All 32 NFL teams are now in camp. Football's back!
The Minnesota Vikings arrived at Mankato State University on Thursday with the news that head coach Mike Zimmer was signed to a contract extension. As general manager Rick Spielman said, Zimmer will be the Vikings head coach for a long time. That's welcome news for everyone with a positive interest in the Vikings. A contact extension after only two seasons is a bit unusual but Zimmer has been a hit, on the field and off, in Minnesota. At his introductory press conference in January 2014, Zimmer said that he wanted to build a team that would make everyone associated with the team proud. He's succeeded. It's a great time to be a Vikings fan. Just need a title.
The Vikings entered training camp with an open spot on the 90-man roster. Most fans wanted that spot filled by a punter. Others thought that it would be filled by a quarterback (Nick Foles?) since second-year passer Taylor Heinicke reported to camp with a cast on his foot. Instead the Vikings filled that final spot with rookie defensive tackle Claudell Louis. Undrafted out of Fresno State, Louis was signed and released by the Buffalo Bills this spring. Now, he has a shot with Minnesota. His signing shouldn't be too much of a surprise as the Vikings entered camp short a defensive tackle. Kenrick Ellis was placed on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list yesterday. At 6'4" 295 lbs, Louis doesn't quite measure up to Ellis' 6'5" 335 lb size but he can still take those defensive tackle practice reps. Louis is the third Vikings defender (Emmanuel Lamur and Mackensie Alexnader are the others) with close relations to the poor island nation of Haiti.
The Vikings offensive line depth has taken some hits in the past week. Phil Loadholt was supposed to compete with Andre Smith at right tackle. He retired on Monday. Mike Harris started at right guard least season. He was supposed to compete with Brandon Fusco for that position this summer. Harris was placed on the Active/Non-football Illness list at the start of camp. As expected, no one has disclosed the details of this illness. When asked if he will be able to play this season, he said he wasn't sure. That doesn't sound good but people are notorious for jumping to conclusions.
The San Diego Chargers selected Ohio State defensive end Joey Bosa with the third pick of the 2016 NFL Draft. He's the only draft pick that has yet to sign his first NFL contract. He's now a training camp holdout. Rookie holdouts shouldn't happen in this post-2011 CBA world. The contracts are slotted by draft position. There's so little to negotiate now that most teams have their entire rookie class signed before the calendar flips to June. The bonus money appears to be the problem in this Bosa-Chargers standoff. The Bosa people want all of the bonus money now. The Chargers want to pay some now and the rest later. This issue wasn't an issue with the two quarterbacks selected ahead of Bosa. It wasn't an issue with 28 players selected after him. There has to be some middle ground. Form my perch, holdouts are always sad. This one seems more sad than most.
More holdouts. Where's Rolando McClain? He wasn't on the Dallas Cowboys' chartered flight to California for their Oxnard training camp. The sometimes Cowboys linebacker is suspended for the first ten games of the season for a violation of the league's substance-abuse policy. Maybe he thought that meant training camp as well. He wasn't around the team much this offseason. He skipped missed most of the voluntary offseason program. He showed up for the mandatory mini-camp in June but did not practice because he wasn't in good enough condition. Nice. McClain has shown only a passing interest in football since the Oakland Raiders selected him with the 8th pick of the 2010 NFL Draft. Sometimes he's on the field. Other times he's getting in trouble. Sometimes he's retired. Other times he's not. His best NFL days were with the Cowboys in 2014. That year he sometimes looked like the player that the Raiders thought that they were drafting. Then he lost whatever focus that he had and here he is. Not in Oxnard. The Cowboys are starting to collect defenders that frequently aren't on the active roster.
Even more holdouts. Where's DeAndre Hopkins? The Houston Texans receiver wants a new contract. In three seasons he's become one of the dominant pass catchers in the league. Hopkins is one of the best in the league but his rookie deal pays him like he's about the 70th best. That's the problem with rookie deals. The best quickly outplay them. The Texans gave J.J. Watt his second contract two years before he was due. Hopkins clearly thinks that they should do the same for him.
The Detroit Lions signed cornerback Darius Slay to a four-year, $50.25 million contract extension. He's one of the top young corners in the game and now he's being paid as such. The Lions selected Slay in the same draft that the Texans selected Hopkins. The biggest contract difference between the two players is that Slay was selected in the second round. As a first round pick, the Texans have the fifth-year option that they can slap on Hopkins. Teams love that fifth-year option. The players are probably starting to hate it like they've grown to hate the franchise tags.
The Tennessee Titans signed receiver Andre Johnson to a two-year contract. He was a long-time Hall of Fame-caliber receiver for the Texans. He played for the Indianapolis Colts last season. Maybe he can one day find his way to the Jacksonville Jaguars so that he can have a complete collection of AFC South jerseys. Johnson's best days are behind him but he can still help a team. He should also be a nice mentor for the Titans receivers. Especially, Dorial Green-Beckham.
Dion Jordan and Josh Gordon are back. For now. Hopefully, Gordon could pick up where he left off for the Cleveland Browns. At his best he was one of the best receivers in the league. At his best, he's a nightmare matchup for corners. Hopefully, Jordan can do what he's never really done for the Miami Dolphins. Stay on the field. In three seasons since the Dolphins traded up to select him with the third pick in the 2013 NFL Draft, Jordan has been active for 26 games. One start. He was suspended for the entire 2015 season. His reinstatement is conditional.
Football is back!
No comments:
Post a Comment