Blown Up, Sir!

The Minnesota Vikings have spent their training camp days at Mankato State University for the last 47 years. That will continue but their home away from the football field will change. Gage Hall has been the dormitory that housed the Vikings teams since 1965. Hot, humid days turned into less hot, still humid nights. Without air conditioning for many of those years, the complete exhaustion from football was the only thing that allowed for some sleep. Despite the hard work on the football field and the brutal heat, the players had many great memories from their time at Mankato. Fireworks, bocce ball with Bud Grant, late night pizza deliveries from Jake's, the usual training camp hijinks. Perhaps the most famous stunt was Keith Millard tossing coach Monte Kiffin off the top of Gage Hall. It was just a mannequin but no one knew that at the time. Good times.

Gage Hall was the tallest building in Mankato. It is no more. Gage Hall was imploded yesterday morning. Hundreds gathered to watch the building come down. 47 years standing and the building came down in seconds. The site will be redeveloped for parking. Two new buildings have already replaced the dormitory after the university decided that it was cheaper to build new, more modern on-campus housing than rehabilitate the old complex. The Vikings were the last to use Gage Hall as it closed following their training camp last summer. Not only was the old dormitory the summer home to the Minnesota Vikings it was the home to more than 50,000 Mankato State students.

Hearing about Gage Hall has been a part of my football summers since the early 1970s. I've never been to Mankato, let alone walk the halls of Gage. I only feel like I have. The players are likely glad to get out of that old building but they must still be a little sad.

Supposed Sanctions

Like Pete Carroll before him, Chip Kelly was a few steps ahead of the law. Like USC, Oregon was hit with sanctions by the NCAA infractions clowns just after their head coach left town. Both coaches apologized to the people that they left behind to deal with their mess. Mighty big of them. Unlike USC, Oregon's punishment was something less than even a slap on the wrist. Was Phil Knight's money in play? Maybe? It's a mystery.

Just over two years ago, the Oregon football team was busted for writing a $25,000 check to Will Lyles for what turned out to be non-existent recruiting service material. I would have no problem coming up with some real recruiting service material and I wouldn't charge $25,000 for it. No, Will Lyles is a Texas-based "middleman" that is a mentor, of sorts, to high school athletes. He was a mentor to LaMichael James and Lache Seastrunk. Both were top running backs in Texas and both found their way to the campus of the University of Oregon. Shortly after Seastrunk signed a Letter of Intent to attend Oregon, Lyles received that nice, big check. Rather than provide any recruiting material, Lyles provided a five-star running back. The athletic director said that the violations were unintentional. So, I guess that the school didn't mean to spend $25,000 for a running back. For this pretty significant recruiting violation, the Oregon Ducks will lose one scholarship in each of the next three years. Wow! Oregon's depth chart probably goes at least five deep at every position. So, they have 24 scholarships to offer rather than 25 each of the next three years. New coach, Mark Helfrich shouldn't lose much sleep. The punishment is laughable. Oh, the NCAA also handed out an 18-month show-cause penalty to Chip Kelly that basically bans him from taking another college job. That's a stiff penalty seeing as he'll be working for the Philadelphia Eagles for at least the next 18 months. Many people, trying to explain away the way too light penalties, point out that the current players shouldn't have to suffer for the actions of others. Well, it's always going to work that way. No one finds out about violations before they happen. USC faced real punishment recently for sketchy things that Reggie Bush did, under Pete Carroll's watch, almost a decade ago. Punishment always comes after the crime. That's just how it works. USC people are probably pissed seeing these pathetic Oregon penalties. Ohio St. people, too. Oregon should have gotten at least the bowl bans that USC and Ohio St. received. Paying someone for a recruit is far worse than players trading gear for tattoos or Bush getting stuff from a wannabe agent. Boise St. recently lost three times the number of scholarships that Oregon lost. Boise St.'s crime? Recruits crashed on the couches of Boise St. football players during visits. Incredible. Even that pales in comparison to the Portland University golfer that was fined for using a school hose and school water to wash her car. Come on! Supposedly Oregon's penalties came back light because they cooperated fully with the investigation. Nice. Kiss ass and you get something closer to "bad dog" rather than anything slightly resembling a punishment. Part of Oregon's punishment was actually a public reprimand. That should teach 'em.

The NCAA is out of their minds. It's as if they blindly throw darts at a wall to determine sanctions. Miami has been a hot mess for the better part of the past decade. All of the seedy, boozy, booster-sponsored fun that you can ever imagine taking place in and around a football team took place at Miami. It's not the first time that these kinds of shenanigans have taken place on that very campus. You'd think that Miami would be under a microscope. The booster is even in jail now but who knows if any punishment will ever come down on the school. The NCAA has hacked up that entire investigation. Everything in that case is so out in the open that an investigation isn't even necessary. It really doesn't make much difference. They'd rather go after a golfer that has an issue with her dirty car. The NCAA has made their investigations and their penalties pretty much pointless. The punishments rarely fit the crime and there is absolutely no consistency in the punishments. If nothing else, the NCAA has moved Oregon a great deal closer to USC as the most hated team in the Pac-12. I never would have thought that was possible.

Top 10

The NFL Network finally completed their reveal of the Top 100 players in the league as voted by the players. This adventure started way back on the last day of the 2013 NFL Draft. This ranking of the players, by the players, has been done for a few years now. I find it to be some fun stuff. It's far more interesting to me to see how the players see themselves than some media knucklehead.

This is how the Top 10 fell:

10. Patrick Willis-San Francisco 49ers linebacker
9.   Von Miller-Denver Broncos linebacker
8.   Arian Foster-Houston Texans running back
7.   Aldon Smith-San Francisco 49ers linebacker
6.   Aaron Rodgers-Green Bay quarterback
5.   J.J Watt-Houston Texans defensive end
4.   Tom Brady-New England Patriots quarterback
3.   Calvin Johnson-Detroit Lions receiver
2.   Peyton Manning-Denver Broncos quarterback
1.   Adrian Peterson-Minnesota Vikings running back

I like this Top 10.

But, this is how I see those same ten players:

10. Arian Foster
9.   Aldon Smith
8.   Von Miller
7.   Calvin Johnson
6.   Patrick Willis
5.   Tom Brady
4.   Peyton Manning
3.   J.J. Watt
2.   Aaron Rodgers
1.   Adrian Peterson

I was stunned when I saw Rodgers pop up at #6. I think that he's the best quarterback in the game right now. That takes nothing away from Manning or Brady. I just think that he does some things, mainly with his mobility, better than the rest. I have Smith and Johnson lower than the players have them simply because of the players that I have ahead of them. I do think that Smith gets a huge boost from the attention paid to his fellow Smith on the 49ers defense, Justin Smith. Aldon Smith's production dropped significantly when Justin Smith was out of the lineup at the end of this past season. The other 49ers defender in the Top 10 is a favorite of mine.  If I could take one player from any other team in the league and put him on the Minnesota Vikings, I would take Patrick Willis. He's the best inside linebacker in the league. He's one of the best that I've ever seen at the position. The incredible 2007 NFL Draft put three players on this year's Top 10. Patrick Willis, Calvin Johnson, and Adrian Peterson. Ah, Adrian Peterson. The best player in football. You won't find any argument from me. It's cool to see a running back voted #1 in this passing league. As a Vikings fan, it's been an absolute honor to watch him play football over the last six seasons. Last season, after coming back from a shredded knee, Peterson gave me chills every single game day. It was an incredible season to behold. Just incredible.

Congratulations Adrian Peterson!!!!

Throwback Thursday: Original Two

The just completed Stanley Cup Finals between the Chicago Blackhawks and Boston Bruins sparked a lot of talk about hockey's Original Six. Those original teams in hockey had me thinking about football's original teams. The NFL that we know today started out as the American Professional Football Association in 1920. The only teams to play in that first season that are still playing today are the Chicago Bears and Chicago Cardinals. The Green Bay Packers were around but they didn't join the new professional football league until 1921. The league changed it's name to the National Football League prior to the 1922 season. The APFA/NFL was lucky to make it out of that first decade. Teams came and went. There was a high of twenty-two teams and a low of only ten. Teams like the Columbus Panhandles, Duluth Eskimos, and Milwaukee Badgers took the field against the big, bad Chicago Bears. Professional football was not the lucrative business that it is today. In 1925, the New York Giants joined the league. The 1920s started with only two teams that would survive. The decade closed with four teams that would make it to the present day.

The 1930's brought some stability to the NFL. The small town teams, except for that cute Green Bay team, started to fade away. The remnants from the semi-pro, pre-NFL days were replaced by big city teams like the Philadelphia Eagles, Pittsburgh Pirates/Steelers, Detroit Lions, Washington Redskins, and Cleveland Rams. A Brooklyn/Boston team that can be linked to our present day Indianapolis Colts rounded out a ten team league that brought about a brighter future for professional football. As the '30s became the '40s, the war years created some difficulties for the NFL just as they did everywhere. Some teams joined forces to survive, but they did survive. The end of the war found a second professional league in the All-America Football Conference. By the end of the decade, that new league would provide the NFL with two new teams in the Cleveland Browns and San Francisco 49ers. This created the 12-team league that entered the expansion of the 1960s and a football war with the AFL.

Technically, the NFL has an Original Two. There's no real way around the fact that only the Chicago Bears and Chicago Cardinals have played in all of the APFA/NFL's 93 seasons. Granted, the Cardinals have moved around some in those 93 years. They even joined forces with the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1944 to survive World War II. I tend to think of the Packers and the Giants as original teams as well. Curly Lambeau and his Packers were playing competitive football before the new professional league was formed. They just signed up a year late. The Packers and Giants were part of the professional football chaos of the 1920s. They lived it and made it through. They deserve some recognition for surviving that decade. So, the NFL has their Original Two. Original Four if you cut a couple teams some slack.

Early Signings

Since Sonny Dykes has yet coach a game for Cal it's a bit early to come to any conclusion as to how he does things. If this spring is any indication, Dykes gets his recruiting started early. Under Jeff Tedford, Cal would get a sprinkling of commits by June. Early commits are pretty common for schools like Alabama, LSU, Ohio St., and other top football schools. Kids line up for those scholarship offers. Those schools can recruit on name alone and could fill their available spots in seconds. Cal has to work a little. Dykes and his staff appear to be doing some work. Through this past weekend, Cal has seven commits.

S   Quentin Tartabull-Bishop Alemay HS, Mission Hills, CA
RB Vic Enwere-Stephen F Austin HS, Sugar Land, TX
QB Luke Rubenzer-Saguaro HS, Scottsdale, AZ
DE Isadore Outing-Andy Dekaney HS, Houston, TX
RB Tre Watson-Centennial HS, Corona, CA
WR Jalen Harvey-El Cerrito HS, El Cerrito, CA
S    Koa Farmer-Notre Dame HS, Sherman Oaks, CA

Farmer committed last October so he's technically a Tedford recruit. This ia a real nice start to Cal's 2014 freshman class. The two Texas recruits Vic Enwere and Isadore Outing intrigue me. Not only are they terrific football players, they are terrific students. And, they are from Texas. Dykes has stated that his staff will target Texas in recruiting. Enwere and Outing are an indication that he's holding true to that statement. Texas has an abundance of football talent.  It's a good place to have a recruiting presence. I like when Cal can attract players from out of state. There's no doubt that there's a ton of talent in California but I like it when Cal can make a national statement. It looks like Dykes has that in mind and Texas is at the top of his list. With Dykes and his version of the spread offense being the future of Cal football, Rubenzer could be a critical part of his plans. Tedford brought in some talented quarterbacks the last couple of years, Zach Kline and Jared Goff in particular. This year's starter will likely be one of those two. Although Kyle Boehm and Austin Hinder are in the battle as well. Rubenzer has the pressure and advantage of being Dykes' first quarterback recruit. Rubenzer is a serious dual threat. He has tremendous running skills. He will be joining some serious arms in 2014. This is the most quarterback talent that I can ever remember Cal having at one time.

I like the safeties that Cal has in this class. Very nice.

I've always wondered about Cal's lack of early commits. Was Tedford simply waiting to make scholarship offers? Waiting for other schools to fill most of their spots? Who knows. I think that committed players recruit other players. Seeing other players committed to Cal builds interest in Cal. I don't really see any downside to getting early commits. It must be kept in mind that none of these commits really mean a thing until the letters of intent are signed. The more that I see and hear of Sonny Dykes the more that I like him as Cal's head football coach.

Roster Turnover

With yesterday's signing of linebacker Desmond Bishop, the Minnesota Vikings filled their most significant remaining hole. There will be competition for several spots throughout training camp. There should be competition at every position. Well, every position but running back. Adrian Peterson has a firm grasp on that job. The Vikings will put solid football players at every position for the 2013 season. There's always room for improvement but there are no glaring weaknesses. That's pretty remarkable considering that they stumbled through a 3-13 season as recently as 2011. Even more remarkable is that there are only six starters remaining from the terrific 2009 team that outplayed the New Orleans Saints in the NFC Championship game. The Vikings returned all 22 starters from that team the next season. In only two seasons, there has been a nearly complete turnover of the Minnesota Vikings roster.

When Leslie Frazier replaced Brad Childress as head coach the team was certain to move in a different direction. That change in direction was further cemented by the promotion of Rick Spielman to general manager following the 2011 season. The Vikings have a pretty promising operation going now. Strong drafts in recent years have shown that. Those drafts have improved the talent level on the field. Having five first round picks in the last two drafts have certainly added to that talent. If quarterback Christian Ponder can take the next step as a leader and passer the Vikings have an incredible nucleus of young players in Minnesota. The future is bright. The future didn't look too bright as everything fell apart, including the stadium roof, during that disastrous 2010 season. The turnover of the roster has been incredible. Even the kicker and punter have changed. On offense, only Adrian Peterson, center John Sullivan, and right tackle Phil Loadholt remain from that 2010 season. On defense, only defensive end Jared Allen, defensive tackle Kevin Williams, and linebacker Chad Greenway remain. Allen and Williams are entering the final year of their contract so further changes are likely in store for the 2014 season. The hope here is that Allen will be re-signed.

Ever since free agency entered the NFL about twenty years ago, roster turnover has taken place at a greater clip. The salary cap has also done a number on roster stability. I think that the Vikings turnover since 2010 has still been remarkable. I also think that the Vikings turnover has much more to do with the coaching change from Childress to Frazier and the greater decision-making authority given to Spielman. By the way, Rick Spielman has done a fantastic job reshaping the Vikings roster. Childress was always quick to rely on free agency to build his roster. The Vikings have backed away from that since the coaching and administration changes. They're still willing to spend in free agency if need be. The addition of receiver Greg Jennings earlier this offseason is proof of that. The Vikings free agency acquisitions are more likely bargain players on one-year deals. The draft is the path to roster building for the Minnesota Vikings these days. They've quickly become one of the youngest teams in the league. They've also become a much more talented team. If Ponder progresses as we all hope, the Vikings are setting themselves up to be a strong team for a while.

Very Nice

The NFL announced that the Deacon Jones Award will now be awarded annually to the defender who leads the league in sacks. This is a real nice move to forever honor Deacon Jones. The former Los Angeles Rams great defensive end was the first to use the term "sack" to describe the disposing of quarterbacks. It's only appropriate that his name continue to be associated with sacks.

I tend to think of the old football greats being players from the 1930's and 40's. 101-year old Ace Parker might be the only one of those players left. Even players from the 1950's are getting few in number. Very sad. Deacon Jones entered the league in 1961. Maybe it's more my refusal to accept getting old but I don't think of the 60's as being all that long ago. Jones played through that decade and into the '70's. 74 years of age is far too young to die of natural causes. Deacon Jones was one of the most, if not the most, active links to the football days of a half century ago. He was an incredible Hall of Fame ambassador. He was at every induction ceremony. He was one of the few from his playing days that regularly made it to Canton. He was always there to welcome the new members to his exclusive club. Warren Sapp was so looking forward to that Jones welcome this August. It was difficult to watch Sapp's sadness in talking of the passing of Deacon Jones. I feel it too. I'm going to be attending the Hall of Fame induction ceremony this year. It's also my first visit to Canton. While my main reason for attending is to see Cris Carter receive his much deserved honor. I was also looking forward to seeing all the football greats. Deacon Jones in particular. With this being the 50th Anniversary of the Hall of Fame, there is going to be one of the largest turnouts of football greats that Canton has ever seen. There's a huge void in that group now. Everybody in Canton on August 3rd will feel it.

The game of football has changed so much since the 60's and even the 70's. Jones would have hated playing under the rules today. Those rules would have done nothing but increase his hatred of quarterbacks. He would love the idea of an award in his name honoring the take down of quarterbacks. Thanks to the Deacon Jones Award quarterbacks going forward will again be feeling pain in his name.

Linebacker Puzzle

The Green Bay Packers released linebacker Desmond Bishop last Monday. He had a visit scheduled with the Minnesota Vikings the very next day. The Vikings immediate interest in Bishop was a surprise to no one. The Vikings real need at middle linebacker made them the team that most thought would be interested in Notre Dame linebacker Manti Te'o in April's NFL Draft. If not Te'o, anyone from LSU's Kevin Minter to Kansas St.'s Arthur Brown was a likely choice of the Vikings early in that draft. None of that happened. They did select Penn St.'s Michael Mauti in the seventh round. Mauti is actually a terrific football player but he's recovering from his third ACL reconstruction in his college career. If not for the injuries he would likely have been a first or second round selection. He might be the future answer at middle linebacker but it's a stretch to see him as the answer this year. Minus the addition of a ready-to-play middle linebacker in the draft, the Vikings moved two-year starter at weak side linebacker Erin Henderson to the position. He's been pushing for the move for a while. He's been working all offseason with that switch in mind. He's added size and strength to be that sturdy force against the run and maintain the movement to drop into coverage. I like this position switch for Erin Henderson. The move opens up Henderson's former linebacker spot. In the fourth round of the draft the Vikings selected Mauti's Penn St. teammate Gerald Hodges. A former safety, I really like his potential. I like his potential so much that I don't really mind that he might be forced to live up to that potential immediately as a starter.

Erin Henderson is a solid linebacker. Gerald Hodges has the talent and a bright future if he plays to that talent. Henderson is still an unknown at middle linebacker. Hodges is still an unknown as a rookie. The Vikings are strong at strong side linebacker with Chad Greenway. He's a leader, always around the ball, and a tackling machine. The Vikings would head into the 2013 with 2/3 of their linebacker group being an unknown. That's quite a gamble. The interest in Desmond Bishop is a pretty good indication that the Vikings aren't sure that they are willing to take that gamble. With Bishop, Henderson likely moves back to the weak side. I doubt that he'd be happy with the move but he's always been a team player. A linebacker group of Greenway-Bishop-Henderson is a real solid group. It also eases the pressure and allows for the development of Hodges. Going with Bishop is the safe route. It's probably the smart route.

There's certainly no guarantees with Bishop. He missed the entire 2012 season with a serious hamstring injury. He's supposedly healthy. He says that he's fine and the Vikings did put him through a workout and a physical. The word around the campfire is that Bishop is deciding between offers from the Vikings, Kansas City Chiefs, and New York Giants. If that's true, the Vikings must have been satisfied enough in the physical condition of Bishop that they offered him a contract. Personally, I think that this linebacker situation is a win-win. I like both options. With Bishop, the team has a solid, veteran linebacker group. Without Bishop, the team has a young, talented linebacker group. The former is the safer route. The latter is a gamble that could pay off big. Adding Bishop, doesn't seal Henderson's fate as the Vikings middle linebacker. He wants the job and he's talented. He'll compete for the job if given the chance. Competition within the team makes the entire team better. We'll know in a few days, with Desmond Bishop's decision, the pieces that will make up the Minnesota Vikings linebacker puzzle. A puzzle that should be one of the most watched and most interesting at training camp.

#13 Ray Rice

"I've eaten burritos bigger than you."-Houston Texans defensive end J.J. Watt

Not much stops Baltimore Ravens dynamo Ray Rice so Watt's crack about his size likely only motivated him. I love when football players come into the NFL and pretty much shatter the myth that they have to be some large human to succeed. Rice may be hard to find behind his offensive line at 5'8". He's also hard to bring down once he's passed that line. At 210 lbs, he's short but he's not small. He's a terrific back and he has been since he stepped on an NFL field in 2008. His peers see things the same as Rice showed up at #13 on NFL Network's Top 100 players. It should be no surprise.

Perhaps the most significant play of the 2012 season came in week 12 when Ray Rice caught a screen pass on 4th down and 29 yards to go against the San Diego Chargers. He wasn't brought down until he had moved the ball about 29.5 yards. It led to a game-tying field goal to force overtime. The Ravens won that game in overtime. The Ravens lose that game and their season is basically over. That incredible play made the Baltimore Ravens Super Bowl possible. It was a play that will be remembered by Ravens fans for a very long time.

Ray Rice can do pretty much everything that you could ever want from a running back. Run, catch, block, all at an incredibly high level. He did all those things at Rutgers yet he still dropped to the bottom of the second round in the 2008 NFL Draft. If he's two inches taller, he's an early first round pick. With the retirement of linebacker Ray Lewis a new Ray is emerging as a team leader. The Ravens have been known for so long as a defensive team. Lewis, Ed Reed, Terrell Suggs, and Haloti Ngata. These were the players that everyone knew. Now, quarterback Joe Flacco, Rice, and receiver Torrey Smith are the main men now. If Flacco is the face of the franchise, Rice is the heart.

#16 A.J. Green

It's really hard to believe that Cincinnati Bengals receiver A. J. Green has only played two seasons in the NFL. His smooth play on the football field is seen almost exclusively in players with closer to ten years in the league. As Kansas City Chiefs safety Eric Berry says, "Green was born to play receiver." He's so fun to watch. He's 6'4" but moves with a smoothness and athleticism seen more often in a smaller receiver. Excellent ball skills, positioning, long arms, great hands, good speed, his skill set is pretty much unmatched in the league right now. Only two years in, oh my, his future is so bright. Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton will be happy for a long time. The Bengals should be happy for a while as both Green and Dalton came to Cincinnati from the same draft. They form one of the best pass catching combinations in the league and they are just getting started. Perhaps the best thing about A.J. Green is that he doesn't consider himself elite, yet.

In NFL Network's continuing Top 100, A.J. Green showed up at #16. He'll be up with Calvin Johnson soon as the best receivers in the league. There's no questioning Green's skills. When his production matches that talent, there will be no doubt. It took Johnson nearly five years for his production to match his talent. I'm thinking that Green does it faster. Going into that 2012 NFL Draft, I liked Alabama receiver Julio Jones better than Georgia's Green. They were the 1-2 coming out of high school. They remained 1-2 coming out of college. It all depended on what type of receiver you liked. Personally, I liked Jones' physical play better than Green's smoothness. Both are fantastic football players. Watching both for two years in the NFL, I've flipped to A.J. Green's side. That's not to take anything away from Jones. I love the way that he plays football. I've just been surprised and impressed with Green's strength. He may look like a basketball player but he's got the strength to compete with any football player for the ball. Best of all, A.J. Green just wants to get better. All that talent and he's not satisfied. The Bengals are damn lucky.

Throwback Thursday: Cal Vikings

Over the past couple of days the Minnesota Vikings have had a little visit with former Green Bay Packers linebacker Desmond Bishop. The Vikings wanted to get to know their former opponent on more friendly terms and see if that injured hamstring is put back together nicely. I remember Bishop well as the hard hitting middle linebacker of the University of California Golden Bears from 2005-06. His visit got me thinking about the very small number of Cal players that have continued their football playing days in Minnesota. The Vikings joined the NFL in 1961. Even though Cal has been mediocre, at best, for most of the last 52 years, I would have guessed that my school would have put at least ten players in a Minnesota Vikings uniform. Nope. Eight former University of California football players have worn a Minnesota Vikings uniform for a game that counts. Eight! My goodness, that's a tiny number. Here they are:

John Beasley
Joe Kapp
Ed White
Darryl Ingram
David Wilson
Todd Steussie
Duane Clemons
Ryan Longwell

That's it!

Eight! Ingram and Wilson only spent a year with the Vikings. Quarterback Joe Kapp is certainly an important figure in Vikings history, seeing as he led the team to their first Super Bowl appearance, but he only played in Minnesota for three seasons. Clemons was a first round pick that never played like a first round pick. He lasted the four years of his rookie contract and was gone. For the record, I was hoping for Clemons' Cal teammate Reagan Upshaw in that 1996 NFL Draft. Upshaw was taken about four picks too soon. Beasley, White, Steussie, and Longwell are the only Cal players to make a sustained impact for the Vikings. Tight end Beasley was a steady receiving presence as Minnesota moved from a sad, expansion team to a dominant contender. White was one of the best guards in the league through much of the '70s, making three straight Pro Bowls with the Vikings. Steussie was a first round pick that actually played like a first round pick. He made a couple of Pro Bowls.  Longwell was a terrific kicker for six years in Minnesota. Playing in a dome may have extended his career but few kickers have ever been as accurate.

In the Vikings 52 years, Cal has had a few stretches of very good to great football. They had some dynamite offenses in the mid '70s, a couple of years in the early '90s, and for most of the past decade under head coach Jeff Tedford. Even the bad teams have produced NFL players like Steve Bartkowski, Gary Plummer, Hardy Nickerson, Ken Harvey, Ron Rivera, Tony Gonzalez, Nnambi Asomugha, Sean Dawkins, and Deltha O'Neal. None found their way to Minnesota. I would just expect that more than eight players would make the Cal-Minnesota voyage in half a century.

Some NFL teams just tend to direct their attention toward certain colleges. Right now the Vikings have five players from each of Notre Dame and USC. Neither team has been particularly great in recent years. Notre Dame did make a run this past year but none of the five Irish Vikings were on that team. I don't particularly care for USC as a rule. No non-USC Pac-12 fans cares for USC. That's putting it nicely. I do, however, like the USC players on the Vikings roster. I like the Notre Dame players too. Having five players from Notre Dame and USC on the Vikings now is far better than the state of affairs in 2001. That was a horrible year for so many reasons. The least of which was too damn many Stanford players on the Vikings roster. There were five. Ouch!. Only special teams mad man Chris Walsh proved to be better than your typical Stanford slacker.

Right now, the roster of the Minnesota Vikings is just like it has been for nearly all of those 52 years. There is no Cal player to be found.

Vikings Receivers

I brag, perhaps too often, of the Minnesota Vikings rich tradition of receivers. That tradition has taken a hit in recent years. They were in a pretty nice place in 2009 with Sidney Rice, rookie Percy Harvin, and a still productive Bernard Berrian. It's been pretty much downhill since with Rice and Harvin now in Seattle and Berrian  deciding that he didn't really care to put much effort in his game anymore. At one point during this offseason, the Vikings depth chart was topped by Jarius Wright. A talented, little receiver that had just completed his rookie season.

Then:
Jarius Wright
Stephen Burton
Greg Childs
Chris Summers
LaMark Brown

Those receivers probably have a little more than a dozen career receptions. The Vikings receiver group has had a complete makeover in the past three months.

Now:
Greg Jennings
Jerome Simpson
Jarius Wright
Cordarrelle Patterson
Stephen Burton
Joe Webb
Greg Childs
Chris Summers
LaMark Brown
Rodney Smith
Erik Highsmith
Adam Thielen

Adding free agent Greg Jennings was the biggest addition. He gives the Vikings their most proven receiver since Randy Moss in 2004. His leadership and experience will help quarterback Christian Ponder and a very young receiver group. Simpson was re-signed. His 2012 season was mostly a wash due to a suspension and a nagging foot/leg injury. If he can ever harness his incredible physical talents, he could provide some real nice production. He needs to get on the field and stay on it. Wright, the one-time top of the depth chart youngster, could become a star. At 5'10" and 180 lbs, he's fairly small. He's more quick than fast. He wasn't on the game day roster until Harvin went down with an ankle injury in the middle of the past season. He provided a much needed deep threat. Wright has a bright future. The Vikings traded back into the first round to draft Tennessee's Cordarrelle Patterson. He has all the natural talent to be a superstar. His stock in the draft dropped when teams questioned his maturity and ability to pick up an NFL offense. In all OTAs so far, the Vikings have been nothing but impressed with his drive, effort, and his ability to pick up the offense. Everything that drove down his draft stock seems to be nothing but words so far. He should make an impact as a kick returner immediately. His versatility could keep alive the plays that offensive coordinator Bill Musgrave put in for Harvin. Patterson's potential is off the charts. Jennings, Simpson, Wright, and Patterson are likely the only locks for roster spots. Some think that Simpson is on the bubble but I think that he makes it. The incredibly talented Joe Webb moved from quarterback. His complete conversion could take a while but he's got the speed and leaping ability to specialize in a few plays until he's got the entire route tree down. Chris Summers and undrafted free agent Rodney Smith are big receivers that have a chance. 6'5" and 6'6", so they might qualify as huge receivers. Smith played a little with Ponder at Florida St. so he as a little familiarity on his side. Stephen Burton was a seventh round pick in 2011 out of West Texas A&M. He has some nice talent but has taken a couple a couple of years to move from small school receiver to NFL receiver. This is likely a make or break year for him. The biggest wildcard of the bunch is Greg Childs. In his rookie training camp last summer, he tore BOTH patellar tendons. He is well on his way to becoming the first NFL player to ever come back from such an injury. Healthy, he's the type of big play, big receiver that the Vikings have been looking for since Sidney Rice left. Incredibly, he may be physically ready for the start of training camp but the Vikings are taking no chances. He'll likely start camp on the PUP list. They did the same thing with Adrian Peterson last year. I believe that Greg Childs will be back. If he can get back on the field and stay on the field for the NFL career that he's worked so hard for, Patterson, Wright, and Childs could be the receiving future for the Minnesota Vikings. Ponder will be happy.

If Childs is activated and fine through training camp, I think that the Vikings keep six receivers.

Greg Jennings
Jerome Simpson
Jarius Wright
Cordarrelle Patterson
Joe Webb
Greg Childs

There's a lot to like with this group. Thinking back to the state of the position in early March, it's a great makeover. But, no one really knows until the games start counting. None of the other six receivers are going to leave Minnesota without a fight. Burton is going to be particularly hard to cut. Smith and Summers have unique size. Thielen hasn't left an OTA workout without making an eye-opening play. Every one of the twelve receivers will be going to Mankato with an intention and a shot at making the Minnesota Vikings a better team.

Childs Play

Adrian Peterson's magnificent return from a shredded knee was one of the great stories in the NFL last year. He had one of the greatest seasons ever seen from a running back. Less than a year after his knee came apart he was the NFL's Most Valuable Player. A complete recovery from such an injury had never been seen before. It seems that the Minnesota Vikings training staff was just warming up.

If Peterson's return was considered something close to a miracle, the journey to recovery of receiver Greg Childs may eclipse it. As a junior at Arkansas in 2010, Greg Childs ruptured his right patellar tendon, which controls the four quadriceps muscles and extends to below the kneecap where it is attached to the shinbone. If not for that injury, Childs would likely have been a first or second round pick in the 2012 NFL Draft. Healthy, Greg Childs was a big play, big receiver. 6'3", 220 lbs and fast. Instead, he was something of a wildcard in that 2012 draft. He was good but he wasn't completely back. The Vikings drafted Childs and his grade school, high school, and Arkansas teammate Jarius Wright in the fourth round. Childs and Wright made for a great story entering the 2012 season. The lifelong friends. The small, quick receiver in Wright. The big, fast receiver in Childs. The great story changed before the first week of training camp came to a close. At the Vikings annual scrimmage, Childs went up for the ball. One of the Vikings greatest needs and perhaps Childs' greatest skill is his ability to get deep and go up for the ball. At that scrimmage, Childs went up for the ball and ruptured BOTH patellar tendons.

As far as anyone knows, no NFL player has ever come back from a rupture of both patellar tendons. Vikings trainer Eric Sugarman has seen the attempt to return before. Nineteen years ago he was an intern for the Chicago Bears when receiver Wendell Davis ruptured both patellar tendons when he got his feet stuck in the always dangerous turf of Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia. Davis never played another down in the NFL. In 2006, Cleveland Browns cornerback Gary Baxter suffered the same injury. He never played another down in the NFL.

Greg Childs has a lot going for him that Davis and Baxter didn't have. Most importantly, time. Surgical techniques and training has improved so much. Vikings team physician Joel Boyd operated on Childs two days after the injury. Boyd found a "looseness" and "tightened" the tendons in Childs' knee. Something that wasn't done in 2010. Hopefully, that will make a difference. Childs also gains greatly with Eric Sugarman overseeing the rehabilitation. Sugarman might be the Vikings MVP. Brad Childress' legacy as the Vikings coach might not be entirely grand but he did everyone an incredible favor when he hired Eric Sugarman in 2006. Vikings players will always be grateful. Chad Greenway, Heath Farwell, E.J. Henderson, Cedric Griffin, and Peterson have all made complete and incredible recoveries from serious injuries under Sugarman's watch. A complete recovery by Greg Childs would be the most incredible. Like Peterson's recovery last year, it would  be a recovery never before seen.

Most important in Childs' recovery is Greg Childs himself. He's attacked it. He was down for only a day or two following the injury and surgery. Since then, he's has been upbeat and relentless. Always with a smile. For the first month and a half after the surgery, Childs had to keep his legs perfectly straight. Then he had to break down the scar tissue. A process more painful than the injury itself. Childs never left Minnesota for warmer places. Through the cold Minnesota winter he was the only player in the Vikings facility. Few gave him a chance to return. Even within the building there were doubts. The team has never once given up hope but they have moved forward as if Childs will never take a meaningful snap. They really have no choice. When the players returned for OTAs, they found their teammate doing things that they never expected to see. They saw something incredible from Peterson last year. They're seeing something perhaps more incredible this year.

Greg Childs says that he's about 90% back. He's running and cutting at full speed. The Vikings have yet to clear him for team activities. He'll likely start training camp on the PUP list. The team did the same last year. They will not make a mistake with this injury.

"One day, when this happens to other guys, they'll have a guideline to go by," Childs said. "They'll be able to say, 'OK, just because I tore both of mine, look at that guy Greg Childs. He worked his butt off and did what they said couldn't be done."

Greg Childs will be back. I just hope that it's the end of incredible injury recoveries for the Minnesota Vikings.

Give It Back!

In 2005, New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft joined several other American business leaders at a meeting with Russian president Vladimir Putin. Kraft showed the Russian leader one of his Super Bowl rings. For whatever reason, Putin left with the ring. At the time, Kraft released a statement saying that he had given Putin the ring as a present to show his respect for the people of Russia. That's very sweet. Kraft is telling a different story now.

Kraft now says that the Super Bowl ring was not a gift. "I took out the ring and showed it to (Putin), and he put it on and goes, 'I can kill someone with this ring,'" Kraft said. "I put my hand out and he put it in his pocket, and three KGB guys got around him and walked out." Nice. The George W. Bush White House urged Kraft not to make an issue over the theft because of concerns about the incident damaging U.S.-Russian relations. Very nice. Kraft said that he intended to do whatever he could to get the ring back from Putin, until the White House urged him to let it go.

The Russians returned Kraft's volley. A spokesman for Putin told CNN that he was personally with Putin when the ring changed hands and that Kraft's story is false. He claims that Kraft gave the ring to Putin as a gift.

I think that this is a bunch of hooey from the Russians. Saying that one could use a gift as a murder weapon makes zero sense to me. Maybe, it's a sign of thanks in Russia. Who knows? If Kraft wanted to give a Super Bowl ring as a gift to Putin, it makes much more sense that he would have had one made up special for Putin. They "only" cost about $15,000. Putin took Kraft's ring. There was always only one of those. A gift like that would be nothing but symbolic for a clown like Putin. That ring was special to Kraft.

Bengals Come Knocking

The Cincinnati Bengals will be announced this week as the team under the microscope for the HBO and NFL Films series Hard Knocks. I really like that the supposed glamour teams aren't constantly recycled for this series. That may be why it remains a tremendously popular series. Well, that and the series is touched by NFL Films. Anything that comes out of Mt. Laurel is special. Steve Sabol may no longer be with us but his magic always will be. This is the Bengals second turn on the show. They were the choice in 2009. The always interesting Chad Johnson made them a very entertaining choice then. Their lack of an entertaining character like Johnson make them an interesting choice now. I like the choice. I'd like any choice as long as that team is not the Minnesota Vikings.

The Cincinnati Bengals may be an afterthought for most NFL fans. They're just sort of there. Under head coach Marvin Lewis, the team has been wildly inconsistent. So inconsistent that I've been surprised that Lewis has kept his job. He can't be blamed for all the problems. The Bengals drafts were often horrible. The fact that he has even had some success can be considered a miracle. In 2005 he had great success. The Bengals with Carson Palmer, Chad Johnson, T.J. Houshmanzadeh, Chris Henry, Kelley Washington, Rudi Johnson and Chris Perry behind a big, talented offensive line were an incredibly explosive offense. Some may forget that when Carson Palmer was healthy he was an elite quarterback. He was tremendous that season. I thought the Bengals were one of the best teams in the league in 2005. Maybe the best team. Their season ended in the opening round of the playoffs when Pittsburgh Steelers lineman Kimo von Oelhoffen shredded Palmer's knee. The Steelers defeated the Seattle Seahawks in the Super Bowl a few weeks later. That could have been the Bengals. There's been more downs than ups since then in Cincinnati. The current Bengals team is looking more up. Terrific drafts, as they tend to do, have increased the talent level. That increased talent level has brought two straight playoff appearances. They are in any AFC North conversation with the Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers. The Bengals are even more of a threat to the Super Bowl champion Ravens than the Steelers. Quarterback Andy Dalton and receiver A.J. Green form one of the better pass-catch combos in the league. Defensive tackle Geno Atkins is a beast. This is a team to watch and their training camp will be in full view to all.

Hard Knocks is a terrific series but much of the tremendous team access disturbs me. I don't like seeing players cut. Ever. I've never felt that this devastating time was fit for television. There isn't some bullshit Apprentice show. This is real life and the world is being shown perhaps the lowest moment of the lives of these kids. I do enjoy getting to know some of the underdog players and the often anonymous position coaches. Getting to know the underdog players can also make the cutting process even worse. There's a lot of great stuff that comes from Hard Knocks but there's often too much stuff. That is why I'm always happy when a team other than the Vikings is chosen. I would no doubt watch if the Vikings were chosen but I always hope for another team to reveal it all. Congratulations Cincinnati Bengals.

Come On!

I'm all for college pranks. I've made Stanford fountains blue during Big Game week. Pranks more than crimes. Harmless stuff that brings a few giggles. The back and forth between college rivals is part of what makes college football great. The traditions and even the traditional pranks. I even find the more adventurous pranks funny. Pranks that technically border, or eclipse, the criminal. Some of the stories of the stealing of the Stanford Axe, the Cal-Stanford Big Game trophy, are incredible. It doesn't happen often but when it does it's beautiful. Stealing mascots, as long as the live mascots are not injured, is often hilarious. It's all fun and games. It's all part of college football.

Some fans go way too far. Having fun with college traditions is one thing. Destroying them is another. One of the worst stunts was when dipshit Alabama fan Harvey Updyke poisoned the beautiful oak trees at Auburn's Toomer's Corner. This supposed college football fan destroyed something wonderful. He destroyed a place sacred to Auburn people and the tradition that went with it. Aubrun hopes to have the trees replaced by the 2014 football season but it may never be the same again. Last week, Howard's Rock at Clemson was damaged forever. Howard's Rock, named for Hall of Fame coach Frank Howard, sits on a hill above Memorial Stadium, affectionately known as Death Valley. Clemson football players have rubbed it before taking the field for every home game since 1966. The stone was brought to the school from Death Valley, CA by a Tigers alum. It's been a tradition ever since. According to reports, on June 2nd or 3rd vandals removed the Plexiglass casing around the stone and broke off a chunk of it. The pedestal that the stone sets on was not damaged and the case has been replaced, but the piece of stone is missing. It's not the first attack on Howard's Rock. In 1992, the week leading up to the South Carolina game vandals tried to remove the rock from it's pedestal and they took off a piece of it on the left side. In 2004, an opponent's team manager tried to vandalize the rock during a walk through before a game, but he was stopped. Idiots are taking apart another terrific college tradition one piece of rock at a time. Clemson players of future teams may be touching only a pebble on the way to the field. Very sad.

I don't get it. I don't see the bang in simply destroying something. This idiot Updyke didn't just poison some trees he poisoned the Alabama-Auburn rivalry and tradition. He wasn't being heroic to the Tide cause. He was being an asshole. Some may see my enjoyment over putting environmentally friendly, blue dye in a Stanford fountain as crossing the line. After all, someone has to drain that fountain because of my little prank. I'd gladly return to Stanford to clean up my mess. After the game, of course. I draw the line at the destruction of the very thing that we are all trying to celebrate. The college football games. The rivalries and the traditions.

Here Comes Some Fun!

For sheer entertainment value there isn't much that beats a Bill Belichick press conference. We'll likely see a run of instant classics with sometime quarterback Tim Tebow now in a New England Patriots uniform. When I heard about the signing I immediately got weak in the knees dreaming of the press conferences to follow. I love Bill Belichick press conferences. Who doesn't?

Several weeks ago, Yahoo!'s Mike Silver wrote that, according to sources close to the Patriots, Belichick "hates Tim Tebow." Now, I really like Silver as a football writer and as a fellow Cal fellow but several things didn't make much sense with his article on Belichick's feelings for Tebow. First of all, I can't imagine Belichick ever completely disregarding any intriguing football player. Especially an intriguing football player that he's never coached. If nothing else, Tebow is most certainly an intriguing football player. He's far more intriguing right now than anything close to an accomplished quarterback. If there is any chance a player might help his team, I think that Belichick considers that player. This signing certainly shows that. As did the sometimes questioned acquisitions of Chad Johnson and Albert Haynesworth. It can't hurt to look. Tebow brings intangibles that are found in very few football players. His drive, his energy, his competitiveness has often proven to be infectious. I can easily imagine Belichick seriously questioning Tebow's throwing mechanics. I can easily hear Belichick even saying that he "hates" the way that Tebow throws a football. Maybe that was actually what Silver's source was really trying to say. This "source" makes the least sense of all. It sounded like this "source" is a Patriots employee. A Patriots employee relaying to a reporter the words spoken inside the team's facilities, especially the words spoken by the coach, likely isn't a Patriots employee for very long. I just don't see it.

People just need to settle down. Bill Belichick signed Tim Tebow because of the possibility that Tebow might help the New England Patriots win football games. It's as simple as that. Belichick said so in his press conference. Few people, especially those in the media, want anything about Tebow to be simple. They want drama and it must be killing them when Belichick fails to provide it. It's June. Tim Tebow was signed to be the 90th player on the Patriots roster. This is a Patriots team that has Tom Brady at the position that the 90th player plays. There's some pretty simple math right there. There's over three months before the start of the 2014 NFL season. The Patriots coaches have that time to figure out what they have in Tebow and how they want to use him to win football games. I'm actually curious to see how they plan to use their unique football player but I'm smart enough to know that Bill Belichick has no intention of telling anyone outside of the Patriots building what that is. Well, there is one person that might be inside that building that Belichick shouldn't tell. Fortunately, the media isn't smart enough to know that Belichick won't offer much. That's why the press conferences will be so much fun. Bill Belichick is at his hilarious best when the media is at their mind-numbing worst. Tim Tebow always brings out the very worst in the media. This is gonna be great!

Throwback Thursday: Ahmad Rashad

I was curious about Ahmad Rashad even before he came to the Minnesota Vikings in one of the most lopsided trades in team history. The Seattle Seahawks are getting even with the Vikings by recently stealing Sidney Rice, Percy Harvin, and Antoine Winfield but in 1976 they gave up Rashad for defensive lineman Bob Lurtsema. "Lurts" might have been a popular player in Minnesota but Rashad took the Vikings passing game to a whole other level. I first became curious about Ahmad Rashad during his single season with the Buffalo Bills in 1974. In an offense dominated by the running of O.J. Simpson, I felt that not enough passes were thrown to a receiver as skilled as Rashad. I would love it if he became the target of Fran Tarkenton. When the receiver became available, the expansion Seahawks got him first. Before he even played a down in Seattle the Vikings traded for him. Good thing. Tarkenton had a Hall of Fame passing career. He had some nice receivers to throw to like Paul Flatley in the early days and John Gilliam in the later days. He had Homer Jones during those five unfortunate New York Giants days. Tarkenton never had a receiver like Ahmad Rashad. And, Ahmad Rashad never had a quarterback like Fran Tarkenton. Well, he had Dan Fouts in college. That was college and Rashad was Bobby Moore then and he was a running back. I think that position versatility increased my interest in the Vikings new receiver. Minnesota had been better known as a team with a ferocious defense and an efficient, ball-control offense. Getting Tarkenton back from the Giants in 1972 started an offensive change. Drafting running back Chuck Foreman a year later changed it even more. Trading for Rashad and drafting receiver Sammie White in 1976 made what was a good offense into a great offense. The Vikings stormed through that season and the playoffs. Unfortunately, that all came to end in Super Bowl XI. Not much went right for the Vikings that sunny day in Pasadena. Pretty much everything went right for the Oakland Raiders.

It seems that nearly all of my days as a fan of the Minnesota Vikings has been spent watching talented receivers. That all started with Ahmad Rashad. Sammie White was terrific too, but Rashad was what I always thought that a receiver should be. Excellent hands. Runs great routes. Gets open. Smart receiver. Gets great body position. If he gets his hands on the ball, he comes down with the ball. Speed is always nice but I've never found it as important as some. Rashad wasn't slow but he was handed the label of "possession receiver." Those important receivers are rarely fast receivers. I loved watching Rashad play football. He played receiver much like Cris Carter played the position a decade later. Rashad only played three years with Tarkenton. They last played together in 1978. Their last regular season game together was the first time that I ever saw the Vikings play live. Vikings-Raiders. A rematch of Super Bowl XI. Raiders won again but it was much closer. The Vikings staged a frantic comeback that fell just short. Rashad caught two touchdowns right in front of me. In my little corner of the world. He made his first Pro Bowl in 1978. Won the MVP award too. He would go to the next three Pro Bowls. Tommy Kramer took over for the retired Tarkenton in 1979. Ahmad Rashad might have achieved greater attention for his time catching passes from Kramer. Ask any Vikings fan about the Cleveland Browns game in 1980 and you'll get the biggest smile you've ever seen. Kramer-to-Rashad tales will never end.

Ahmad Rashad retired following the 1982 season. Most people likely know him better as a television personality. That's too bad as he was a fantastic receiver. One of the best during his time in the league. I've always felt that he'd be in the Hall of Fame if he had played his entire career in Minnesota. Only a couple more seasons with Fran Tarkenton would have done it. I'll never forget what Rashad did on the football field. He showed me how the position of receiver was meant to be played.

Shad'up Already

It's always bothered me when football players, especially former football players, use a media platform to "talk" to other football players. Football is a very small fraternity. Cut out the camera and just talk to each other. Former quarterback Donovan McNabb thinks that he's got some advice for current quarterback Robert Griffin III. Hell, McNabb is even more out of his mind thinking that he's got some advice for Robert Griffin II. If McNabb really has some advice for the Griffin family, he should just talk to the Griffin family. He wants to have a McNabb-Griffin sitdown, do it and leave the rest of us out of it. I'm not so sure that the Griffin family is down with a sitdown. If for no other reason, the manner in which McNabb has pursued this talk is likely a turnoff. McNabb seems to have mostly criticism for Griffin which is always a nice start to a talk. Of course, he prefaces it with "I'm a fan." I guess that makes it ok. He should be honest and add, "I'm just trying to stay in the news." If it sounds like I'm negative toward McNabb, I am. I think that what he's doing now is pathetic. His quarterback play for the Minnesota Vikings in 2011 was even worse. I haven't quite gotten over that. He bounced more passes to wide open receivers in half of a season than most point guards do in a career. Very sad. Donovan McNabb had a great career with the Philadelphia Eagles. Based on his play and interest with the Washington Redskins and Vikings he really has no place giving football advice to anyone. Let alone to a football player that has done so much right in such a short time. Robert Griffin III is well on his way on the field and off. He doesn't need the advice of Donovan McNabb. He certainly doesn't need to get that advice through the media.

Vikings Mt. Rushmore

Pro Football Talk announced the Minnesota Vikings Mt. Rushmore yesterday. And the winners are:

Fran Tarkenton
Adrian Peterson
Bud Grant
Cris Carter

According to Mike Florio and the PFT guys, the Vikings had the greatest voter turnout of any team so far. Nice. Apparently there was also a great deal of debate among the Viking voters. Despite making it, many questioned the worthiness of Carter. They shouldn't. They were likely huge Randy Moss fans upset over his omission.

The voting of the top 12 broke down like this:
1. Tarkenton 72%
2. Peterson  68%
3. Grant 52%
4. Carter 48%
5. Alan Page 44%
6. John Randle 36%
7. Randy Moss 28%
8. Jim Marshall 20%
9. Carl Eller 16%
10. Chris Doleman 8%
11. Paul Krause 4%
12. Ron Yary 4%

The biggest surprise to me was that Randall McDaniel didn't make the cut to 12 players. He was tough to leave off of my final four as he was one of the greatest guards to ever play the game. Perhaps the greatest guard to ever play. He was selected to twelve straight Pro Bowls. He was named All-Pro nine consecutive seasons. Hall of Fame. It's a damn shame that guards just don't get the recognition. I'm to blame too. He wasn't part of my Mt. Rushmore. He'd be on mine if there was room for six.

For the record, my Minnesota Vikings Mt. Rushmore looked like this:

Bud Grant
Alan Page
Cris Carter
Adrian Peterson

So, I left off the consensus #1 among the Vikings voters. Leaving Tarkenton off my mountain was painful. He and McDaniel would fill out my six. Grant was an automatic. After that, I wanted players from different generations. Page from the late '60s and the '70s. Carter from the late '80s and the '90s. Peterson from the recent teams. No matter how you do it, this is tough call. I took Page over Tarkenton mostly because I feel that Page was a better football player. He was the first defensive player to ever be named NFL MVP. He's in any discussion as on the best defensive tackle to ever play the game. Tarkenton was a terrific quarterback. Even if he had won one of the three Super Bowls in which he played, I don't think that he's in a similar quarterback discussion. Picking Carter over McDaniel or even Randle might have been a more difficult decision and Carter is probably my favorite Vikings player. This is a tough task. It's not as tough as picking four from the Green Bay Packers or the Chicago Bears. But, it was tough. I would understand a Minnesota Vikings Mt. Rushmore of Tarkenton, McDaniel, John Randle, and Jim Marshall. Marshall might not have the accolades of some of his fellow Vikings players but he was the captain and face of the team for most of his twenty years of football. Incredible player and leader. Tarkenton said that Marshall should have made the mountain.

PFT's Florio is a Vikings fan so it was interesting to see his Mt. Rushmore:

Alan Page
Adrian Peterson
Fran Tarkenton
Cris Carter

Fun stuff.

#36 Geno Atkins

NFL Network continued their countdown of the Top 100 Players in the league. Last week, #40-31 was unveiled. Three San Francisco 49ers players were among the ten with tight end Vernon Davis, linebacker NaVorro Bowman, and running back Frank Gore. The 49ers are one of the most talented teams in the league so it's no real surprise that they have a bunch in the countdown. If my vote counted, I would have Bowman higher on the list. It should be illegal for one team to have two players like Bowman and Patrick Willis at inside linebacker. But, that's another story. One of my favorite players in the league popped up at #36. There was never a doubt that Cincinnati Bengals defensive tackle Geno Atkins would be on the list. He's very much an ascending player. He'll likely be even higher next year. Haloti Ngata of the Baltimore Ravens and Vince Wilfork of the New England Patriots might get much more attention among interior defensive linemen, but Atkins might be the best in the league right now. He's certainly the best interior pass rusher. 12.5 sacks doesn't happen often from this position. Atkins did just that. His pass rushing, quickness and especially his size reminds me of Minnesota Vikings Hall of Fame defensive tackle John Randle. Minus the crazy. Atkins takes apart offensive lines with strength and quickness rather than size. Ngata and Wilfork push the scale at around 350lbs. Randle and Atkins did their damage up the middle south of 300lbs. It was amazing to see with Randle. Loved seeing it with Randle. I'm really enjoying seeing it with Atkins. He's a fun player to watch.

While I consider Geno Atkins underrated he's certainly not an unknown. In his three year career he's made the Pro Bowl twice. More importantly, he's been named All-Pro twice. He's definitely known and respected around the league. Maybe playing for Cincinnati keeps him from becoming a household name. That should change. The Bengals are a team that's been on the rise with two straight playoff appearances. The offense is getting better quickly behind quarterback Andy Dalton. The defense has been terrific. Atkins is a huge reason for that. He's a star but he doesn't seek being a star. Always refreshing. He's one of the best football players in the league and he carries himself as if he's looking for a tryout. I like this kid. He's fast become one of my favorite non-Minnesota Vikings players.

Mt. Rushmore

I mentioned this in an earlier Flicker but I really like this Mt. Rushmore thing that Pro Football Talk is doing. I'm not sure what triggered the idea, but Mike Florio and his PFT guys are going through each team and having people vote on the four most influential people for that team. I guess that they intend to put those people in a virtual stone mountain for all to see. The voting has been going on for a few weeks now. Today was the Chicago Bears turn. The longer the team has been around the tougher the voting. Voting for only four for the Bears and the Green Bay Packers is near impossible. Of course a team that has been around forever also has to be good. The Cardinals, in all their locations, have been around longer than any team but their pickings, while great, are slim, at best. They have Hall of Famers like Ernie Nevers, Charlie Trippi, Ollie Matson, and Larry Wilson but not much more. The Bears and Packers have enough to fill about ten Mt. Rushmores. The Minnesota Vikings had their voting several days ago. For the recod, I voted for Bud Grant, Alan Page, Cris Carter, and Adrian Peterson. Leaving Fran Tarkenton off of that mountain felt like a sin. Grant was an automatic. The Vikings wouldn't be the Vikings without him. Then I went with one play from different eras. It came down to Tarkenton or Page. Page won. Carter over Randall McDaniel and John Randle was nearly as tough. This idea of PFT is awesome, but brutal. Four people just doesn't seem enough.

My dilemma in this fun project is whether I should be voting for the Mt. Rushmore's of other teams. Being a fan is personal. Voting for the four most influential people for your team is personal. I'm not sure that it's right for fans of another team to decide who is important on your team. It hasn't stopped me from voting but it has kind of bothered me. I suppose that I'm inclined to vote because of  my tremendous respect for the beautiful history of the entire National Football League. Many fans only know and see the history of the NFL, and especially their team, from the time that they became a fan. I see it all the time with Vikings fans. Some see Vikings life starting with Randy Moss. Others see John Randle as the beginning. There's nothing wrong with that but there is so much more. A Mt. Rushmore for any team should honor their entire history. I hope that I balance that. For example, the comments on the Bears voting show that many start with Dick Butkus and go from there. I don't see how any Bears Mt. Rushmore doesn't include George Halas. Hell, an NFL Mt. Rushmore should include Halas. But, that's just my opinion. As with any project like this it's all subjective. It's also fun. I guess that's why I vote. That, and I just love football. Even Chicago Bears football.

Signing Records

Even though the new Collective Bargaining Agreement has taken much of the work out of  rookie contract negotiations, I'm still amazed with the rapid signings of the 2013 rookies. Last year was under the new rules. I don't recall a similar signing frenzy through the first week of June. Maybe the teams were still feeling their way through the process. 254 players were drafted in the 2013 NFL Draft. 185 of those players now have their first NFL contract signed. That's 72.8% of the rookies officially under contract. Crazy. It's actually higher than that. According to Pro Football Talk, at least four other players, all Oakland Raiders players, have agreed to terms but their information hasn't been passed down the line. That boosts the percentage of signed players up to  a robust 74.4. I'm a little curious about the lag in the financials out of Oakland.

45 of 48 seventh rounders have agreed to contracts. 33 of 38 sixth rounders. 32 of 35 fifth rounders. The only round with less than 54% of the players signed is, of course, the first round. Only six first round picks have agreed to deals. Those are:

#5   Ziggy Ansah DE-Detroit Lions
#11 D.J. Fluker T-San Diego Chargers
#14 Star Lotulelei DT-Carolina Panthers
#15 Kenny Vaccaro S-New Orleans Saints
#17 Jarvis Jones LB-Pittsburgh Steelers
#20 Kyle Long G-Chicago Bears

First round signings, while slow compared to the other rounds, are pretty active in the middle of the round. I'd like to see a mad run on the signing of players from the back third of the first round. The Minnesota Vikings have three that were selected there, #23 Sharrif Floyd , #25 Xavier Rhodes, and #29 Cordarrelle Patterson. Those three are the only Vikings draft picks left unsigned. What's taking so long? The Vikings have traditionally waited until July to even start the negotiation process with any of their draft picks. I never understood the wait. Other teams did the same. It never made sense to me. There were often holdouts. That's never a good statement, especially in the eyes of the veteran players. A rookie too proud to sign? That can't go over well with a 10-year vet. Even when players got to training camp on time many negotiations came down to the last minute. Why add that stress? I'm sure that the impending start of camp was used as a negotiating ploy. The date is there as a deadline but it was always a very soft deadline. Few CBAs are perfect but I really like the early rookie signing aspect of this one. Not only are the signings getting done in a less stressful manner, the outrageous signing bonuses and contracts for players that haven't played a single snap of NFL football are a thing of the past. The second contract should always be the best contract. That's the one that the player actually earns. Most of the time.

For mystifying reasons the St. Louis Rams haven't done a damn thing. They have yet to sign a single draft pick.

Rivalries

For the better part of the past decade the New England Patriots-Indianapolis Colts rivalry was the best in the league. The often breathtaking quarterback play of Tom Brady and Peyton Manning made the games great. Playoffs, regular season, didn't matter. Any game could become a classic. Every game was must see football. Manning's neck troubles in 2011 and the resulting overhaul of the Colts pretty much ended all that was great when those two teams stepped on the same field. This left the NFL with a rivalry void. The New York Jets and Patriots had a little juice when Rex Ryan first jumped into the head coaching fire. That didn't last. The Baltimore Ravens-Pittsburgh Steelers rivalry has been great but the Steelers dropped off some last year. They likely won't stay down long. The Cincinnati Bengals emergence has made the AFC North a three team race. There are always terrific, longtime division rivalries in the NFC North, NFC East, and AFC West. While always special, these division rivalries rarely sustain the elite team status that set Patriots-Colts apart from the rest.

No rivalry has really stepped up to replace the Patriots-Colts. For the past couple of years I've been expecting the Atlanta Falcons and New Orleans Saints to make that jump. Matt Ryan and Drew Brees are terrific quarterbacks. Ryan might need a few more great games and a deeper playoff run to truly be considered elite but he and Brees can really light up a scoreboard. The Falcons and Saints (when not being punished for being dipshits) are regular contenders in the NFC. All the ingredients are there for a classic rivalry. They've played some great, entertaining games over the last few years, but Falcons-Saints haven't quite become Patriots-Colts. They may be too late.

The San Francisco 49ers and Seattle Seahawks were two of the best teams in the league last year. The 49ers had been trending in that direction for a couple of years now. A team with a great defense and a ball control offense. When Colin Kaepernick replaced the efficient Alex Smith at quarterback, that offense became explosive. The Seahawks went from promising to contending with rookie quarterback Russell Wilson. Both teams were great last year. This offseason, they got better. The Seahawks got downright scary when they traded for do everything receiver Percy Harvin. This little bull might be the most dynamic football player in the league. The Seahawks added Harvin. Hours later, the 49ers added receiver Anquan Boldin. It seemed that the football war between the two teams carried over into the offseason. Losing receiver Michael Crabtree to an achilles injury was an offseason blow for the 49ers but they have the overall talent to survive it. This rivalry is compelling simply for the football talent that these two teams put on the field. There's also some genuine nastiness. That's only enhanced by the uncomfortable history between head coaches Jim Harbaugh and Pete Carroll. When the coaches might brawl there's a real good chance that the players might really get after each other. The two games between the Seattle Seahawks and the San Francisco 49ers this coming season could be the must see football games that the Patriots and Colts always were. The wrench in the works could come from another NFC West team. Neither the Seahawks nor the 49ers could find a way to beat the St. Louis Rams last year.

Throwback Thursday: Flea Flicker's Great Defensive Ends

The recent passing of Deacon Jones had me thinking of his fantastic career. From the moment that I first thought of making an All-Time NFL team, Jones has been one of the defensive ends on that team. I've long had Reggie White opposite Jones. It would take a pretty incredible football player to bump Jones or White from that team. Defensive end is an interesting position in the grand scheme of football. The pass rushing defensive end that we know and love today is fairly new. Two platoon football in the 1950s allowed for specialization on each side of the ball. The ends that you saw catching passes on offense were no longer the same ends on defense. As the passing game became more prevalent so did the need to harass the quarterback. Players like Gino Marchetti, Doug Atkins, and especially Deacon Jones started changing the way that defenses played. These days, 3-4 pass rushing linebackers seem to be getting most of the sacking attention. Today, that changes. In honor of Deacon Jones, the Flea Flicker picks the ten greatest defensive ends to play the game.

10. Len Ford
  9. Andy Robustelli
  8. Lee Roy Selmon
  7. Howie Long
  6. Willie Davis
  5. Doug Atkins
  4. Bruce Smith
  3. Gino Marchetti
  2. Reggie White
  1. Deacon Jones

It's tough to leave off Hall of Famers like Carl Eller, Fred Dean, Richard Dent, Elvin Bethea, and Chris Doleman and recent defensive ends like Jared Allen, Michael Strahan, and Dwight Freeney. All kept offensive tackles up at night. All had quarterbacks running for their lives. As long as quarterbacks keep throwing the ball there will be a need for the players that just want to break those quarterbacks. None did that better than Deacon Jones.

Chasing Quarterbacks Again

One of the great ambassadors for the game has passed. David "Deacon" Jones died of natural causes Monday night. 74 seems too young to die of natural causes. It's always too soon. Jones was one of the first great, pass-rushing defensive ends. The kind that we see throughout the league today are made from something close to the mold that Deacon Jones broke. No one has ever quite played the position as well. He coined the term "sacking the quarterback. "The sack" was his. He was twice the defensive player of the year. He was chosen as the best defensive end for the 75th Anniversary of the NFL. He was "the Secretary of Defense."

Perhaps more than any other Hall of Fame player, Deacon Jones took the time to talk with each new generation of football players. He was "football past" and welcomed football's future. His stories were classics as soon as words left his mouth. He was part of nearly every televised discussion of the game that I can recall. If players were talking about the history of the game, he was one of those players. He was at every Hall of Fame induction. There aren't too many greats that make it back to Canton very often. He did. Like few football players before or since, Deacon Jones had the respect and admiration of everyone around the game. There's a huge hole in football right now.

"I wouldn't want to be a lawyer, I wouldn't want to be a doctor, I wouldn't want to be the President of the United States. I was destined-just like Ray Charles was born to sing the blues-Deacon was born to rush quarterbacks."
                          -David "Deacon" Jones

There's some quarterbacks running from Jones once again.

Mangini's New Gig

Eric Mangini keeps getting NFL jobs. I was a little surprised when I heard that the former New York Jets and Cleveland Browns head coach was hired by the San Francisco 49ers as a consultant. It may not be a coaching position but it is an NFL job with a real NFL team. He'd spent the couple of years since his last NFL gig working as a football analyst for ESPN. I avoid ESPN for the most part but I hear that he was terrific with the TV work. There was never any doubt that Mangini knows his football. That's why he kept getting NFL gigs. There aren't many coaches that are hired as a head coach months after being fired as one. Mangini was fired by the Jets. Before he was packed up in New York he was hired by the Browns. Prior to his head coaching stints, he was a defensive assistant for the Jets from 1997-99. After those learning years, he was the defensive backs coach of the New England Patriots. Working with Bill Belichick always accelerates a coaching learning curve. Mangini had also spent some time with the incredible football think tank that Belichick put together with the original Browns in the early and mid '90s. In 2005, Mangini was Belichick's defensive coordinator. That lasted a year. Head coaching was next for the youngster that some took to calling "Mangenius." The rapid firing that went with his head coaching gigs seems to contradict that cute little name.

The surprise for me was that the 49ers hired Mangini as a "senior offensive consultant." Nearly all of his NFL coaching experience has come on the defensive side of the ball. It might be a shock for someone with Mangini's experience and expertise to be calling offensive plays but he wasn't hired to do so. After a little reflection, I was impressed with the move. The 49ers have a terrific, innovative offensive play caller in Greg Roman. Mangini giving Roman the defensive view of the 49ers offense can only help Roman take apart a defense. Despite being on television for a few years and being fired a couple of times, Mangini really knows his football. "Mangenius" might have been a ridiculous nickname but it was far more right than wrong. The 49ers added an asset to their program.

Eye Chart

With the National Spelling Bee grabbing headlines, the San Francisco 49ers website has a hilarious video of 49ers players taking a stab at spelling the name of new teammate Nnambi Asomugha. Some didn't even make an attempt. The task was too tough. Those that attempted didn't get much further than a few letters. It was both funny and sad. I've followed Asomugha since his days at Cal so saying and spelling his name has become fairly natural. The double N's to start his first name was the toughest to grasp. Quarterback Colin Kaepernick was the only player in the video to strike gold with the spelling of A-s-o-m-u-g-h-a. That ability must have come from his stellar schooling in Turlock, Ca.

Football players with names of African origins have been popping up with greater frequency since the '90s. It's a great thing. Anything to make a group more diverse is a great thing. Those names were often a chore to say and pretty much impossible to spell. One of the first that I faced at Cal was one of the most difficult. Iheanyi Uwaezouke was a very good receiver for the Golden Bears from 1992-95. His name is pronounced exactly like it is spelled. That's probably not much help. uh-HAH-nee' 'uh-WAY-zoo-KAY is simply fun to say. Cal's usual broadcasters eventually learned to master the name. They had to as Uwaezouke frequently made big plays. When Cal hit the national scene, as they did for the 1993 Alamo Bowl against Iowa, broadcasters must have been terrified. They likely secretly prayed that the receiver never touched the ball. Those prayers failed when Uwaezouke scored a touchdown in the bowl game. The Cal players didn't fair much better than the media. They didn't even try to work out the name. They simply called their teammate "Eye chart." Thanks to football players like Iheanyi Uwaezouke and Nnambi Asomugha at Cal, I was able to get a little bit ahead of the curve with these beautiful names. It's nice to broaden your horizons.

#50 Richard Sherman

Seattle Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman made his first appearance on NFL Network's Top 100 at #50. It won't be his last. After his breakout 2012 season, #50 is way too low but the ranking shouldn't surprise. He was a first team All-Pro corner last year yet he wasn't even accepted at the Pro Bowl. All-Pro is a much greater and more exclusive honor but the Pro Bowl is more fun. If his play in 2013 is anything like his play in 2012, he'll be in the top 20 next year and playing in the Pro Bowl. If there is one. Despite Sherman's terrific play last year, I'm struggling to push him past Darrelle Revis, now of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, as the best corner in the league. I think that Revis will rebound from his knee injury just fine and return to his high level of play. Right now, Sherman and Revis are neck and neck at corner. I have Revis slightly ahead until proven otherwise.

Richard Sherman's NFL ascent has been something of a surprise to me. I knew that he was a talented kid when I first saw him play receiver at Stanford as a freshman. He even led the team in receiving that year. He was actually looking pretty good on offense until a knee injury early in his junior changed his future. When he came back the following year he was switched to corner due to team needs. This switch certainly revealed his football skills and versatility. While solid at corner, I was never really impressed. Little did I know, Sherman was just getting started. The last time that I saw him play football in college he was getting burned in a postseason all-star game. He wasn't even close to the receiver he was supposed to blanket. At that point, I wasn't sure how much I'd see of Sherman going forward. I knew that his unusual size for a corner, 6'3", would get him some looks in the NFL. The Seahawks wanted that look and selected him in the fifth round of the 2011 NFL Draft. He didn't take long to make a mark as he started 10 games and was named to the All-Rookie team. His 2012 season was "off the charts" for a second year player. Especially for a second year corner. Cornerback is not an easy position to play in the NFL. It usually takes a while for a player to become comfortable. Most of those players have more than two years of college experience at the position. I was wrong to not give Richard Sherman a chance. He's an elite player that I didn't expect to be a good one.

If you're not a fan of the Seahawks, Richard Sherman is also an easy player to hate. He talks way too much. At least he can back up that talk with his play on the field, but it's still very annoying. I wasn't at all surprised to see Washington Redskins tackle Trent Williams smack him in the mouth following their playoff game. I'm actually surprised that it doesn't happen more often. While I truly respect Sherman's play, I wish that he'd tone down the talking and the posturing. He's deserving of a ranking far higher than #50 and he's just getting started.

Pro Football Weekly Is No More

I was saddened to hear the news that Pro Football Weekly is closing their doors. When my love of football bloomed in the '70s, it wasn't long before I discovered the incredible pages of Pro Football Weekly. It was a beautiful thing to discover a newspaper devoted exclusively to professional football. Just incredible. There was Sports Illustrated but football was only one of many sports that graced those glossy pages. Pro Football Weekly was raw, newspaper print pages, and, best of all, just football. The other huge perk, really the biggest perk, was finding Minnesota Vikings news on a weekly basis. You couldn't find much in California, even during the season. None in the offseason. When I discovered those pages, I immediately got a subscription. The only problem that I had with Pro Football Weekly was the numerous pages devoted to the gambling side of football. I've never had an interest gambling. Certainly not as a kid. Outside of the always entertaining fantasy football league and occasional office pools, I never will have an interest in gambling on football. Pro Football Weekly was a pricey subscription. When I became a poor college student, that price became too high. Instead of subscribing, I'd read Pro Football Weekly's pages in the bookstore's and smoke shop's that I could find that carried it. One smoke shop that provided me a Pro Football Weekly weekly fix was conveniently located right across the street from the University of California, Berkeley campus. Perfect. For three years, I arrived at the shop to steal my Pro Football Weekly news. I didn't steal all my news. As an honest reader, I purchased their yearly preview magazine for years, decades actually.

As great as the internet is as a source of information and interaction, it's a damn shame that it's killing the printed world. Pro Football Weekly is not the only magazine or newspaper that's struggled through this technology age. I will always prefer the printed page to a screen. It's sad to see Pro Football Weekly fade away. I can't help but remember the excitement I always felt when that magazine showed up in the mail. Nearly forty years ago seems like yesterday right now. I also feel guilty about letting my subscription end. I feel even more guilty about stealing reads for decades. I'm going to miss seeing and reading Pro Football Weekly. It's a sad day.