Stadium

Links Of The Week: Free Agency, Round 1 Edition

March 23, 2012, by 4 comments

We’ll start this thing off with something that happened yesterday that we really didn’t touch on here at VT… Tedd Ginn Jr. is staying with the 49ers.

Our ever-loquacious punter believes Jonathan Vilma should be banned from the NFL for life.

Rick Spielman seems to be trying to throw everyone off and put up smoke screens regarding our #3 pick. They are smoke screens, right? Right…?!

“In Attempt Not to ‘Spend to Spend,’ Vikings Seemingly Already Spending to Spend,” states this Vikings writer.

In the never-ending-stadium-story, it looks like the Vikings may be getting a sign-off by the Minneapolis City Council.

Over at KAB, our friends get a little crazy and question where the franchise would be had it used Rosenfels instead of Favre in 2010 (amongst many other things).

Do the referees deserve some of the blame for the bounties placed on Favre and how it affected the 2009 NFC Championship game?

Jared Allen thinks the Saints got what they deserved.

Chris Kluwe stands up for “snitches” and goes on (expletive-filled) Twitter rant.

Now, I don’t have any videos to show for the “moment of zen” that Adam typically does here… I do have a story though. (One I told Adam yesterday after he brought up his concern that WR prospect Stephen Hill reminded him of another ex-Viking who bolted up in the draft due to great workouts. He insisted that I try to fit this little story in somewhere and I guess right here is as good as anywhere.)

A few years ago, my family and I went to a buffet (they’re in every casino here in Vegas) around the corner for breakfast on a Sunday morning. Of course, I was in my big, purple, #28 jersey; I wore it proudly (the Vikes were hot stuff at the time). We all sat down and waited for our waiter to greet us and take our drink orders so we could be unleashed and pounce upon the endless spread of food. Our waiter came and this is the short exchange that followed:

“Good morning, I’m [Derek] and I’ll be your waiter this morning. Oh! You a Vikings fan?”

“Yep!”

“Cool! My little nephew actually used to play for the Vikings a while back.”

“Really?! Who was he?”

“Troy Williamson!”

“…”

“…”

“Oh, cool…”

“…”

“Iced tea, please.”

“Moment of zen?” I think not… And yes, Adam compared Stephen Hill to Troy Williamson. Hold your tongue, Adam!

You Asked And I Try To Answer

March 17, 2012, by 5 comments

Friday evening I solicited questions from the audience and I will try to hit as many as I can in this segment.

A few of them were too silly to answer in this post, but I’ll try and match the silliness and reply to them in the comments section.

Here we go.

NORSEMAN66:  Is there going to be a live chat during the draft (each day)?

ADAM:  Yes!  Brett and I plan to host live chats here at VT for every selection of the 2012 NFL Draft and we are way excited!  Barring any last minute major changes, you can consider this a done deal.  One thing I might be interested in, though, is recruiting one or two of you to be a moderator during the chats to help out with the work load.  If you have interest, click the “Contact Us” tab at the very top of the page and let me know your availability that week.

BJOHNNY:  What are your thoughts on Speilman? Is he in over his head, clueless or a crafty genius?

ADAM:  Where is the “other” option, Johnny?  I think Spielman’s approach to free agency makes this year’s Draft even more important to him.  Building through the draft is regarded by almost everyone as the best way to put together a winning football team, but you still have to draft well to see those results.  Let’s wait and see how the Draft and the next few waves of free agency go (and maybe even a football game or two) before judging the approach too harshly.

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Links Of The Week: Free Agency Starts Soon

March 8, 2012, by No comments yet

Okay, so I know I haven’t been keeping you as up-to-date as I normally like to, but these links should ensure you are all caught up and didn’t miss anything so far this week:

  • Our blogroll has been updated to include another cool Vikings blog.  Check’ em out and tell ‘em who sent you.
  • Could Peyton Manning’s landing spot affect this year’s Vikings draft?
  • Joe Webb is still jumping really high on YouTube.
  • The new Madden video game could, in theory, include either Jared Allen or Percy Harvin on the cover.
  • Unless this is a typo, the “snitch” that spurred “bountygate” was actually a Vikings player.
  • A breakdown of the reasons behind Pro Football Focus’s crush on linebacker Erin Henderson.
  • Chris Cook’s girlfriend testified in court on Wednesday.  Here is a summary of the bizarre testimony that she gave.  He might just be off the hook.
  • Cook’s attorneys argued self defense in court on Wednesday.
  • An argument for a very stiff penalty for the New Orleans Saints.
  • Christian Ponder is preparing (yeah, right) for the possibility of the Vikings drafting another first round quarterback.
  • The Vikings are trying to re-sign linebacker Erin Henderson prior to free agency starting.
  • Some of the key figures involved with the new stadium proposal.
  • Brett Favre says that a referee apologized to him for a missed call in the 2009 NFC Championship game against the Saints.
  • I think some hack blogger has mentioned this before, but gambling is an unpredictable revenue source for a new stadium and could be a sticking point in the proposal.
  • An interesting experiment surrounding the Cris Carter Hall of Fame mystery.
  • Jared Allen takes an even handed approach in answering “bountygate” questions.
  • This mock draft has the Vikings drafting… oh, forget it, you already know.
  • Peyton Manning is one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time.  He is also one of the classiest NFL players of all time.  Any team would be lucky to have a guy like this for as long as Indianapolis had Manning.  So, here it is, your moment of Zen:

Links Of The Week: Bounty Hunter Edition

March 2, 2012, by No comments yet

Normally I try to do this feature on Wednesdays.  On Wednesday there wasn’t enough news floating around to make it worth.

Something changed.

I can’t remember what exactly that was.

But if you give me $10,000 I might suddenly be able to recall.

DAYTON: “Now The Real Work Begins”

March 1, 2012, by 2 comments

As expected, an announcement was made this morning at the Minnesota Capitol that formally introduces a Vikings stadium bill to Legislature, which marks the farthest point the Wilf’s have reached in this process since they bought the franchise in 2005.

The bill’s main talking points are pretty much exactly what I had laid out last night: 

  • A total price tag of $975 million.
  • The Vikings (and NFL) would pay $427 million.
  • The State would pay $398 million.
  • The State would primarily raise funds using electronic pull tabs.
  • Minneapolis would pay $150 million using an existing sales tax.
  • The stadium would have a fixed, covered roof.
  • A three to four year construction process would be expected.
  • The final year of construction would have the Vikings playing at TCF Bank Stadium

Governor Mark Dayton cautioned enthusiasts that “now the real work begins” as the plan must be approved by the State Legislature and the Minneapolis City Council.  There is sure to be some opposition at those levels, but what the strength of that opposition is remains to be seen.

Weigh The Gambling Option Carefully, Minnesota

March 1, 2012, by 4 comments
MN Casinos

I haven’t paid taxes in Minnesota for nearly a decade now (wow, time flies) so I try to avoid sticking my nose into the State’s affairs, especially when it involves the money of Minnesota taxpayers.  In fact, on this blog, I try to avoid political topics all together.

With this post I break both of those pseudo-rules, but I will try to do it tactfully.

As fans log onto their work computers Thursday they will likely be bombarded with news about a bill being introduced to the State Legislature that could/would/should get a new stadium built within their borders to ensure the Vikings don’t abandon the nest for at least another 30 years.

At the time I am writing this, no details have emerged detailing how the State would finance the public portion of this stadium, but all indications are that this Republican Legislature understandably has no interest in raising taxes.  Thus, it appears likely that some sort of gambling deal will be the answer.

Now, I am a huge supporter of keeping the Vikings in Minnesota, but I just cannot reconcile in my mind why Minnesota voters would want to increase the gambling platform to pay for this thing.

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Much Ado About Something?

February 29, 2012, by No comments yet

Wednesday was a sllllow news day.

Thursday might be the opposite.

Reports emerged via KFAN that the Vikings, the City of Minneapolis, and the State of Minnesota are close to reaching an agreement which would formulate a bill to be presented to legislature.  It is expected that the various parties involved are working late into Wednesday night and an announcement will be made on Thursday.

In fact, a press conference has already been scheduled at the Capitol at 9:00 a.m. Central Lutefisk Time.

According to KFAN’s report, the bill proposes a stadium built adjacent to the existing Metrodome and lays out a three to four year construction timeline.  The Vikings would have to play on season at TCF Bank Stadium under this plan.

The total cost of the project is expected to be about $975 million with the Vikings organization taking on half of those costs and half of the operating costs.  At this point, no details are known about how the public funds portion of this bill is set up.

Don’t get too excited, as the legislature still has to, you know, vote and stuff.

This still has a ways to go.