Posts tagged: chad greenway

Greenway Didn’t Mean To Hurt Calvin Johnson

September 30, 2012, by 8 comments

The Vikings had a few bumps and bruises resulting from their bout with the Lions on Sunday, but at this time no serious injuries appear to be added to this roster.

The Lions may not be as fortunate, pending the status of Cliff Avril, but the scariest moment for Detroit fans came when Chad Greenway knocked Calvin Johnson senseless.

Greenway led with his shoulder and hit Johnson while he was in the air, reaching unsuccessfully for a Mathew Stafford pass.  It was a classic example of what the NFL is trying to prevent, and Greenway immediately realized he had made a decision that would cost his team 15 yards and cost his wallet something in the neighborhood of $20,000.

Johnson had to come out of the game for a number of drives, only to return for the final drive of the game where he dropped an easy pass, and Greenway acknowledged his mistake following Sunday’s victory.  He says, however, that he never intended to hurt the star wide out.

“I don’t want to hurt Calvin. I don’t want to hurt anybody,” Greenway said Sunday. “I’m thinking he’s going to catch that ball 99 percent of the time. He didn’t that time. So when I go to try to break the ball up, my pad, it’s clear on the tape, it hits his head. What are you going to do? They’re going to throw the flag and I’m probably going to get assessed a fine. But my intent was not to hurt him.”

Greenway has a reputation as a hard hitting linebacker, but has never really been labeled as a dirty player.

Sunday’s lapse of judgment is likely going to be considered an isolated incident.

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.

Good News For Greenway’s Dad

June 20, 2012, by 15 comments

As we previously mentioned, Chad Greenway has had a rough go of it this offseason coping with a hard truth that would not be anywhere close to easy for the toughest of men.

On that front, however, we have some good news to pass along.  Alan Greenway, Chad’s father, is currently at Mayo Clinic (not hospice care) and his leukemia is in remission.

Greenway had previously been excused from the Vikings minicamp, but the linebacker was indeed present given the improved condition of his father.

Greenway admits his father is on his mind constantly, but that going to practice with his teammates can provide some solace, too.

“Yeah, every day and every minute you’re thinking about it,” Greenway recently said, “but at the same point you have to go to work, and it is a reprieve to be at work, and be around my friends and do something that I love.”

We, as Vikings fans, have high hopes for Chad Greenway in 2012.  However, the biggest wish of all is for his father to continue to improve health-wise and that the Greenway family has a fantastic year in general.

Links Of The Week: OTAs End

June 17, 2012, by 2 comments

Mike Wobschall from Vikings.com makes some observations from OTA #7. In one note, “Wobby” describes plays where both Christian Ponder and Joe Webb are scrambling to the right. Don’t like to hear that our QBs are still fleeing from pressure but glad that they’re able to if their hand is forced. There are also some great notes for OTAs #4-6.

Jared Allen is awesome. Watch Allen’s latest charitable event “Night Ops Golf” here on Youtube.

Stop the press. Everyone’s favorite hip-hop entrepreneur Bryant McKinnie showed up to camp phat. (See what I did there?) Will he even make the Raven’s roster this year?

I missed this one over the course of the week. Apparently, NFL Comissioner, Roger Goodell, sent out a memo to all teams addressing recent DUIs and reminding team players and personnel to “be responsible.”

The folks over at Pro Football Focus have been looking at each NFL team and determining that team’s “Secret Superstar.” Who was their selection for the Vikings? Go check it out. Who should we look out for on the Packers, Bears and Lions according to PFT? Linebacker D.J. Smith, cornerback Tim Jennings and defensive end Willie Young, respectively.

I really can’t stand this idea that the NFL is strictly a passing game and running the ball has lost its importance in the NFL. Adam and I will have to take the topic up in our next “Coin Toss.” Nevertheless, National Football Post has a good article up discussing the topic, using the Vikings lack of success even with Adrian Peterson as a prime example.

Although ESPN analyst Ron Jaworski expects Christian Ponder to “improve significantly this season” he still has Ponder ranked 28th out of 30 on his “Top QBs” list. Kevin Seifert from ESPN’s NFL North blog further inspects Jaworski’s analysis.

Vikings.com has some great OTA videos. Definitely check those out.

Our buddy Gil over at The Vikings Den landed a writing gig with Rant Sports. He’ll continue writing for TVD though and we wish him the best of luck. In this particular post, TVD looks at if the Vikings missed out by not signing linebacker Rocky McIntosh.

While the Vikings run play-action more than almost every team in the NFL, it turns out they’re not very good at it. (This is always something that has bothered me. With such an incredible running back, you think our play-action would be much more effective. I absolutely hate it when a quarterback doesn’t know how to sell the play-action. I think a good “just kidding” hand-off can really screw up a defense. Hopefully this is something Vikings QB Christian Ponder has been working on this offseason. Okay, rant over.)

Today is Father’s Day. And despite the fact that Chad Greenway’s father was recently diagnosed with leukemia and is now receiving hospice care, the Vikings linebacker still decided to host a Father’s Day fundraising 5k run. Please keep Chad and the Greenway family in your thoughts through these trying times for them.

Smith, Burton, And Others Get Time With The First Team

June 13, 2012, by 6 comments

Here are some interesting tidbits for how the depth chart looked during Tuesday’s OTA practices:

SAFETY:  It didn’t take long for first round pick Harrison Smith to “work his way up” the depth chart and received mostly first team reps on Tuesday.  Across from him, Mistral Raymond and Jamarca Sanford rotated first team reps.

“I saw a play (Tuesday) where he really got angry,” Leslie Frazier said of Smith. “He got pretty fired up, and you kind of need that out of your defensive backs. You need them to have a little something about them, and it was good to see.”

CORNERBACK:  Smith and Matt Kalil aren’t the only rookies to be getting first team reps at this point.  Third round cornerback Josh Robinson received some reps as the starting right corner.  It isn’t clear why, but Antoine Winfield missed Tuesday’s practice, and it is equally unclear if Winfield’s absence resulted in Robinson getting his chances with the first team.

LINEBACKER:  Jasper Brinkley suffered a minor groin injury last week and, while he is expected to be fine, has missed some time.  Chad Greenway has been in South Dakota dealing with his family matters and Solomon Elimimian has had to sit out with a hamstring injury.  That means that the starting group of linebackers has looked like this:  Erin Henderson, Larry Dean, and Tyrone McKenzie.

WIDE RECEIVER:  With the absence of Percy Harvin, Stephen Burton has been filling in as the go-to flanker with the first team.  Burton has generated a lot of offseason buzz, along with Jerome Simpson, and these reps with Christian Ponder could give him the inside track to a roster spot.

OFFENSIVE LINE:  Matt Kalil, Charlie Johnson, John Sullivan and Phil Loadholt.  These guys are assumed to be occupying four of the starting spots along the offensive line from day one, which means there should be one hell of a competition for the starting gig at right guard.  Right now, Brandon Fusco is acting as the starting right guard with Geoff Schwartz getting reps with the second team.

KICKER:  Blair Walsh has been handed the kickers position on a silver gold platinum platter.  On Tuesday, during 11-on-11 drills, Walsh made four of six field goal attempts.  He missed from 42 and 44 yards.

Greenway’s Absence Understandably Due To Father’s Illness

June 13, 2012, by 4 comments

The Minnesota Vikings have had good, spirited attendance at OTA’s so far this year by all accounts.  A few veterans have stayed away, including Percy Harvin after his shoulder presumably started to act up after attending the very beginning of OTA’s.  Jared Allen has also been away, which is not really a surprise given that is pretty much the norm for number 69.

One player that has been somewhat of a mystery has been Chad Greenway whose absence has been attributed to the vague reason of “family situation” up until this point.

According to reports, however, Greenway is indeed dealing with an unenviable and difficult situation.  His father, whom we can all remember for his words after Greenway was drafted, has been battling leukemia and is currently getting hospice care.

“I talked with him a few days ago and I don’t know if we’ll have him back for mandatory minicamp,” Leslie Frazier said. “His family situation is something he’s dealing with so we may or may not have him back for that but it’s understandable, what he’s experiencing.”

According to the reports, a number of South Dakota farmers have banded together to help Alan Greenway out by bailing his hay this season.

We here at VT would like to pass along our best wishes to Alan, Chad, and the whole Greenway family. This is surely the most trying of times for the Greenway family, and I know many of you would be eager to help out, but I have been unable to find any sort of fund being organized for Mr. Greenway.  If I find one I will be sure to pass that along.

In the meantime, Pennies for Patients has always been a standup organization to support in the battle against leukemia.

[UPDATE: It should be noted that the sixth annual Greenway's Gridiron Gallup will be held this Sunday, Father's Day, in Minneapolis.  The 5k run helps to raise funds for the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board youth athletic programming.  For more details, you can click here.]

Ponder and Greenway Take On Unusual (But Worthwhile) Cause

April 29, 2012, by 1 comment

Financial Literacy.

Now, there is a term that one doesn’t hear about too often, especially in relation to professional football players.  Players that sign big contracts will often take part in some sort of charity work or civic service that warms the heart or helps somebody with an incredible need.

VISA and the NFL have teamed up, however, to unroll a program teaching kids about their personal finances and Ponder enlisted to unroll the program in Minnesota while Greenway has done the same in Iowa.  The intent is to warn students of the dangers that exist with debt and also how to properly invest and safeguard their money.

As someone who listens religiously to the wise words of Dave Ramsey, I am glad to see that financial literacy is being brought to the forefront of America’s mind, and am proud to see our Vikings players getting involved.

“Kids need to know how to make smart money management decisions early in life,” said Ponder. “It takes the combined efforts of parents, teachers and mentors within the community to give teenagers a strong background in personal finance.”

The financial education center around an NFL video game called Financial Football.  In the game, students have to answer questions in order to gain yardage and score touchdowns.  When the players go to the classrooms, they split into two teams and face off with each other using Financial Football as the tool.

Greenway gave students a warning not to repeat his mistakes when they go to college.  Greenway told a story of piling up credit card debt and, were it not for his football career, it could have just snowballed from there.

“I eventually paid it off and I pay it off every month now,” Greenway told the students. “It’s important to learn how to manage money, and in the future, hopefully, to watch your budget grow.”

Kudos to Ponder and Greenway for representing the team very well and taking time to make a difference for these kids in the mid-west.

If you have interest in giving the Financial Football video game a try (I did, its… okay) you can do so by clicking here.  At the very least, your kids might be interested in giving it a shot.