The Official Vikings Offseason Thread!

[Craigums]

Do they take Maclin if he slides?

[Born2Fish]

I am hearing a little bit of talk about Terps WR Darrius Heyward-Bey. Hearing that his stock rose some in the draft after his 40 time(4.30 at the combine) Vertical (38.5") and Broad jump(10'6"). Seen a few guys giving him to the vikes at 22.

[koonie]

If Britton goes before our pick at 22 and Maclin is still there I'd be very suprised if we didn't pick him. He's a top 10 talent that can help out at both wr and as a return man.

[koonie]

DHB has the highest upside of ANY receiver in the draft. I highly doubt we take him though. He's a little bit of a project. Still learning the game. If he reaches his potential he'll easily be the best receiver in this draft.

Seems like we might be a little gunshy about picking a physically gifted/low production guy out of college. I really don't like the comparison to Troy Williamson but it get thrown out there all the time with DHB. His numbers weren't that good at Maryland only because of a run first offense and an inept coach who didn't know how to get him involved.

I think Childress will push for guys that can help immediately. He only has this year left to make an impression. He needs to win now or he'll be looking for an OC job next year.

DHB would look good in purple but I don't think it will happen. Though I wish it would.

We are supposedly focused in on two or three guys at pick 22. I think they really want Britton and unless someone like Oher or Jenkins slides that's who I'm betting on. I think 22 is a little early for Britton but there is a need a RT. The other two likely candidates, IMO, are Darius Butler and Kenny Britt.

Last but not least. I'm hearing some Brady Quinn rumors. We offered two firsts for him last year. It sounds like Cleveland wants to trade him and there are two teams interested. You can almost bet we are one of the two teams since we tried to pry him away last year. It won't take two first rounders to get him this time around from the sound of things. Look for him to be dealt on draft day.

[zepman]

Vontae Davis and Hakeem Nicks are two I would be o.k. with also. Nicks is supposed to be ready to roll right out of college and is supposed to catch everything in sight. Howard-Bey reminds me too much of T. Williamson to get excited about. We don't need another project. Davis or any of the other Dbacks makes the most sense to me right now considering the new blood our division has picked up at q-back.

[Born2Fish]

I have been hearing something myself about Quinn. I have also heard Chester Taylors name being thrown around in that speculation.

[Jim Uran]

Leave him in Cleveland. I don't think the vikes would pull the trigger on something like that. It sounds like Chilly has his mind made up on his QB's. He needs to work on the O line.

[eyehunter]

I agree, Quinn hasn't really been burning it up on the field. I would say we have just as good a quarterback in Sage. And if Childress trades Chet away, then he might as well pack his bags too. We have one of the best tandoms in the league when it comes to running backs, why would anybody in their right mind break that up?? If it aint broke....don't fix it.

[Born2Fish]

I don't think it would be fair to say Quinn hasn't been burning up the field. He has only started in two games(Dec. 30th and November 6th). Though I also would not give up chester for him either.

[sdstatekid]

Chester will be gone after the season so you might as well get something for him. I would go Chester for Quinn straight up.

[CodyDawg]

Boldin can be had for a 1st and a 3rd. If you could draft Boldin with your 1st round pick would ya? For sure. Heck, he would go in the top 5. I dont understand why teams place such a high value on draft picks. I think you could field a pretty competitive team without EVER drafting a guy....just trading your picks for solid players.

[gr8icefishinmind]

AGREED!!!!!!

[eyehunter]

I agree somewhat with that logic as well, but if we traded picks for Boldin, we still don't have anyone that can get the ball to him. Same story....different year. I guess if you think about it, Sage hasn't had too many starts in his career either. Who's to say that he won't light it up this year??

[Scott K]

Sage would have a lot better chance to light it up with Boldin, or Edwards to throw it to

[FISHINGURU]

the league is finally catching up to the logic i been spitting for years...teams have always held on to their 1st round picks like they were gold...things are changing and teams are realizing that they can spend their 1st rounder and know exactly what they are getting in a trade.

But it seems there were never players available that would cost a 1st either...these days it seems alot of big name players are available...qb's, wr's, o-line, de's, everyone is available for the right price these days it never used to be like that...the last couple years you've been seeing it more and more though...this year is crazy for trades and teams willing to spend their picks before draft day...it isn't over yet there will still be some big trades on draft day i think.

boldin rules but he is getting older at the age of 28 and there is speculation that he has some lingering injuries that might cut his career of being elite a few years short...it would suck to spend a 1st and 3rd to find out he's only elite for another 2 years...i'd rather get a guy like braylon who has monster upside and just turned only 26 a couple months ago...he'd also come cheaper money wise and draft pick wise.

quinn hasn't proven nothing and i'm sure the asking price is to much for what he has done...and rather stick with sage...sage is a guy that could have alot of upside...we have to wait and see he's never had a good chance to play ball and especially not on a team like ours....i personally think sage will be a middle of the pack qb this season if he wins the starting job...i really don't want a 3 way qb controversy either...only trade i'd like at qb is if it was for a clear cut winner...cutler would of been sweet but to spendy imo.

i'd be up for trading chester anyday of the week...this is more then likely his last season as a vike before he signs with another team and we get nothing...especially if it was packaged for a player that would be a stellar starter for this team for the next 5 or more years.

braylon would be a sweet pick up imo if we were gonna trade.

p.s...boldin will be turning 29 beginning of oct when the season starts

[zepman]

Nice post GURU. I wouldn't be suprised to see Chester dealt this week or draft day at all.

[Born2Fish]

Found this on NBC Sports Blog

Vikes Visit With Pat White

Posted by Mike Florio: Tuesday, April 21, 2009 8:48 PM

Of all the teams that have been eyeballing former West Virginia quarterback Pat White, most already have established and entrenched options under center.

Not so in Minnesota, where Sage Rosenfels recently has joined a revolving door of mediocrity that recently has feature non-future Hall of Famers like Gus Frerotte, Tarvaris Jackson, Kelly Holcomb, and Brooks Bollinger.

According to Alex Marvez of FOXSports.com, the Vikings worked out White on Tuesday.

Though he's regarded as a potential Wildcat-style presence, taking some snaps and fielding some punts and catching some passes, the smarter move (in our view) would be to focus on giving him a chance to develop as a passer. Quarterbacks who can run effectively often find themselves relying on their legs as a crutch, and thus they never completely develop all of the skills needed to play the position.

So by plugging White into the lineup from time to time for the purposes of sometimes running and sometimes passing, a team might be blowing the opportunity to find out whether he can become a drop-back passer with the elusiveness that allows a guy like Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger to keep plays alive long enough not to tuck it and run north-south, but to find an open receiver by moving east-west.

[zepman]

Well, if they use a draft pick on a guy like White it goes a long way in saying what they think of Booty.

[eyehunter]

Booty has shown me absolutely nothing...I still don't understand why everyone was so hyped up on him last year. I know he hasn't had much of a chance to show us what he has in a real game, but I attended training camp last year and he looked horrible....to tell you the truth Brooks Bollinger looked better than he did with a stronger arm and way more accurate than Booty. Just my $0.02, but I'm not a coach either.

[CodyDawg]

I listened to Brian Billick on the fan a while ago and he said there is a 50% chance that a QB taken in the first round will pan out. Given that, giving 2 1st rounders for a known commodity in Cutler was NOT a steep price. Sounds steep, but when you evaluate it like that it is not.

Just look at our #1 picks....Troy, Erasmus, Udeze, etc. I dont even think we are batting 50% with ALL the positions over the last few years. So 2 #1s for a solid, known commodity is the appropriate VALUE. I think on the trade market, you could do better than that. I think you could trade one #1 for a solid, known player every year and you would be well ahead because you wouldnt have any busts. Look at the Jared Allen trade as an example. Would you trade the rights to Troy Williamson for Jared Allen (I know, the timing is off a little, but the concept is sound)?

[eyehunter]

Just look at our #1 picks....Troy, Erasmus, Udeze, etc. I dont even think we are batting 50% with ALL the positions over the last few years. So 2 #1s for a solid, known commodity is the appropriate VALUE. I think on the trade market, you could do better than that. I think you could trade one #1 for a solid, known player every year and you would be well ahead because you wouldnt have any busts. Look at the Jared Allen trade as an example. Would you trade the rights to Troy Williamson for Jared Allen (I know, the timing is off a little, but the concept is sound)?

There are a lot more factors to that equation than what you have here. First of all both Troy Williamson and Erasmus James came out of the same draft, 2005, out of the whole 2005 draft class only about 20% of them are actually starters in the league. But if you look at the 2004 draft which yielded players like Eli Manning, Larry Fitzgerald,Matt Shaub, Deangelo Hall, Madieu Williams, Kellen Winslow, Ben Roethlisberger, and the list goes on and on....oh almost forgot, the 2004 draft also yielded a Defensive end by the name of Jared Allen, in the 4th round mind you by the Kansas City Chiefs. I guess what I'm trying to say is that it's a complete [PoorWordUsage] shoot really. All of the teams attend the Combine and Pro Day workouts at the colleges, but it's like an article stated the other day that I read, it said that there still isn't a test to measure the size of a guys heart, the article was speaking of Jared Allen and meant that you can't judge what a guys got inside of him, that can only be measured by time.

A lot of rambling, I know....but just my $0.02...

[zepman]

Johnny Randle comes to mind regarding that article you read eyehunter.

If the Vikes send our #1 pick and Chester to Cleveland for Quinn then the Vikes should just fold their tent. Cleveland doesn't even want the guy and he's from there. He's shown absolutely nothing in his two years to convince anyone he's worth a starting job. Quinn comes here and we have nothing but a three way battle for the starting job...all unproven and mediocre at best.

[CodyDawg]

eyehunter,

exactly my point. it is a crapshoot. for every jared allen there is a troy williamson. so why roll the dice? Why not trade away the roll of the dice for a known commodity most of the time? The other thing is...not many teams are doing it. So you will be getting great deals. Realistically speaking, you will finish in the middle of the pack prolly on draft acumen. But going against the grain...it just might work. Of course you cant make stupid deals either.

[eyehunter]

I agree with you Cody. I suppose the Rick Spielman's of the NFL have gone through this very same thing. It's what the Vikings did last year when they aquired Allen.

[james_walleye]

Well im wondering at what point in this draft the vikings will trade up to nab a player they covet. You know trade a 4th rounder away after saying the reason they won't pull the trigger on Bolden is because they want to establish depth and won't trade the 3rd rounder.