2018 Minnesota Vikings Off-Season Thread

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STrib: Vikings address offensive line, draft tackle Brian O'Neill in second round

Rick Spielman didn’t wait much longer to address the Vikings offensive line.

The Vikings drafted tackle Brian O’Neill out of Pittsburgh with the 62nd-overall pick on Friday. The second-round selection marks the first time Minnesota has taken a Day 1 or Day 2 offensive lineman in back-to-back drafts since Spielman joined the front office in 2007.

O’Neill is massive, checking in at 6-foot-7 and 297 pounds during the NFL scouting combine. He played both left tackle and right tackle at Pittsburgh.

Some evaluators projected O’Neill as an athletic guard at the NFL level. The Vikings could start him out at either position. They’re comfortable with Mike Remmers starting at right guard or right tackle, according to Spielman.

http://www.startribune.com/vikings-...ackle-brian-oneill-in-second-round/481121131/

Skol Vikes!!
 

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Skol Vikes!!
 

BleedGopher said:
STrib: Vikings address offensive line, draft tackle Brian O'Neill in second round

Rick Spielman didn’t wait much longer to address the Vikings offensive line.

The Vikings drafted tackle Brian O’Neill out of Pittsburgh with the 62nd-overall pick on Friday. The second-round selection marks the first time Minnesota has taken a Day 1 or Day 2 offensive lineman in back-to-back drafts since Spielman joined the front office in 2007.

O’Neill is massive, checking in at 6-foot-7 and 297 pounds during the NFL scouting combine. He played both left tackle and right tackle at Pittsburgh.

Some evaluators projected O’Neill as an athletic guard at the NFL level. The Vikings could start him out at either position. They’re comfortable with Mike Remmers starting at right guard or right tackle, according to Spielman.

http://www.startribune.com/vikings-...ackle-brian-oneill-in-second-round/481121131/

Skol Vikes!!
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This may pan out as a good pick, but I've never understood the philosophy that one would crave very tall offensive linemen....doesn't this just create vision problems for the QB?
 

cncmin said:
This may pan out as a good pick, but I've never understood the philosophy that one would crave very tall offensive linemen....doesn't this just create vision problems for the QB?
Click to expand...

Tall usually equates to long arms which can help keeping defenders from getting to their bodies. That’s the main reason.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 


RandBall: Vikings better hope they're right about draft -- and Pro Football Focus is wrong

It’s partially true and partially an extreme cop-out to say we can’t evaluate how teams perform in the NFL Draft until a few years down the road.

What’s true is that we don’t know how college players in their early 20s will look and perform in their mid-20s after having time to develop, grow and learn in an NFL system. We don’t know about injuries. We don’t know about untapped potential.

But I also think it is more than fair to evaluate a couple of things in the short-term: Did a team appear to get good value based on the consensus about players — as shaky as that might be — going into the draft? And did a team seem to have a good approach to the draft based on its needs and the status relative to the rest of the league?

On these two points, the Vikings are wide open to criticism for this year’s draft. My gut instinct was that neither their value nor approach were good.

Some data bears that out. Arif Hasan at Zone Coverage has a nice chart of where the Vikings landed in terms of return on investment as it pertains to the consensus of where players were valued vs. where they were drafted, and the Vikings finished 23rd of 32 teams.

Specifically, as it concerns the offensive line: The Vikings better hope they are right and Pro Football Focus is wrong.

The Vikings eschewed a safe pick at No. 30 overall — an offensive guard to perhaps plug in and start right away in place of the retired Joe Berger. They went instead with cornerback Mike Hughes and then chose tackle Brian O’Neill No. 62 overall. They didn’t take another swing at an offensive lineman until the sixth round with guard Colby Gossett, another project.

PFF had this to say about O’Neill, whom they ranked the No. 91 overall prospect: “O'Neill is a terrific athlete for the position and possesses some of the best mirroring ability in the entire class. His punch and play strength are lacking at the moment though, and it's concerning how poorly he performed Senior Bowl week. While there, he won only 27 percent of his reps in 1-on-1 practice.”

The Vikings received better value for Gossett, deemed PFF’s No. 137 prospect out of Appalachian State, but neither player is a plug-and-play prospect. Both likely need time to grow and develop. PFF, by the way, graded the Vikings’ overall draft as “below average.”

So the Vikings might not have added an immediately useful offensive lineman. Last year, their offensive line was very much improved from where it was in 2016, when it heavily contributed to ruining their season. Free agent tackles Riley Reiff and Mike Remmers had a big hand in that, as did rookie center Pat Elflein and guard Nick Easton.

Here’s the thing, though: Remmers was by far the Vikings highest-graded tackle last season, finishing with a PFF grade of 69.6. Reiff was at 48.6 and backup Rashod Hill was at 43.6. Remmers was shifted to guard in the playoffs while Hill started at tackle to compensate for Easton’s injury. It was pretty much a disaster against the Eagles, with the Vikings allowing pressures on 24 of Case Keenum’s 50 dropbacks (48 percent). That was after a regular season in which Keenum was pressured on 39.3 percent of his dropbacks, the third most of any NFL QB.

Overall, the Vikings improved their pass blocking efficiency in the regular season from 23rd in 2016 to 13th last season. The body of work that said the line was average last year was much larger than the playoff sample that showed it was still a major concern.

That said, their highest-graded lineman last season was Berger, and he retired. They signed veteran Tom Compton in the offseason, while Danny Isidora has showed promise. Those two plus accelerated development from either or both draft picks could help quiet fears about the offensive line. The Vikings have flexibility in that Remmers can play guard or tackle, but they seem best off with him at tackle.

I’m not wild about offensive line “ifs” on a team that has had seasons ruined by poor line play and that just spent $84 million guaranteed on QB Kirk Cousins — a guy who threw nine interceptions while under pressure last year, per PFF, tied for most in the NFL. Keenum, by the way, threw two. (Cousins did also throw nine TDs under pressure, tied for most in the NFL. Keenum threw five).

It just seems strange that a team with a well-defined window to win — including legitimate Super Bowl aspirations in 2018 — conducted a draft more befitting of a team ready to win in three years. Even if you have a belief system of trying to hit home runs, this felt like a year to play it straight and gobble up players more immediately useful.

But they didn’t, or at least it doesn’t look like they did. As a result, if the Vikings roster isn’t as good and deep as decisionmakers think it is, they could have problems next season.

http://www.startribune.com/vikings-...ft-and-pro-football-focus-is-wrong/481256141/

Skol Vikes!!
 

die hard gopher said:
Tall usually equates to long arms which can help keeping defenders from getting to their bodies. That’s the main reason.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

As long as you have a decent sized QB. Tall guards are far more helpful at the tackle position since there is more distance between them and the QB. Plus you need to plan for quick, pass rushing ends/linebackers. Length is far more important on the outside. Fortunately Cousins is 6'3". Bradford and Bridgewater are similar. But I wouldn't want to draft a 6'7" guard for a QB like Russell Wilson.
 

Vikings just resigned Terrence Newman and exercised Waynes's 5th year option.

I dislike the Hughes pick even more now. We now have Wayne's for at least the next two years and potentially Newman as the #3 CB this year. Also have Holton Hill as an UDFA who was a projected 3-4th round pick. I feel like we virtually wasted first round pick when we could have had Hernandez, Daniels or Williams. We would have been set. Also then we could have used our second pick on a D-lineman and our third pick on a TE and so on and so fourth. Use our first round next year on a CB.
 

die hard gopher said:
Vikings just resigned Terrence Newman and exercised Waynes's 5th year option.

I dislike the Hughes pick even more now. We now have Wayne's for at least the next two years and potentially Newman as the #3 CB this year. Also have Holton Hill as an UDFA who was a projected 3-4th round pick. I feel like we virtually wasted first round pick when we could have had Hernandez, Daniels or Williams. We would have been set. Also then we could have used our second pick on a D-lineman and our third pick on a TE and so on and so fourth. Use our first round next year on a CB.
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This has got to mean Sherels will be gone now.
 



Just like a few years ago we drafted lots of backups, when we have a very poor offensive line. O'Neil needs lots of strength and has a high upside, too bad we need someone from day 1.
 

march madness said:
Just like a few years ago we drafted lots of backups, when we have a very poor offensive line. O'Neil needs lots of strength and has a high upside, too bad we need someone from day 1.
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Yup. A lot of teams have figured out you need to use assets to build the entire line, not just tackles. I don't think the Vikings have quite reached that point yet.
 

GophersInIowa said:
This has got to mean Sherels will be gone now.
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Sherels didnt look very good in coverage last year. Still, having a quality PR that you can depend on is an asset. But yes, he looks to be on the way out, especially if Hughes or someone else proves to be a dependable PR.

Holton Hill, if he can stay clean, may push Newman or even MacAlex off the team. He is a very good corner signed as a UDFA that could have been a 3rd or 4th rounder if he could stay clean.

https://www.twincities.com/2018/04/30/texas-cb-holton-hill-highest-rated-among-17-college-free-agents-to-sign-with-vikings/
 

JimmyJamesMD said:
Sherels didnt look very good in coverage last year. Still, having a quality PR that you can depend on is an asset. But yes, he looks to be on the way out, especially if Hughes or someone else proves to be a dependable PR.

Holton Hill, if he can stay clean, may push Newman or even MacAlex off the team. He is a very good corner signed as a UDFA that could have been a 3rd or 4th rounder if he could stay clean.

https://www.twincities.com/2018/04/30/texas-cb-holton-hill-highest-rated-among-17-college-free-agents-to-sign-with-vikings/
Click to expand...

I wouldn't be surprised if they had Hill at safety to push Kearse or Harris. He has good size and is a very god tackler. He can definitely cover but his tackling might be a bit ahead of his coverage skills right now.
 



die hard gopher said:
I wouldn't be surprised if they had Hill at safety to push Kearse or Harris. He has good size and is a very god tackler. He can definitely cover but his tackling might be a bit ahead of his coverage skills right now.
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I didn't think of that, that's a good point. It be nice to develop Sandejo's replacement
 

die hard gopher said:
I wouldn't be surprised if they had Hill at safety to push Kearse or Harris. He has good size and is a very god tackler. He can definitely cover but his tackling might be a bit ahead of his coverage skills right now.
Click to expand...

Never thought of that either. They'd be able to keep Sherels if that's the case.
 

GophersInIowa said:
This has got to mean Sherels will be gone now.
Click to expand...
It sounds like Hughes is a punt return specialist as well as a good CB. Have to think that this means Sherels is on the chopping block unfortunately. Maybe the front office will find a way to keep him around, since he seems to be universally loved by everyone in the organization. Btw....he isn't just a punt return specialist....he was also the best gunner on the team. We'll see what happens. I hope he can stick around. If not....hopefully he land somewhere else where they need a ST player. Maybe Seattle? They seem to love taking former Vikings.

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Sid: Vikings General Manager Rick Spielman was swayed to draft Mike Hughes by his college coach

But how did the Vikings zero in on Hughes?

General Manager Rick Spielman has a good relationship with new Nebraska coach and former UCF coach Scott Frost. That’s because Spielman’s son, JD Spielman, is a wide receiver for the Cornhuskers, even though he hasn’t yet played for Frost.

The GM definitely had at least two conversations with Frost, who had a lot to do with persuading Spielman to make the final decision to take Hughes.

Frost high on Hughes

Hughes played only one year at UCF but was a crucial part of a 13-0 season that culminated in a 34-27 victory over Auburn in the Peach Bowl. Frost was named Coach of the Year by several organizations including the Associated Press, and Hughes was selected second-team All-America by the Football Writers Association of America as a kick returner.

Hughes’ accolades were truly impressive to Frost because UCF added Hughes late in the offseason last year.

“We didn’t get Mike until about a week and a half after camp had started,” Frost said after the draft. “So we were really close to our first game. I was really impressed with his ability, not just to come in and learn it, which was exceptional for him to be able to learn it that fast to get on the field, but also his ability to come in and integrate himself with the team.”

Hughes finished the season with four interceptions, 49 tackles and three special-teams touchdowns.

Frost recalled his reaction to Hughes being picked by the Vikings.

“I was really excited for him,” he said. “I think it’s a perfect fit for him. I think he’s the type of player that is going to thrive up there. Couldn’t be happier for him as a person having been through kind of a unique path where he was getting, couldn’t be more excited for him to go in the first round and land in a good place on a good team to play some place to make a difference.”

http://www.startribune.com/vikings-...t-mike-hughes-by-his-college-coach/481697191/

Skol Vikes!!
 

per Sid:

Excited for new draft class

Meanwhile, the Vikings brought their eight new draft picks into rookie minicamp this weekend and Zimmer said that when he considers who was drafted against the team’s predraft rankings, he thinks the team got a good collection of players, including one that General Manager Rick Spielman had really targeted.

“You get a certain bunch of guys that you like and then you try to figure out which ones are going to be there and hope that they are,” Zimmer said. “Sometimes Rick does a good job of moving up and down on the board to try and find the guys we like, but you know we thought that [first-round pick] Mike Hughes had an opportunity to be there and we thought there was four or five other guys that we would have picked at that spot.

“As it went down there was a big run on offensive linemen, especially in the second round at the top of the second, but Brian O’Neill was a guy that we liked a lot as an offensive tackle. We got out of the third and in the fourth round, Jalyn Holmes was a guy that we looked at a lot”

When it comes to questions about Hughes’ character, Zimmer said the team did their due diligence and that everyone makes mistakes.

“I think he got caught up in a situation one time and that really was all that happened,” Zimmer said. “He’s a very, ‘Yes, sir. No, sir.’ kind of kid. We met with him twice and then talked to him on the phone quite a few times. We felt very comfortable with him and we researched everything.”

The 2017 draft produced two immediate starters in center Pat Elflein and running back Dalvin Cook. Does Zimmer think this 2018 class has a lot to live up to?

“I hope this one turns out that good. You never know until you get them in here and practicing,” he said. “But we have a really good coaching staff, guys who will come in here and work real hard at getting guys better. We spent a lot of time [with the rookies] last year, more than we ever have, and we’ll do that again this year.”

http://www.startribune.com/vikings-are-eager-to-put-last-season-s-sour-ending-behind-them/481836821/

Skol Vikes!!
 


per Sid:

• Pro Football Focus remains high on the Vikings’ first-round pick, Central Florida cornerback Mike Hughes. They labeled him a draft favorite and wrote this about his rookie minicamp performance: “Hughes flashed his positional versatility early in rookie minicamp. The former UCF standout took snaps at outside cornerback and slot cornerback on defense in addition to covering and returning punts on special teams.”

• PFF also lauded the Vikings’ decision to trade up 10 spots in the fifth round to draft Central Michigan tight end Tyler Conklin: “The 6-3, 254-pounder has the ideal size-to-athleticism ratio to be a matchup nightmare at the next level, and he proved just that in his most recent year with the Chippewas,” it wrote. “In addition to 140-plus offensive snaps at tight end, he played 60-plus snaps at slot receiver and another 241 along the boundary at outside wide receiver.”

http://www.startribune.com/eduardo-escobar-max-kepler-fuel-twins-offense/482342122/

Skol Vikes!!
 

I love this time of the year. Every draft choice and every UDFA is a great pick by every team in the league. No GM in the entire league made a bad choice
 

TE Conkilin at 6-3 255, is a little short from ideal, has a great vertical at 38 inches, and a pretty pedestrian 40 time at 4.8. Had he run faster he definitely would have gone higher.

TE Rudolph was 6-6 259 and ran 4.78.

This draft will come down to how well our offensive line plays, which includes was taking O'Neil someone with upside but maybe won't start right away versus a 1st round player who could have played from day 1. One wrong hit on Cousins, because of porous pass blocking, and him getting majorly injured is my worst nightmare.
 

per Sid:

• Will Stefon Diggs be tough to sign after the Vikings wide receiver becomes an unrestricted free agent following this season? If Pro Football Focus has any insight he surely will, as it recently ranked him as the 15th-best player in the NFL under the age of 25. It also ranked him as the best in the NFL at making contested catches at 64.9 percent. Diggs was asked this week by NFL Network about his upcoming contract and he said: “I kind of let those things kind of figure themselves out. My job is more importantly just to put the work in. You put the work in and then you let that stuff kind of figure itself out.”

• When the Viking negotiate with Anthony Barr, who can be a free agent at the end of the 2018 season, they can use the fact that he was ranked 48th among linebackers by Pro Football Focus and finished 91st in tackles, according to the NFL, in 2017. But Barr can of course argue that he does more than just tackle, as he has made the three most recent Pro Bowls.

http://www.startribune.com/derek-fa...ecisions-to-be-made-this-offseason/483125361/

Skol Vikes!!
 

If we could afford to pay only 2 of the following 3, who would you chose right now.
WR Diggs
DE Hunter
LB Barr

I would probably go with Diggs and Hunter. Rushing the passer is a necessity in this league.
Barr would have more chances in a 3-4 to do that.

Diggs because we haven't had consistent wr play until recently. Also our defense is way ahead of our offense.
 

Also having what some have considered the best wr duo in the NFL in Theilen and Diggs, and a very solid pass catching TE, what kind of numbers are you hoping Cousins will put up here?

I think our offensive line is about the same as Washington's but we definitely have better WR's, and if Cook is 100% a huge upgrade there.

The last 3 seasons Cousins has thrown 67% for 4400 yards 7.8 yp, 27 TD's and 12 interceptions on average.

I think this team would be dynamite if he threw over 30td's and 12 int or less.
 

march madness said:
If we could afford to pay only 2 of the following 3, who would you chose right now.
WR Diggs
DE Hunter
LB Barr

I would probably go with Diggs and Hunter. Rushing the passer is a necessity in this league.
Barr would have more chances in a 3-4 to do that.

Diggs because we haven't had consistent wr play until recently. Also our defense is way ahead of our offense.
Click to expand...

I agree with this. Barr is a good talent and I hope they can find a way to keep him, but I think he's very inconsistent.
 

I would not pay Diggs huge $$. He disappears too often. Theilen is more consistent. It would help if Treadwell would prove himself to be something other than a bust this year.
 

march madness said:
If we could afford to pay only 2 of the following 3, who would you chose right now.
WR Diggs
DE Hunter
LB Barr

I would probably go with Diggs and Hunter. Rushing the passer is a necessity in this league.
Barr would have more chances in a 3-4 to do that.

Diggs because we haven't had consistent wr play until recently. Also our defense is way ahead of our offense.
Click to expand...

That's really tough. I think Barr is the odd man out here.....due to inconsistency. On the other hand, WR talent is easier to find, and there are always FA receivers floating around each year that look a whole lot better with a decent QB. I'd hate to lose Barr, but his speed allows him to bust up plays that would commonly go for more yardage. He's especially great when it comes to defending screens. You never want to lose good d-backs......but I'd have to think that Waynes is going to be in that mix if CAP space becomes an issue.
 

STrib: Kirk Cousins getting big dose of Vikings' intense focus on red-zone offense

Kirk Cousins is looking sharp in spring practices, but he’s learning precisely what “open” means in his new offense.

Cousins passed up Vikings tight end Kyle Rudolph during a red-zone drill in Wednesday’s organized team activity practice. Rudolph wouldn’t have been the first receiver to say he was left open. But, quarterbacks coach Kevin Stefanski thought Cousins missed the window for a big play and let him know afterward.

“ ‘Hey in that situation, you might want to give Kyle a chance,” Cousins recalled hearing from Stefanski, “even though he looks covered. You have to throw him the ball. He’s open.’ ”

The Vikings’ passing game remains an obvious work in progress after just five 11-on-11 practices into Cousins’ tenure. While the veteran quarterback found receivers Adam Thielen and Laquon Treadwell for impressive strikes, he’s still adapting to nuances of each target. They range from an effective close-quarters tight end like Rudolph to some shifty receivers.

Jumpstarting that chemistry is a continued emphasis in the red zone, where the Vikings will rely on a new quarterback and new coordinator to maintain their 2017 success.

http://www.startribune.com/kirk-cou...-intense-focus-on-red-zone-offense/484105961/

Skol Vikes!!
 

per Sid:

Cousins everything and more

Cousins is the biggest addition of Spielman's tenure and the biggest free agent signing in team history. Spielman described his early impressions of the quarterback.

"I'd say he's probably more than we expected, not only what he's doing on the field and how accurate of a thrower he is, but what a leader he is becoming with this team and how guys are gravitating towards him," Spielman said. "We're very excited about where he is at this point.

"They're just putting in parts of the playbook right now. [Offensive coordinator John] DeFilippo and Coach Zimmer and the rest of the offensive staff are putting in a lot from a playbook standpoint, and then once we figure out what not only him but our offense does well and doesn't do well, then they'll start honing in to make sure to put him in the best situation to make sure he has the best chance for success."

http://www.startribune.com/vikings-amp-up-spending-in-quest-for-super-bowl/484394961/

Skol Vikes!!
 

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