2019 Minnesota Vikings Off-Season Thread

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2018 grades: Kirk Cousins' first Vikings season busted when it mattered most

Kirk Cousins might as well have had a cavalcade surrounding him when he arrived last spring proclaimed as the Vikings’ missing piece to reach an elusive Super Bowl. Cousins, who started consecutive games 50-65 this season, decried the notion every step of the way.

Already an established quarterback with an early playoff exit, Cousins entered the 2018 season saying everybody needed to play well and he, in order to be mentioned among greats, needed to overcome whatever deficiencies weighed them down. With Cousins, the Vikings collectively failed in his first season while ranking 19th in scoring and 26th in both third downs and the red zone.

Grades are based on a 1-to-5 scale, with ‘5’ marking excellence, ‘4’ for above-average, ‘3’ for average, ‘2’ for below-average and ‘1’ for failure to perform. Players that did not accrue a season (weren’t on the active roster for at least six weeks) or played in three games or fewer are not graded. Below are individual grades, based on game and practice observations, weekly film reviews and interviews with coaches, for three quarterbacks who finished the season on the Vikings’ active roster, injured reserve or practice squad. Unofficial NFL stats, such as QB pressures, missed tackles and targeted passes, are compiled by ProFootballFocus.com.

Previously: (Defensive backs) Harrison Smith leads a deep secondary; (Linebackers) Anthony Barr’s contract season leaves you wanting more; (Defensive linemen) Danielle Hunter’s name now among the NFL’s best

Kirk Cousins (3.0) — One of six handpicked team captains. Signed a three-year, $84 million contract, the NFL’s first fully guaranteed of its magnitude, and was immediately tasked with orchestrating an evolving offense behind a patchwork offensive line. Didn’t miss a down. Played 1,051 snaps [100%]. Led the Vikings to chances at six wins in the first seven games, but fell short at Green Bay and Los Angeles due to late turnovers as well as kicking and defensive problems. Threw for career highs in completion percentage (70.1) and touchdowns (30). Played well in early road trips to Green Bay, L.A. and Philadelphia, overcoming frequent pressure with big-time throws. Backed up to his own five-yard line, Cousins had Fletcher Cox in his face when he threw a perfect 35-yard touch pass to Adam Thielen, who ran the rest of the 68-yard gain.

http://www.startribune.com/2018-gra...eason-busted-when-it-mattered-most/504369072/

Skol Vikes!!
 

2018 Vikings grades: Kyle Rudolph, Dalvin Cook filled underwhelming roles

Kyle Rudolph (4.0) — One of six handpicked team captains, Rudolph solidified himself as one of the league’s most reliable tight ends across a variety of assignments. Played 925 snaps [88%]. Penalized four times, including two false starts. No tight end in 2018 had more catches and fewer drops (1). Caught 64 of 82 targets for the Vikings’ best catch rate [78%] among non-running backs. Had 634 yards, the second-highest total of his career. Wasn’t leaned on nearly enough for a struggling red-zone offense. Target of 14 throws in the red zone, catching six for three touchdowns. Rudolph’s four touchdown catches were his fewest since 2014. Went 11 games without a touchdown catch, the longest drought since the start of his career. Disappeared in losses against the Seahawks and Bears when he had seven, 13 and 19-yard games. A focal point of the offense when he had a career-high 122 yards against the Lions, including the 44-yard Hail Mary touchdown catch that gave the Vikings a 14-9 lead before halftime.

Relied on heavily as a pass protector. Only four NFL tight ends had more pass-blocking snaps than Rudolph’s 85. None were credited with fewer hurries (2) allowed. The big knock on Rudolph is his uneven run blocking, but he’s put into difficult double and sometimes one-on-one matchups against opposing defensive ends due to the Vikings’ weaknesses at offensive tackle. The Dolphins’ blitzing Minkah Fitzpatrick cruised past Rudolph when he caught the 50-yard pick six off Kirk Cousins, who noted the defender was unblocked on a screen attempt. Rudolph could be a restructure or cap casualty this offseason.

The 29-year-old is entering the final year of his contract with a $7.625 million cap hit (none guaranteed) that would make him the 9th-highest paid tight end in 2019. While Rudolph may have proven he’s worth it, the leverage is not on his side.

Dalvin Cook (3.5) — Didn’t top 20 carries in a game all season. Peaked with 22 touches in the season opener vs. San Francisco. Made history talk of his ACL recovery and started his second NFL season with a flash, leading the league with 10 broken tackles on 26 carries in the first two games. But a hamstring injury suffered in overtime in Green Bay, and his subsequent rush onto the field 10 days later in Los Angeles, would derail the first half of his season. Played 490 snaps [46.6%]. Not penalized. Led the team with 615 rushing yards. Missed five of the next six games after the Week 2 tie at Lambeau, taking an ineffective 10 carries for 20 yards while playing injured against the Rams.

Returned Nov. 4 against the Lions and proclaimed he was healthy again with a 70-yard lightning shot that clocked 22 miles per hour by the league’s Next Gen stats. It was the fastest a ball carrier had been recorded by Week 9. Looked fully recovered from both the hamstring injury and ACL tear in his left knee as Cook averaged 5.3 yards per carry in Weeks 9-17. Could’ve had a huge game against a Patriots defense eager to double Adam Thielen and Stefon Diggs, but Cook was given just nine carries turned into 84 yards. Had a career-high 136 rushing yards and two touchdowns against the Dolphins.

http://www.startribune.com/2018-vik...in-cook-filled-underwhelming-roles/504425522/

Skol Vikes!!
 


Sportsfan24 said:
Agreed! I forgot him

My revised rankings of the current QB’s are in these groups:

Brady

Rodgers (healthy Rodgers)
Brees (SB appearance would push him up)

Wilson
Rothlisberger
Newton (the gripe is he’s not talked about at this level)
Rivers (trending up)

Ryan (trending down)
Foles (larger sampling and he would move up)
Luck (trending up)
Mahomes (trending up)

Cousins (paid like he’s up two levels)
Deshaun Watson (trending up)
Jared Goff (trending up)
k
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Tough for me to put Newton with Russell and Big Ben, who have won at least one SB, and I think are much better overall.

If I had to say, Wilson is the most underrated QB in the league. Wilson and Big Ben are a lot closer to Rodgers and Brees than they are to Newton and Rivers.

I would definitely have Luck and Ryan above Newton, along with Rivers. If you're combining success to date and potential future talent, I would put Mahomes, D. Watson, Goff, Luck and Wilson way, WAY above Newton.
 

<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
 


per Shooter:

Insiders say contract, age, unspectacular play and team salary cap could seriously prompt the Vikings to try to either trade former Pro Bowl defensive end Everson Griffen or even release him if they can’t get a satisfactory pay reduction from him in the offseason.

Griffen, 31, who’s under contract for nearly $12 million next season, wasn’t the same player this season after missing five games for mental health concerns. A new deal is expected to be heavy on incentives.

https://www.twincities.com/2019/01/19/charley-walters-for-jones-family-a-painful-week-on-court/

Skol Vikes!!
 

Watching the KC Chiefs defense reminds me of Denny Green's old defenses.
 

BleedGopher said:
per Shooter:

Insiders say contract, age, unspectacular play and team salary cap could seriously prompt the Vikings to try to either trade former Pro Bowl defensive end Everson Griffen or even release him if they can’t get a satisfactory pay reduction from him in the offseason.

Griffen, 31, who’s under contract for nearly $12 million next season, wasn’t the same player this season after missing five games for mental health concerns. A new deal is expected to be heavy on incentives.

https://www.twincities.com/2019/01/19/charley-walters-for-jones-family-a-painful-week-on-court/

Skol Vikes!!
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Cut him; they have other options and need the money for the o line.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

Saints fans complaining about refs in a NFC championship game is hilarious.
 





JimmyJamesMD said:
It's great. Love it. Love to hear Sean Payton complaining.
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I went into the game indifferent, and now I find that I'm deliriously happy that the Saints and Payton got hosed. Feel bad for Brees a little, not for Saints fans and Payton.

My college coach told me, and I'll never forget, the breaks always even themselves out. And sure enough, they do
 





Ogee Oglethorpe said:
I went into the game indifferent, and now I find that I'm deliriously happy that the Saints and Payton got hosed. Feel bad for Brees a little, not for Saints fans and Payton.

My college coach told me, and I'll never forget, the breaks always even themselves out. And sure enough, they do
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They never ever seem to even themselves out for Minnesota sports, though...
The missing part to this is that someone else benefited (other than the Vikings).
That said, Diggs' catch last year was a small portion of the deserved revenge.
 

Breakin' The Plane said:
Not as hilarious as the 1000s of Vikings fans running to social media to proclaim "karma". Karma got the Saints a title.
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How did "karma" get the Saints a title? They got it by cheating, headhunting (including essentially ending the careers of two HoF QBs), and refs who made a series of terrible calls throughout that gave them the Bountygate game. As soon as it was proven that the Saints were paying players to take out the opposing team (and doing it), the NFL should have stripped their title and permanently banned everyone involved.

But, but, Katrina! Dirty city, dirty team, disgusting fans.
 
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cncmin said:
How did "karma" get the Saints a title? They got it by cheating, headhunting (including essentially ending the careers of two HoF QBs), and refs who made a series of terrible calls throughout that gave them the Bountygate game. As soon as it was proven that the Saints were paying players to take out the opposing team (and doing it), the NFL should have stripped their title and permanently banned everyone involved.

But, but, Katrina! Dirty city, dirty team, disgusting fans.
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There's no such thing as karma and all the celebrating over the Saints getting screwed doesn't take their title away.
 
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Would love for the vikings to pursue C Matt Paradis from the Broncos. 29 years old. 3 yr grade of 87 from pro football focus. If they need money they can tell Everson he needs to restructure to an incentive laden contract, his production is way down at 31 years. Weatherly (24) played better than he did and is much cheaper. Spend to fix the offensive line to show getting a pocket passer wasn't a dumb move. Elflein can play guard if he can rebound from a poor year.

Four playoff finalists were all 30 ppg teams, not defensive teams.

Another is Guard Mark Glowinski 27 yr old for the colts and C BJ Finney 27 of Pittsburgh. A decent young tackle is Ja'Wuan James another 27 yr old for the dolphins.

McNeil looks solid at one tackle coming of a good rookie season. Riley Rieff (30) is serviceable when healthy.

Make some free agent moves and draft 2 more offensive lineman in the first 3 rounds and we might be ok.
 

march madness said:
Four playoff finalists were all 30 ppg teams, not defensive teams.
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The Patriots didn't score 30 ppg. But your overall point is correct - the four highest-scoring teams in the regular season were also the four participants in the conference championship games.
 

Your right i didn't look it up but assumed.
35ppg, 33 ppg, 31.5 ppg, and 27 ppg.

Vikings were at 22.5, 19th in the league.
 

per Sid:

• Vikings veteran Marcus Sherels was named the 2018 Rochester Post Bulletin Sports Person of the Year after being named an alternate to the Pro Bowl.

• Former Vikings running back Adrian Peterson rushed for 1,042 yards with the Redskins this season. Vikings running backs Latavius Murray and Dalvin Cook combined for 1,193 yards. If Peterson, an unrestricted free agent, posts similar numbers next season he would move up to No. 5 on the all-time rushing list.

• Last year the Vikings drafted three players out of the Senior Bowl in Brian O’Neill, Jalyn Holmes and Tyler Conklin.

• Most draft experts see the Vikings taking Greg Little, an offensive tackle out of Ole Miss, with their first-round pick at No. 18 overall.

http://www.startribune.com/twins-le...more-free-agent-moves-are-possible/504921042/

Skol Vikes!!
 

ESPN: 2019 Projections:

Minnesota Vikings (8-7-1)
Projected over/under: 9 wins (over -125, under +105)

It seems like the Vikings cycle between wildly successful and despair-inducing seasons from year to year under Mike Zimmer, but in the bigger picture, they've won an average of 9.5 games in their five years under the former Cowboys and Bengals assistant.

Minnesota doesn't have much cap room after the Kirk Cousins deal and could lose Sheldon Richardson, Anthony Barr, Dan Bailey and Latavius Murray this offseason, but if you ask Vikings fans, Richardson might be the only one in the bunch they'll miss.

http://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/25834281/predicting-2019-vegas-win-totals-unders-all-32-nfl-teams

Skol Vikes!!
 

Barr is inconsistent for the money he will probably get. Needs to be used as a pass rusher.. his strength. 3-4 defense.

Murray was our best rb at times. Plows ahead for his 3-5 yards without much of a hole. Doesnt have big play speed. Would love to have him back at the right price if he's willing to be a backup.

Richardson had a good year. I wont cry if he leaves. Can only pay so many defensive players if you want to upgrade the offensive line.
 

march madness said:
Barr is inconsistent for the money he will probably get. Needs to be used as a pass rusher.. his strength. 3-4 defense.

Murray was our best rb at times. Plows ahead for his 3-5 yards without much of a hole. Doesnt have big play speed. Would love to have him back at the right price if he's willing to be a backup.

Richardson had a good year. I wont cry if he leaves. Can only pay so many defensive players if you want to upgrade the offensive line.
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I think Griffen either restructures his deal or is released. Weatherly looks like he could be really good.
 


SB Nation Mock Draft:

18. Minnesota

The Pick: Devin Bush, LB, Michigan

An offensive lineman might be the biggest need for the Minnesota Vikings, but with Devin Bush on the board and Anthony Barr set to become a free agent, it makes sense to load up on a rangy, athletic linebacker when available.

Bush has developed into a force at linebacker since being a top high school recruit three seasons ago. He might not have great height at a listed 5'11", but his 240-pound frame is stout. Paired with his excellent athleticism and instincts, Bush has all the tools to be an impressive rookie starter as a three-down impact player.

The NFL is trending toward linebackers who can rush, cover and blitz; Bush does all of those well.

https://bleacherreport.com/articles...t-millers-post-super-bowl-predictions#slide18

Skol Vikes!!
 

BleedGopher said:
SB Nation Mock Draft:

18. Minnesota

The Pick: Devin Bush, LB, Michigan

An offensive lineman might be the biggest need for the Minnesota Vikings, but with Devin Bush on the board and Anthony Barr set to become a free agent, it makes sense to load up on a rangy, athletic linebacker when available.

Bush has developed into a force at linebacker since being a top high school recruit three seasons ago. He might not have great height at a listed 5'11", but his 240-pound frame is stout. Paired with his excellent athleticism and instincts, Bush has all the tools to be an impressive rookie starter as a three-down impact player.

The NFL is trending toward linebackers who can rush, cover and blitz; Bush does all of those well.

https://bleacherreport.com/articles...t-millers-post-super-bowl-predictions#slide18

Skol Vikes!!
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There are about 6-7 OTs (at least) who could go beginning at the midpoint of the first round through the second round. If Spielman reaches for a mediocre LB when all of those are available, he should be fired on the spot.
 

dpodoll68 said:
There are about 6-7 OTs (at least) who could go beginning at the midpoint of the first round through the second round. If Spielman reaches for a mediocre LB when all of those are available, he should be fired on the spot.
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Agreed, OL has been the weak link for 2 years. Address that concern or you should be fired instantly.
 

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