Free Agency

[james_walleye]

All I know is there are NO wide recievers left that are gonna make 1 bit of difference in FA. Carr signed with someone too, so.... yeah... Vikes not gonna get any better through FA, thats for sure. Dont know about you guys, but I cant wait to take a tackle with the 3rd overall pick, just cant wait....

I'm confused. For how long you have said you didn't want to overpay for any of the recievers out there. But now that they have been overpaid, severely in the case of Garcon, you are mad we missed out. You sign someone on day 1, you have to overpay to keep them from looking elsewhere. There are plenty of players available that could drastically help the vikings. No need to step on a ledge.....

[YiGGiN4SLoBS]

OH GOODIE!!! A concusion plagued tight end for 25 million... Thats what we're spending our extra cap money on? I officially have no clue what the vikings are doing now. I know shiancoe is gone but just get someone that can block to replace him if need be!

Spielman better have something better then this slop up his sleeve

Not really mad we missed out on the overpaid WR's-More mad we're not even trying to sign anyone to speak of- D-backs, O line, linebackers.... Remember how you said there was such a GOOD list of FA Wr's and i should do some homework before i speak... Hows that list looking now? Garcon would have been the only one left i was interested in and that was too much to pay for, him glad they didnt do that. But thats too much to pay for Carlson too!

So what then, just sit on our hands and not do anything besides sign a tight end that didnt even play last year for 25 mil? Sure, we can probably wait and sign the NFLs leftovers for cheap... how much will that help 3-13?

[collegepaul]

OH GOODIE!!! A concusion plagued tight end for 25 million... Thats what we're spending our extra cap money on?

I agree, that was too much to pay for Garcon, im glad they didnt do that. But thats too much to pay for Carlson too!

$11 million guaranteed is what counts against the cap until bonuses are made. That's a cheap investment compared to wide receivers. Maybe Billichick knows what he's doing salary cap wise with his two tight end system for the Pats and the Vikes are copying it. I'm not saying Ponder, Rudolph, Carlson are as good as Brady, Hernandez, & Gronk but you don't have to have a rocket arm QB to throw to a TE....this system fits Ponder.

[TR21HP]

Yiggin4slobs, why are you so hopped up on free agents? Ask the Eagles how all those free agents they signed did for them. How about talking to the Jets and see how far those free agents got them. The right free agent can make a small bit of difference in the whole scheme of things and too often you are overpaying and rewarding a player who maybe had a career year or had a great supporting class that made him look that much better. Draft and develop is the way to build a franchise, the Vikes just aren't very good at doing it the last few years.

[YiGGiN4SLoBS]

Yeah... Ok. A concust tight end fits the system, i guess. Shiancoe is just as good or better then Carlson IMO. What difference is that really gonna make? none

You cant be serious with saying that free agents dont help... Ill pretend i didnt read that. So your saying Antoine Winfield hasnt helped much? You just have make the right decisions when you sign them.

We need O-Line, D backs and WR the most and so far theres been no effort to address any of that...WR will have to be addressed somewhere in the draft now. Hopefully there still working on the other positions of need because we're not going to get better doing nothing. Sorry, Im done drinking purple Kool aid after 9-23 the last two years. If you guys wanna go along with every move they make, go for it.

[Getanet]

Sorry, Im done drinking purple Kool aid after 9-23 the last two years. If you guys wanna go along with every move they make, go for it.

The purple kool-aid tastes great going down, but it burns the throat when it comes back up midway through the season.

For having so much money to spend in FA and so many holes to fill, it is a bit frustrating we've been this quiet so far. It makes you wonder if the Vikings haven't been that aggressive, or if guys just don't want to come here?

[james_walleye]

Yeah... Ok. A concust tight end fits the system, i guess. Shiancoe is just as good or better then Carlson IMO. What difference is that really gonna make? none

You cant be serious with saying that free agents dont help... Ill pretend i didnt read that. So your saying Antoine Winfield hasnt helped much? You just have make the right decisions when you sign them.

We need O-Line, D backs and WR the most and so far theres been no effort to address any of that...WR will have to be addressed somewhere in the draft now. Hopefully there still working on the other positions of need because we're not going to get better doing nothing. Sorry, Im done drinking purple Kool aid after 9-23 the last two years. If you guys wanna go along with every move they make, go for it.

They will address the WR position if FA. It will of course be someone you don't like and someone you don't think will help the team much. But they will nonetheless. It's clear they are going on a youth movement and will not overpay. They still will draft one as well.....

[TR21HP]

Yiggin,

No one is going along with every move the Vikes make and I'm not even a Viking fan. Winfield made a difference for a couple years before getting hurt and has been useless the last 2 years and again tell me how the free agents the Eagles and Jets signed last year helped them. Is Carlson the answer, absolutely not. In fact I don't know what they were thinking when they chose him. It seems to me and judging by your posts you are a die hard Vikes fan, nothing wrong with that but please don't lump me in with the likes of you and your obvious fanatic fever for the Vikes.

[james_walleye]

Picking up Carlson goes along with their other moves.....getting younger.

[collegepaul]

Yeah... Ok. A concust tight end fits the system, i guess. Shiancoe is just as good or better then Carlson IMO. What difference is that really gonna make? none

Shaincoe was already replaced when the Vikes drafted Rudolf last year. Letting Shaincoe go is more about giving Rudolf more playing time to develop into the #1 TE. Shaincoe will be on the decline soon...its not worth holding onto him when the Vikes are obviously rebuilding.

[zepman]

It's not that difficult to grasp...the Vikes want to play with 2 tight ends in the game. Carlson is just another outlet for Ponder. Tight ends are like an insurance policy for a young qback...gives them an outlet or a quick check down.

He will and has been good if he can stay healthy.

[YiGGiN4SLoBS]

Picking up Carlson goes along with their other moves.....getting younger.

How much younger is Carlson then Shiancoe? The guy is one concussion away from a vegetable (sorry to be harsh, but its true) and we signed him to a 5 year deal. I just dont get it.

And your right James, I wont like who they sign as a FA WR. Its gonna be another poor mans Devon Aromashadu.

I dont think its a bad deal to be getting younger... but spielman must apparently think hes going to hit on every single draft pick by how they are going at FA. We'll see about that.

This teams got WAY too many holes to not go after a big name player IMO and I dont think they should just be given a free pass for how their going about it. Like I said, 9-23 the last two years, how long are we supposed to wait for rebuilding? There are no more 5 year rebuild jobs in the NFL. You'd get laughed right out of town in Philly, New York, Boston, Chicago, ect. going at it like that. Ponder needs help, not another aromashadu and so does this secondary and O line. Go get someone!

[james_walleye]

What is it that you want dude. For 2 weeks you cried that you didn't see a WR that you wanted to overpay for. Now that they didn't pick up a top notch WR, your complaining that they didn't pick anyone up and that they shouldn't get a free pass on it. The vikings would have had to up the figure on anyone of these guys that signed and overpaid even higher. That goes for a WR or any other position.So whats it going to be? Who was it that the vikings should have overpaid on? You want the vikings to be the next redskins? That's what they do year after year. You know who doesn't? Green bay, NE, Pittsburgh. Who would you rather model your strategy after???

[Scott K]

TE are also used to hekp shore up a weak OL. But I agree, I dont understand the move at all. Not a bad signing, it just wasnt a need

[zepman]

It was a need. Kleinsasser and Shank dog are gone.

[Scott K]

But didnt Randolph look pretty good last year?

[YiGGiN4SLoBS]

For 2 weeks? More like 2 posts. What I said was I didnt wanna overpay for Vin Jack or Garcon and that I would over-pay for Bowe. I was coming around to signing Garcon, but then came Dan Snyder. Laurent Robinson just signed for 5 years 32 mil with the jags, 14 garunteed. That would have been much better then 11 mil garunteed for a concust TE. We could have gotten any TE off the street that was a blocking Te for cheaper and that would have been much more prudent to me. Forget about the Wr's now, not talking about wr's

Who do I want? Secondary help, O line help, Linebacker help- 1 good player from any one of those positions and i would be happy

One problem with modeling your franchise after GB, NE and Pitt- We dont have their owners, coaches or personel management... we can sure try though!

Going after 1 big name FA after two horrible losing seasons, a terrible roster and 25 mil in cap room doesnt make you Dan Snyder and the Redskins, gimmie a break

[zepman]

But didnt Randolph look pretty good last year?

Yes, he did. Vikings regularly dress 3 TE's though...sometimes 4. We lost 2 of the "starting" 3.

[Antero]

I do think there may be something to the theory that some guys do not want to come here. A hard pill to swallow isn't it?

[mnviking28]

Did anyone listen to the interview with Spielman on KFAN this morning? They asked him some pretty tough questions and he made it sound like they were "waiting for the frenzy to end" to bring in some "blue chip" players in their positions of need. After the interview ended, they all sat there asking the question if he realized that the "blue chip" players in their positions of need have already been signed? Can he honestly be that clueless?

[SkunkedAgain]

I'll step out and say that I really like the Carlson move. He is a good tight end, not Gronkowski/Finley/Graham good but old fashioned (ala 2010 or earlier) good. Running double tight end sets will be good for a young QB like Ponder. They can block better for AP and also run short patterns that will keep Ponder from getting killed. Nothing helps out a young QB like sure hands over the middle. . .and YiGGiN4SLoBS, just because he had one concussion doesn't mean he's Justin Morneau. You twist facts like a politician.

As for Spielman, I'm not sold on the guy but at least he's not reaching on free agents. All the blue chips might be gone once the "frenzy" ends. What would you prefer though? Would you want him to pay top $$ for a free agent when the Vikings are CLEARLY a rebuilding team or would you rather him grab a value FA if available? If nothing is available then you draft well or pick up a player or two at the end of training camp cut downs.

I could see the Vikings picking up Donald Driver. He's still got some gas in the tank....he was the only one playing during the Packers' playoff loss.

[creepworm]

I would rather see the Vikings get Jerome Simpson, Early Doucet, or Brandon Loyd than Donald Driver. Jerome Simpson did very well last year as a #2 receiver which is what he would be here. Early Doucet has shown flashes and he might need is a chance to get regular playing time and he could be a decent receiver. Brandon Loyd will probably want a big pay day. Or at least that is what I am assuming seeing no team as picked him up yet and I am not real sure he is worth it, but if we can get him at a valuable price then we should do that without even thinking about it.

[Getanet]

Donald Driver...seems like there's a lot of mold on that cheese. Didn't he enter the league the same year the AFL and NFL merged?

[pikestabber]

I don't know where anyone got the impression we were going to make a splash in FA? Did the Vikes ever say we were going to throw money around? We are rebuilding (take a moment to let the vomit settle). You rebuild through the draft. There is no debate there. What names don't you often see in FA, at least in terms of regularly making big acquisitions? Green Bay, New England, Pittsburgh. What do they have in common? They win. They win because they build through the draft and only use FA to find short term solutions and to "win now." They have the ability to "win now" because the have that solid core of younger players from drafting intelligently. You don't build a team with as many needs as we have in FA. We would be a couple hundred million over cap to get that done. Like it or hate it, we aren't bringing in any marquee players via FA...at least not this time around.

[mnviking28]

I don't want to see them throw money around either, but these younger players, especially Brandon Carr, were guys that you could have used to build a team around. We got Winfield in a similar situation and he was a stud for a number of years. I don't mind seeing them spend money on free agents that could be with the team for a number of years. I guess what I was trying to say about Spielman is that he was trying to convince everyone in that interview that they were going to be relevant this year, but were going to do it by signing guys over the next couple of weeks. If all of these guys they plan on picking up are so good and "blue chippers", first of all why wouldn't their own team be trying to sign them. Secondly, why wouldn't the other teams in the league be all over them. Obviously our scouting department isn't that superior to everyone else's that we have all this insider information on these sleepers.