Power Off Tackle

but the left side is supposed to be the strong side if the QB is right handed. It is the other way around right now and the right side players Kline and O’Neill are way better on a per game basis. If we drafted a guard and Jackson, I would be OK with that. If you want to draft a guard in the second Rd, I am not against it. What I am totally against is waiting until Rd 4 and trying to get another guy who can magically play at guard in his first year. Are there one or two out there, maybe. Is Spielman good at finding them? Hell no and the track record is my justification.

(another super bowl appearance) since 1977. Yeah, I get the instant gratification thing but what about the fans that have been waiting for a long time for the team to win it all? additionally how many Millenials and Gen X etc are really into the team winning it all in the next three years or so?

might be there for the taking. How much gas does Rieff still have in the tank? Take him and let’s move the team forward. Many of the guys they have us taking won’t be there by the way. I would not take Winfield (even though I like him).

by the physical d-lines week after week? Get real. Yes, I know that Spielman wants to try and develop OL players and he’d love to draft OL in the sixth and seventh Rd but it just doesn’t work. We already have Udoh and Samia as development players so we don’t need more.

improve. How much remains to be seen. Are you really expecting improvement from Elflein? If you are, how much improvement? He will need to improve in quickness, strength, technique and the mental aspect of the game to be a viable super bowl ready guard. Do you think he can do it (honestly)? I’d love to be wrong about him but I think he can improve in strength and technique. Quickness and the mental aspect, no.

ago. The center has to call out the blocking assignments which are getting more difficult to call based on the myriad defensive looks thrown at teams on a game over game basis. They are called on more often these days to pull and reach block as well. I would stick by my assessment but the gap has narrowed. When I stated watching pro football, centers did not get nearly the mount of press the press they get these days.

the fact that many guys are into fantasy football. I did it one year. Not my cup of tea. What fantasy football does is it makes viewers look at everyone but the lineman. They are looking at the RB’s, WR’s, QB’s etc. That has the effect of making folks think that one more big time WR is what the team needs. We can argue that but the fact remains that Cousins sucks when the pressure is consistent. I see the trend for offensive line gaining steam every year. Why? Because most backup QB’s can’t get it done and most clubs sink a ton of dough into their starting QB (us included). This argument should have been resolved years ago but it will fester until the purple have a world class OL. World class isn’t looking good one week and blowing chunks the following week. It’s about having your starting RB over 100 yds on the ground each and every week with a minimal amount of sacks and pressures on the QB. It’s about being effective in both the running and passing games to keep the opposing defenses honest. If that means that the fantasy guys have to be upset a bit, then so be it. We cannot compare ourselves to NE at all. Why we even try to make that comparison is beyond me. They have played in so many super bowls that most people will jump at a chance to play for them. They will take less money and shorter contracts for a shot at the coveted ring. We should be focusing on building the club at the point of attack so we can execute against the teams we need to beat twice. You’ll notice that both Chicago and GB are now considerably tougher on the DL because they saw the weakness we have and now they are better at exploiting that. I knew from watching that Kenny Clark was going to be an issue this year. Some disagreed but he is athletic/tough and has been improving. He gave Bradbury fits at times. Bradbury will get there in my opinion. Could I be wrong, sure. We know what we have in Reiff, Elflein and Kline. O’Neill has been the most pleasant surprise the vikings have drafted on OL in over a decade. Kline played very well for the most part and I think he was the best FA acquisition we have made in the last decade on OL. With teams being willing to sink huge percentages of the salary cap into QB’s, it is imperative that the OL be a huge priority. To be negligent with regards to OL drafting has cost this team quite a bit. Sorry, but playing in super bowls (much less winning them) requires the ability to march the ball up and down the field to control the clock/score points and give the defense consistent breathers. .

looks like he’ll be sacking QB’s for another team next year. I wish him the best (unless he signs with GB, DET or CHI).

over-rated. Not saying he isn’t good, but I did see a few bonehead mistakes from him. I would be in favor of going after someone else.

about line play. Every team has good days and bad days as far as line play is concerned. You have little to no chance of winning if your lineman are getting abused. In the first Chicago game, we got manhandled by a team that was missing two key starters on DL. Seattle and SF made our D-line look mediocre at best. Those things cannot happening if your goal is to play in the super bowl.

followed by C, RT, LG, RG. The only way that changes is if the QB is a lefty.

him with regards to acquiring him. He doesn’t strike me as being as dominant as Scherff. Then again, few are when he is healthy. Since Cousins knows Scherff, he should reach out and have a talk with him IMO. Solder (who the Giants spent a good deal of dough to obtain from NE) has not done nearly as well with the Giants. Just saying that because I see enough Giants games to notice he as not delivered like the Giants thought he would. The other question is how healthy is Scherff? I honestly don’t know. Thuney is a better pass blocker than a run blocker from what I’ve seen of him. I think Scherff is more even in his ability to pass and run block.

we should address the biggest needs as far as being competitive is concerned. Our needs are many but the CB, OL and DT are (in my mind) the biggest needs. Sure we have other needs but those are the biggest. Can we do it and succeed with flying colors? It won’t be easy but I think we have a shot.

has me thinking he is more apt to make defensive changes early in games. My criticism of him was in regards to staying in the same defense while the other team was gaining significant yardage almost at will. This happened in the first Green Bay game as an example. Zim was more readily switching looks and coverage packages up in the latter portion of the season. He clearly out-coached our good friends in New Orleans in the playoff game. I think he now knows that sitting in a single base package when it isn’t working is handing the other team the game. He deserves to get some time to see if we can navigate this cap mess and get a crack at beating Chicago and Green Bay so we can win the division. It won’t be easy and I think that Zimmer knows that. There are holes that need to be filled and players that need to be either resigned or let go. I am all for keeping Anthony Harris if possible. I also would not trade Diggs. I would resign Sendejo. I would and get Griffen to stay in Minny. There is going to be some real talent needed by the front office to keep this team competitive based on our cap situation. This may be Rick Spielman’s biggest test ever.

you think it would be counter productive to trade our second Rd pick and another pick to get that player?

You can put out some thoughtful posts concerning where the Vikes should putting there emphasis with regards to future moves/trades/draft picks. You’ll notice that I don’t come here and say I like this WR or this QB emphatically and that is for a reason. I would never try to say I can pick or notice talent with them like I can with lineman. In that area, I think I have had some good thoughts and feelings about what guys will help elevate the purple and get the team to another super bowl. I get the distinct impression that you are close enough to this club to know some of the folks we speak about (whether positively or negatively). They may be players/coaches or owners. What you don’t seem to take seriously is that the vikings have not been to a super bowl since 1977. That defies the law of averages by quite a bit. Many long time fans are getting a little fed up with the drought of all droughts. The era of playing guys until it is way past proof that they are not developing or just don’t have what it takes to get the team to the big game should be over in the front office. It isn’t what you want to hear but there have been some shortcomings that have lingered in the last several years and thus we cannot get to the big game. I don’t have to list the few issues I have had but you know what the most glaring one is and it is still hurting this team to a very large degree.

Spielman and company. They did Trade up the year we got Bridgewater if I remember correctly. I agree that this year trading up has more potential to fix some of the broken positions than trading down does. I think we need all of the positions you mentioned with safety being the lowest priority.