January 20-25 - Senior Bowl
January 26 - Pro Bowl
February 17 - First day of franchise / transition player designation
February 19-25 - Scouting Combine
March 11 - Free Agency begins
March 23 - Owner's Meeting
April 7 - Off-season workouts begin for teams with new HC
April 17 - 2014 Schedule Released
April 21 - Off-season workouts begin for teams with returning HC
May 2 - Deadline for RFAs to sign offers
May 8-10 - NFL Draft
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Skol12 (762)Adrian Peterson, Jerome Felton, Kyle Rudolph, Blair Walsh, Jared Allen, Chad Greenway, and Matt Kalil are all playing in a football game tonight.
Sure, the Pro Bowl means about as much as an rerun of The Office, but with seven Vikings seeing televised action for the last time between now and the preseason it is hard not to watch and cheer.
We’ll be watching live and if you are too, then feel free to discuss the “action” right here below this post.
[NOTE: Click the links to see our free agency rankings for quarterbacks and the running backs. We’ll continue our way through all of the positions this week.]
Top Tier
Adrian Peterson did the best running of his career behind fullback Jerome Felton who signed a one year deal with the Vikings prior to last season. Naturally, his success will make him the top rated fullback on the free agent market ad Vikings fans will be disappointed to see the front office let him play anywhere else.
Expect the Vikings to try and get the lead blocker under contract before free agency begins. A three year deal to the tune of $9 million sounds about right for their Pro Bowl fullback.
The second best option in free agency would have to be the young James Casey, who stepped up when Vontae Leach departed Houston.
Last night’s article about my opinion that the Vikings would be a great fit for running back prospect Marcus Lattimore sparked one of the better reader conversations, or debate perhaps, that we have had so far this offseason.
Naturally, I want to give my opinion.
In the discussion, there are two basic schools of thought at play, with one thinking a team should draft for need and the other saying to take the best player available. Some good arguments have been made, but I think my perspective is a touch different.
In a world where all the stars align, a team’s draft board would align perfectly with their roster needs. If you desperately need a running back, then you would love to see a running back be the highest ranked player available to you when you are on the clock.
It is the General Manager’s job to try and create that perfect world by moving around during the Draft. A perfect example of such a move could be from just last year when Rick Spielman, who needed to get his team some safety help, pulled the trigger on a trade that bounced the Vikings back into the first round where they were able to grab Harrison Smith.
It is also possible, last year, that the Vikings had a higher grade on running back Trent Richardson than they did on Matt Kalil which allowed Spielman to move back a spot and let Richardson get picked up by Cleveland, while retaining the ability to still get Kalil.
Sometimes these trades don’t always work out, however, and a team is forced to choose between their best rated player or making a slight reach in the name of filling an immediate need. I am sure that those decisions are the hardest ones to make when the pressure is on.
If I were in charge of making such decisions (which, of course, I am not) I would see no shame in taking either approach, really, but would have a philosophy that revolves around my roster’s identity.
Let me explain.
There is something to be said for a team that uses free agency and the first round of the Draft to fill immediate needs, while using day two and day three of the Draft to reinforce an already strong part of the roster. Drafting to get deeper and stronger at an area of your roster that already is a strength, if you will.
For example, the New York Giants in recent history have not been shy about spending early picks on defensive linemen because that was their identity, their pass rush essentially won them a Super Bowl against an undefeated Patriots team, and they didn’t want to take on any risk of losing that identity through injuries. Their defensive line also played a big part in last year’s Super Bowl run, their second in five years.
The Minnesota Vikings have openly admitted that their offense is “built to win” by running the football. It is their identity.
Of course, having Adrian Peterson is a huge part of that, and a lot of their future success hinges on his ability to stay healthy and stay productive. Heck, they even have a decent backup plan in Toby Gerhart, who is a lot better as an every down back than as a player pulling spot duty.
Still, I see absolutely no problem with the Vikings using the NFL Draft to ensure that their identity, being a hard running offense, is maintained and preserved long into the future despite what unpleasant surprises may end up surfacing.
So, to finally get around to the point, that is why I would have absolutely no problem with the Vikings spending a fourth or fifth rounder on a running back. Or a guard. Or a center. It may not immediately improve the running offense, but if it ensures that running game will last for an entire season and well into the postseason then I think it is a pick well spent.
Besides, if we are banking on filling our needs in round four of the NFL Draft, then Rick Spielman has already messed things up pretty bad.
I am a big fan of the Best Player Available approach to the NFL Draft because I just don’t see the downside. There is no shame in using that player to fill a need or provide depth in an area on your roster that already has a solid starter.
Besides, if the Vikings had always drafted for need, then I don’t think Adrian Peterson ever would have worn a Vikings uniform in the first place.
I mentioned earlier this week that I had my own unique theory on which running back the Vikings should target this offseason. My answer is a simple one: The best one available.
South Carolina running back Marcus Lattimore is the only first round lock runner in the class, and it just so happens he will probably be selected much, much later.
Lattimore took the college game by storm and is easily the most complete back available this year. He runs with explosion between the tackles, is dangerous in space, is a fluid pass catcher and capable blocker, and is a smart runner with a patience to follow his blockers that is rarely seen in young backs. He is also known to be of high character and as a guy that leads by example.
He actually reminds me, at least in part, of our very own Adrian Peterson.
To find Lattimore’s Achilles heal, however, you need not look any farther than his knee. When the all star runner hit the turf in pain this October, the football watching community collectively expressed their sympathy for a runner they enjoyed watching so much.
Lattimore’s ligament damage in his knee left many wondering if he would ever play football again and his availability for 2013 seemed to be in major doubt, at the very least. He fell from the top 15 to the fifth round with that one ugly hit. The snake-bitten running back also suffered ligament damage one year earlier, prematurely ending that season as well.
So why do I think he is such a great fit for the Vikings? Well, for starters, because I think the Vikings are a great fit for him.
The Vikings are fairly stacked at running back, with Adrian Peterson and Toby Gerhart cemented atop the depth chart for next season, so the Vikings could perhaps be the one NFL team willing to be patient while Lattimore rehabs his knee.
Lattimore would also have a constant source of inspiration and encouragement simply by watching Adrian Peterson, who famously worked his way back from a gruesome knee injury and topped 2,000 yards on the season. He could be comforted by the fact that Eric Sugarman and the Vikings trainers are the same exact people that helped Peterson not only make his return, but come back even better than he already was.
Even if Lattimore turned out to be facing the worst case scenario, not being able to play in 2013, the Vikings could easily stash him on the injured reserve for a year and get him into the lineup in 2014 after Gerhart presumably becomes a free agent.
At some point I think Adrian Peterson will start to slow down and instead of being a one man show, perhaps a tandem like Peterson and Lattimore could help him elongate his career by being one half of a great backfield duo.
As of right now, with so many worries about the injuries, Lattimore is projected to go no earlier than the fourth round. The Vikings can’t afford to spend much more money or use too high of a draft pick on the running back position, with other areas in need of help, but the can surely can afford to use a fourth or fifth round pick for a guy that is well known to be a first round talent with Peterson-like problems.
One of the, umm, “benefits” of not playing in the Super Bowl is that you might just qualify for a free trip to Hawaii to play in the season’s most meaningless football game.
The Vikings will be well represented during Sunday’s Pro Bowl. We have already noted that Adrian Peterson, Jerome Felton, Jared Allen, and Chad Greenway will be playing.
Another alternate has made the final cut, however. Tight end Tony Gonzalez played a hard fought game, possibly his last ever, on Sunday and will not be filling his roster spot on the NFC’s all-star squad in Honolulu.
Instead, alternate Kyle Rudolph will be suiting up.
The second-year tight end recorded 53 catches for 493 yards in his second season, doubling the number of catches from his rookie season. He was also second among NFL tight ends with nine touchdowns, tripling his total from last year.
I have some interesting theories (or, at least, I think they are interesting) on what the Vikings should do at running back this year. The truth is that those theories don’t really involve free agency, however, which probably isn’t all that surprising provided that Adrian Peterson and Toby Gerhart still sit atop the depth chart at the position.
Still, in the spirit of the offseason, I have put together my free agent ranking at the position.
Top Tier
I would be surprised to see the Vikings spend big money on a running back, as I mentioned already, but there is no denying that the traits of certain pending free agents could be attractive. A running back that possesses an extra ability to contribute in the passing game or special teams may warrant some consideration, especially if Rick Spielman ends up dealing Percy Harvin to another team.
That is the reason that Reggie Bush tops my running back rankings for the Vikings. I have long said that Harvin and Bush are two very similar players, despite officially playing different positions, and Vikings fans can remember all too well how Bush is capable of making a difference as a return man and slot receiver. Besides, in Miami he was really able to come into his own as a true running back and managed to be relatively durable.
I can’t believe that we are this far away from the annual snooze fest that is the NFL’s Pro Bowl and that we already have four fun storylines to chat about. The Vikings have four Pro Bowl players (at least) and each is in a unique situation.
ADRIAN PETERSON
Everyone’s favorite running back, Adrian Peterson, has been selected to his fifth Pro Bowl and gives us all a reason to watch. Despite the risks associated with Peterson doing anything other than spending the offseason in a deep freeze like Han Solo, Peterson always plays at a high level in the annual skirmish.
This year, almost certainly to the dismay of any AFC defenders, Peterson vows to do now different.
“I’m going to play hard,” warned Peterson. “It is hard for me to play down because when you play down, you put yourself in jeopardy of getting hurt going through the motions. So I won’t be playing down.”
With how Peterson has played this season, coupled with the lackadaisical nature of this game, would anyone be surprised to see Peterson break 300 yards? 400?
500?
Peterson plans on having his abdomen, which had been bugging him near the end of this season, examined a little closer following the Pro Bowl.
JARED ALLEN
Some would argue that Jared Allen, who has been plagued by injury more than ever, was really only voted into the Pro Bowl based off of his name value and not his 2012 production. That might be partially true, but he still played pretty darn good football this season.
Allen, who played with a torn labrum this season, plans to wait until after the Pro Bowl to have surgery on it, which will be the first surgery he has had during his football career. Allen related making the Pro Bowl and not going to going to an ice cream shop and not getting to try any.
“I played the whole year,” he said. “I’m going to enjoy the Pro Bowl. I figure I’ll at least get some warm weather and a pseudo-free vacation.”
Unlike Peterson, however, Allen has said that going full speed at the Pro Bowl and risking an injury that could cost him millions is not worth it. He said he will play down. He also noted that he once played against Peterson in the Pro Bowl and knows the guy is incapable of performing at any lower level of play.
BLAIR WALSH
Rookie kicker Blair Walsh, also known as the best kicker in the NFL, also plans on making his first trip to the Pro Bowl after being elected to the honor.
What is more, Walsh is planning on paying all the costs for long snapper Cullen Loeffler to go with him and hopes to get him on the Pro Bowl roster.
“He obviously came through and he’s like, ‘Yeah, definitely. I’m appreciative for everything that you’ve done,’” Loeffler said of Walsh. “He’s just been a great guy.”
JEROME FELTON
In addition to making a trip to Hawaii, Jerome Felton’s offseason will consist of contract negotiations, and it sounds like he wants to remain a Viking. After helping Adrian Peterson to a 2,000 yard season, it sounds like the Vikings want him back to.
“Obviously you never know how it’s going to turn out. I know it’s a business and all that,” Felton said of being a pending free agent. “I feel good about being here, so I hope that they get something done before that. That’s my goal.
With so many executives, scouts, coaches, agents and players in Hawaii at once, it might just present the perfect opportunity to get those talks rolling.
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