SB Nation - Kenechi Udeze

Kenechi Udeze Announces His Retirement

Gonzo — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 13:13:45 -0000

As has already been mentioned, Vikings' defensive lineman Kenechi Udeze has announced his retirement from the NFL after attempting to come back from the acute lymphoblastic leukemia that caused him to miss the entire 2008 season.

Udeze's ascent to the NFL was a pretty remarkable one. He was born in Nigeria, and his family migrated to California during his youth. He was heavily recruited out of Verbum Dei High School and reported to the University of Southern California as a 360-pound defensive lineman. He red-shirted during his freshman season with the Trojans, during which his weight climbed even higher, close to the 400-pound range. Pete Carroll and company told Udeze that he needed to lose some weight if he wanted to continue his college football career. So, all BKU. . .Big Kenechi Udeze. . .did in response was drop about a hundred pounds. The added speed and quickness he gained helped him to lead college football in sacks in 2003 with 16.5. When the Vikings drafted him with the 20th overall selection in the 2004 NFL Draft, he was a lean, sculpted 280 pound defensive end.

Udeze had a pretty good rookie year in 2004, notching 36 total tackles and five sacks. The biggest highlight from that season probably came in the Vikings' tilt against Jacksonville at the Metrodome in Week 12. Although the game had been hyped as the return of Randy Moss from injury, it was Udeze who made the biggest play of the day. With just over two minutes left in the fourth quarter, the Vikings held a 20-16 lead, but the Jaguars were driving down the field. On third-and-six from the Vikings' 19-yard line, Jaguars' quarterback Byron Leftwich dropped back to pass, and then began to roll to his right. As he brought his arm back to fire a pass to a wide-open Reggie Williams, Udeze caught up to him and knocked the ball out of his hand. The ensuing fumble was picked up by Kevin Williams, who rumbled 77 yards for the game-sealing score.

Sadly, 2005 was a lost year for Udeze, as he tore his ACL in the third week of the season against the Atlanta Falcons and missed the remainder of the season. The injury clearly slowed him down in 2006 as well, as he went the entire season without registering a sack, despite having a bunch of quarterback hurries that year. In 2007, however, he was finally back to his old form, as his five sacks tied him for the team lead, and he even snagged his first career interception in a blowout victory over the Detroit Lions.

Many people will look at nothing more than Udeze's career sack numbers. . .11 in his four NFL seasons. . .and immediately conclude that he was a bust. That couldn't be further from the truth. He certainly wasn't a superstar or anything, but he had matured into one of the NFL's best run-stopping defensive ends in his four years in purple prior to his diagnosis. I was selfishly hoping to see him back this season to see what kind of damage he could do lined up next to the Williams Wall and Jared Allen, but it simply was not to be.

We here at The Daily Norseman want to wish #95 the best in all of his future endeavors, and raise a glass to his continued health, well-being, and prosperity. Thanks for the memories, Kenechi. You'll be missed.

Conquest Chronicles Links for June 3rd

Paragon SC — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 21:43:30 -0000

Sorry, I am little late on this today...

USC Scheduling

Hawaii-USC football series extended through 2013 | The Honolulu Advertiser
The University of Southern California today announced an extension of its home and home football series with Hawai'i.

USC football: Two more kickoff times announced - USC - OCRegister.com
USC football: The Nov. 28 home game against crosstown rival UCLA will start at 7 p.m. PT and also will be shown live nationally on FSN.

More Gloom and Doom

Death Watch on for USC Hoops | Chris Dufresne - LAT
In a sense, though, the basketball program as it wobbles now is effectively finished -- and you get the sense embattled Coach Tim Floyd knows it.

Former USC player news...

Panthers hope this is Jarrett's year | The Herald - Rock Hill, SC
The last two years, all everyone has heard about was the potential of Dwayne Jarrett.

QB battles - NFL - CBSSports.com Football
Read about Mark Sanchez vs. Kellen Clemens (near the bottom of the column)

Two steps at a time for Udeze - NFC North - ESPN
Nice write-up on BKU

Palmer won't be at OSU-USC game
Come on Carson! show some guts!

Wednesday's Notebook: The Troubling Absence of Antoine Winfield

Anthony21 — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 12:00:21 -0000

Winfield a No-Show at OTAs

For a brief period last Friday, Antoine Winfield's absence at minicamp was met with a flurry of speculation that he was protesting the lack of any progress between the team and his agent on a new contract. Chilly soon cleared things up at a news conference by stating that Winfield was attending the funeral of a friend's mother, but that sudden surge of speculation underscores the uneasy nature of Winny's relationship with the team at the moment.

But while last weekend's Winfield rumors were a false alarm, it's hard to mistake the meaning of his absence from the OTAs that began on Tuesday. Granted, these aren't required practices, but when Chilly says that all players are invited, he means that you'd better get your butt over to Winter Park for this week's four practices.

While many veterans are expected to attend this week's OTAs, Winfield had other ideas. You think he would have skipped these optional practices if talks between his agent and the team were still ongoing, or if he had already been awarded a new contract? After participating in the Vikings' offseason conditioning program while both sides were still at the bargaining table, it's distressing that Winfield has vanished from Winter Park since talks broke down.

Like the Favre drama and the courtroom battles still being fought by Pat and Kevin Williams, it's easy to see the distraction potential in the Winfield contract standoff. Not just for the team as a whole, but for Winfield himself. This can't become a source of bitterness for him, because if it does, we could see that spill over to the football field.

Contract battles such as these are business matters, to a great extent. I get that. I don't blame Winfield for wanting a new contract after the season he had in 2008, and look, it's also difficult to blame the Vikings for haggling over the contract they want to give a cornerback who will turn 32 later this month. Perhaps there isn't really anyone to blame for the contract talks coming to a stop, but it's clear that progress needs to be made, and it needs to be made soon.

The Persistence of Kenechi Udeze

Great story from Kevin Seifert on Kenechi Udeze, who has received lots of well-deserved media attention after making his return to the field during these past weeks. Well-worth a read, but here are some quick highlights:

His leukemia was in remission. Doctors had given him permission, albeit grudgingly, to embark on an NFL comeback. So Kenechi Udeze lined up to run this winter with a group of athletes near his home in Los Angeles.

He wasn't prepared for what happened next.

"I took two steps," Udeze said. "And I fell."

Whoa...just, whoa. Remember, we're not far removed from the scene Seifert and Kenechi described -- it happened this winter. The fact that he's participating in minicamp and the OTAs, my friends, is an absolute triumph.

Still, even if Udeze's story has become a favorite topic of mine, the Vikings are ultimately a team interested in assembling the best group of guys they can for the 53-man roster. I'm admittedly uncomfortable about dealing with his chances of making the team, but it's something that should nevertheless be mentioned:

Once you get past Udeze's medical improvement, however, you realize he faces a challenge to make the Vikings' regular-season roster. You figure at least three defensive ends are locks to earn roster spots ahead of him -- Jared Allen, Ray Edwards and Brian Robison -- and there is no telling how the team will have to configure its depth chart to compensate for the possible suspensions of defensive tackles Kevin Williams and Pat Williams.

As inspiring as Udeze's story has been, the concern about his ability to be in "football shape" for the season is legitimate. He's physically healthy, but that's not the same thing as being ready to suit up for week one. Again, though, this just isn't something I'm interested in dwelling on, as the far more important point is that he conquered leukemia. One thing's for sure: We're all rooting for him, even if his chances of making the roster are unclear.

And Finally...

Rodney Harrison will announce his retirement and join the cast of NBC's Sunday Night Football, becoming the network's 10,000th NFL analyist...You hear about that Warroad pitcher who threw 13 innings and 201 pitches, and then hit a walkoff homer?...I didn't even think it was physically possible to throw over 200 pitches in a single outing, much less hit a homer after doing so...A day after throwing in the towel on trying to convert Roderick Rogers from safety to receiver, the roster is back up to 85 players after the Vikings signed former North Alabama WR Bobby Williams...Vince Young wants out of Tennessee if he can't be the Titans' starting quarterback...

Can Aaron Maybin fix Buffalo's pass rush woes?

Brian Galliford — Wed, 06 May 2009 12:30:09 -0000

More photos » by Charlie Neibergall - AP

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Over the past two seasons, the Buffalo Bills - sporting one of the league's most anemic pass rushes - have accrued just 50 sacks. For that reason, the Buffalo Bills spent their first-round draft pick on Penn State DE Aaron Maybin in the 2009 NFL Draft.

We're all aware of what Maybin brings to the table - from both the 'pro' and 'con' departments. Speed, athleticism, a quick brain, loads of untapped potential and inexperience. He's being counted on to provide a shot in the arm for a Bills pass rush that is critical to the team's success this coming season; without consistent pressure, Tom Brady, Chad Pennington and even Mark Sanchez will have all day to pick Buffalo's defense apart. Buffalo was 0-6 against their AFC East foes last season.

How much can be expected of the rookie pass rusher? Judging by the rookie production of defensive ends over the past five years, Maybin's got a difficult trend to buck.

Listed below are every defensive end drafted in the first round over the past five seasons, coupled with their first-year sack production. 20 such players exist; four were drafted per season. The group was split up into the type of defensive scheme they were drafted into; let's face it - ends entering a 3-4 system had a better shot of accumulating larger sack totals based purely on their role within the scheme, and the proof is in the pudding with regard to both personal and average sack totals. Maybin, clearly, would fall into the first (4-3) group - so those numbers are far more relevant in discussing his potential impact this season.

4-3 DE drafted Round 1, 2004-2008
Name, Team - # sacks rookie season
Chris Long, St. Louis - 4
Derrick Harvey, Jacksonville - 3.5
Lawrence Jackson, Seattle - 2
Gaines Adams, Tampa Bay - 6
Jamaal Anderson, Atlanta - 0
Jarvis Moss, Denver - 1
Mario Williams, Houston - 4.5
Tamba Hali, Kansas City - 8
Mathias Kiwanuka, NY Giants - 4
Erasmus James, Minnesota - 4
Will Smith, New Orleans - 7.5
Kenechi Udeze, Minnesota - 5
Jason Babin, Houston - 4
TOTAL - 53.5
AVERAGE - 4

3-4 DE/OLB drafted Round 1, 2004-2008
Name, Team - # sacks rookie season
Vernon Gholston, NY Jets - 0
Lawrence Timmons, Pittsburgh - 0
Anthony Spencer, Dallas - 3
Manny Lawson, San Francisco - 2.5
Kamerion Wimbley, Cleveland - 11
DeMarcus Ware, Dallas - 8
Shawne Merriman, San Diego - 10
TOTAL - 34.5
AVERAGE - 5

It's unclear at this point how Buffalo plans to use Maybin. We do know that he won't be playing linebacker in its traditional sense - he's a defensive lineman, and this is a 4-3. But that doesn't mean that Maybin won't rush from a standing position; it might be the only way to give the thin, raw Maybin a chance to beat tackles with his pure speed as a rookie. He's certainly not going to do it with strength; that's an area that he still needs serious work in.

If you're going by recent history, if Maybin has an average season this coming year, he'll pick up only 4-5 sacks. Clearly, a sack is a poor measure of a consistent pass rush - you can be an effective pass rusher without picking up gobs of sacks - but it's the best metric we've got for this exercise.

There are two ways to look at this. If you're the sarcastic realist, you'll note that the 4 sacks Maybin should get as an average rookie NFL DE would, in fact, put him in contention for the Bills team lead - Buffalo's leading sackers managed just 2.5 each (Kawika Mitchell, Marcus Stroud) in 2008. On the other hand, is 4 sacks going to be enough to significantly shift a team's blocking schemes when facing the Bills?

Maybin has a shot to be an excellent pro. Factors such as an improved offensive attack, playing with leads, and the return to health of Aaron Schobel will play their part as well. But one thing is painfully clear: rookie defensive ends generally do not come in and make big plays as rookies. Buffalo needs Maybin to do exactly that. Make no mistake about it: the Bills are rolling the dice with their selection at No. 11 overall.

Maybe the Chiefs Shouldn't Mess with USC Either

Joel Thorman — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 12:45:07 -0000

via www.pe.com

Yesterday we talked about the shortcomings of University of Texas players in the NFL, mostly because Brian Orakpo is an option for the Chiefs with the 3rd overall pick. I wasn't trying to knock the Texas program, especially after I sat in the stadium in Austin with 80,000 people yelling Hook 'em Horns as they put a pummeling on Missouri last season. But I just wanted to point out an interesting trend (is it a trend?) about players from Texas.

That said, I wanted to note the recent 1st round picks by some of so-called NFL factories. Like Texas, USC sends a good chunk of their roster each season to the NFL. And like Texas, a number of those are 1st round picks.

The Texas list of pro talent wasn't so compelling. How does USC stack up in the last decade?

DT Sedrick Ellis (7)
LB Keith Rivers (9)
T Sam Baker (23)
DE Lawrence Jackson (28)
RB Reggie Bush (2)
QB Matt Leinart (10)
WR Mike Williams (10)
DT Mike Patterson (31)
DE Kenechi Udeze (20)
QB Carson Palmer (1)
S Troy Polamalu (16)
WR R. Jay Soward (29)
LB Chris Claiborne (9)

Taking into account the general rule that you can't fully judge a draft class for three years, I see three busts (Williams, Udeze, R. Jay Soward), Claiborne hasn't been in the league since 2006, and then Bush and Leinart who haven't necessarily justified their draft position yet. Of those nine picks, Patterson, Palmer and Polamalu are the only three of the nine that have fully panned out so far.

Other schools, like LSU and Tennessee, have better first round talent than USC in the last decade. Yet USC has played in a third of those national title games.

I know this argument is a bit of a stretch because ultimately the school doesn't really determine what kind of NFL performer the player will be. Mark Sanchez, Rey Maualuga, Clay Matthews and Brian Cushing could all be fine players. But the first round talent out of USC in the last decade isn't quite what I thought.

I don't expect Scott Pioli or any of the other Chiefs' scouts to put much stock into something like this. While there may be a few busts or players that haven't necessarily justified their draft position, there's also a franchise quarterback and arguably the best safety in the game. High risk can also create high rewards.

Besides, now that Carl Peterson is gone, it's about time the Chiefs get some USC players on their team. I don't suspect Pioli, being from Central Connecticut State University, will bring his college grudge with him.

Udeze Hopes to Participate in Off-Season Workouts

Gonzo — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 14:31:57 -0000

Awesome, awesome news coming from BKU today, as he says that when the Vikings next get together to practice in April, he plans on being there.

“My goal is when the team gets back together, I’ll be in my jersey and on the sideline with them,” Udeze said in reference to the Vikings offseason program that starts in early April. “If I didn’t feel [positive about] it, I woudn’t be saying it. If something drastic happens, then that is that, but I can bounce back from this.”

Udeze said that his appearance and features have changed enough that teammate Ben Leber did not even recongize him late in the regular season when they saw each other in the weight room at Winter Park. “He did a double-take, that’s how I knew he didn’t know who I was,” Udeze said. “It’s just more or less the chemo finally running its course and getting out of my body.”

Looks like the best defensive line in the National Football League stands to get even better.

I can't even verbalize how great this news is. I also can't wait to see #95 back at DE for the Vikings in 2009. Here's hoping that everything works out as well as Kenechi thinks it's going to. If he's this optimistic, there's no reason for me to have anything but optimism about his comeback.

A Slightly Abridged History of Vikings' First-Round Picks

Gonzo — Sat, 24 Jan 2009 22:30:34 -0000

With the 2009 NFL Draft now a scant three months away, I thought it would be interesting to do sort of a cross-section of Vikings' first-round draft choices throughout the team's history. . .where they've spent their picks, any potential trends, and so forth. I'll probably do this with the second round as well, and possibly the third, but the first round seems to be as good a place as any to start.

In the history of the Minnesota Vikings, the team has selected 47 players in the first round of the NFL Draft. There have been seven seasons where the Vikings had no first-round selection (1962, 1981, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, and 2008). There have also been three seasons where the team has had two first-round picks (1994, 1995, and 2005), as well as one season where they had three first-round selections (1967).

The Vikings have only had the #1 overall selection in the NFL Draft twice in team history. The first time was in 1961, prior to the franchise even playing their first game, when they made Tulane running back Tommy Mason the first draft choice in team history. The other time was in 1968, and the Vikings did quite well with that selection, grabbing Southern Cal offensive tackle Ron Yary with the first pick. The highest selection the Vikings have had in the first round in the 40+ years since then came in 1985, when the Beloved Purple selected defensive end Chris Doleman at #4 overall.

Minnesota has drafted players from many different schools over the years, but much of their attention has seemed to focus on two particular conferences. This is a breakdown of what conferences and schools the Vikings have pulled their first-round selections from. . .and keep in mind, these are their current conferences, not the ones that certain schools might have been in when the players in question were drafted:

Conference	# Players	Player/School Breakdown
Big Ten	12	LB Chad Greenway, Iowa (#17, 2006) DE Erasmus James, Wisconsin (#18, 2005) RB Michael Bennett, Wisconsin (#27, 2001) DE Dimitrius Underwood, Michigan State (#29, 1999) OT Korey Stringer, Ohio State (#24, 1995) RB Robert Smith, Ohio State (#21, 1993) RB D.J. Dozier, Penn State (#14, 1987) RB Leo Hayden, Ohio State (#24, 1971) RB Clint Jones, Michigan State (#2, 1967) WR Gene Washington, Michigan State (#8, 1967) OT Jerry Sharry, Purdue (#7, 1966) DT Carl Eller, Minnesota (#6, 1964) Total: Ohio State 3, Michigan State 3, Wisconsin 2, Iowa 1, Penn State 1, Purdue 1, Minnesota 1
Pac Ten	12	DE Kenechi Udeze, Southern Cal (#20, 2004) DE Duane Clemons, California (#16, 1996) OT Todd Steussie, California (#19, 1994) OG Randall McDaniel, Arizona State (#19, 1988) DE Keith Millard, Washington State (#13, 1984) S Joey Browner, Southern Cal (#19, 1983) RB Darrin Nelson, Stanford (#7, 1982) DT Doug Martin, Washington (#9, 1980) RB Fred McNeil, UCLA (#17, 1974) OT Steve Riley, Southern Cal (#25, 1974) LB Jeff Siemon, Stanford (#10, 1972) OT Ron Yary, Southern Cal (#1, 1968) Total: Southern Cal 4, California 2, Stanford 2, Arizona State 1, Washington State 1, Washington 1, UCLA 1
Atlantic Coast	6	OT Bryant McKinnie, Miami (FL) (#7, 2002) DT Chris Hovan, Boston College (#25, 2000) DE Derrick Alexander, Florida State (#11, 1995) CB DeWayne Washington, North Carolina State (#18, 1994) RB Ted Brown, North Carolina State (#16, 1979) RB Chuck Foreman, Miami (FL) (#12, 1973) Total: Miami (FL) 2, North Carolina State 2, Boston College 1, Florida State 1
Big Twelve	4	RB Adrian Peterson, Oklahoma (#7, 2007) DT Kevin Williams, Oklahoma State (#9, 2003) DT James White, Oklahoma State (#25, 1975) OT John Ward, Oklahoma State (#25, 1970) Total: Oklahoma State 3, Oklahoma 1
Southeastern	4	WR Troy Williamson, South Carolina (#7, 2005) LB Dwayne Rudd, Alabama (#20, 1997) DE Gerald Robinson, Auburn (#14, 1986) OT Jim Dunaway, Mississippi (#3, 1963) Total: South Carolina 1, Alabama 1, Auburn 1, Mississippi 1
Conference USA	4	QB Daunte Culpepper, Central Florida (#11, 1999) WR Randy Moss, Marshall (#21, 1998) QB Tommy Kramer, Rice (#27, 1977) RB Tommy Mason, Tulane (#1, 1961) Total: Central Florida 1, Marshall 1, Rice 1, Tulane 1
Big East	2	DE Chris Doleman, Pittsburgh (#4, 1985) DE Randy Holloway, Pittsburgh (#21, 1978) Total: Pittsburgh 2
Independents	2	DE Alan Page, Notre Dame (#15, 1967) WR Jack Snow, Notre Dame (#8, 1965) Total: Notre Dame 2
Mountain West	1	DE Mark Mullaney, Colorado State (#25, 1975) Total: Colorado State 1

Strange that the Vikings have taken as many players from Conference USA as they have from the big, bad Southeastern Conference, including the only two times in team history the Vikings have drafted a quarterback in Round 1.

As you can see from the breakdown above, much of the Vikings' focus on draft day throughout their history has been on the trenches. Of the Vikings' 47 first-round draft choices, over half of them. . .25, to be exact. . .have been offensive or defensive linemen. Broken down further, there have been 11 defensive ends, 8 offensive tackles, 5 defensive tackles, and 1 offensive guard. If we do the full position breakdown, it looks something like this:

Position	# of Vikings' First-Round Picks
Defensive End	11
Running Back	10
Offensive Tackle	8
Defensive Tackle	5
Linebacker	4
Wide Receiver	4
Quarterback	2
Cornerback	1
Safety	1
Offensive Guard	1

Prior to doing this breakdown, I didn't know that the Vikings had drafted THAT many running backs over the years. The Vikings have had a lot of great backs in their history, so you wouldn't think that there would be that many, but there have been some pretty good flops in there as well. Still, one could easily argue that the top three running backs in Vikings history were all first-round picks of the club (Adrian Peterson in 2007, Robert Smith in 1993, and Chuck Foreman in 1972). The team has also never used a first round pick on a center or a tight end.

Of the Vikings' first-round draft selections, three of them currently have a spot in the Pro Football Hall of Fame (Carl Eller, Alan Page, and Ron Yary), two of them are on the ballot this year (Randall McDaniel and Chris Doleman), and two of them appear, at this point, to be well on their way to a spot in Canton (Randy Moss and Adrian Peterson).

And that's a brief history of the Vikings' first round selections throughout their history. I think it's safe to say that the Vikings have had way more "hits" than "misses" in the first round of the draft over the years, and that's something that I'm sure will continue this season.

Why the Minnesota Vikings Have Every Reason to Be Optimistic In 2009

Gonzo — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 01:09:38 -0000

It's been about 24 hours since the Minnesota Vikings' 2008 season ended. . .and about eight days since the season ended for Green Bay and Chicago (because, apparently, some people still need to be reminded). . .and in typical Viking fan fashion, we've already started looking forward to the 2009 NFL season. Even with as disappointed as we are after the loss yesterday, it stands to reason that we have every reason to be optimistic about this team next season as well.

For starters, many folks have dismissed the Vikings as the team that simply was the best team in the "awful" NFC North. While the NFC North wasn't the greatest division in the NFL in 2008, it was far from the worst (just look at either division with the word "West" in the name, if you don't believe me). The three lead teams in the NFC North all went 4-2 within the division, so that's pretty much a wash. Take those away, and the Vikings won 6 games outside of the division, the Bears won 5, and the Packers won a whopping 2. Yes, all of those teams got different opponents from the NFC West and the NFC East. Those opponents were. . .

-Minnesota: Arizona (NFC West Champion) and New York (NFC East Champion), both Viking wins
-Chicago: St. Louis (picking #2 overall in this year's draft) and Philadelphia, both Chicago wins
-Green Bay: Seattle (picking #4 overall in this year's draft) and Dallas (who destroyed them)

Take into consideration that the Vikings played five games all season against teams that were below .500 in 2008. . .and four of those games took place within the division. The only non-NFC North team the Vikings played this season with a sub-.500 record was the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Vikings also defeated the champions of the other three NFC divisions, a claim that I don't believe any team in either conference can make (meaning no AFC team beat the other 3 AFC division champions, either). So, to anyone that says that the Vikings "have to play a first place schedule in 2009," guess what? I guess the fact that we beat the other three division champions pretty much means we played a first-place schedule THIS year, doesn't it?

Also take this team's roster into consideration. We've heard from the "experts" that this team had horrible play all season out of the most important position on the field (which was, by and large, true) and that the team was led by an awful head coach (which may or may not be true). Despite both of those things, which are both very important, this team managed to go 10-6 anyway. Man, I don't know about you, but that tells me that this team has got to have some talent on it someplace. Teams don't go 10-6 while overcoming "horrible quarterback play" and "awful coaching" to go 10-6 unless they've got some serious talent.

So where is the talent located?

For starters, I'll put Minnesota's front seven on defense against any other front seven in the National Football League. And remember, this team played its last three games (including the playoff game) without the best run-stuffing defensive tackle in the league, and the last 13 games of the year without one of the best middle linebackers in football. They still led the NFL in rush defense for the third consecutive year. . .the first team in the NFL to do that since the merger. . .were in the top 5 in the league in quarterback sacks, and were markedly better in pass defense than they've been at any point in the last decade.

Many of the guys that this defense is built around are still fairly young. Shoot, the only greybeard on the defense next season will be Pat Williams, and he certainly hasn't shown any signs of slowing down yet. Jared Allen is one of the best pass rushers in the league, and he's just hitting his prime. Kevin Williams is still in his prime, as are E.J. Henderson, Chad Greenway, and Madieu Williams. Ray Edwards and Brian Robison were solid at DE, and we could potentially have big (?) Kenechi Udeze back in the fold next season, too. (I wouldn't necessarily count on that last one, but there's nobody out there that isn't rooting for the guy.)

I'll also take our RB combo over any other pair in the league. Sure, there are some combos out there that might be "sexier" picks. . .but when you get to start off with the best pure running back in the National Football League and pair him up with the guy that could, possibly, be the most underrated back in the league, and I'll take those two guys into battle ahead of any other pairing that anyone would care to offer up.

We saw Visanthe Shiancoe develop this season into a weapon at the tight end spot. We saw Bernard Berrian be worth the money he was given to stretch the field, averaging 20+ yards/catch. We saw Cedric Griffin go from a guy that was a guaranteed first down allowed whenever QBs went his way to a guy that got up in people's faces and stuck to them. Next year, E.J. Henderson will be back roaming the middle. . .Pat Williams will be back destroying running backs. . .and the coverage units will welcome back Heath Farwell. Farwell, if the way the punt coverage has looked this season is any indication, might be the single greatest special teams player in the history of the National Football League. . .the coverage units with him were pretty good. Without him, they were a disaster.

(Yes, Bills fans, no Steve Tasker e-mails. . .I know that Tasker is the greatest special teams player ever. Hyperbole for the sake of emphasis is your friend.)

Is this team perfect? No. Does this team have holes? Certainly.

Does every other team in the NFC North have more holes to patch this off-season than the Beloved Purple? You're damn right they do. That's why they're behind us right now.

Do any of those teams have the best cap guy in the business working their books? Nope.

Do those teams have owners that have shown the willingness to go out and get what their teams need to patch the holes? Not as far as I can tell.

So, as things sit right now, there's no reason to think that 2009 won't be an even better season than 2008. Remember, despite the coaching and the QB play, this team has improved two games a season for the last couple of years, and they're going to continue to get better.

Poll

24 hours after their playoff loss to the Eagles, are the Vikings still the best team in the NFC North?

Of course they are. Only a complete idiot would question that.

563 votes

563 votes | Poll has closed