The Minnesota Vikings released Mike Wallace due to financial considerations. Mike Wallace signed with the Baltimore Ravens on Tuesday due to financial considerations. Anyone that pretends these things don’t come down to money, with few exceptions, is kidding themselves.
With that being said, emotion creeps into our views of our favorite teams, and we attach meaning to the words uttered by those players that are coming or going.
Wallace was a good soldier throughout his one season in Minnesota and was widely praised by the Vikings brass following the season. Upon his official departure, however, Wallace seemingly went out of his way to let his thoughts on Teddy Bridgewater be known.
[pull_quote_center]When this process started, I knew that I wasn’t going back to Minnesota. I was like, ‘I need a good quarterback. I need a quarterback who I know is proven and can get things done,'” Wallace said. “[Joe] Flacco, he’s always been that guy. I’ve always loved his deep ball. Always.[/pull_quote_center]
Again, these words are coming out of the mouth of a man that once willingly traded in Ben Roethlisberger for Ryan Tannehill… it is almost always about the money.
The Vikings struggled in the vertical game in 2015 and that is no secret. Depending on who you ask the blame can be assigned to Bridgewater, the time provided by the offensive line, the consistency of the wide outs, and even the playcalling of Norv Turner. The accurate diagnosis almost certainly involves a combination of all of those factors.
The Vikings have appeared proactive in addressing these issues so far this offseason. They hired offensive line coach Tony Sparano and made guard Alex Boone their top free agency acquisition. Additionally, they retained offensive lineman Mike Harris and Phil Loadholt while exploring other outside options like Andre Smith.
Additionally, they brought offensive mind Pat Shurmur aboard the coaching staff in a move that adds a mysterious wrinkle to predicting what the offense will look like in 2016.
Still, Wallace’s comments seemingly single out Bridgewater, which accurately depicts the fact that Bridgewater has plenty left to prove as an NFL quarterback. An ability to accurately and consistently throw the deep ball is near the top of that list.
Wallace has reason to be excited about the deep ball that Joe Flacco is capable of throwing. He admitted that he’d long been envious of Torrey Smith’s opportunities with Flacco at the helm.
This upcoming season, even if Wallace catches 1,200 yards worth of passes, I’m willing to bet that he ends up envious of his former Vikings teammates and their postseason successes.
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Douchotron
You are supposed to say nice things about the team and/or QB/ players when you transition. And face it, Teddy didn't exactly cut 'er loose. He was the most accurate QB in the league but he threw very few passes by any NFL QB's standards ( 450-475 something like that) Your speed merchant slash deep threat wasn't breaking records no matter who he was in Minnesota last year, period. Teddy needs to air it out more. Zimmer said the same thing like a month after the season ended. He needs to take control of his team, He will, he is getting there. But, in all fairness, Wallace isn't Julio Jones or Calvin Benjamin either. I think everyone, Teddy included, is expecting more from Teddy Bridgewater in the 2016 season.
Honestly I like Teddy's game. Improvement is always good but to me at least I am sold he is our franchise QB. You don't need a QB that grades at the top of every passing category to win a SB. Teddy does so many things well that people don't give him enough credit for. I'm not going to give the list of reasons I love TB, but I am fine with his game. Yes he can and will improve, but even if he doesn't I still think he is the best QB we have had since Fran (ex. Zombie Favre year). Considering the amount of pressure TB faced the last two years I think he has been exceptional, and yet it seems like all people want to do is bag on for "his deep ball". Never have I heard of anything so constantly overblown as this criticism.
Some nice bulletin board material. Wallace may be doing Minnesota a favor, here.
He'll be awful in Baltimore, just like Minnesota and Miami. The guy hasn't been relevant for years now. He's delusional.
120 receptions and 15 TD's in two years is not awful by any stretch, even at 12.8 yards per catch.
Still, Wallace could have kissed up to Flacco and his long ball without pissing on Teddy.
They say the truth hurts, and this stings as a strand of truth. O-line trouble not withstanding, and with poise and class duly noted, Teddy has alot of room for improvement. His throwing motion hampers his long ball, at times he seems to place the ball instead of throwing it, and his low release, combined with his ordinary height, makes for too many knockdowns. I have to say, every time I read about these 6'5" 225lbers I wonder - what if, and/or - should we? (Patriots take a QB every year.) Well, then I take solace in the Broncos blueprint for success, great D and a game manager. Are we doing the same?
I've been defending him and I was hoping we would bring him back but if he's going to act like that, good riddance. He hasn't played well in years anyway. We can find a more productive receiver in free agency or the draft and it'll cost a lot less too. Let the Ravens babysit that delusional prima donna
I don't think it comes down to money though. If I remember correctly, he turned down the Vikings 5 year $76 million to sign with Dolphins on a 5 year $60 million deal. Maybe it's not a big deal when they're already making that much but it is a $16 million difference
But there's no tax in FL...big advantage
Exactly. No income tax gives some states a huge advantage during free agency. Remember that a lot of big-name players don't just have their NFL contracts... they have endorsement deals, investments, record labels, or whatever other sources of income that come their way.
teddy! teddy! aka move the chains! Wallace WHO?
Take care of yourself Mike. But, I think if winning was most important, you have chosen...poorly.
Baltimore is one of the best organizations in football. The last time they went 5-11, they came back the next year at 11-5. The truth is, Wallace probably fits the Ravens better than the Vikings and this may be the right outcome for all the parties involved.
Ok,so he's a moron for slagging Teddy,whatever.Take the emotion out of it and this represents a problem for the Vikings.Our current WR corps is Diggs,Wright,Johnson,Thielen,Fruechete,Sinkfield and Patterson.
If you are an opposing DC,do any of those guys give you a headache? No,they don't.
The Vikings will no doubt bring in a receiver via the draft,but that won't be in instant fix.
There is a distinct lack of veteran leadership which the Vikings need to address.I believe they should give serious consideration to Anquan Boldin.He may be in his mid 30s,but the guy can still play and would bring a veteran presence to help the receiver group,and also aid Teddy in his development.
Boldin has said he only wants to play for a contender,and the Vikings definitely fit that mould.
Agreed that looking at our WR corp makes one think that we're going to add a high round WR soon. However, if you're an opposing DC and you're looking at a receiving corp of Diggs, Wright, Johnson, Thielen, (even CP84), BUT ALSO McKinnon, Rudolph, and Pruitt, AND the QB was Drew Brees - that'd make you think twice. Why? Because the headache is the QB's ability to slice and dice, and the receivers are good enough that one of them will be open and will pull in the ball and many have enough YAC ability to keep the chains moving. Maybe there's no prototypical deep vertical HR threat, but plenty of teams make do without one of those.
Teddy hasn't produced at Brees' level to be sure, but if he becomes the QB we think he can be, he will become the headache that DC's have to game plan around. He's simply too good at figuring out what the D is trying to do and finding the mismatch time after time after time. The two things holding him back far more than any defenses were 1) the OLine (which is being addressed), and 2) the scheme, which is why Wallace is out.
I honestly have a hard time getting too worked up over what Wallace said. Seriously. Dude has one good to great skill, and our offense and QB are not good matches for it. Good for him and good for Baltimore that he gets to play with Flacco. That's a great fit. Nothing wrong with that, and nothing wrong with calling a spade a spade. If there's any part of his comments that does get under my skin, it's that he's essentially stating - from a player perspective - that he agrees with what we all see: Teddy is best in a WCO style offense. Thank god for Shurmur, right?
How about Kamar Aiken, Baltimore's leading receiver last year? Yeah, he's a restricted free agent and would cost us a second-rounder but he's got good size and it sounds like he could be a solid No. 2 or 3 option going forward.
All you need to know about Wallace
Diggs: 654 snaps/720 yards (1.10 yds/sn)
Wallace: 751 snaps/473 yards (0.63 yds/sn)
He sucks and was beat out by a 5th round Rookie.
i don't want to hear anymore about " with Adrian, we'll get 8 or 9 in the box and then that will open up the long ball as our receivers will have single coverage,etc". Been hearing that since the day AP stepped on the field and with possibly the exception of the Favre 2009 year, this has been the biggest fallacy i've heard. I think the Vikes, with some improvement on the OL, should adopt a pass-first mentality to set up AP instead of trying to force the square peg in the round hole of run to set up pass mentality, especially earlier in the game. I bet AP will have even more yds on fewer carries.