Thread: Three Players The Vikings Should Target in FA

Eric Weddle, safety, San Diego Chargers

Marshal Yanda, guard/tackle, Baltimore Ravens

Barry Cofield, defensive tackle, New York Giants

Three Players The Minnesota Vikings Should Target In Free Agency

Something that really irks me. Fixing holes with FA's. Successful teams have a youngster sitting on the bench being developed to replace aging players.

Shitty teams have to go out and steal talent from other teams.

As to the ones mentioned.....Why in the hell do we need a G? Hutch and Herrera worked out just fine in 2009. Given that they are going to be healthy this year I don't see an issue.

Mix in that we have Degeare and Cook, who provided plenty of depth (Webb won behind them) I just don't see the issue here.

Judging by the staffs recent move (drafting a couple of players, I don't think they are as concerned either.

Saftey. Same same. They just need to resign Husain, decide to let Sanford or Johnson be the man if M-will isn't going to work out. In the end, however, I don't see S (or CB) being an issue. Again, most know my feelings on this. The scheme we run doesn't require shutdown guys in the secondary. Hell it just requires above avg players, but only if the DL is doing their job.

.......Which brings me to ...........DEFENSIVE LINE/DT.

Hasn't some yutz been preaching for the last 3 years that we need to fix this position? Much like JA as a fix for RDE (that we couldn't fix through the draft) this is becoming almost stupid.

Lord I hope that Guion comes through for me this year.

Long story short, I've kindof been on the side of the scouting department and their abilities to find good talent. Maybe we do have a problem here. :dry:

Originally Posted by "Marrdro" #1099752

I've kindof been on the side of the scouting department and their abilities to find good talent.

I have yet to see this happen.

First two picks of a draft don't count. If you miss on those, you deserve to be fired.

Originally Posted by "Marrdro" #1099752

Eric Weddle, safety, San Diego Chargers

Marshal Yanda, guard/tackle, Baltimore Ravens

Barry Cofield, defensive tackle, New York Giants

Three Players The Minnesota Vikings Should Target In Free Agency

Something that really irks me. Fixing holes with FA's. Successful teams have a youngster sitting on the bench being developed to replace aging players.

Shitty teams have to go out and steal talent from other teams.

As to the ones mentioned.....Why in the hell do we need a G? Hutch and Herrera worked out just fine in 2009. Given that they are going to be healthy this year I don't see an issue.

Mix in that we have Degeare and Cook, who provided plenty of depth (Webb won behind them) I just don't see the issue here.

Judging by the staffs recent move (drafting a couple of players, I don't think they are as concerned either.

Saftey. Same same. They just need to resign Husain, decide to let Sanford or Johnson be the man if M-will isn't going to work out. In the end, however, I don't see S (or CB) being an issue. Again, most know my feelings on this. The scheme we run doesn't require shutdown guys in the secondary. Hell it just requires above avg players, but only if the DL is doing their job.

.......Which brings me to ...........DEFENSIVE LINE/DT.

Hasn't some yutz been preaching for the last 3 years that we need to fix this position? Much like JA as a fix for RDE (that we couldn't fix through the draft) this is becoming almost stupid.

Lord I hope that Guion comes through for me this year.

Long story short, I've kindof been on the side of the scouting department and their abilities to find good talent. Maybe we do have a problem here. :dry:

The general formula for successful organizations, such as the Pats, has been to sign your young players before the end of their first contract so you don't expose them to the open market of free agency, which drives up the price of retention.
Additionally those vets at the end of their second contract are allowed to hit the open market which can actually decrease their cost, unless they are exceptional players.
The exceptional older players are also extended to prevent them from hitting the open market.

Another key element is drafting quality young players that will develop and replace the older vets.

When this model works it allows teams to be competitive year in and year out leading to organizational stability and little lost time to rebuilding.

But this model doesn't work very well for lower tier teams because the best players don't want to extend or sign long term contracts with a loser.

It also doesn't work at all if your GM can't draft well in the later rounds.

So we see these teams who move up in the draft costing them picks and making poor picks, trying to compensate through free agency.

Look at the Skins. An endless cycle of futile spending, rebuilding, instability, and losing. Plug in any player or coach and you get the same result.

Minnesota needs to draft better in the later rounds and they too can approach success.

The free agency pool will be deeper this year than most. Because of that, the Vikes should take advantage.

But because the Vikings are rebuilding, they should only target the young players available who could lock down a roster spot for years to come.

The Vikings aren't likely to win the superbowl this year or next.

So to the free agent old farts; just say no!

I absolutely love the idea of MIN looking at Weddle when FA begins. The fact remains that the Vikes option at the Safety position is an embarassment. I dont care about Abdullah's INT numbers. I watched the safety play all season and I was embarassed to say that my favorite franchise felt they were starter quality.

I also would like to see MIN take a gander at either Robert Gallery or Tyson Clabo. Dont be surprised if the Vikings bring in at elast (1) of Atlanta's FA O-Linemen. Considering the Musgrave connection and what not. We need grinders and Clabo fits that role perfectly.

Barry Cofield would be an upgrade for Minnesota but how about little known Mebane from Seattle? This guy flew under the radar in Seattle for years.

Originally Posted by "jargomcfargo" #1099761

Originally Posted by "Marrdro" #1099752

Eric Weddle, safety, San Diego Chargers

Marshal Yanda, guard/tackle, Baltimore Ravens

Barry Cofield, defensive tackle, New York Giants

Three Players The Minnesota Vikings Should Target In Free Agency

Something that really irks me. Fixing holes with FA's. Successful teams have a youngster sitting on the bench being developed to replace aging players.

Shitty teams have to go out and steal talent from other teams.

As to the ones mentioned.....Why in the hell do we need a G? Hutch and Herrera worked out just fine in 2009. Given that they are going to be healthy this year I don't see an issue.

Mix in that we have Degeare and Cook, who provided plenty of depth (Webb won behind them) I just don't see the issue here.

Judging by the staffs recent move (drafting a couple of players, I don't think they are as concerned either.

Saftey. Same same. They just need to resign Husain, decide to let Sanford or Johnson be the man if M-will isn't going to work out. In the end, however, I don't see S (or CB) being an issue. Again, most know my feelings on this. The scheme we run doesn't require shutdown guys in the secondary. Hell it just requires above avg players, but only if the DL is doing their job.

.......Which brings me to ...........DEFENSIVE LINE/DT.

Hasn't some yutz been preaching for the last 3 years that we need to fix this position? Much like JA as a fix for RDE (that we couldn't fix through the draft) this is becoming almost stupid.

Lord I hope that Guion comes through for me this year.

Long story short, I've kindof been on the side of the scouting department and their abilities to find good talent. Maybe we do have a problem here. :dry:

The general formula for successful organizations, such as the Pats, has been to sign your young players before the end of their first contract so you don't expose them to the open market of free agency, which drives up the price of retention.
Additionally those vets at the end of their second contract are allowed to hit the open market which can actually decrease their cost, unless they are exceptional players.
The exceptional older players are also extended to prevent them from hitting the open market.

Another key element is drafting quality young players that will develop and replace the older vets.

When this model works it allows teams to be competitive year in and year out leading to organizational stability and little lost time to rebuilding.

But this model doesn't work very well for lower tier teams because the best players don't want to extend or sign long term contracts with a loser.

It also doesn't work at all if your GM can't draft well in the later rounds.

So we see these teams who move up in the draft costing them picks and making poor picks, trying to compensate through free agency.

Look at the Skins. An endless cycle of futile spending, rebuilding, instability, and losing. Plug in any player or coach and you get the same result.

Minnesota needs to draft better in the later rounds and they too can approach success.

The free agency pool will be deeper this year than most. Because of that, the Vikes should take advantage.

But because the Vikings are rebuilding, they should only target the young players available who could lock down a roster spot for years to come.

The Vikings aren't likely to win the superbowl this year or next.

So to the free agent old farts; just say no!

All good points that track with what I'm thinking my friend. Just one concern though.....

I'm not so sure (even though I'm starting to get on them about contracts) I agree that our staff is so bad with later round picks.

Minnesota Vikings
Year No. Round Pick Player Name Position College
2011 1 1 12 12 Christian Ponder QB Florida State
2 2 11 43 Kyle Rudolph TE Notre Dame
3 4 9 106 Christian Ballard DT Iowa
4 5 8 139 Brandon Burton DB Utah
5 6 3 168 Demarcus Love G Arkansas
6 6 5 170 Mistral Raymond DB South Florida
7 6 7 172 Brandon Fusco C Slippery Rock
8 6 35 200 Ross Homan LB Ohio State
9 7 12 215 D'Aundre Reed DE Arizona
10 7 33 236 Stephen Burton WR West Texas A&M
2010 1 2 2 34 Chris Cook DB Virginia
2 2 19 51 Toby Gerhart RB Stanford
3 4 2 100 Everson Griffin DE USC
4 5 30 161 Chris DeGeare G Wake Forest
[strike]5 5 36 167 Nathan Triplett LB Minnesota [/strike] 6 6 30 199 Joe Webb QB Alabama-Birmingham
7 7 7 214 Mickey Shuler TE Penn State
8 7 30 237 Ryan D'Imperio LB Rutgers
2009 1 1 22 22 Percy Harvin WR Florida
2 2 22 54 Phil Loadholt T Oklahoma
3 3 22 86 Asher Allen DB Georgia
4 5 14 150 Jasper Brinkley LB South Carolina
5 7 22 231 Jamarca Sanford DB Mississippi
2008 1 2 12 43 Tyrell Johnson DB Arkansas State
[strike]2 5 2 137 John David Booty QB USC [/strike] 3 5 17 152 Letroy Guion DT Florida State
4 6 21 187 John Sullivan C Notre Dame
5 6 27 193 Jaymar Johnson WR Jackson State
2007 1 1 7 7 Adrian Peterson RB Oklahoma
2 2 12 44 Sidney Rice WR South Carolina
[strike]3 3 8 72 Marcus McCauley DB Fresno State [/strike] 4 4 3 102 Brian Robison DE Texas
[strike]5 5 9 146 Aundrae Allison WR East Carolina
6 6 2 176 Rufus Alexander LB Oklahoma
7 7 7 217 Tyler Thigpen QB Coastal Carolina
8 7 23 233 Chandler Williams WR Florida International [/strike]2006 1 1 17 17 Chad Greenway LB Iowa
2 2 16 48 Cedric Griffin DB Texas
3 2 19 51 Ryan Cook C New Mexico
4 2 32 64 Tarvaris Jackson QB Alabama State
5 4 30 127 Ray Edwards DE Purdue
[strike] 6 5 17 149 Greg Blue DB Georgia[/strike]

Other than 2007, they really haven't done that bad. Some of the ones that aren't on the team (Thygpen/Tripplet) are still in the league, so the current regime isn't doing that bad.

Besides, I did something a while back (right after the season or during the season I think) were I took one teams drafts and compared them to ours and we had more success. I still welcome anyone to take a look at other teams and say that we do any worse than they do.

For now, I'll ring up the Pats....

2011 1 1 17 17 Nate Solder T Colorado
2 2 1 33 Ras-I Dowling DB Virginia
3 2 24 56 Shane Vereen RB California
4 3 9 73 Stevan Ridley RB Louisiana State
5 3 10 74 Ryan Mallett QB Arkansas
6 5 7 138 Marcus Cannon T Texas Christian
7 5 28 159 Lee Smith TE Marshall
8 6 29 194 Markell Carter LB Central Arkansas
9 7 16 219 Malcolm Williams DB Texas Christian
2010 1 1 27 27 Devin McCourty DB Rutgers
2 2 10 42 Rob Gronkowski TE Arizona
3 2 21 53 Jermaine Cunningham LB Florida
4 2 30 62 Brandon Spikes LB Florida
5 3 26 90 Taylor Price WR Ohio
6 4 15 113 Aaron Hernandez TE Florida
7 5 19 150 Zoltan Mesko P Michigan
[strike] 8 6 36 205 Ted Larsen C North Carolina State
9 7 1 208 Thomas Welch T Vanderbilt [/strike] 10 7 40 247 Brandon Deaderick LB Alabama
11 7 41 248 Kade Weston DE Georgia
[strike] 12 7 43 250 Zac Robinson QB Oklahoma State[/strike]
2009 1 2 2 34 Patrick Chung DB Oregon
2 2 8 40 Ron Brace DT Boston College
3 2 9 41 Darius Butler DB Connecticut
4 2 26 58 Sebastian Vollmer T Houston
5 3 19 83 Brandon Tate WR North Carolina
[strike] 6 3 33 97 Tyrone McKenzie LB South Florida[/strike]
7 4 23 123 Rich Ohrnberger G Penn State
[strike] 8 5 34 170 George Bussey T Louisville
9 6 25 198 Jake Ingram C Hawaii [/strike] 10 6 34 207 Myron Pryor DT Kentucky
11 7 23 232 Julian Edelman QB Kent State
12 7 25 234 Darryl Richard DT Georgia Tech
2008 1 1 10 10 Jerod Mayo LB Tennessee
[strike] 2 2 31 62 Terrence Wheatley DB Colorado
3 3 15 78 Shawn Crable LB Michigan
4 3 31 94 Kevin O'Connell QB San Diego State [/strike] 5 4 30 129 Jonathan Wilhite DB Auburn
6 5 18 153 Matt Slater WR UCLA
[strike] 7 6 31 197 Bo Ruud LB Nebraska[/strike]
2007 1 1 24 24 Brandon Meriweather DB Miami (FL)
[strike] 2 4 28 127 Kareem Brown DT Miami (FL)
3 5 34 171 Clint Oldenburg T Colorado State
4 6 6 180 Justin Rogers LB Southern Methodist
5 6 28 202 Mike Richardson DB Notre Dame
6 6 34 208 Justise Hairston RB Central Connecticut St.
7 6 35 209 Corey Hilliard T Oklahoma State
8 7 1 211 Oscar Lua LB USC
9 7 37 247 Mike Elgin G Iowa
2006 1 1 21 21 Laurence Maroney RB Minnesota
2 2 4 36 Chad Jackson WR Florida
3 3 22 86 Dave Thomas TE Texas
4 4 9 106 Garrett Mills TE Tulsa[/strike]
5 4 21 118 Stephen Gostkowski K Memphis
[strike] 6 5 3 136 Ryan O'Callaghan G California
7 6 22 191 Jeremy Mincey DE Florida
8 6 36 205 Dan Stevenson G Notre Dame
9 6 37 206 Le Kevin Smith DT Nebraska
10 7 21 229 Willie Andrews DB Baylor[/strike]

Sources are Rotoworld and drafthistory.com

Again, you take out the 2007 season and the scouting dept under our new ownership group isn't doing that bad IMHO.

I just wish they would do a better job of resigning talent of late.

asked our guys to participate with me in a semi-regular segment called “Triangle Of No Authority” where each of our writers attempt to answer a question that will (most likely) generate three different answers each time. I picked an easy one to get us started.

“Who is the top free agent that the Vikings should target in 2011?”

Triangle Of No Authority: Top Free Agent Target

Originally Posted by "Marrdro" #1099807

Originally Posted by "jargomcfargo" #1099761

Originally Posted by "Marrdro" #1099752

Eric Weddle, safety, San Diego Chargers

Marshal Yanda, guard/tackle, Baltimore Ravens

Barry Cofield, defensive tackle, New York Giants

Three Players The Minnesota Vikings Should Target In Free Agency

Something that really irks me. Fixing holes with FA's. Successful teams have a youngster sitting on the bench being developed to replace aging players.

Shitty teams have to go out and steal talent from other teams.

As to the ones mentioned.....Why in the hell do we need a G? Hutch and Herrera worked out just fine in 2009. Given that they are going to be healthy this year I don't see an issue.

Mix in that we have Degeare and Cook, who provided plenty of depth (Webb won behind them) I just don't see the issue here.

Judging by the staffs recent move (drafting a couple of players, I don't think they are as concerned either.

Saftey. Same same. They just need to resign Husain, decide to let Sanford or Johnson be the man if M-will isn't going to work out. In the end, however, I don't see S (or CB) being an issue. Again, most know my feelings on this. The scheme we run doesn't require shutdown guys in the secondary. Hell it just requires above avg players, but only if the DL is doing their job.

.......Which brings me to ...........DEFENSIVE LINE/DT.

Hasn't some yutz been preaching for the last 3 years that we need to fix this position? Much like JA as a fix for RDE (that we couldn't fix through the draft) this is becoming almost stupid.

Lord I hope that Guion comes through for me this year.

Long story short, I've kindof been on the side of the scouting department and their abilities to find good talent. Maybe we do have a problem here. :dry:

The general formula for successful organizations, such as the Pats, has been to sign your young players before the end of their first contract so you don't expose them to the open market of free agency, which drives up the price of retention.
Additionally those vets at the end of their second contract are allowed to hit the open market which can actually decrease their cost, unless they are exceptional players.
The exceptional older players are also extended to prevent them from hitting the open market.

Another key element is drafting quality young players that will develop and replace the older vets.

When this model works it allows teams to be competitive year in and year out leading to organizational stability and little lost time to rebuilding.

But this model doesn't work very well for lower tier teams because the best players don't want to extend or sign long term contracts with a loser.

It also doesn't work at all if your GM can't draft well in the later rounds.

So we see these teams who move up in the draft costing them picks and making poor picks, trying to compensate through free agency.

Look at the Skins. An endless cycle of futile spending, rebuilding, instability, and losing. Plug in any player or coach and you get the same result.

Minnesota needs to draft better in the later rounds and they too can approach success.

The free agency pool will be deeper this year than most. Because of that, the Vikes should take advantage.

But because the Vikings are rebuilding, they should only target the young players available who could lock down a roster spot for years to come.

The Vikings aren't likely to win the superbowl this year or next.

So to the free agent old farts; just say no!

All good points that track with what I'm thinking my friend. Just one concern though.....

I'm not so sure (even though I'm starting to get on them about contracts) I agree that our staff is so bad with later round picks.

Minnesota Vikings
Year No. Round Pick Player Name Position College
2011 1 1 12 12 Christian Ponder QB Florida State
2 2 11 43 Kyle Rudolph TE Notre Dame
3 4 9 106 Christian Ballard DT Iowa
4 5 8 139 Brandon Burton DB Utah
5 6 3 168 Demarcus Love G Arkansas
6 6 5 170 Mistral Raymond DB South Florida
7 6 7 172 Brandon Fusco C Slippery Rock
8 6 35 200 Ross Homan LB Ohio State
9 7 12 215 D'Aundre Reed DE Arizona
10 7 33 236 Stephen Burton WR West Texas A&M
2010 1 2 2 34 Chris Cook DB Virginia
2 2 19 51 Toby Gerhart RB Stanford
3 4 2 100 Everson Griffin DE USC
4 5 30 161 Chris DeGeare G Wake Forest
[strike]5 5 36 167 Nathan Triplett LB Minnesota [/strike] 6 6 30 199 Joe Webb QB Alabama-Birmingham
7 7 7 214 Mickey Shuler TE Penn State
8 7 30 237 Ryan D'Imperio LB Rutgers
2009 1 1 22 22 Percy Harvin WR Florida
2 2 22 54 Phil Loadholt T Oklahoma
3 3 22 86 Asher Allen DB Georgia
4 5 14 150 Jasper Brinkley LB South Carolina
5 7 22 231 Jamarca Sanford DB Mississippi
2008 1 2 12 43 Tyrell Johnson DB Arkansas State
[strike]2 5 2 137 John David Booty QB USC [/strike] 3 5 17 152 Letroy Guion DT Florida State
4 6 21 187 John Sullivan C Notre Dame
5 6 27 193 Jaymar Johnson WR Jackson State
2007 1 1 7 7 Adrian Peterson RB Oklahoma
2 2 12 44 Sidney Rice WR South Carolina
[strike]3 3 8 72 Marcus McCauley DB Fresno State [/strike] 4 4 3 102 Brian Robison DE Texas
[strike]5 5 9 146 Aundrae Allison WR East Carolina
6 6 2 176 Rufus Alexander LB Oklahoma
7 7 7 217 Tyler Thigpen QB Coastal Carolina
8 7 23 233 Chandler Williams WR Florida International [/strike]2006 1 1 17 17 Chad Greenway LB Iowa
2 2 16 48 Cedric Griffin DB Texas
3 2 19 51 Ryan Cook C New Mexico
4 2 32 64 Tarvaris Jackson QB Alabama State
5 4 30 127 Ray Edwards DE Purdue
[strike] 6 5 17 149 Greg Blue DB Georgia[/strike]

Other than 2007, they really haven't done that bad. Some of the ones that aren't on the team (Thygpen/Tripplet) are still in the league, so the current regime isn't doing that bad.

Besides, I did something a while back (right after the season or during the season I think) were I took one teams drafts and compared them to ours and we had more success. I still welcome anyone to take a look at other teams and say that we do any worse than they do.

For now, I'll ring up the Pats....

2011 1 1 17 17 Nate Solder T Colorado
2 2 1 33 Ras-I Dowling DB Virginia
3 2 24 56 Shane Vereen RB California
4 3 9 73 Stevan Ridley RB Louisiana State
5 3 10 74 Ryan Mallett QB Arkansas
6 5 7 138 Marcus Cannon T Texas Christian
7 5 28 159 Lee Smith TE Marshall
8 6 29 194 Markell Carter LB Central Arkansas
9 7 16 219 Malcolm Williams DB Texas Christian
2010 1 1 27 27 Devin McCourty DB Rutgers
2 2 10 42 Rob Gronkowski TE Arizona
3 2 21 53 Jermaine Cunningham LB Florida
4 2 30 62 Brandon Spikes LB Florida
5 3 26 90 Taylor Price WR Ohio
6 4 15 113 Aaron Hernandez TE Florida
7 5 19 150 Zoltan Mesko P Michigan
[strike] 8 6 36 205 Ted Larsen C North Carolina State
9 7 1 208 Thomas Welch T Vanderbilt [/strike] 10 7 40 247 Brandon Deaderick LB Alabama
11 7 41 248 Kade Weston DE Georgia
[strike] 12 7 43 250 Zac Robinson QB Oklahoma State[/strike]
2009 1 2 2 34 Patrick Chung DB Oregon
2 2 8 40 Ron Brace DT Boston College
3 2 9 41 Darius Butler DB Connecticut
4 2 26 58 Sebastian Vollmer T Houston
5 3 19 83 Brandon Tate WR North Carolina
[strike] 6 3 33 97 Tyrone McKenzie LB South Florida[/strike]
7 4 23 123 Rich Ohrnberger G Penn State
[strike] 8 5 34 170 George Bussey T Louisville
9 6 25 198 Jake Ingram C Hawaii [/strike] 10 6 34 207 Myron Pryor DT Kentucky
11 7 23 232 Julian Edelman QB Kent State
12 7 25 234 Darryl Richard DT Georgia Tech
2008 1 1 10 10 Jerod Mayo LB Tennessee
[strike] 2 2 31 62 Terrence Wheatley DB Colorado
3 3 15 78 Shawn Crable LB Michigan
4 3 31 94 Kevin O'Connell QB San Diego State [/strike] 5 4 30 129 Jonathan Wilhite DB Auburn
6 5 18 153 Matt Slater WR UCLA
[strike] 7 6 31 197 Bo Ruud LB Nebraska[/strike]
2007 1 1 24 24 Brandon Meriweather DB Miami (FL)
[strike] 2 4 28 127 Kareem Brown DT Miami (FL)
3 5 34 171 Clint Oldenburg T Colorado State
4 6 6 180 Justin Rogers LB Southern Methodist
5 6 28 202 Mike Richardson DB Notre Dame
6 6 34 208 Justise Hairston RB Central Connecticut St.
7 6 35 209 Corey Hilliard T Oklahoma State
8 7 1 211 Oscar Lua LB USC
9 7 37 247 Mike Elgin G Iowa
2006 1 1 21 21 Laurence Maroney RB Minnesota
2 2 4 36 Chad Jackson WR Florida
3 3 22 86 Dave Thomas TE Texas
4 4 9 106 Garrett Mills TE Tulsa[/strike]
5 4 21 118 Stephen Gostkowski K Memphis
[strike] 6 5 3 136 Ryan O'Callaghan G California
7 6 22 191 Jeremy Mincey DE Florida
8 6 36 205 Dan Stevenson G Notre Dame
9 6 37 206 Le Kevin Smith DT Nebraska
10 7 21 229 Willie Andrews DB Baylor[/strike]

Sources are Rotoworld and drafthistory.com

Again, you take out the 2007 season and the scouting dept under our new ownership group isn't doing that bad IMHO.

I just wish they would do a better job of resigning talent of late.

Bumping this for my good friend bleed. :P

Originally Posted by "Marrdro" #1100236

Originally Posted by "Marrdro" #1099807

Originally Posted by "jargomcfargo" #1099761

Originally Posted by "Marrdro" #1099752

Eric Weddle, safety, San Diego Chargers

Marshal Yanda, guard/tackle, Baltimore Ravens

Barry Cofield, defensive tackle, New York Giants

Three Players The Minnesota Vikings Should Target In Free Agency

Something that really irks me. Fixing holes with FA's. Successful teams have a youngster sitting on the bench being developed to replace aging players.

Shitty teams have to go out and steal talent from other teams.

As to the ones mentioned.....Why in the hell do we need a G? Hutch and Herrera worked out just fine in 2009. Given that they are going to be healthy this year I don't see an issue.

Mix in that we have Degeare and Cook, who provided plenty of depth (Webb won behind them) I just don't see the issue here.

Judging by the staffs recent move (drafting a couple of players, I don't think they are as concerned either.

Saftey. Same same. They just need to resign Husain, decide to let Sanford or Johnson be the man if M-will isn't going to work out. In the end, however, I don't see S (or CB) being an issue. Again, most know my feelings on this. The scheme we run doesn't require shutdown guys in the secondary. Hell it just requires above avg players, but only if the DL is doing their job.

.......Which brings me to ...........DEFENSIVE LINE/DT.

Hasn't some yutz been preaching for the last 3 years that we need to fix this position? Much like JA as a fix for RDE (that we couldn't fix through the draft) this is becoming almost stupid.

Lord I hope that Guion comes through for me this year.

Long story short, I've kindof been on the side of the scouting department and their abilities to find good talent. Maybe we do have a problem here. :dry:

The general formula for successful organizations, such as the Pats, has been to sign your young players before the end of their first contract so you don't expose them to the open market of free agency, which drives up the price of retention.
Additionally those vets at the end of their second contract are allowed to hit the open market which can actually decrease their cost, unless they are exceptional players.
The exceptional older players are also extended to prevent them from hitting the open market.

Another key element is drafting quality young players that will develop and replace the older vets.

When this model works it allows teams to be competitive year in and year out leading to organizational stability and little lost time to rebuilding.

But this model doesn't work very well for lower tier teams because the best players don't want to extend or sign long term contracts with a loser.

It also doesn't work at all if your GM can't draft well in the later rounds.

So we see these teams who move up in the draft costing them picks and making poor picks, trying to compensate through free agency.

Look at the Skins. An endless cycle of futile spending, rebuilding, instability, and losing. Plug in any player or coach and you get the same result.

Minnesota needs to draft better in the later rounds and they too can approach success.

The free agency pool will be deeper this year than most. Because of that, the Vikes should take advantage.

But because the Vikings are rebuilding, they should only target the young players available who could lock down a roster spot for years to come.

The Vikings aren't likely to win the superbowl this year or next.

So to the free agent old farts; just say no!

All good points that track with what I'm thinking my friend. Just one concern though.....

I'm not so sure (even though I'm starting to get on them about contracts) I agree that our staff is so bad with later round picks.

Minnesota Vikings
Year No. Round Pick Player Name Position College
2011 1 1 12 12 Christian Ponder QB Florida State
2 2 11 43 Kyle Rudolph TE Notre Dame
3 4 9 106 Christian Ballard DT Iowa
4 5 8 139 Brandon Burton DB Utah
5 6 3 168 Demarcus Love G Arkansas
6 6 5 170 Mistral Raymond DB South Florida
7 6 7 172 Brandon Fusco C Slippery Rock
8 6 35 200 Ross Homan LB Ohio State
9 7 12 215 D'Aundre Reed DE Arizona
10 7 33 236 Stephen Burton WR West Texas A&M
2010 1 2 2 34 Chris Cook DB Virginia
2 2 19 51 Toby Gerhart RB Stanford
3 4 2 100 Everson Griffin DE USC
4 5 30 161 Chris DeGeare G Wake Forest
[strike]5 5 36 167 Nathan Triplett LB Minnesota [/strike] 6 6 30 199 Joe Webb QB Alabama-Birmingham
7 7 7 214 Mickey Shuler TE Penn State
8 7 30 237 Ryan D'Imperio LB Rutgers
2009 1 1 22 22 Percy Harvin WR Florida
2 2 22 54 Phil Loadholt T Oklahoma
3 3 22 86 Asher Allen DB Georgia
4 5 14 150 Jasper Brinkley LB South Carolina
5 7 22 231 Jamarca Sanford DB Mississippi
2008 1 2 12 43 Tyrell Johnson DB Arkansas State
[strike]2 5 2 137 John David Booty QB USC [/strike] 3 5 17 152 Letroy Guion DT Florida State
4 6 21 187 John Sullivan C Notre Dame
5 6 27 193 Jaymar Johnson WR Jackson State
2007 1 1 7 7 Adrian Peterson RB Oklahoma
2 2 12 44 Sidney Rice WR South Carolina
[strike]3 3 8 72 Marcus McCauley DB Fresno State [/strike] 4 4 3 102 Brian Robison DE Texas
[strike]5 5 9 146 Aundrae Allison WR East Carolina
6 6 2 176 Rufus Alexander LB Oklahoma
7 7 7 217 Tyler Thigpen QB Coastal Carolina
8 7 23 233 Chandler Williams WR Florida International [/strike]2006 1 1 17 17 Chad Greenway LB Iowa
2 2 16 48 Cedric Griffin DB Texas
3 2 19 51 Ryan Cook C New Mexico
4 2 32 64 Tarvaris Jackson QB Alabama State
5 4 30 127 Ray Edwards DE Purdue
[strike] 6 5 17 149 Greg Blue DB Georgia[/strike]

Other than 2007, they really haven't done that bad. Some of the ones that aren't on the team (Thygpen/Tripplet) are still in the league, so the current regime isn't doing that bad.

Besides, I did something a while back (right after the season or during the season I think) were I took one teams drafts and compared them to ours and we had more success. I still welcome anyone to take a look at other teams and say that we do any worse than they do.

For now, I'll ring up the Pats....

2011 1 1 17 17 Nate Solder T Colorado
2 2 1 33 Ras-I Dowling DB Virginia
3 2 24 56 Shane Vereen RB California
4 3 9 73 Stevan Ridley RB Louisiana State
5 3 10 74 Ryan Mallett QB Arkansas
6 5 7 138 Marcus Cannon T Texas Christian
7 5 28 159 Lee Smith TE Marshall
8 6 29 194 Markell Carter LB Central Arkansas
9 7 16 219 Malcolm Williams DB Texas Christian
2010 1 1 27 27 Devin McCourty DB Rutgers
2 2 10 42 Rob Gronkowski TE Arizona
3 2 21 53 Jermaine Cunningham LB Florida
4 2 30 62 Brandon Spikes LB Florida
5 3 26 90 Taylor Price WR Ohio
6 4 15 113 Aaron Hernandez TE Florida
7 5 19 150 Zoltan Mesko P Michigan
[strike] 8 6 36 205 Ted Larsen C North Carolina State
9 7 1 208 Thomas Welch T Vanderbilt [/strike] 10 7 40 247 Brandon Deaderick LB Alabama
11 7 41 248 Kade Weston DE Georgia
[strike] 12 7 43 250 Zac Robinson QB Oklahoma State[/strike]
2009 1 2 2 34 Patrick Chung DB Oregon
2 2 8 40 Ron Brace DT Boston College
3 2 9 41 Darius Butler DB Connecticut
4 2 26 58 Sebastian Vollmer T Houston
5 3 19 83 Brandon Tate WR North Carolina
[strike] 6 3 33 97 Tyrone McKenzie LB South Florida[/strike]
7 4 23 123 Rich Ohrnberger G Penn State
[strike] 8 5 34 170 George Bussey T Louisville
9 6 25 198 Jake Ingram C Hawaii [/strike] 10 6 34 207 Myron Pryor DT Kentucky
11 7 23 232 Julian Edelman QB Kent State
12 7 25 234 Darryl Richard DT Georgia Tech
2008 1 1 10 10 Jerod Mayo LB Tennessee
[strike] 2 2 31 62 Terrence Wheatley DB Colorado
3 3 15 78 Shawn Crable LB Michigan
4 3 31 94 Kevin O'Connell QB San Diego State [/strike] 5 4 30 129 Jonathan Wilhite DB Auburn
6 5 18 153 Matt Slater WR UCLA
[strike] 7 6 31 197 Bo Ruud LB Nebraska[/strike]
2007 1 1 24 24 Brandon Meriweather DB Miami (FL)
[strike] 2 4 28 127 Kareem Brown DT Miami (FL)
3 5 34 171 Clint Oldenburg T Colorado State
4 6 6 180 Justin Rogers LB Southern Methodist
5 6 28 202 Mike Richardson DB Notre Dame
6 6 34 208 Justise Hairston RB Central Connecticut St.
7 6 35 209 Corey Hilliard T Oklahoma State
8 7 1 211 Oscar Lua LB USC
9 7 37 247 Mike Elgin G Iowa
2006 1 1 21 21 Laurence Maroney RB Minnesota
2 2 4 36 Chad Jackson WR Florida
3 3 22 86 Dave Thomas TE Texas
4 4 9 106 Garrett Mills TE Tulsa[/strike]
5 4 21 118 Stephen Gostkowski K Memphis
[strike] 6 5 3 136 Ryan O'Callaghan G California
7 6 22 191 Jeremy Mincey DE Florida
8 6 36 205 Dan Stevenson G Notre Dame
9 6 37 206 Le Kevin Smith DT Nebraska
10 7 21 229 Willie Andrews DB Baylor[/strike]

Sources are Rotoworld and drafthistory.com

Again, you take out the 2007 season and the scouting dept under our new ownership group isn't doing that bad IMHO.

I just wish they would do a better job of resigning talent of late.

Bumping this for my good friend bleed. :P

what's to bump? You haven't shown anything here. You include guys like D'Imperio, Jaymar, Shuler and Tarvaris Jackson as hits for us, but cross out guys like Mills, who is not only on an active roster, but has far more experience/success than a guy like D'Imperio, Shuler or Jaymar.

Originally Posted by "i_bleed_purple" #1100240

Originally Posted by "Marrdro" #1100236

Originally Posted by "Marrdro" #1099807

Originally Posted by "jargomcfargo" #1099761

Originally Posted by "Marrdro" #1099752

Eric Weddle, safety, San Diego Chargers

Marshal Yanda, guard/tackle, Baltimore Ravens

Barry Cofield, defensive tackle, New York Giants

Three Players The Minnesota Vikings Should Target In Free Agency

Something that really irks me. Fixing holes with FA's. Successful teams have a youngster sitting on the bench being developed to replace aging players.

Shitty teams have to go out and steal talent from other teams.

As to the ones mentioned.....Why in the hell do we need a G? Hutch and Herrera worked out just fine in 2009. Given that they are going to be healthy this year I don't see an issue.

Mix in that we have Degeare and Cook, who provided plenty of depth (Webb won behind them) I just don't see the issue here.

Judging by the staffs recent move (drafting a couple of players, I don't think they are as concerned either.

Saftey. Same same. They just need to resign Husain, decide to let Sanford or Johnson be the man if M-will isn't going to work out. In the end, however, I don't see S (or CB) being an issue. Again, most know my feelings on this. The scheme we run doesn't require shutdown guys in the secondary. Hell it just requires above avg players, but only if the DL is doing their job.

.......Which brings me to ...........DEFENSIVE LINE/DT.

Hasn't some yutz been preaching for the last 3 years that we need to fix this position? Much like JA as a fix for RDE (that we couldn't fix through the draft) this is becoming almost stupid.

Lord I hope that Guion comes through for me this year.

Long story short, I've kindof been on the side of the scouting department and their abilities to find good talent. Maybe we do have a problem here. :dry:

The general formula for successful organizations, such as the Pats, has been to sign your young players before the end of their first contract so you don't expose them to the open market of free agency, which drives up the price of retention.
Additionally those vets at the end of their second contract are allowed to hit the open market which can actually decrease their cost, unless they are exceptional players.
The exceptional older players are also extended to prevent them from hitting the open market.

Another key element is drafting quality young players that will develop and replace the older vets.

When this model works it allows teams to be competitive year in and year out leading to organizational stability and little lost time to rebuilding.

But this model doesn't work very well for lower tier teams because the best players don't want to extend or sign long term contracts with a loser.

It also doesn't work at all if your GM can't draft well in the later rounds.

So we see these teams who move up in the draft costing them picks and making poor picks, trying to compensate through free agency.

Look at the Skins. An endless cycle of futile spending, rebuilding, instability, and losing. Plug in any player or coach and you get the same result.

Minnesota needs to draft better in the later rounds and they too can approach success.

The free agency pool will be deeper this year than most. Because of that, the Vikes should take advantage.

But because the Vikings are rebuilding, they should only target the young players available who could lock down a roster spot for years to come.

The Vikings aren't likely to win the superbowl this year or next.

So to the free agent old farts; just say no!

All good points that track with what I'm thinking my friend. Just one concern though.....

I'm not so sure (even though I'm starting to get on them about contracts) I agree that our staff is so bad with later round picks.

Minnesota Vikings
Year No. Round Pick Player Name Position College
2011 1 1 12 12 Christian Ponder QB Florida State
2 2 11 43 Kyle Rudolph TE Notre Dame
3 4 9 106 Christian Ballard DT Iowa
4 5 8 139 Brandon Burton DB Utah
5 6 3 168 Demarcus Love G Arkansas
6 6 5 170 Mistral Raymond DB South Florida
7 6 7 172 Brandon Fusco C Slippery Rock
8 6 35 200 Ross Homan LB Ohio State
9 7 12 215 D'Aundre Reed DE Arizona
10 7 33 236 Stephen Burton WR West Texas A&M
2010 1 2 2 34 Chris Cook DB Virginia
2 2 19 51 Toby Gerhart RB Stanford
3 4 2 100 Everson Griffin DE USC
4 5 30 161 Chris DeGeare G Wake Forest
[strike]5 5 36 167 Nathan Triplett LB Minnesota [/strike] 6 6 30 199 Joe Webb QB Alabama-Birmingham
7 7 7 214 Mickey Shuler TE Penn State
8 7 30 237 Ryan D'Imperio LB Rutgers
2009 1 1 22 22 Percy Harvin WR Florida
2 2 22 54 Phil Loadholt T Oklahoma
3 3 22 86 Asher Allen DB Georgia
4 5 14 150 Jasper Brinkley LB South Carolina
5 7 22 231 Jamarca Sanford DB Mississippi
2008 1 2 12 43 Tyrell Johnson DB Arkansas State
[strike]2 5 2 137 John David Booty QB USC [/strike] 3 5 17 152 Letroy Guion DT Florida State
4 6 21 187 John Sullivan C Notre Dame
5 6 27 193 Jaymar Johnson WR Jackson State
2007 1 1 7 7 Adrian Peterson RB Oklahoma
2 2 12 44 Sidney Rice WR South Carolina
[strike]3 3 8 72 Marcus McCauley DB Fresno State [/strike] 4 4 3 102 Brian Robison DE Texas
[strike]5 5 9 146 Aundrae Allison WR East Carolina
6 6 2 176 Rufus Alexander LB Oklahoma
7 7 7 217 Tyler Thigpen QB Coastal Carolina
8 7 23 233 Chandler Williams WR Florida International [/strike]2006 1 1 17 17 Chad Greenway LB Iowa
2 2 16 48 Cedric Griffin DB Texas
3 2 19 51 Ryan Cook C New Mexico
4 2 32 64 Tarvaris Jackson QB Alabama State
5 4 30 127 Ray Edwards DE Purdue
[strike] 6 5 17 149 Greg Blue DB Georgia[/strike]

Other than 2007, they really haven't done that bad. Some of the ones that aren't on the team (Thygpen/Tripplet) are still in the league, so the current regime isn't doing that bad.

Besides, I did something a while back (right after the season or during the season I think) were I took one teams drafts and compared them to ours and we had more success. I still welcome anyone to take a look at other teams and say that we do any worse than they do.

For now, I'll ring up the Pats....

2011 1 1 17 17 Nate Solder T Colorado
2 2 1 33 Ras-I Dowling DB Virginia
3 2 24 56 Shane Vereen RB California
4 3 9 73 Stevan Ridley RB Louisiana State
5 3 10 74 Ryan Mallett QB Arkansas
6 5 7 138 Marcus Cannon T Texas Christian
7 5 28 159 Lee Smith TE Marshall
8 6 29 194 Markell Carter LB Central Arkansas
9 7 16 219 Malcolm Williams DB Texas Christian
2010 1 1 27 27 Devin McCourty DB Rutgers
2 2 10 42 Rob Gronkowski TE Arizona
3 2 21 53 Jermaine Cunningham LB Florida
4 2 30 62 Brandon Spikes LB Florida
5 3 26 90 Taylor Price WR Ohio
6 4 15 113 Aaron Hernandez TE Florida
7 5 19 150 Zoltan Mesko P Michigan
[strike] 8 6 36 205 Ted Larsen C North Carolina State
9 7 1 208 Thomas Welch T Vanderbilt [/strike] 10 7 40 247 Brandon Deaderick LB Alabama
11 7 41 248 Kade Weston DE Georgia
[strike] 12 7 43 250 Zac Robinson QB Oklahoma State[/strike]
2009 1 2 2 34 Patrick Chung DB Oregon
2 2 8 40 Ron Brace DT Boston College
3 2 9 41 Darius Butler DB Connecticut
4 2 26 58 Sebastian Vollmer T Houston
5 3 19 83 Brandon Tate WR North Carolina
[strike] 6 3 33 97 Tyrone McKenzie LB South Florida[/strike]
7 4 23 123 Rich Ohrnberger G Penn State
[strike] 8 5 34 170 George Bussey T Louisville
9 6 25 198 Jake Ingram C Hawaii [/strike] 10 6 34 207 Myron Pryor DT Kentucky
11 7 23 232 Julian Edelman QB Kent State
12 7 25 234 Darryl Richard DT Georgia Tech
2008 1 1 10 10 Jerod Mayo LB Tennessee
[strike] 2 2 31 62 Terrence Wheatley DB Colorado
3 3 15 78 Shawn Crable LB Michigan
4 3 31 94 Kevin O'Connell QB San Diego State [/strike] 5 4 30 129 Jonathan Wilhite DB Auburn
6 5 18 153 Matt Slater WR UCLA
[strike] 7 6 31 197 Bo Ruud LB Nebraska[/strike]
2007 1 1 24 24 Brandon Meriweather DB Miami (FL)
[strike] 2 4 28 127 Kareem Brown DT Miami (FL)
3 5 34 171 Clint Oldenburg T Colorado State
4 6 6 180 Justin Rogers LB Southern Methodist
5 6 28 202 Mike Richardson DB Notre Dame
6 6 34 208 Justise Hairston RB Central Connecticut St.
7 6 35 209 Corey Hilliard T Oklahoma State
8 7 1 211 Oscar Lua LB USC
9 7 37 247 Mike Elgin G Iowa
2006 1 1 21 21 Laurence Maroney RB Minnesota
2 2 4 36 Chad Jackson WR Florida
3 3 22 86 Dave Thomas TE Texas
4 4 9 106 Garrett Mills TE Tulsa[/strike]
5 4 21 118 Stephen Gostkowski K Memphis
[strike] 6 5 3 136 Ryan O'Callaghan G California
7 6 22 191 Jeremy Mincey DE Florida
8 6 36 205 Dan Stevenson G Notre Dame
9 6 37 206 Le Kevin Smith DT Nebraska
10 7 21 229 Willie Andrews DB Baylor[/strike]

Sources are Rotoworld and drafthistory.com

Again, you take out the 2007 season and the scouting dept under our new ownership group isn't doing that bad IMHO.

I just wish they would do a better job of resigning talent of late.

Bumping this for my good friend bleed. :P

what's to bump? You haven't shown anything here. You include guys like D'Imperio, Jaymar, Shuler and Tarvaris Jackson as hits for us, but cross out guys like Mills, who is not only on an active roster, but has far more experience/success than a guy like D'Imperio, Shuler or Jaymar.

What roster is Mills on right now? Someones 80 man roster.

Truth is, what roster has he ever been on? Someones practice squad.

Look, for me, if they are on a 53 man roster it means someone thinks they are contributing and are getting better.

You on the other hand don't think anything of them unless they are actual starters getting to HI every year and are a total bust.

Difference of opinion I guess.

The bigger point is, and you didn't address, is how poorly the team you say does great, actually is when it comes to hitting on late round picks as compared to a team that has a realitively new organization, (compared to the well established Pats) who only really has had one bad year.

Originally Posted by "Marrdro" #1100242

What roster is Mills on right now? Someones 80 man roster.

Truth is, what roster has he ever been on? Someones practice squad.

http://www.nfl.com/player/garrettmills/2495911/profile
Bengals
Played 7 games, started 3 as an eagle last year
PLayed in 9 games as a Viking

To compare, D'Imperio
http://www.nfl.com/player/ryand'imperio/1037899/profile
Never been on an active roster
Shuler:
http://www.nfl.com/player/mickeyshuler/2508064/profile
Isn't even a Viking anymore
Jaymar
http://www.nfl.com/player/jaymarjohnson/2653/profile
was active for 6 games with one reception in 2009.

Collectively, Mills has more experience than all those players combined.

Look, for me, if they are on a 53 man roster it means someone thinks they are contributing and are getting better.

But they're not on a 53 man roster. D'Imperio was PS, Shuler got cut, Jaymar was on IR.

You on the other hand don't think anything of them unless they are actual starters getting to HI every year and are a total bust.

Wrong again.

I'd like to see some form of improvement or potential. We never seem to get high-potential guys, we take the 'safe pick', and they play a couple seasons here then move on. Go for a 4.3 corner, take that OG who can't play worth shit, but can move a mountain. Sometimes they actually work out, good chance they bust.

Difference of opinion I guess.

Isn't that where most of our disagreements stem from?

The bigger point is, and you didn't address, is how poorly the team you say does great, actually is when it comes to hitting on late round picks as compared to a team that has a realitively new organization, (compared to the well established Pats) who only really has had one bad year.

Poorly? Julian Edelman is a key contributor to that offense. Who was our last 7th round pick who amounted to anything? or even 6th rounder? Sanford's the closest We've got, and I'll take Edelmen over Sanford any day.



The thing is, it's tough to compare the Vikes to the Pats for a couple reasons.

Firstly, The Pats have been, and still are an old team. Rookies have to not only show they can play, but beat out proven vets for roster spots. Hard to do. You've crossed out guys who have gone on to other teams to play.

Secondly, The Pats have no problem cutting players that simply don't perform. If after 2 years a player has not shown much improvement, they let him go and bring in someone else. Unlike us, who finally got rid of our project QB after 5 years of on and off starting, still have guys like Jaymar Johnson and Tyrell Johnson around.. guys who would be out if they were Pats by now.

The Pats are not a 'build through the draft' kind of team, but they draft well enough to get the players they need, and I get the impression the bulk of their picks are to bring them in and see what they can do. If they stick, great, if not, not going to lose sleep over it.

We draft players with the intention of starting them or having them as backups, and wonder why after 5 years they're not that good.