Questions Answered: The Vikings’ F-Word, Kyle Rudolph’s Wild Idea, Dalton Risner
Dustin Baker
|
The following questions are about current Minnesota Vikings topics, answered by VikingsTerritory. Today is the March 27th edition, addressed in a from-the-hip fashion. If you have questions, please email them to [email protected].
Questions Answered: The Vikings’ F-Word, Kyle Rudolph’s Wild Idea, Dalton Risner
Also, please note: These are opinion-based responses. Some answers will be incorrect from time to time. But we’ll try to keep that to a minimum.
Q: Vikings leaders keep talking about their “flexibility.” Is there any way they leave the draft in April without a new quarterback?
Answer: No. They will draft a quarterback.
Vikings owner Mark Wilf said about the team’s quarterback plan, “When it comes to the quarterback position, it’s certainly critical, and Kwesi Adofo-Mensah and coach Kevin O’Connell are working hard. We’ve got a plan, and Sam Darnold is part of it. We’re excited he’s in the building, and we’re excited we have two first-round picks, so we’ll see where it all goes. We have a lot of flexibility, and we’ll see what happens.”
And the team’s head coach + general manager have echoed similar sentiments.
All the “flexibility” means is that Sam Darnold can play quarterback until the rookie passer is ready. Minnesota will still leave the draft with a rookie quarterback — almost no matter what — but it wants would-be trade partners to know it has options.
Q: Do you agree with Kyle Rudolph that the Vikings should ignore the early rounds of the draft and just pick Joe Milton in Round 6 or so?
Answer: No, this is a terrible idea.
“I see, after watching the Combine, a guy like Joe Milton from Tennessee. You have just super, freak potential athleticism. You’re not going to have to mortgage your future to get a guy like that,” Rudolph told The Up and Adams Show this week.
Nope — no thanks. The Vikings tried the mid-to-late round thing with Kellen Mond and Jaren Hall. No luck.
It’s time to trade up and obtain a blue-chip prospect.
Q: Any word on Minnesota bringing Dalton Risner back at left guard?
A: The ship has probably sailed on Dalton Risner.
Otherwise, Minnesota would’ve signed Risner during the first couple of waves in free agency. They have not. On the other hand, Adofo-Mensah re-upped with Blake Brandel for three years, and the Vikings coaching staff might just enjoy his upside as a starter.
The purple team also holds oodles of mid- and late-round draft picks next month — heavy emphasis on the late. It can probably snag a promising guard then and let that man compete with Brandel this summer.
Kevin O’Connell’s coaching staff has worked wonders with the offensive line — wonders not produced by the Mike Zimmer-led Vikings from 2014 to 2021 — so it should be afforded the benefit of the doubt regarding OL solutions.
One Dumb Vikings Theory Smacked Down
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. He hosts a podcast with Bryant McKinnie, which airs every Wednesday with Raun Sawh and Sal Spice. His Vikings obsession dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ Basset Hounds, and The Doors (the band).
All statistics provided by Pro Football Reference / Stathead; all contractual information provided by OverTheCap.com.
You must be logged in to post a comment.