Posts tagged: letroy guion

Vikings Announce Felton Signing

March 20, 2012, by 12 comments

The battle for backup running back and starting fullback may not be the most exciting one when training camp rolls around, but the Vikings are making sure there will be plenty of competition.

A couple of days after signing Lex Hilliard to a one year contract, the Vikings have now announced the addition of fullback Jerome Felton. 

A 2008 fifth round selection by the Lions, Felton figures to compete for a roster spot at age 25.  He had spent three seasons with the Lions, playing in 42 games before being waived in 2011.  He was claimed by the Panthers and then later in the season joined the Colts.

Felton joins a running back squad that consists of the following:  Adrian Peterson, Toby Gerhart, Lex Hilliard, Matt Asiata, and Ryan D’Imperio.  It might be safe to assume that no bruising backs are targeted on Draft weekend, and that we should instead keep our eye on any quick, speedy scat backs in the later rounds.

Terms of Felton’s deal are not yet known.

The Vikings also officially announced the re-signing of Letroy Guion on Tuesday, a move that we knew was coming for a week.

Guion’s Move To Nose Tackle Of Mutual Interest

March 15, 2012, by 5 comments

As if Letroy Guion’s three year contract, worth $9 million, wasn’t a big enough hint that Vikings plan to expand his role, we now have confirmation that he will be competing for the starting nose tackle gig with Remi Ayodele.

Guion had previously occupied the three technique position, mostly as a backup to Kevin Williams, and pulled spot duty as a nose tackle but the move sounds like it will be putting him somewhere that he is more comfortable.

“I don’t like it. I love it,” said Guion on Wednesday. “I love the close-quarter combat. Less space than a three technique. I can see the ball better. Read the offensive line better. And I feel more comfortable at nose than at a three-technique.”

Guion, age 24, was drafted in the sixth round in 2008 out of Florida State.  At the time, he was regarded as extremely gifted but also extremely raw, and it appears that the Vikings still have faith he can develop under new defensive line coach Brendan Daly.

“He’s an extremely talented athlete,” Rick Spielman said following the agreement. “I know when we had meetings on all of our personnel, we still think there’s a huge, huge upside to Letroy.”

In his four seasons with the Vikings, Guion has three starts, all of which came last season.  He has flashed at moments, but has yet to be a consistent contributor on the defense.

Spielman Does Some Splainin’

March 14, 2012, by 5 comments

It has become clear that your average Vikings fan is frustrated with how Rick Spielman has conducted himself in the first 30 hours of so in free agency this offseason, which is his first as General Manager of the Vikings.

Wednesday, however, Spielman explained the team’s approach and strategy while urging the fan base to be patient.

“We’re going to be patient with this,” Spielman said. “We’re going to strike when we feel there’s a player out there that can help us win ballgames. The ownership has always given us the financial backing we need to go get players if we need to get them. But we’re also going to be very patient and prudent as we go through this.”

“I know plenty of our needs are going to be filled through the draft, but we are not done yet,” he continued.  “We are still looking at (unrestricted free agents) as we go along in this process, and we’ll continue to monitor that. There may be a couple guys coming in (for visits) over the next couple of weeks. We’ll continue to add players as we see fit.”

The media pressed Spielman on his conservative approach to free agency.

“I don’t think we’re a player or two away to go out and say you’re going to spend the money that’s being spent on all those players that have gotten contracts early,” he said.  “I think what we’re trying to do, again, is find some players that we think are going to be able to help us win ballgames that are going to contribute and then continually to build this through the draft and keep our draft picks and potentially add more draft picks and keep our roster competitive year in and year out that way.”

Spielman called tight end John Carlson a playmaker while revealing plans to move Letroy Guion to nose tackle, which gives you an idea as to what the thinking was behind those two signings.

Additionally, the Vikings are monitoring the status of Erin and E.J. Henderson, but there is very little urgency surrounding the linebacker position at this point.  As of this posting, not a single 4-3 outside linebacker has signed with a new team, and only a couple low-level middle linebackers are off the market.  Options are still there in this regard, and Spielman may have been wise in waiting for the big money to fly around and get some reasonable contract offers to these guys.

Overall, “patience” seems to be the word of the day.

Letroy Guion’s Contract Details

March 13, 2012, by 5 comments

Letroy Guion is a defensive tackle that has flashed plenty of ability but failed to separate himself from the competition despite a golden opportunity in 2011.

The Vikings, however, are apparently sold on his potential and extended him a decent contract on Tuesday that could make him a low-end starter alongside Kevin Williams.

Guion’s contract is worth $9 million over three years.  He received a signing bonus in the amount of $3.565 million.

The money included in this deal suggests that Rick Spielman and Leslie Frazier have high hopes for Guion’s future with the team.  I have to admit, I like this signing, although I was hoping we would be talking about help being brought in from outside the organization by now.

Guion Returns On Three Year Deal

March 13, 2012, by 1 comment

In a move that makes sense but is highly unlikely to satisfy your free agency appetite, it is being reported that defensive tackle Letroy Guion will return to the team on a three year deal.

Terms of the deal are not yet known, but we will keep an eye out for that.

Also, if you haven’t seen by now, receiver Brandon Marshall is the newest member of the NFC North as the Bears have struck a trade with the Dolphins to acquire his services.  The Vikings secondary will have its work cut out for them this season with Marshall, Greg Jennings, and Calvin Johnson within the division.

The good news is, however, that the Bears may now be out of the running for Vincent Jackson.

Less Than A Day

March 13, 2012, by 3 comments

In well under 24 hours the NFL will begin its free agency period, and the Minnesota Vikings have been unexpectedly quiet.

On Monday, they signed Sage Rosenfels to a two year contract that should put him third on the depth chart behind Joe Webb and Christian Ponder.  Other than that, not much was happening.

In fact, pending free agent linebacker Erin Henderson took to Twitter to seemingly let us know that his phone has yet to ring.

He tweeted, “Let’s write a letter. I’ll start it…. Dear Vikings,”

By the time a letter arrived at Winter Park, however, free agency will be well underway and those hoping that Minnesota retains their weakside linebacker better hope they use more modern technology, such as a telephone, to contact Henderson.

The Vikings will forego the chance to tender linebacker Kenny Onatolu as a restricted free agent, as Brett wrote Monday, but they still sound interested in retaining him.

Defensive tackle Letroy Guion is close to signing a contract extension, according to a source in this report, and contract talks were described as “fruitful” on Monday.  No news has surfaced regarding safety Husain Abdullah and his status with the Vikings.

The Vikings are thought to be a team gearing up to be active in free agency when it starts at 3:00 Central Lutefisk Time on Tuesday. 

The top targets talked about are wide receiver Vincent Jackson, cornerback Brandon Carr, and guard Carl Nicks.  These are names we have discussed for quite some time on these pages, and the odds are good that by Wednesday night we will know if the Vikings actually land any of them.  The Vikings were thought to be on a road to disappointment in this regard, but major free agency players such as Washington and Dallas are going to have trouble chasing big money players in light of their punishments handed down by the league for dumping too much money into the uncapped year.

We will be here to cover every last second of free agency, so get all your chores done early on Tuesday… it could be a long and interesting evening.

OFFSEASON PREVIEW: The Run Stoppers

February 9, 2012, by 2 comments
K-Will

[NOTE FROM ADAM:  This is another installation of my position-by-position breakdown of the Vikings offseason.  You can click the links to view previous installments:  The Passers, The Runners, The Wide Outs, The Tight Ends, and The Offensive Line.]

After covering each position on the offense, it is time to turn our attention towards the defensive side of the ball.

On offense the Vikings experienced no coaching turnover, but that is not the case on defense.  New Defensive Coordinator Alan Williams will have Leslie Frazier and Mike Singletary looking over his shoulder.  Fred Pagac has moved back to his old post in charge of the linebackers.  Defensive Line Coach Karl Dunbar was sent packing, and the enthusiastic Brendan Daly.

Even with the changes within the coaching staff, the Vikings are largely expected to stay the course from a scheme standpoint.  From a personnel standpoint, however, things could be changing.

Defensive tackles are up first.

Let’s take a closer look.

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