes to finding depth players.  They found the CFL’s hardest hitter.  They found a point guard.  They nabbed a running back that has overcome an inability to hear.

Now, they are at it again, for better or worse.

The Vikings filled the roster spot left by Asher Allen’s sudden retirement by picking up undrafted rookie Corey Gatewood out of Stanford.

The big question here is where Gatewood will fit in.  He started six games at cornerback in 2009 but, according to 1500 ESPN, requested to be put back at his original position of receiver.  In four seasons at Stanford (he sat 2008 out) Gatewood only had two career receptions, 10 career rushing attempts, and 10 kick returns.

At corner, the 5’ 11” Gatewood contributed on defense and special teams.  He has been credited with 40 career tackles, two interceptions, and one pick was returned for a touchdown.  He has no tackles for a loss, no sacks, no forced fumbles, and no fumbles recovered, according to this stats site.

Gatewood reportedly ran a 4.44 second forty yard dash at Stanford’s pro day, and may see his best chance of sticking to the roster by impressing on special teams.

The Vikings have listed Gatewood as a cornerback on their official roster.

After Midnight, Nothing Good Happens At A McDonald’s

June 4, 2012, by 13 comments

In the post below this one, we passed along the news that Minnesota fullback Jerome Felton was nabbed for a second degree DWI early Saturday morning.

What is otherwise a pathetic story took a somewhat (only somewhat) humorous turn on Monday when Judd Zulgad of 1500 ESPN reported that Felton was busted in none other than a McDonald’s drive-thru line.

According to the report, police were alerted to an intoxicated driver in a McDonald’s drive-thru and were able to respond before Felton received his order of seven big mac’s and a McFlurry (that part is speculation) and drive off.

Interestingly enough, this is not the first time in recent memory that a Vikings player ended up in the headlines due to a late night visit to a McDonald’s.  In January of last year, Adrian Peterson got a McDonald’s worker fired when she let him into the restaurant after hours to use the restroom.

Thus, I think it is safe to say, nothing good happens at a McDonald’s after midnight.

Or strip clubs.

Or Miami nightclubs.

Or boats on Lake Minnetonka.