Some fun things can be found at the college football portion of NFL.com (CFB 24/7: Path to the Draft). The NFL analysts are in the middle of a series profiling the schools that have the "best collection of talent in the NFL at five different positions-QB, RB, WR, TE, and DB." Each profile is intriguing but I was particularly interested in Wide Receiver U because I thought that Cal could be in contention. Cal hasn't had a large presence on the college football scene since the best years of Jeff Tedford. A time that feels like decades ago. The Golden Bears are improving under head coach Sonny Dykes and having Jared Goff selected first overall in the 2016 NFL Draft brought some attention. If Cal football has done anything of note in recent years it's sending receivers to the NFL. The analysts noticed.
5. Cal
WRs on 53-man week 1 rosters: (6)
Keenan Allen (Chargers)
Trevor Davis (Packers)
DeSean Jackson (Redskins)
Marvin Jones (Lions)
Chris Harper (49ers)
In the pipeline: Chad Hanson, Demetris Robertson
-I'd add Melquise Stovall to that pipeline. Maybe a couple of the other youngsters as well.
4. Ohio State
WRs on 53-man week 1 rosters: 6
Philly Brown (Panthers)
Ted Ginn Jr. (Panthers)
Jalin Marshall (Jets)
Braxton Miller (Texans)
Terrelle Pryor (Browns)
Michael Thomas (Saints)
Devin Smith (Jets) is on the PUP list.
In the pipeline: Noah Brown, Curtis Samuel
3. Alabama
WRs on 53-man week 1 rosters: 2
Amari Cooper (Raiders)
Julio Jones (Falcons)
In the pipeline: Calvin Ridley, ArDarius Stewart
2. Clemson
WRs on 53-man week 1 rosters: 5
Jaron Brown (Cardinals)
DeAndre Hopkins (Texans)
Adam Humphries (Buccaneers)
Charone Peake (Jets)
Sammy Watkins (Bills)
Martavis Bryant (Colts) is suspended
In the pipeline: Deon Cain, Ray-Ray McCloud, Artavis Scott, Mike Williams
1. LSU
WRs on 53-man week 1 rosters: 5
Odell Beckham Jr. (Giants)
Brandon LaFell (Bengals)
Jarvis Landry (Dolphins)
Russell Sheppard (Buccaneers)
James Wright (Bengals)
In the pipeline: Malachi Dupre, Travin Dural
Also receiving votes: Notre Dame, Miami
Maybe I'm a homer but Clemson and LSU are the only schools that outpace Cal's recent history of sending receivers to the NFL. Alabama only has two receivers in the NFL. Granted, they are of very high quality but two is hardly strong enough for "Receiver U" recognition. Two is more accident than trend. Ohio State matches Cal in quantity but not in quality. Two of the Buckeyes (Braxton Miller and Terrelle Pryor) played most, if not all, of their college days at quarterback. Pryor was drafted as a quarterback and made the switch to receiver later. The Buckeyes might be up for "Athlete U" but "Receiver U" is a stretch in my book.
Fun stuff. Check out the QB, RB, and TE lists. DBs have yet to be posted. Cal made appearances on the QB and RB lists as well. Go Bears!
Friday, September 30, 2016
Thursday, September 29, 2016
Throwback Thursday: Minnesota Vikings 1980s All-Decade Team
Picking a Minnesota Vikings All-Decade Team for the 1960s and 1970s was pretty easy. The teams from the late 1960s to the late 1970s were among the best in franchise history. Great players were plentiful. Six are honored in Canton. Picking a Vikings 1980s All-Decade Team is more challenging. Here's a shot at one.
Quarterback
Tommy Kramer
Running backs
Ted Brown
Darrin Nelson
Darrin Nelson
Receiver
Anthony Carter
Ahmad Rashad
Ahmad Rashad
Tight end
Steve Jordan
Tackles
Gary Zimmerman
Tim Irwin
Tim Irwin
Guards
Randall McDaniel
Terry Tausch
Terry Tausch
Center
Dennis Swilley
Defensive ends
Chris Doleman
Doug Martin
Doug Martin
Defensive tackles
Keith Millard
Henry Thomas
Henry Thomas
Linebackers
Matt Blair
Scott Studwell
Fred McNeil
Scott Studwell
Fred McNeil
Cornerbacks
Carl Lee
Willie Teal
Willie Teal
Safeties
Joey Browner
Tom Hannon
Tom Hannon
Kicker
Jan Stenerud
Punter
Greg Coleman
Wednesday, September 28, 2016
More Minor Minnesota Roster Moves
No NFL roster move is minor to the players involved. With that in mind, the Minnesota Vikings made a few roster moves over the past couple of days. The most significant was the promotion of offensive lineman Willie Beavers from the practice squad to the 53-man roster. A little too much was made of the fact that Beavers, as a fourth round pick in last spring's NFL Draft, was the highest drafted player to not make his team's roster. So what? He was on the practice squad so he was still in the Vikings' plans. That's pretty obvious seeing as he's on the team now.
The Vikings signed receiver Isaac Fruechte and guard Sean Hickey to the practice squad. One replaced Beavers on the 10-man practice squad. Defensive back Julian Wilson was released to make room for the other. Fruechte spent last season on the Vikings' practice squad and was with the team throughout training camp and the preseason but was released on September 3. The Detroit Lions signed him to their practice squad two days later but was released last week. Now, he's back with the Vikings. Hickey spent training and most of the preseason with the Vikings. He's spent some time on the practice squads of the New Orleans Saints and New England Patriots.
The loss of starting left tackle Matt Kalil for the season to hip surgery and the injury to starting left guard Alex Boone in Sunday's game has increased the need for linemen on the Vikings roster. Beavers essentially takes Kalil's place in the offensive line room while T.J. Clemmings takes his place in the starting lineup. Boone isn't expected to miss any time with his injury but there has to be some concern. Hickey provides a healthy body and some security at the position.
The Vikings signed receiver Isaac Fruechte and guard Sean Hickey to the practice squad. One replaced Beavers on the 10-man practice squad. Defensive back Julian Wilson was released to make room for the other. Fruechte spent last season on the Vikings' practice squad and was with the team throughout training camp and the preseason but was released on September 3. The Detroit Lions signed him to their practice squad two days later but was released last week. Now, he's back with the Vikings. Hickey spent training and most of the preseason with the Vikings. He's spent some time on the practice squads of the New Orleans Saints and New England Patriots.
The loss of starting left tackle Matt Kalil for the season to hip surgery and the injury to starting left guard Alex Boone in Sunday's game has increased the need for linemen on the Vikings roster. Beavers essentially takes Kalil's place in the offensive line room while T.J. Clemmings takes his place in the starting lineup. Boone isn't expected to miss any time with his injury but there has to be some concern. Hickey provides a healthy body and some security at the position.
Tuesday, September 27, 2016
NFL Week 3 Power Rankings
A couple of big-time teams (New England Patriots and Denver Broncos) had statement games this week. A couple more (Pittsburgh Steelers and Arizona Cardinals) took a step or two or more back. Here are the Flea Flicker Power Rankings after three weeks.
1. New England Patriots
2. Denver Broncos
3. Minnesota Vikings
4. Kansas City Chiefs
5. Philadelphia Eagles
6. Baltimore Ravens
7. Seattle Seahawks
8. New York Giants
9. Pittsburgh Steelers
10. Dallas Cowboys
11. Cincinnati Bengals
12. Carolina Panthers
13. Green Bay Packers
14. Arizona Cardinals
15. Oakland Raiders
16. Houston Texans
17. New York Jets
18. Atlanta Falcons
19. Detroit Lions
20. San Diego Chargers
21. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
22. Tennessee Titans
23. Indianapolis Colts
24. Washington Redskins
25. Miami Dolphins
26. Buffalo Bills
27. St, Louis Rams
28. Cleveland Browns
29. New Orleans Saints
30. Jacksonville Jaguars
31. San Francisco 49ers
32. Chicago Bears
This won't mean a thing in a week. That's assuming that it means something now.
This won't mean a thing in a week. That's assuming that it means something now.
Monday, September 26, 2016
Week 3 Thoughts
The Minnesota Vikings snapped the 14-game home winning streak of the Carolina Panthers yesterday. 22-10 Vikings.
The Panthers scored on a 48-yard field goal on their first possession and on a 3-yard Cam Newton run on their second possession. 10-0 Panthers after 10 minutes. It didn't look promising for the Vikings.
The Vikings offense didn't do much in the first half. 34 yards of production. Very sad. Quarterback Sam Bradford was harassed often and off target on his throws often. A bad combination. Fortunately for the Vikings, the defense was excellent after allowing those 10 early points. The defense scored the first Vikings points on a safety. Defensive end Danielle Hunter brought down Newton in the end zone. The Vikings second score of the first half came on a 54-yard punt return touchdown by Marcus Sherels.
It's nice to have a defense and a special teams that can put points on the board. Especially when the offense isn't doing much at all. Good teams often have defenses and special teams that score. The Vikings might have a pretty good team.
There were a few reasons for the Vikings first half offensive struggles. One that might not get much attention was the terrific punting of Panthers punter Andy Lee. Twice he pinned the Vikings offense inside the five-yard line with his fine punting. That sort of field position can put some restrictions on an offensive game plan. The Panthers defense forced a three-and-out on each occasions.
Speaking of punting, this game had a nice little punting duel. Lee was great. Vikings punter Jeff Locke was pretty good too.
Lee: 4 punts for an average of 47.2. Long of 58. Two downed inside the 5.
Locke: 7 punts for an average of 48.4. Long of 62. Three were downed inside the 10.
-one of those downed inside the 10 set the defense up for the safety.
A punting duel. Nice.
Locke had five punts in the first half and only two in the second half. The Vikings offense finally got things moving in the second half. Bradford had more time to throw and his throws were accurate. A much better combination than that of the first half.
A big part of the Vikings offensive resurgence in the second half was the Panthers inability to cover tight end Kyle Rudolph. He scored on a 15-yard catch to cap a nice drive that opened the second half. Rudolph repeatedly found open holes in the Panthers defense. 7 catches for 70 yards and the lone offensive touchdown.
Compared to the first half, the Vikings offense really came alive in the second half. 34 yards in the first. 177 in the second. The 211 total isn't earth-moving but the offense did enough to score 14 pints. Defense and special teams added the other eight. The 22 points were enough with the defense doing what it did.
The Vikings defense won this game. They shut out the NFL's highest-scoring offense (since the start of last season) after those 10 quick points.
Some numbers:
8 sacks
3 interceptions
1 safety
0 points over the last 50 minutes.
Defensive end Everson Griffen led the way with three of the eight sacks.
Others registering sacks:
Harrison Smith
Anthony Barr
Linval Joseph
Brian Robison
Danielle Hunter-safety
Newton was harassed the entire game. The pass rush harassed him. The secondary legally harassed his receivers. More precisely, the secondary covered the receivers. About half of the eight sacks looked like coverage sacks. That coverage also resulted in three interceptions
Vikings corner Xavier Rhodes returned after missing the first two games. He was responsible for coverage on Panthers top receiver Kelvin Benjamin for much of the game. The first time that Benjamin had a pass go his way was late in the game when Marcus Sherels was covering him. It was incomplete. Rhodes completely took one of Newton's top weapons away from him.
The Vikings aren't going to win a lot of games with this sort of offensive production but they are going to win a lot of games as long as the defense plays like it's been playing. If the offense can play an entire game like they have during some stretches of games, the Vikings could be playing late in January. Maybe early February as well.
Left guard Alex Boone had to be carted to the locker room in the second quarter. That left backups manning the left side of the offensive line in the second half. T.J. Clemmings started the game at left tackle after hip surgery sidelined Matt Kalil for the season. Jeremiah Sirles replaced Boone at left guard. The backups did a fine job. Bradford had more time to throw in the second half.
The Vikings offense has yet to commit a turnover through three games. That's good.
3-0 is a nice start to the season.
There were some other games yesterday.
With the way that the Washington Redskins played in their first two games, their 29-27 win over the New York Giants might be considered a shock. Two things. One, it's still too early in the season to truly tell anything for sure about any team. Two, it's the NFC East. Anything can happen when teams that truly hate each other play each other and the teams in this division aren't fond of each other. The Giants were 2-0 and the Redskins 0-2 entering the game. Now, a single game separates the two. The Giants travel to Minnesota for a Monday night battle next week.
Redskins cornerback Josh Norman is a funny man. His post game interview was a kick.
It appears that the Oakland Raiders defense finally showed up for the 2016 NFL season. The New Orleans Saints and Atlanta Falcons moved the ball and scored (69 points!) at will on the Raiders in the first two weeks. They were fortunate to manage one win in those two games. The Titans scored 10 points against them yesterday. The Raiders offense scored 17 for the win. The Raiders defense got away with pass interference in the end zone at the end of the game. The game might have ended with a different outcome if that had been called properly.
The Cincinnati Bengals offense might have thrown a little scare into the fierce Denver Broncos defense in the first half of their game. 14 points. The Broncos defense was all over the Bengals in the second half. 3 points. 29-17 win for the Broncos. Game-managing quarterback Trevor Siemian threw four touchdowns for the Broncos. Including a 41-yarder to Emmanuel Sanders and a 55-yarder to Demaryius Thomas. Nice managing.
From the "I just don't know" category:
Arizona Cardinals 18
Buffalo Bills 33
The Bills have had just about everything possible go wrong for them since they opened training camp. They played more like a team that was on the verge of getting their head coach fired than a team with anything resembling hope. The Cardinals are a Super Bowl contender.
I just don't know.
At the half, the Green Bay Packers were up 31-10 over the Detroit Lions. They held on for a 34-27 win. Aaron Rodgers and the Packers offense have to score more than the three points that they scored in the second half. Rodgers was on the wrong end of media heat last week. He really responded in the first half but that three-point second half won't silence the media from honking some more.
The Jacksonville Jaguars came into the 2016 season with a lot of hope and a bunch of bandwagon fans. They are now 0-3 after their 19-17 loss to the Baltimore Ravens. The Jaguars played poorly last week against the San Diego Chargers but they threw a scare into the Packers in Week 1 and were close against the Ravens. Scares and close don't change a team's a record.
Poor Browns. The Cleveland Browns were thumped by the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 1. They lost starting quarterback Robert Griffin III in the process. They lost a big lead and eventually the game to the Baltimore Ravens in Week 2. They lost backup quarterback Josh McCown in the process. Rookie Cody Kessler was the next quarterback up against the Miami Dolphins yesterday. He did well. 22/33 for 244 yards. The Browns had a shot to win the game at the end of regulation but Cody Parkey missed the 46-yard field goal that would have won the game. The Dolphins won it overtime on Jay Ajayi's 11-yard touchdown. Poor Browns. They may be 0-3 but there's a feeling here that they are moving in the right direction. Finally.
The Seattle Seahawks got little resistance from the San Francisco 49ers. 37-18 Seahawks.
Another "I just don't know."
Pittsburgh Steelers 3
Philadelphia Eagles 34
Some had a Steelers-Cardinals Super Bowl. Do they think that now? It's only one week and a couple of surprising games. The Eagles look like they could be for real. They had strong wins against shaky teams the first two weeks (Cleveland Browns and Chicago Bears). The Steelers are a strong team and this was an impressive win. The Eagles are 3-0.
At least the Steelers get running back Le'Veon Bell back this week. That should help them score more than a field goal.
The Kansas City Chiefs rode a strong defensive performance to take care of the New York Jets. 24-3. The Jets turned the ball over eight times. 8! Jets quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick threw six interceptions. It's hard to win games that way. At any level.
The San Diego Chargers and Indianapolis Colts played an entertaining, sometimes sloppy, game. Andrew Luck's 63-yard touchdown pass to T.Y. Hilton with just over a minute to go was the difference in the 26-22 Colts win. Their first win of the season.
The funny thing about this Colts-Chargers game was that it felt like a defensive game. Maybe that's why it was often sloppy. For two teams that are built around their quarterbacks that felt a little strange.
The Los Angeles Rams and Tampa Bay Buccaneers played a scorcher. The Rams held on for a 37-32 win. This game was delayed for a while at the two-minute warning due to weather concerns. When the teams finally returned to the field, Buccaneers quarterback Jameis Winston led his team on a fine final drive with 1:42 to play. He was five yards short of his goal when time expired. The Buccaneers started the drive with two timeouts. When Winston was tackled and the final seconds came off the clock the Buccaneers still had two timeouts. They probably would have had time for another play or two if they had used one or both of those timeouts. They don't carry over to the next game.
The Dallas Cowboys hosted the Chicago Bears in the Sunday Night game. The Cowboys controlled the game in the 31-17 win. The plucky Bears actually made the game interesting after it looked like the Cowboys were going to roll over them early. Rookie quarterback Dak Prescott looked great for the Cowboys. 19/24 for 248 yards and a touchdown. As did rookie running back Ezekiel Elliott. 140 yards on 30 carries. Both give the Cowboys a hopeful future. If they continue this level of play they give the Cowboys a hopeful present too.
This might have been a more competitive game if the officials hadn't blown the call on a Bears onside kick in the first half. The Bears had finally scored to make it 17-3 and pulled out the surprise gamble. They had to steal possession at some point and the Cowboys weren't doing them any favors. The Bears recovered the onside kick but the officials ruled that a Bears player crossed the 35-yard line before the ball was kicked. Everything looked fine live. It didn't look like any Bears player was offside on replay either. The player that the officials said was offside certainly wasn't. There's no way to know if the Bears would have taken advantage of the onside kick recovery but the officials took away their chance to try. The Cowboys did take advantage of the officials apparent gift when they scored a touchdown to make it 24-3.
The New Orleans Saints host the Atlanta Falcons tonight. This NFC South rivalry game is routinely entertaining.
The Panthers scored on a 48-yard field goal on their first possession and on a 3-yard Cam Newton run on their second possession. 10-0 Panthers after 10 minutes. It didn't look promising for the Vikings.
The Vikings offense didn't do much in the first half. 34 yards of production. Very sad. Quarterback Sam Bradford was harassed often and off target on his throws often. A bad combination. Fortunately for the Vikings, the defense was excellent after allowing those 10 early points. The defense scored the first Vikings points on a safety. Defensive end Danielle Hunter brought down Newton in the end zone. The Vikings second score of the first half came on a 54-yard punt return touchdown by Marcus Sherels.
It's nice to have a defense and a special teams that can put points on the board. Especially when the offense isn't doing much at all. Good teams often have defenses and special teams that score. The Vikings might have a pretty good team.
There were a few reasons for the Vikings first half offensive struggles. One that might not get much attention was the terrific punting of Panthers punter Andy Lee. Twice he pinned the Vikings offense inside the five-yard line with his fine punting. That sort of field position can put some restrictions on an offensive game plan. The Panthers defense forced a three-and-out on each occasions.
Speaking of punting, this game had a nice little punting duel. Lee was great. Vikings punter Jeff Locke was pretty good too.
Lee: 4 punts for an average of 47.2. Long of 58. Two downed inside the 5.
Locke: 7 punts for an average of 48.4. Long of 62. Three were downed inside the 10.
-one of those downed inside the 10 set the defense up for the safety.
A punting duel. Nice.
Locke had five punts in the first half and only two in the second half. The Vikings offense finally got things moving in the second half. Bradford had more time to throw and his throws were accurate. A much better combination than that of the first half.
A big part of the Vikings offensive resurgence in the second half was the Panthers inability to cover tight end Kyle Rudolph. He scored on a 15-yard catch to cap a nice drive that opened the second half. Rudolph repeatedly found open holes in the Panthers defense. 7 catches for 70 yards and the lone offensive touchdown.
Compared to the first half, the Vikings offense really came alive in the second half. 34 yards in the first. 177 in the second. The 211 total isn't earth-moving but the offense did enough to score 14 pints. Defense and special teams added the other eight. The 22 points were enough with the defense doing what it did.
The Vikings defense won this game. They shut out the NFL's highest-scoring offense (since the start of last season) after those 10 quick points.
Some numbers:
8 sacks
3 interceptions
1 safety
0 points over the last 50 minutes.
Defensive end Everson Griffen led the way with three of the eight sacks.
Others registering sacks:
Harrison Smith
Anthony Barr
Linval Joseph
Brian Robison
Danielle Hunter-safety
Newton was harassed the entire game. The pass rush harassed him. The secondary legally harassed his receivers. More precisely, the secondary covered the receivers. About half of the eight sacks looked like coverage sacks. That coverage also resulted in three interceptions
Vikings corner Xavier Rhodes returned after missing the first two games. He was responsible for coverage on Panthers top receiver Kelvin Benjamin for much of the game. The first time that Benjamin had a pass go his way was late in the game when Marcus Sherels was covering him. It was incomplete. Rhodes completely took one of Newton's top weapons away from him.
The Vikings aren't going to win a lot of games with this sort of offensive production but they are going to win a lot of games as long as the defense plays like it's been playing. If the offense can play an entire game like they have during some stretches of games, the Vikings could be playing late in January. Maybe early February as well.
Left guard Alex Boone had to be carted to the locker room in the second quarter. That left backups manning the left side of the offensive line in the second half. T.J. Clemmings started the game at left tackle after hip surgery sidelined Matt Kalil for the season. Jeremiah Sirles replaced Boone at left guard. The backups did a fine job. Bradford had more time to throw in the second half.
The Vikings offense has yet to commit a turnover through three games. That's good.
3-0 is a nice start to the season.
***
There were some other games yesterday.
With the way that the Washington Redskins played in their first two games, their 29-27 win over the New York Giants might be considered a shock. Two things. One, it's still too early in the season to truly tell anything for sure about any team. Two, it's the NFC East. Anything can happen when teams that truly hate each other play each other and the teams in this division aren't fond of each other. The Giants were 2-0 and the Redskins 0-2 entering the game. Now, a single game separates the two. The Giants travel to Minnesota for a Monday night battle next week.
Redskins cornerback Josh Norman is a funny man. His post game interview was a kick.
It appears that the Oakland Raiders defense finally showed up for the 2016 NFL season. The New Orleans Saints and Atlanta Falcons moved the ball and scored (69 points!) at will on the Raiders in the first two weeks. They were fortunate to manage one win in those two games. The Titans scored 10 points against them yesterday. The Raiders offense scored 17 for the win. The Raiders defense got away with pass interference in the end zone at the end of the game. The game might have ended with a different outcome if that had been called properly.
The Cincinnati Bengals offense might have thrown a little scare into the fierce Denver Broncos defense in the first half of their game. 14 points. The Broncos defense was all over the Bengals in the second half. 3 points. 29-17 win for the Broncos. Game-managing quarterback Trevor Siemian threw four touchdowns for the Broncos. Including a 41-yarder to Emmanuel Sanders and a 55-yarder to Demaryius Thomas. Nice managing.
From the "I just don't know" category:
Arizona Cardinals 18
Buffalo Bills 33
The Bills have had just about everything possible go wrong for them since they opened training camp. They played more like a team that was on the verge of getting their head coach fired than a team with anything resembling hope. The Cardinals are a Super Bowl contender.
I just don't know.
At the half, the Green Bay Packers were up 31-10 over the Detroit Lions. They held on for a 34-27 win. Aaron Rodgers and the Packers offense have to score more than the three points that they scored in the second half. Rodgers was on the wrong end of media heat last week. He really responded in the first half but that three-point second half won't silence the media from honking some more.
The Jacksonville Jaguars came into the 2016 season with a lot of hope and a bunch of bandwagon fans. They are now 0-3 after their 19-17 loss to the Baltimore Ravens. The Jaguars played poorly last week against the San Diego Chargers but they threw a scare into the Packers in Week 1 and were close against the Ravens. Scares and close don't change a team's a record.
Poor Browns. The Cleveland Browns were thumped by the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 1. They lost starting quarterback Robert Griffin III in the process. They lost a big lead and eventually the game to the Baltimore Ravens in Week 2. They lost backup quarterback Josh McCown in the process. Rookie Cody Kessler was the next quarterback up against the Miami Dolphins yesterday. He did well. 22/33 for 244 yards. The Browns had a shot to win the game at the end of regulation but Cody Parkey missed the 46-yard field goal that would have won the game. The Dolphins won it overtime on Jay Ajayi's 11-yard touchdown. Poor Browns. They may be 0-3 but there's a feeling here that they are moving in the right direction. Finally.
The Seattle Seahawks got little resistance from the San Francisco 49ers. 37-18 Seahawks.
Another "I just don't know."
Pittsburgh Steelers 3
Philadelphia Eagles 34
Some had a Steelers-Cardinals Super Bowl. Do they think that now? It's only one week and a couple of surprising games. The Eagles look like they could be for real. They had strong wins against shaky teams the first two weeks (Cleveland Browns and Chicago Bears). The Steelers are a strong team and this was an impressive win. The Eagles are 3-0.
At least the Steelers get running back Le'Veon Bell back this week. That should help them score more than a field goal.
The Kansas City Chiefs rode a strong defensive performance to take care of the New York Jets. 24-3. The Jets turned the ball over eight times. 8! Jets quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick threw six interceptions. It's hard to win games that way. At any level.
The San Diego Chargers and Indianapolis Colts played an entertaining, sometimes sloppy, game. Andrew Luck's 63-yard touchdown pass to T.Y. Hilton with just over a minute to go was the difference in the 26-22 Colts win. Their first win of the season.
The funny thing about this Colts-Chargers game was that it felt like a defensive game. Maybe that's why it was often sloppy. For two teams that are built around their quarterbacks that felt a little strange.
The Los Angeles Rams and Tampa Bay Buccaneers played a scorcher. The Rams held on for a 37-32 win. This game was delayed for a while at the two-minute warning due to weather concerns. When the teams finally returned to the field, Buccaneers quarterback Jameis Winston led his team on a fine final drive with 1:42 to play. He was five yards short of his goal when time expired. The Buccaneers started the drive with two timeouts. When Winston was tackled and the final seconds came off the clock the Buccaneers still had two timeouts. They probably would have had time for another play or two if they had used one or both of those timeouts. They don't carry over to the next game.
The Dallas Cowboys hosted the Chicago Bears in the Sunday Night game. The Cowboys controlled the game in the 31-17 win. The plucky Bears actually made the game interesting after it looked like the Cowboys were going to roll over them early. Rookie quarterback Dak Prescott looked great for the Cowboys. 19/24 for 248 yards and a touchdown. As did rookie running back Ezekiel Elliott. 140 yards on 30 carries. Both give the Cowboys a hopeful future. If they continue this level of play they give the Cowboys a hopeful present too.
This might have been a more competitive game if the officials hadn't blown the call on a Bears onside kick in the first half. The Bears had finally scored to make it 17-3 and pulled out the surprise gamble. They had to steal possession at some point and the Cowboys weren't doing them any favors. The Bears recovered the onside kick but the officials ruled that a Bears player crossed the 35-yard line before the ball was kicked. Everything looked fine live. It didn't look like any Bears player was offside on replay either. The player that the officials said was offside certainly wasn't. There's no way to know if the Bears would have taken advantage of the onside kick recovery but the officials took away their chance to try. The Cowboys did take advantage of the officials apparent gift when they scored a touchdown to make it 24-3.
The New Orleans Saints host the Atlanta Falcons tonight. This NFC South rivalry game is routinely entertaining.
Sunday, September 25, 2016
Why?
With about 1:30 to play in their Week 3 game against Texas, Cal held a 50-43 lead. It was a defensive battle. Cal had a 3rd-and-1 near midfield. With no timeouts, Texas needed a stop. They needed a stop so badly that all 11 defenders crowded the line of scrimmage. As soon as, Cal back Vic Enwere pierced the line he had no Longhorn defender between him and the goal line. He was running free. The only question that remained was whether Enwere might take a knee before that goal line and not even give the Texas offense a shot at a miracle. Instead, he threw out another, less shrewd option. An option that was irretrievably stupid and mind-numbingly selfish. Enwere showboated and casually dropped the ball before he crossed the goal line. The stunt was easy to miss while watching it live. Something didn't look right, didn't feel right about the way he crossed that goal line. The main problem was that the ball was on the ground and not in his possession. On replay, it was obvious that Vic Enwere dropped the ball before he crossed the goal line. He put his need to look cool before the security of a big win over a nationally ranked opponent. He pulled a DeSean Jackson.
Why?
It's an absolute mystery as to why a football player would consider dropping the football upon crossing the goal line a reasonable thing to do. Possession of the football is perhaps the most important objective of the sport. It's so important that every coach would prefer to see their players carry the football home with them than ever give it up anywhere in the field of play. Even in the end zone. This stunt isn't cool. It's incredibly stupid and Enwere's gaffe was the second of Week 3. It shouldn't ever happen and it occurred twice on a single day. Oklahoma's Joe Mixon did the very same thing at the end of his kick return against Ohio State. Mixon got to keep his touchdown. The officials missed it. They must not have even reviewed it because there was no doubt that Mixon never carried the ball with him across that goal line. Why? Enwere had his touchdown taken away. The officials replayed it, saw the obvious, and made an interesting ruling. A Texas player eventually picked up the ball and handed it to the official. The ruling that came down was that Cal retained possession of the ball because there was no immediate recovery. Cal got the ball at the one-yard line because that was where it was last possessed. Interesting. It worked out great for Cal. Perhaps better than a touchdown because Texas never had possession of the ball again. Possession! So important!
Why is this stupidity being done so often?
DeSean Jackson is routinely credited with making it a thing, a very stupid thing, when he celebrated prematurely on Monday Night Football Football as a rookie with the Philadelphia Eagles in 2008. What is it with Cal players doing this nonsense? They are supposed to be smarter than that. Supposed to be. The only thing that is certain about this stupidity is that it has to stop. Perhaps it will soon because these players are getting bashed and they will be carrying this "stupid" tag for as long they carry a football. We can all hope that they will carry the football a little longer than they used to carry it.
Saturday, September 24, 2016
Flea Flicker Week 3 Predictions
Thursday's game was a nail-biter. Hopefully the rest of the Week 3 games are closer. Here are some predictions of those games.
Minnesota Vikings @ Carolina Panthers
Pick: Vikings
No Teddy Bridgewater. No Adrian Peterson. No Matt Kalil. No Shariff Floyd. That injury list is getting pretty long after a clean training camp. That has to end. The Vikings will find a way to win in Carolina.
Cleveland Browns @ Miami Dolphins
Pick: Dolphins
I want to pick the Browns for the upset. I can't. They are on their third quarterback. In the third game.
Arizona Cardinals @ Buffalo Bills
Pick: Cardinals
The Bills have had more things go wrong than the Browns. At least they still have their starting quarterback. The Cardinals are probably going to play the rest of the season hell-bent on proving that the Patriots loss was a fluke.
Oakland Raiders @ Tennessee Titans
Pick: Titans
The Raiders have to get their defense fixed.
Baltimore Ravens @ Jacksonville Jaguars
Pick: Jaguars
Are the Jaguars really as bad as they looked last week? Are the Ravens really as good as their record? The Ravens two wins came against the Bills and Browns. The Jaguars have to win this game.
Washington Redskins @ New York Giants
Pick: Giants
NFC East division battles are always fun. The Giants are playing well. Especially on defense. The Redskins aren't.
Denver Broncos @ Cincinnati Bengals
Pick: Bengals
The Broncos defense is tremendous. I see the Bengals offense doing just enough to win.
Detroit Lions @ Green Bay Packers
Pick: Packers
Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers has been bashed a bunch this week. The Lions could be on the wrong side of that.
Los Angeles Rams @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Pick: Buccaneers
The Rams offense has yet to start the 2016 NFL season. Unless Todd Gurley goes ballistic they are going to have a tough time winning all season. Except when the play the Seahawks.
San Francisco 49ers @ Seattle Seahawks
Pick: Seahawks
The Seahawks offense is struggling. If Russell Wilson is more healthy than he was last week they should find a way to score enough.
Pittsburgh Steelers @ Philadelphia Eagles
Pick: Steelers
Eagles rookie quarterback Carson Wentz has been great in his first two games but he's finally playing against a decent team.
New York Jets @ Kansas City Chiefs
Pick: Jets
This is a tough one. The Jets in a close game.
San Diego Chargers @ Indianapolis Cotls
Pick: Colts
This could be a shootout. I'll go with Andrew Luck over Philip Rivers.
Chicago Bears @ Dallas Cowboys
Pick: Cowboys
Two straight weeks with the Bears on Prime Time! That's not right! The Bears are struggling on the field and with injuries.
Atlanta Falcons @ New Orleans Saints
Pick: Falcons
This NFC South rivalry is often very entertaining. This game could be a shootout. I'll go with the team that has a few fewer issues on defense.
There it is.
Minnesota Vikings @ Carolina Panthers
Pick: Vikings
No Teddy Bridgewater. No Adrian Peterson. No Matt Kalil. No Shariff Floyd. That injury list is getting pretty long after a clean training camp. That has to end. The Vikings will find a way to win in Carolina.
Cleveland Browns @ Miami Dolphins
Pick: Dolphins
I want to pick the Browns for the upset. I can't. They are on their third quarterback. In the third game.
Arizona Cardinals @ Buffalo Bills
Pick: Cardinals
The Bills have had more things go wrong than the Browns. At least they still have their starting quarterback. The Cardinals are probably going to play the rest of the season hell-bent on proving that the Patriots loss was a fluke.
Oakland Raiders @ Tennessee Titans
Pick: Titans
The Raiders have to get their defense fixed.
Baltimore Ravens @ Jacksonville Jaguars
Pick: Jaguars
Are the Jaguars really as bad as they looked last week? Are the Ravens really as good as their record? The Ravens two wins came against the Bills and Browns. The Jaguars have to win this game.
Washington Redskins @ New York Giants
Pick: Giants
NFC East division battles are always fun. The Giants are playing well. Especially on defense. The Redskins aren't.
Denver Broncos @ Cincinnati Bengals
Pick: Bengals
The Broncos defense is tremendous. I see the Bengals offense doing just enough to win.
Detroit Lions @ Green Bay Packers
Pick: Packers
Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers has been bashed a bunch this week. The Lions could be on the wrong side of that.
Los Angeles Rams @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Pick: Buccaneers
The Rams offense has yet to start the 2016 NFL season. Unless Todd Gurley goes ballistic they are going to have a tough time winning all season. Except when the play the Seahawks.
San Francisco 49ers @ Seattle Seahawks
Pick: Seahawks
The Seahawks offense is struggling. If Russell Wilson is more healthy than he was last week they should find a way to score enough.
Pittsburgh Steelers @ Philadelphia Eagles
Pick: Steelers
Eagles rookie quarterback Carson Wentz has been great in his first two games but he's finally playing against a decent team.
New York Jets @ Kansas City Chiefs
Pick: Jets
This is a tough one. The Jets in a close game.
San Diego Chargers @ Indianapolis Cotls
Pick: Colts
This could be a shootout. I'll go with Andrew Luck over Philip Rivers.
Chicago Bears @ Dallas Cowboys
Pick: Cowboys
Two straight weeks with the Bears on Prime Time! That's not right! The Bears are struggling on the field and with injuries.
Atlanta Falcons @ New Orleans Saints
Pick: Falcons
This NFC South rivalry is often very entertaining. This game could be a shootout. I'll go with the team that has a few fewer issues on defense.
There it is.
Friday, September 23, 2016
That Was Then
Things were looking rosy in August when the Minnesota Vikings broke training camp in fairly sound health. They weren't completely immune to the injury bug that hits every team in the preseason. Defensive lineman B.J. DuBose was placed on injured reserve in May. Fellow defensive lineman Scott Crichton joined him in August. As did defensive backs Antoine Exum Jr. and Jabari Price. Nearly every one of the other 31 NFL teams would trade pretty much anything to be hit so lightly. Not only were the Vikings free of season-wrecking injuries they were also mostly free of the nagging sort of injuries that keep players on the sideline for weeks and drive coaches nuts. The Minnesota Vikings were lucky. A lot has changed in the last three weeks.
About a month ago the Vikings offensive backfield started with:
Teddy Bridgewater
Adrian Peterson
Going into Sunday's game against the Carolina Panthers it looks like this:
Sam Bradford
Jerick McKinnon
That doesn't even look like the same team. Bradford was the starting quarterback of the Philadelphia Eagles a month ago.
The Vikings lost Teddy Bridgwater for the season to a brutal knee injury on August 30. This was a serious blow for a team that had Super Bowl dreams. Instead of canceling those dreams general manager Rick Spielman and the personnel department went to work. They found a trade partner in the Eagles and gave up a first and conditional fourth round pick for Sam Bradford. Based on the minuscule sample size of a single game, the Vikings might have something. Bradford was great in the win over the Green Bay Packers on Sunday night. NFL game film aficionado Greg Cosell declared it the best he'd ever seen the quarterback play. Considering Bradford went into the game with less than three weeks in the team's offensive system his performance was quite promising. Maybe those lofty dreams aren't dead.
Then, this week brought more injury news. Adrian Peterson injured his knee in that win over the Packers. An MRI on Monday revealed a torn meniscus. He had surgery yesterday. His football prognosis is a potential return late in the season or the playoffs. If those grand dreams hold. Peterson is a physical freak so an earlier return isn't out of the question.
As the news of Peterson's surgery bounced around the Vikings facility and among the media on Wednesday it was also revealed that left tackle Matt Kalil needed surgery on his hip. He was placed on injured reserve. There's a chance that he could return this season but that would be even more optimistic than a Peterson return.
After that injury-free training camp, the Vikings have been hit pretty hard by injuries since August 30. Their quarterback, running back, and left tackle are on the shelf for most, if not all, of the season. Out are Teddy Bridgewater, Adrian Peterson, and Matt Kalil. In are Sam Bradford, Jerick McKinnon, and T.J. Clemmings. It might seem ridiculous but Kalil might be the most difficult to replace. Bradford, based on that single game, looks fine. He play may even trend upward as he becomes more comfortable in the offense. At running back, McKinnon and Matt Asiata played well in place of Peterson in 2014. That was the year in which Peterson was yanked from the Vikings lineup for the season due to the "punishment-on-a-whim" discipline of Roger Goodell. The offense will certainly look different without Peterson. More spread formations and less power runs. Maybe Cordarrelle Patterson, and his explosive ways, will become more of a factor in the weekly game plans. Sometimes a team has to expand the playbook when a big part of it is rehabbing from knee surgery. The offense will adjust without Peterson but replacing a veteran left tackle will be difficult. Especially for an offensive line that has struggled as a whole. After an excellent rookie season in 2012, Kalil has had far more downs than ups the last three years. This is a contract year for him and his continued Vikings career was very much up in the air. He played well against the Tennessee Titans, Brian Orakpo in particular, in week one but missed some practice time last week with a hip issue. He played against the Packers with that hip issue but was mostly a turnstile for the Packer across from him, usually Clay Matthews. It was obvious that the hip issue was more than just an issue. Now, Clemmings steps in at left tackle. He started at right tackle last season as a rookie. He struggled often but hopefully, for Bradford's continued health, he learned from those struggles. He's a strong, talented football player. The Vikings might have even seen him as the future at the position if Kalil didn't start playing like the franchise left tackle that he was drafted to be. Clemmings now steps into the position a year early.
The NFL doesn't stop when a team loses a player, or two. Or three. It's simply next man up.
About a month ago the Vikings offensive backfield started with:
Teddy Bridgewater
Adrian Peterson
Going into Sunday's game against the Carolina Panthers it looks like this:
Sam Bradford
Jerick McKinnon
That doesn't even look like the same team. Bradford was the starting quarterback of the Philadelphia Eagles a month ago.
The Vikings lost Teddy Bridgwater for the season to a brutal knee injury on August 30. This was a serious blow for a team that had Super Bowl dreams. Instead of canceling those dreams general manager Rick Spielman and the personnel department went to work. They found a trade partner in the Eagles and gave up a first and conditional fourth round pick for Sam Bradford. Based on the minuscule sample size of a single game, the Vikings might have something. Bradford was great in the win over the Green Bay Packers on Sunday night. NFL game film aficionado Greg Cosell declared it the best he'd ever seen the quarterback play. Considering Bradford went into the game with less than three weeks in the team's offensive system his performance was quite promising. Maybe those lofty dreams aren't dead.
Then, this week brought more injury news. Adrian Peterson injured his knee in that win over the Packers. An MRI on Monday revealed a torn meniscus. He had surgery yesterday. His football prognosis is a potential return late in the season or the playoffs. If those grand dreams hold. Peterson is a physical freak so an earlier return isn't out of the question.
As the news of Peterson's surgery bounced around the Vikings facility and among the media on Wednesday it was also revealed that left tackle Matt Kalil needed surgery on his hip. He was placed on injured reserve. There's a chance that he could return this season but that would be even more optimistic than a Peterson return.
After that injury-free training camp, the Vikings have been hit pretty hard by injuries since August 30. Their quarterback, running back, and left tackle are on the shelf for most, if not all, of the season. Out are Teddy Bridgewater, Adrian Peterson, and Matt Kalil. In are Sam Bradford, Jerick McKinnon, and T.J. Clemmings. It might seem ridiculous but Kalil might be the most difficult to replace. Bradford, based on that single game, looks fine. He play may even trend upward as he becomes more comfortable in the offense. At running back, McKinnon and Matt Asiata played well in place of Peterson in 2014. That was the year in which Peterson was yanked from the Vikings lineup for the season due to the "punishment-on-a-whim" discipline of Roger Goodell. The offense will certainly look different without Peterson. More spread formations and less power runs. Maybe Cordarrelle Patterson, and his explosive ways, will become more of a factor in the weekly game plans. Sometimes a team has to expand the playbook when a big part of it is rehabbing from knee surgery. The offense will adjust without Peterson but replacing a veteran left tackle will be difficult. Especially for an offensive line that has struggled as a whole. After an excellent rookie season in 2012, Kalil has had far more downs than ups the last three years. This is a contract year for him and his continued Vikings career was very much up in the air. He played well against the Tennessee Titans, Brian Orakpo in particular, in week one but missed some practice time last week with a hip issue. He played against the Packers with that hip issue but was mostly a turnstile for the Packer across from him, usually Clay Matthews. It was obvious that the hip issue was more than just an issue. Now, Clemmings steps in at left tackle. He started at right tackle last season as a rookie. He struggled often but hopefully, for Bradford's continued health, he learned from those struggles. He's a strong, talented football player. The Vikings might have even seen him as the future at the position if Kalil didn't start playing like the franchise left tackle that he was drafted to be. Clemmings now steps into the position a year early.
The NFL doesn't stop when a team loses a player, or two. Or three. It's simply next man up.
Thursday, September 22, 2016
Throwback Thursday: Minnesota Vikings 1970s All-Decade Team
Last week was the best Vikings of the 1960s. This week it's the Minnesota Vikings 1970s All-Decade Team. Three Super Bowl appearances. Six Hall of Fame players. Hall of Fame coach. Hall of Fame general manager. It was a fine decade. It would have been a better decade if the Vikings had found a way to win at least one of those Super Bowls.
Quarterback
Fran Tarkenton
Running backs
Chuck Foreman
Rickey Young
Rickey Young
Receiver
Ahmad Rashad
Sammy White
Sammy White
Tight end
Stu Voigt
Tackles
Ron Yary
Steve Riley
Steve Riley
Guards
Ed White
Chuck Goodrum
Chuck Goodrum
Center
Mick Tingelhoff
Defensive ends
Jim Marshall
Carl Eller
Defensive tackles
Alan Page
Doug Sutherland
Linebackers
Matt Blair
Jeff Siemon
Fred McNeil
Jeff Siemon
Fred McNeil
Cornerbacks
Nate Wright
Bobby Bryant
Safeties
Paul Krause
Jeff Wright
Kicker
Fred Cox
Punter
Greg Coleman
Wednesday, September 21, 2016
College Football Rankings
How are the college football teams doing?
AP Rankings
AP Rankings
1. Alabama
2. Ohio State
3. Louisville
4. Michigan
5. Clemson
6. Houston
7. Stanford
8. Michigan State
9. Washington
10. Texas A&M
11. Wisconsin
12. Georgia
13. Florida State
14. Tennessee
15. Miami
16. Baylor
17. Arkansas
18. LSU
19. Florida
20. Nebraska
21. Texas
22. San Diego State
23. Ole Miss
24. Utah
25. Oklahoma
2. Ohio State
3. Louisville
4. Michigan
5. Clemson
6. Houston
7. Stanford
8. Michigan State
9. Washington
10. Texas A&M
11. Wisconsin
12. Georgia
13. Florida State
14. Tennessee
15. Miami
16. Baylor
17. Arkansas
18. LSU
19. Florida
20. Nebraska
21. Texas
22. San Diego State
23. Ole Miss
24. Utah
25. Oklahoma
Dropped from the Top 25: Iowa 13, Notre Dame 18, Oregon 22
Others receiving votes: TCU, North Dakota State, UCLA, Boise State, Iowa, California, Oklahoma State, Notre Dame, Oregon, Georgian Tech, North Carolina, Central Michigan, South Florida, Toledo, Western Michigan, Arizona State, Maryland, Virginia Tech
Others receiving votes: TCU, North Dakota State, UCLA, Boise State, Iowa, California, Oklahoma State, Notre Dame, Oregon, Georgian Tech, North Carolina, Central Michigan, South Florida, Toledo, Western Michigan, Arizona State, Maryland, Virginia Tech
***
Louisville and quarterback Lamar Jackson were the talk of the past weekend. Then #2 Florida State were on the wrong side of that dominant performance. The Cardinals and Seminoles essentially swapped spots in this week's poll.
Cal is peeking into the Top 25. Their defense finally made a few stops against Texas last week. If they can find a way to make a few more in their upcoming games maybe they'll force their way into the rankings. They score with anyone on their schedule.
More earth-shaking than Cal's presence just outside of the Top 25 is that of North Dakota State. And the Bison are doing it the year after they lost Carson Wentz to the NFL.
More earth-shaking than Cal's presence just outside of the Top 25 is that of North Dakota State. And the Bison are doing it the year after they lost Carson Wentz to the NFL.
Tuesday, September 20, 2016
NFL Week 2 Power Rankings
Week 2 is in the books. Here's another power ranking based on two weeks of NFL action.
1. New England Patriots
2. Arizona Cardinals
3. Denver Broncos
4. Carolina Panthers
5. Pittsburgh Steelers
6. Minnesota Vikings
7. Houston Texans
8. New York Giants
9. Cincinnati Bengals
10. Kansas City Chiefs
11. Baltimore Ravens
12. New York Jets
13. Philadelphia Eagles
14. Green Bay Packers
15. Seattle Seahawks
16. Dallas Cowboys
17. Oakland Raiders
18. Detroit Lions
19. San Diego Chargers
20. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
21. Tennessee Titans
22. Indianapolis Colts
23. Miami Dolphins
24. New Orleans Saints
25. Atlanta Falcons
26. Jacksonville Jaguars
27. Washington Redskins
28. Buffalo Bills
29. San Francisco 49ers
30. St, Louis Rams
31. Chicago Bears
32. Cleveland Browns
For now.
For now.
Monday, September 19, 2016
Home, Sweet Home
The Minnesota Vikings held off the Green Bay Packers last night. 17-14.
The Vikings had to win this game. It was the first regular season game in their spectacular new home. US Bank Stadium. A stadium that took more than a decade to become a reality. A game against their division nemesis. The Packers have been a thorn in the Vikings side since Brett Favre stumbled into a huddle. Now, the Vikings have won two straight from them. Yay! The Vikings had to win this game.
Some firsts:
First touchdown in US Bank Stadium: Jordy Nelson. Boo!
First Vikings touchdown in US Bank Stadium: Kyle Rudolph. Yay!
The Vikings defeated the Packers with defense, Stefon Diggs, and a terrific performance from Sam Bradford. When quarterback Teddy Bridgewater was lost for the season to a brutal knee injury on August 30, the Vikings season was in the balance. There was a lot of optimism in Minnesota this season. A beautiful stadium, a talented roster, and an excellent coaching staff. Losing Bridgewater was devastating. It would be devastating for any football team to lose their starting quarterback a couple of weeks before the season. The Vikings mourned their loss for a day and then got busy. Two days later, general manager Rick Spielman traded a first and conditional fourth round pick to the Philadelphia Eagles for Sam Bradford. It was a bold move. 15 days later Bradford started the home opener against the Packers. He looked like he'd been in the offense for months rather than weeks. 22 of 31 for 286 yards and two touchdowns. He benefited greatly from having Stefon Diggs on the other end of nine of those passes. The second-year receiver has only played in 15 NFL games but he's a star in the making. He may already be there, The Packers had no answers for Diggs. 182 yards on nine catches and a 25-yard touchdown.
The Vikings defense has been an emerging force since Mike Zimmer was hired as head coach in 2014. They gave Aaron Rodgers and the Packers offense fits all night. Every yard was a challenge. Every point was a struggle. The Packers generated about 60 yards of offense in the first half. That's about what they typically gain in a single possession. The Vikings forced fumbles on three occasions. Unfortunately, the Packers managed to recover two of them. The Vikings could have run away with the game if the ball had bounced more favorably for them. Many of Rodgers' throws went in the direction of second-year corner Trae Waynes. He's started the first two games of the season while Xavier Rhodes recovers from a knee injury. Waynes provided tight coverage on a variety of Packers receivers throughout the game. He just couldn't keep his hands off of those receivers. Much of the Packers offensive production was dependent on Waynes penalties. He'll get there but there will be struggles. Rhodes had similar issues early in his career. Waynes went from goat to hero when Rodgers picked on him one time too many. Waynes' interception sealed the game for the Vikings. Yay!
A win is a win no matter how it happens. Especially a division win. Especially a Packers win. Especially win #1 in this beautiful new stadium.
It wasn't all roses for the Vikings.
Running back Adrian Peterson had to be helped off of the field in the second half with what looked like a significant knee injury. It didn't look good but the Vikings might have dodged a severe blow. Zimmer said after the game that Peterson's knee had "calmed down a bit." The team was more optimistic than pessimistic regarding his health after the game. He will have an MRI this morning.
With or without Peterson, the Vikings running game has to get better. They pride themselves on being a running team but the ground production has been anemic through two games. Peterson, Jerick McKinnon, and Matt Asiata routinely meet their first opponent while still in the backfield. That has to change. The offensive line has to open holes and the backs have to get through those holes.
More offensive line. The line was solid in pass protection last week. They weren't last night. Bradford had a nice night passing but he was hit often and sacked far too often. Those sacks were drive killers and momentum flippers. Bradford had to play most of the game with a bruised left (thankfully) hand. The Vikings can't lose another quarterback.
The Vikings need to get more receiving production from pass-catchers other than Diggs, Kyle Rudolph, and Adam Thielen. Those three have been great. Especially Diggs. Charles Johnson, rookie Laquon Treadwell, tight end David Morgan, the backs. Someone has to give Bradford an additional option. Jarius Wright has been on the wrong side of the game day number game the first two weeks. He's spent most of his four years in the league getting open and making plays. Maybe he should be on the right side of the number game next Sunday but it's easy to make that call from a sofa.
Waynes will be getting a great deal of heat from the fans and the talking heads despite his game-sealing interception. His penalties were a solid chunk of the Packers offense for most of the game. The positive in his play was his coverage. It was solid. He just has to play with greater discipline and better technique. He's right there to defend the pass. He just has to play the ball rather than getting handsy with the receiver.
The Minnesota Vikings are 2-0 and on top of the NFC North. They also won game #1 at US Bank Stadium. No one can take that away from them. That's a great start for a team that was scrambling a couple of weeks ago when their quarterback went down. A visit to reigning NFC champs Carolina Panthers is next.
The Vikings had to win this game. It was the first regular season game in their spectacular new home. US Bank Stadium. A stadium that took more than a decade to become a reality. A game against their division nemesis. The Packers have been a thorn in the Vikings side since Brett Favre stumbled into a huddle. Now, the Vikings have won two straight from them. Yay! The Vikings had to win this game.
Some firsts:
First touchdown in US Bank Stadium: Jordy Nelson. Boo!
First Vikings touchdown in US Bank Stadium: Kyle Rudolph. Yay!
The Vikings defeated the Packers with defense, Stefon Diggs, and a terrific performance from Sam Bradford. When quarterback Teddy Bridgewater was lost for the season to a brutal knee injury on August 30, the Vikings season was in the balance. There was a lot of optimism in Minnesota this season. A beautiful stadium, a talented roster, and an excellent coaching staff. Losing Bridgewater was devastating. It would be devastating for any football team to lose their starting quarterback a couple of weeks before the season. The Vikings mourned their loss for a day and then got busy. Two days later, general manager Rick Spielman traded a first and conditional fourth round pick to the Philadelphia Eagles for Sam Bradford. It was a bold move. 15 days later Bradford started the home opener against the Packers. He looked like he'd been in the offense for months rather than weeks. 22 of 31 for 286 yards and two touchdowns. He benefited greatly from having Stefon Diggs on the other end of nine of those passes. The second-year receiver has only played in 15 NFL games but he's a star in the making. He may already be there, The Packers had no answers for Diggs. 182 yards on nine catches and a 25-yard touchdown.
The Vikings defense has been an emerging force since Mike Zimmer was hired as head coach in 2014. They gave Aaron Rodgers and the Packers offense fits all night. Every yard was a challenge. Every point was a struggle. The Packers generated about 60 yards of offense in the first half. That's about what they typically gain in a single possession. The Vikings forced fumbles on three occasions. Unfortunately, the Packers managed to recover two of them. The Vikings could have run away with the game if the ball had bounced more favorably for them. Many of Rodgers' throws went in the direction of second-year corner Trae Waynes. He's started the first two games of the season while Xavier Rhodes recovers from a knee injury. Waynes provided tight coverage on a variety of Packers receivers throughout the game. He just couldn't keep his hands off of those receivers. Much of the Packers offensive production was dependent on Waynes penalties. He'll get there but there will be struggles. Rhodes had similar issues early in his career. Waynes went from goat to hero when Rodgers picked on him one time too many. Waynes' interception sealed the game for the Vikings. Yay!
A win is a win no matter how it happens. Especially a division win. Especially a Packers win. Especially win #1 in this beautiful new stadium.
It wasn't all roses for the Vikings.
Running back Adrian Peterson had to be helped off of the field in the second half with what looked like a significant knee injury. It didn't look good but the Vikings might have dodged a severe blow. Zimmer said after the game that Peterson's knee had "calmed down a bit." The team was more optimistic than pessimistic regarding his health after the game. He will have an MRI this morning.
With or without Peterson, the Vikings running game has to get better. They pride themselves on being a running team but the ground production has been anemic through two games. Peterson, Jerick McKinnon, and Matt Asiata routinely meet their first opponent while still in the backfield. That has to change. The offensive line has to open holes and the backs have to get through those holes.
More offensive line. The line was solid in pass protection last week. They weren't last night. Bradford had a nice night passing but he was hit often and sacked far too often. Those sacks were drive killers and momentum flippers. Bradford had to play most of the game with a bruised left (thankfully) hand. The Vikings can't lose another quarterback.
The Vikings need to get more receiving production from pass-catchers other than Diggs, Kyle Rudolph, and Adam Thielen. Those three have been great. Especially Diggs. Charles Johnson, rookie Laquon Treadwell, tight end David Morgan, the backs. Someone has to give Bradford an additional option. Jarius Wright has been on the wrong side of the game day number game the first two weeks. He's spent most of his four years in the league getting open and making plays. Maybe he should be on the right side of the number game next Sunday but it's easy to make that call from a sofa.
Waynes will be getting a great deal of heat from the fans and the talking heads despite his game-sealing interception. His penalties were a solid chunk of the Packers offense for most of the game. The positive in his play was his coverage. It was solid. He just has to play with greater discipline and better technique. He's right there to defend the pass. He just has to play the ball rather than getting handsy with the receiver.
The Minnesota Vikings are 2-0 and on top of the NFC North. They also won game #1 at US Bank Stadium. No one can take that away from them. That's a great start for a team that was scrambling a couple of weeks ago when their quarterback went down. A visit to reigning NFC champs Carolina Panthers is next.
Sunday, September 18, 2016
Packers Starters
I spend so much time focused on the Minnesota Vikings and their preparations for a football game. How about a look at the Green Bay Packers? It's Packers Week! Here are Green Bay's projected starters according to their website.
WR Randall Cobb
TE Richard Rodgers
RT Bryan Bulaga
RG T.J. Lang
C JC Tretter
LG Lane Taylor
LT David Bakhtiari
WR Jordy Nelson
QB Aaron Rodgers
RB Eddie Lacy
FB Aaron Ripkowski
DE Dean Lowry
NT Letroy Guion
DT Mike Daniels
LB Nick Perry
LB Jake Ryan
LB Blake Martinez
LB Clay Matthews
CB Damarious Randall
CB Sam Shields
S Morgan Burnett
S Ha Ha Clinton-Dix
K Mason Crosby
P Jacob Shum
H Jacob Shum
LS Brett Goode
PR Micah Hyde
KR Ty Montgomery
It's a little strange to see a Packers offense without fullback John Kuhn and guard Josh Sitton. Especially Kuhn. Things change. As long as Aaron Rodgers is leading the offense the Packers will be potent. The quarterback run in Green Bay is ridiculous and should be illegal.
This is an interesting defense. I was a little surprised to see rookie Dean Lowry starting over Kenny Clark at defensive end. Mike Daniels is a beast. Nose tackle Letroy Guion is a Vikings castoff! The Packers linebackers and secondary have the potential to be great. Especially if Nick Perry becomes the pass rusher that he was drafted to be. The Packers have a second defensive rookie starter in Blake Martinez. He thrashed Cal so thoroughly the last three years that it felt like he played at Stanford for a decade. Now, he's set to be a Vikings nemesis. He's a solid and smart football player and it should come as no surprise that he emerged from his first training camp as a starter.
It really isn't shocking that many talking heads consider the Green Bay Packers a Super Bowl contender. That will probably be the case as long as Rodgers is playing. The play and development of their offensive and defensive lines will be key. Outside of their lines, the Packers are as talented as any team in the league.
The Vikings must crush them.
WR Randall Cobb
TE Richard Rodgers
RT Bryan Bulaga
RG T.J. Lang
C JC Tretter
LG Lane Taylor
LT David Bakhtiari
WR Jordy Nelson
QB Aaron Rodgers
RB Eddie Lacy
FB Aaron Ripkowski
DE Dean Lowry
NT Letroy Guion
DT Mike Daniels
LB Nick Perry
LB Jake Ryan
LB Blake Martinez
LB Clay Matthews
CB Damarious Randall
CB Sam Shields
S Morgan Burnett
S Ha Ha Clinton-Dix
K Mason Crosby
P Jacob Shum
H Jacob Shum
LS Brett Goode
PR Micah Hyde
KR Ty Montgomery
It's a little strange to see a Packers offense without fullback John Kuhn and guard Josh Sitton. Especially Kuhn. Things change. As long as Aaron Rodgers is leading the offense the Packers will be potent. The quarterback run in Green Bay is ridiculous and should be illegal.
This is an interesting defense. I was a little surprised to see rookie Dean Lowry starting over Kenny Clark at defensive end. Mike Daniels is a beast. Nose tackle Letroy Guion is a Vikings castoff! The Packers linebackers and secondary have the potential to be great. Especially if Nick Perry becomes the pass rusher that he was drafted to be. The Packers have a second defensive rookie starter in Blake Martinez. He thrashed Cal so thoroughly the last three years that it felt like he played at Stanford for a decade. Now, he's set to be a Vikings nemesis. He's a solid and smart football player and it should come as no surprise that he emerged from his first training camp as a starter.
It really isn't shocking that many talking heads consider the Green Bay Packers a Super Bowl contender. That will probably be the case as long as Rodgers is playing. The play and development of their offensive and defensive lines will be key. Outside of their lines, the Packers are as talented as any team in the league.
The Vikings must crush them.
Saturday, September 17, 2016
Flea Flicker Week 2 Predictions
Week 1 had a bunch of terrific, close games. Hopefully Week 2 brings more of the same football fun. At least we won't be force-fed a second, late night game on Monday. Here are this week's predictions.
Green Bay Packers @ Minnesota Vikings
Pick: Vikings
The Vikings simply have to win the opener of their spectacular, new stadium. No matter which quarterback starts the game.
Tennessee Titans @ Detroit Lions
Pick: Titans
The Lions offense was explosive last week. Their defense allowed explosions. The Titans are a fun team to watch as long as they are protective of the football.
New Orleans Saints @ New York Giants
Pick: Giants
The Saints are all offense. The Giants are more balanced. I say that wins this game.
Dallas Cowboys @ Washington Redskins
Pick: Dallas
It felt like the Cowboys were repeatedly on the verge of breaking open their game against the Giants. They still lost. They have to finish their drives with touchdowns rather than field goals. Dez Bryant has to learn how to catch a football. He seems to think that he simply has to touch the thing.
Kansas City Chiefs @ Houston Texans
Pick: Texans
This a toss-up. Just going with the home team.
Miami Dolphins @ New England Patriots
Pick: Patriots
I'd go with the Dolphins if I thought there was a chance that the Patriots might be sailing on the high of upsetting the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday. Then I think of Bill Belichick coaching this team.
San Francisco 49ers @ Carolina Panthers
Pick: Panthers
The 49ers on a short week. The Panthers on about 10 days of rest. This could get ugly.
Cincinnati Bengals @ Pittsburgh Steelers
Pick: Steelers
This feels way too early in the season for a playoff-level game. I'll take the easy out and pick the home team.
Baltimore Ravens @ Cleveland Browns
Pick: Browns
With the Browns already scrambling for a quarterback this feels like a Ravens blowout. So, an upset feels right.
Seattle Seahawks @ Los Angeles Rams
Pick: Seahawks
The Rams looked in their first game like they had just cracked open their playbooks that morning. And the quarterbacks and receivers had different books. Unless that Monday night fiasco was just a game gone horribly wrong the Rams might be giving the Titans the first pick in the 2017 NFL Draft.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers @ Arizona Cardinals
Pick: Cardinals
It's hard to imagine the Cardinals not responding to that Patriots loss with a win on Sunday.
Indianapolis Colts @ Denver Broncos
Pick: Colts
The Broncos should win this one but I'm going with Andrew Luck finding a way.
Jacksonville Jaguars @ San Diego Chargers
Pick: Chargers
Losing receiver Keenan Allen for the season was a huge blow for the Chargers. Maybe rookie tight end Hunter Henry can step up and fill that short-to-intermediate route void. Philip Rivers is the difference in this game.
Atlanta Falcons @ Oakland Raiders
Pick: Raiders
The Raiders defense has to play better than they did against the Saints or this could be a Falcons upset.
Philadelphia Eagles @ Chicago Bears
Pick: Bears
This is a toss-up. Home team gets the nod.
Green Bay Packers @ Minnesota Vikings
Pick: Vikings
The Vikings simply have to win the opener of their spectacular, new stadium. No matter which quarterback starts the game.
Tennessee Titans @ Detroit Lions
Pick: Titans
The Lions offense was explosive last week. Their defense allowed explosions. The Titans are a fun team to watch as long as they are protective of the football.
New Orleans Saints @ New York Giants
Pick: Giants
The Saints are all offense. The Giants are more balanced. I say that wins this game.
Dallas Cowboys @ Washington Redskins
Pick: Dallas
It felt like the Cowboys were repeatedly on the verge of breaking open their game against the Giants. They still lost. They have to finish their drives with touchdowns rather than field goals. Dez Bryant has to learn how to catch a football. He seems to think that he simply has to touch the thing.
Kansas City Chiefs @ Houston Texans
Pick: Texans
This a toss-up. Just going with the home team.
Miami Dolphins @ New England Patriots
Pick: Patriots
I'd go with the Dolphins if I thought there was a chance that the Patriots might be sailing on the high of upsetting the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday. Then I think of Bill Belichick coaching this team.
San Francisco 49ers @ Carolina Panthers
Pick: Panthers
The 49ers on a short week. The Panthers on about 10 days of rest. This could get ugly.
Cincinnati Bengals @ Pittsburgh Steelers
Pick: Steelers
This feels way too early in the season for a playoff-level game. I'll take the easy out and pick the home team.
Baltimore Ravens @ Cleveland Browns
Pick: Browns
With the Browns already scrambling for a quarterback this feels like a Ravens blowout. So, an upset feels right.
Seattle Seahawks @ Los Angeles Rams
Pick: Seahawks
The Rams looked in their first game like they had just cracked open their playbooks that morning. And the quarterbacks and receivers had different books. Unless that Monday night fiasco was just a game gone horribly wrong the Rams might be giving the Titans the first pick in the 2017 NFL Draft.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers @ Arizona Cardinals
Pick: Cardinals
It's hard to imagine the Cardinals not responding to that Patriots loss with a win on Sunday.
Indianapolis Colts @ Denver Broncos
Pick: Colts
The Broncos should win this one but I'm going with Andrew Luck finding a way.
Jacksonville Jaguars @ San Diego Chargers
Pick: Chargers
Losing receiver Keenan Allen for the season was a huge blow for the Chargers. Maybe rookie tight end Hunter Henry can step up and fill that short-to-intermediate route void. Philip Rivers is the difference in this game.
Atlanta Falcons @ Oakland Raiders
Pick: Raiders
The Raiders defense has to play better than they did against the Saints or this could be a Falcons upset.
Philadelphia Eagles @ Chicago Bears
Pick: Bears
This is a toss-up. Home team gets the nod.
Friday, September 16, 2016
Hall of Fame Nominees
The Pro Football Hall of Fame announced 94 former players and coaches as modern-era nominees for the Class of 2017.
The list will be trimmed to 25 semi-finalists in November. Those 25 will then be trimmed to 15 finalists in January. Those 15 along with senior finalist Kenny Easley and contributor finalists Paul Tagliabue and Jerry Jones will be presented to the selection committee on the eve of Super Bowl LI. The Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2017 will then be selected.
Here are the 94 nominees, by position.
Quarterbacks
Drew Bledsoe, Randall Cunningham, Doug Flutie, Donovan McNabb, Steve McNair, Phil Simms, Kurt Warner
Running backs
Shaun Alexander, Ottis Anderson, Tiki Barber, Larry Centers, Roger Craig, Terrell Davis, Eddie George, Edgerrin James, Darryl Johnston, Eric Metcalf, LaDanian Tomlinson, Herschel Walker, Rickey Watters
Wide receivers
Isaac Bruce, Henry Ellard, Torry Holt, Chad Johnson, Derrick Mason, Terrell Owens, Sterling Sharpe, Jimmy Smith, Rod Smith, Hines Ward
Tight end
Mark Bavaro
Offensive linemen
Tony Boselli, Ray Donaldson, Alan Faneca, Jay Hilgenberg, Chris Hinton, Kent Hull, Joe Jacoby, Mike Kenn, Olin Kreutz, Jim Lachey, Kevin Mawae, Tom Nalen, Nate Newton, Steve Wisniewski
Defensive linemen
Leslie O'Neal, Simeon Rice, Fred Smerlas, Jason Taylor, Bryant Young
Linebackers
Carl Banks, Cornelius Bennett, Tedy Bruschi, Seth Joyner, Levon Kirkland, Clay Matthews Jr., Willie McGinest, Karl Mecklenburg, Sam Mills, Joey Porter, Zach Thomas
Defensive backs
Eric Allen, Steve Atwater, Joey Browner, LeRoy Butler, Brian Dawkins, Rodney Harrison, Ty Law, Albert Lewis, John Lynch, Frank Minnifield, Bob Sanders, Darren Sharper, Dennis Smith, Troy Vincent, Everson Walls, Darren Woodson
Kicker/punter
Morten Andersen, Gary Anderson, Sean Landeta, Nick Lowery
Special teams
Brian Mitchell, Steve Tasker
Coaches
Don Coryell, Bill Cowher, Tom Flores, Mike Holmgren, Jimmy Johnson, Chuck Knox, Buddy Parker, Richie Petibon, Dan Reeves, Clark Shaugnessy, Dick Vermiel
The cut to 25 will be tough.
Among the first-year eligible players are Donovan McNabb, LaDanian Tomlinson, Hines Ward, Jason Taylor, and Brian Dawkins. Tomlinson, Ward, and Taylor should sail through to the 15 finalist stage. It wouldn't be a surprise if 2016 finalists Kurt Warner, Edgerrin James, Terrell Davis, Terrell Owens, Alan Faneca, John Lynch, and Don Coryell return as finalists in January.
The Hall voters had whittled away at a receiver logjam over recent years. Another is building. Ward, Owens, Isaac Bruce, Torry Holt, and Sterling Sharpe are all Hall-worthy. Owens probably thinks that he should have been in before he was eligible. That and his stunning difficulties with catching a football should make him wait for a few years. He should certainly wait a few years longer than the six years that Cris Carter had to wait. I really think that this is the year that Sharpe makes a strong strong Hall run. He deserves it. He probably would have been in Canton already if a neck injury hadn't cut short his brilliant career. Sharpe probably would have been a first ballot Hall of Famer seeing as his missing years would have been with a young, gun-slinging Brett Favre. Receiver is again becoming a problem for the voters. Randy Moss is coming soon and Hall of Fame cases can be made for Henry Ellard, Derrick Mason, and Jimmy Smith.
If I was responsible for whittling this fine list to 25 it might look like this:
Kurt Warner
Roger Craig
Terrell Davis
LaDanian Tomlinson
Sterling Sharpe
Terrell Owens
Hines Ward
Tony Boselli
Alan Faneca
Mike Kenn
Jim Lachey
Jason Taylor
Karl Mecklenburg
Joey Browner
Brian Dawkins
Ty Law
Darren Woodson
Morten Andersen
Brian Mitchell
Steve Tasker
Don Coryell
Tom Flores
Jimmy Johnson
Buddy Parker
Clark Shaugnessy
Cutting to 25 is a tough task. I probably have too many coaches. The voters have an issue with receivers. They also have a an issue with the coaches. Each of the coaching nominees have a strong Hall of Fame case. Since their nominees that's really no stretch but Coryell, Parker, and Shaugnessy should already be in Canton.
If I was responsible for selecting the Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2017, that class might look like this:
LaDanian Tomlinson
Jason Taylor
Terrell Davis
Sterling Sharpe
Buddy Parker
Kenny Easley
Paul Tagliabue
Jerry Jones
Kurt Warner fans will raise some hell over this. Especially with the inclusion of two players that had careers shortened by injuries and a coach that few even know. Well, Warner also had an abbreviated career. He started late and there were a few modest years in the middle. He actually had nearly as many modest, at best, years as he had great years. Those great years are Hall-worthy and should get him in eventually but there are enough less than great years that calls for some patience. Most fans and many Hall of Fame voters forget that the NFL was around for 46 years before a Super Bowl was played. The Detroit Lions had something of a dynasty in the 1950s. From 1952-57 they won three of the four NFL Championship games in which they played. Buddy Parker was a big reason for that success. His Lions teams gave the Cleveland Browns fits and those Browns players and coach are all over the walls and bust room of the Hall of Fame. The Lions of the 1950s had success similar to that of the New England Patriots in the 2000s. It's difficult to imagine Bill Belichick not going straight into Canton five years after he retires. Buddy Parker retired over 50 years ago.
Congratulations and good luck to all of the nominees.
The list will be trimmed to 25 semi-finalists in November. Those 25 will then be trimmed to 15 finalists in January. Those 15 along with senior finalist Kenny Easley and contributor finalists Paul Tagliabue and Jerry Jones will be presented to the selection committee on the eve of Super Bowl LI. The Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2017 will then be selected.
Here are the 94 nominees, by position.
Quarterbacks
Drew Bledsoe, Randall Cunningham, Doug Flutie, Donovan McNabb, Steve McNair, Phil Simms, Kurt Warner
Running backs
Shaun Alexander, Ottis Anderson, Tiki Barber, Larry Centers, Roger Craig, Terrell Davis, Eddie George, Edgerrin James, Darryl Johnston, Eric Metcalf, LaDanian Tomlinson, Herschel Walker, Rickey Watters
Wide receivers
Isaac Bruce, Henry Ellard, Torry Holt, Chad Johnson, Derrick Mason, Terrell Owens, Sterling Sharpe, Jimmy Smith, Rod Smith, Hines Ward
Tight end
Mark Bavaro
Offensive linemen
Tony Boselli, Ray Donaldson, Alan Faneca, Jay Hilgenberg, Chris Hinton, Kent Hull, Joe Jacoby, Mike Kenn, Olin Kreutz, Jim Lachey, Kevin Mawae, Tom Nalen, Nate Newton, Steve Wisniewski
Defensive linemen
Leslie O'Neal, Simeon Rice, Fred Smerlas, Jason Taylor, Bryant Young
Linebackers
Carl Banks, Cornelius Bennett, Tedy Bruschi, Seth Joyner, Levon Kirkland, Clay Matthews Jr., Willie McGinest, Karl Mecklenburg, Sam Mills, Joey Porter, Zach Thomas
Defensive backs
Eric Allen, Steve Atwater, Joey Browner, LeRoy Butler, Brian Dawkins, Rodney Harrison, Ty Law, Albert Lewis, John Lynch, Frank Minnifield, Bob Sanders, Darren Sharper, Dennis Smith, Troy Vincent, Everson Walls, Darren Woodson
Kicker/punter
Morten Andersen, Gary Anderson, Sean Landeta, Nick Lowery
Special teams
Brian Mitchell, Steve Tasker
Coaches
Don Coryell, Bill Cowher, Tom Flores, Mike Holmgren, Jimmy Johnson, Chuck Knox, Buddy Parker, Richie Petibon, Dan Reeves, Clark Shaugnessy, Dick Vermiel
The cut to 25 will be tough.
Among the first-year eligible players are Donovan McNabb, LaDanian Tomlinson, Hines Ward, Jason Taylor, and Brian Dawkins. Tomlinson, Ward, and Taylor should sail through to the 15 finalist stage. It wouldn't be a surprise if 2016 finalists Kurt Warner, Edgerrin James, Terrell Davis, Terrell Owens, Alan Faneca, John Lynch, and Don Coryell return as finalists in January.
The Hall voters had whittled away at a receiver logjam over recent years. Another is building. Ward, Owens, Isaac Bruce, Torry Holt, and Sterling Sharpe are all Hall-worthy. Owens probably thinks that he should have been in before he was eligible. That and his stunning difficulties with catching a football should make him wait for a few years. He should certainly wait a few years longer than the six years that Cris Carter had to wait. I really think that this is the year that Sharpe makes a strong strong Hall run. He deserves it. He probably would have been in Canton already if a neck injury hadn't cut short his brilliant career. Sharpe probably would have been a first ballot Hall of Famer seeing as his missing years would have been with a young, gun-slinging Brett Favre. Receiver is again becoming a problem for the voters. Randy Moss is coming soon and Hall of Fame cases can be made for Henry Ellard, Derrick Mason, and Jimmy Smith.
If I was responsible for whittling this fine list to 25 it might look like this:
Kurt Warner
Roger Craig
Terrell Davis
LaDanian Tomlinson
Sterling Sharpe
Terrell Owens
Hines Ward
Tony Boselli
Alan Faneca
Mike Kenn
Jim Lachey
Jason Taylor
Karl Mecklenburg
Joey Browner
Brian Dawkins
Ty Law
Darren Woodson
Morten Andersen
Brian Mitchell
Steve Tasker
Don Coryell
Tom Flores
Jimmy Johnson
Buddy Parker
Clark Shaugnessy
Cutting to 25 is a tough task. I probably have too many coaches. The voters have an issue with receivers. They also have a an issue with the coaches. Each of the coaching nominees have a strong Hall of Fame case. Since their nominees that's really no stretch but Coryell, Parker, and Shaugnessy should already be in Canton.
If I was responsible for selecting the Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2017, that class might look like this:
LaDanian Tomlinson
Jason Taylor
Terrell Davis
Sterling Sharpe
Buddy Parker
Kenny Easley
Paul Tagliabue
Jerry Jones
Kurt Warner fans will raise some hell over this. Especially with the inclusion of two players that had careers shortened by injuries and a coach that few even know. Well, Warner also had an abbreviated career. He started late and there were a few modest years in the middle. He actually had nearly as many modest, at best, years as he had great years. Those great years are Hall-worthy and should get him in eventually but there are enough less than great years that calls for some patience. Most fans and many Hall of Fame voters forget that the NFL was around for 46 years before a Super Bowl was played. The Detroit Lions had something of a dynasty in the 1950s. From 1952-57 they won three of the four NFL Championship games in which they played. Buddy Parker was a big reason for that success. His Lions teams gave the Cleveland Browns fits and those Browns players and coach are all over the walls and bust room of the Hall of Fame. The Lions of the 1950s had success similar to that of the New England Patriots in the 2000s. It's difficult to imagine Bill Belichick not going straight into Canton five years after he retires. Buddy Parker retired over 50 years ago.
Congratulations and good luck to all of the nominees.
Thursday, September 15, 2016
Throwback Thursday: Minnesota Vikings 1960s All-Decade Team
The NFL has one of these teams for each decade of it's existence. Why not an individual team? Here's an All-Decade Minnesota Vikings Team for the 1960s.
Quarterback
Fran Tarkenton
Running backs
Tommy Mason
Bill Brown
Receiver
Paul Flatley
Gene Washington
Gene Washington
Tight end
John Beasley
Tackles
Grady Alderman
Ron Yary
Guards
Milt Sunde
Larry Bowie
Center
Mick Tingelhoff
Defensive ends
Jim Marshall
Carl Eller
Defensive tackles
Alan Page
Gary Larsen
Linebackers
Wally Hilgenberg
Lonnie Warwick
Roy Winston
Roy Winston
Cornerbacks
Ed Sharockman
Bobby Bryant
Safeties
Paul Krause
Karl Kassulke
Kicker
Fred Cox
Punter
Bobby Walden
Wednesday, September 14, 2016
Minnesota's Minor Midweek Moves
The Minnesota Vikings made a couple of minor transactions yesterday. They were minor in that the moves involved practice squad players but they were major moves for the players involved. The Vikings signed cornerbacks Tre Roberson and Julian Wilson to the practice squad.
To make room for the cornerbacks on the practice squad, the Vikings released tackle Carter Bykowski and safety Shamiel Gary.
This moves give the Vikings added cornerback depth for practices while starter Xavier Rhodes deals with an issue with his knee. That issue arose the morning of Sunday's game against the Tennessee Titans. An MRI yesterday revealed that no surgery is needed so this knee issue is considered a day-to-day issue. Hopefully it stops being an issue soon because the Vikings need Rhodes on the field. Especially with Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers coming to Minnesota on Sunday.
Tre Roberson is new to the cornerback position. He played quarterback at Indiana and Illinois State. He worked out for NFL teams as a corner at Illinois State's Pro Day. The Vikings saw enough to sign him as an undrafted free agent this spring. A strong showing in training camp and preseason seemed to assure a practice squad spot but it took until this week for that to happen. An NFL practice squad is a fluid thing.
Julian Wilson was signed by the Baltimore Ravens as an undrafted free agent out of Oklahoma after the 2015 NFL Draft. He had competing offers from the Seattle Seahawks, Kansas City Chiefs, Atlanta Falcons, and Cleveland Browns. Unfortunately, he broke his leg in mini-camp and was placed on injured reserve. He competed for a roster spot this summer but the Ravens released him. The Kansas City Chiefs had him on their practice squad for about a week. Now, he's on the Vikings practice squad. An NFL practice squad is a fluid thing.
To make room for the cornerbacks on the practice squad, the Vikings released tackle Carter Bykowski and safety Shamiel Gary.
This moves give the Vikings added cornerback depth for practices while starter Xavier Rhodes deals with an issue with his knee. That issue arose the morning of Sunday's game against the Tennessee Titans. An MRI yesterday revealed that no surgery is needed so this knee issue is considered a day-to-day issue. Hopefully it stops being an issue soon because the Vikings need Rhodes on the field. Especially with Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers coming to Minnesota on Sunday.
Tre Roberson is new to the cornerback position. He played quarterback at Indiana and Illinois State. He worked out for NFL teams as a corner at Illinois State's Pro Day. The Vikings saw enough to sign him as an undrafted free agent this spring. A strong showing in training camp and preseason seemed to assure a practice squad spot but it took until this week for that to happen. An NFL practice squad is a fluid thing.
Julian Wilson was signed by the Baltimore Ravens as an undrafted free agent out of Oklahoma after the 2015 NFL Draft. He had competing offers from the Seattle Seahawks, Kansas City Chiefs, Atlanta Falcons, and Cleveland Browns. Unfortunately, he broke his leg in mini-camp and was placed on injured reserve. He competed for a roster spot this summer but the Ravens released him. The Kansas City Chiefs had him on their practice squad for about a week. Now, he's on the Vikings practice squad. An NFL practice squad is a fluid thing.
Tuesday, September 13, 2016
NFL Week 1 Power Rankings
There still isn't enough football evidence to accurately rank the 32 NFL teams but we still try. Here's the Flea Flicker NFL Power Rankings after one week of thrilling football games and a Monday night jammed with four teams and two less than thrilling games.
Week 2 could change much of this.
1. New England Patriots
2. Arizona Cardinals
3. Denver Broncos
4. Carolina Panthers
5. Pittsburgh Steelers
6. Minnesota Vikings
7. Seattle Seahawks
8. Green Bay Packers
9. Cincinnati Bengals
10. Kansas City Chiefs
11. Houston Texans
12. New York Jets
13. Oakland Raiders
14. New York Giants
15. Baltimore Ravens
16. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
17. Jacksonville Jaguars
18. Miami Dolphins
19. Detroit Lions
20. Dallas Cowboys
21. Philadelphia Eagles
22. Indianapolis Colts
23. New Orleans Saints
24. Tennessee Titans
25. Washington Redskins
26. Buffalo Bills
27. Atlanta Falcons
28. San Diego Chargers
29. San Francisco 49ers
30. Chicago Bears
31. Cleveland Browns
32. Los Angeles Rams
Week 2 could change much of this.
Monday, September 12, 2016
Week 1 Thoughts
Football is back!
The Minnesota Vikings visited the Tennessee Titans in the opener. The Vikings defense was the difference in the 25-16 win.
Shaun Hill started at quarterback for the Vikings. While it wasn't quite the surprise that head coach Mike Zimmer made it out to be a few days ago the starter wasn't 100% certain until yesterday morning. The quarterback situation in Minnesota became a cloudy one when Teddy Bridgewater was lost for the season to an ugly knee injury on August 30. Three days later the Vikings traded a first and a conditional fourth-round pick to the Philadelphia Eagles for Sam Bradford. While Bradford is expected to be the eventual starter, perhaps as early as next week, the Titans game belonged to Hill. He played well in completing 18 of 33 passes for 236 yards. As important as the completions and the yards, he didn't make mistakes that cost his team. He had no turnovers and wasn't sacked.
One of the biggest problems that the Vikings had last season was their frequent inability to score touchdowns when they entered the red zone. They had too many short field goals. It was a problem yesterday. Kicker Blair Walsh was on the field way too often. For the day, he made four field goals and an extra point. That looks great until you consider the two field goals and the extra point that he missed. Missed extra points simply shouldn't happen. The Vikings made it to the Titans 11-yard line on their second possession. They had to settle for a 37-yard field goal attempt. Walsh missed it. He attempted a 56-yarder at the end of the first half. He missed that one as well. A 56-yard field goal is, at best, a longshot. Literally. The real problem here isn't the missed field goals. It's the missed touchdowns. The Vikings have to score touchdowns when they get inside the opponents 20-yard line. They move the ball down the field and then stall way too often. Walsh made a 33-yarder in the third quarter and a 30-yarder in the fourth quarter. The Vikings were inside the Titans 15-yard line on three occasions and they only scored six points on two field goals. If it wasn't for the defense the Vikings probably lose this game.
The Minnesota Vikings defense. The Titans offense spent nearly all of the first half on the move. Quarterback Marcus Mariota and running backs DeMarco Murray and Derrick Henry were difficult to contain. There's a lot of football talent in the Tennessee backfield. The one thing that the Vikings defense did right in the first half was contain Titans when they neared scoring territory. It felt like the Titans threatened to score on every one of their first half possessions. They only scored 10 points. That was all the points that the Titans scored until the final seconds. The Vikings defense was terrific in the second half. They turned a probable loss into a convincing win.
The Vikings started the second half in fine fashion when Cordarrelle Patterson returned the kickoff 61 yards to the Titans 34-yard line. Unfortunately, the Vikings offense could only move the ball two yards closer to the Titans goal line. That's not a very productive drive to follow a big play. Fortunately, Walsh made the 50-yard field goal. The Vikings were finally on the scoreboard. 10-3.
It was a disappointment to not take full advantage of Patterson's return but that return did seem to flip the momentum. Despite that 10-3 Titans lead it just felt like the Vikings were taking control. A Titans three-and-out was followed by an efficient Vikings drive that ended in another short field goal. 10-6. Then the Vikings defense really took matters into their own hands. Middle linebacker Eric Kendricks ended a nice Titans drive with an interception that he took 77 yards for the first Vikings touchdown. Walsh missed the extra point but the Vikings had a 12-10 lead. Patterson's return flipped the momentum but it was Kendricks' return that flipped the game in the Vikings favor.
The Vikings forced another three-and-out and the offense put together another efficient drive that ended with another Walsh field goal. 15-10 Vikings early in the fourth quarter.
Defensive end Danielle Hunter really put things in the Vikings favor when he scooped up a Mariota/Murray fumble and returned it 24 yards for another defensive score. Walsh made this extra point. 22-10 Vikings with about 11 minutes to play.
Vikings safety Andrew Sendejo collected another Titans fumble three plays into the Titans next possession. The defense was rolling. They Vikings had a late interception by Harrison Smith taken away by a knucklehead move by defensive end Everson Griffen. With the ball already heading to Smith, Griffen gave Mariota a shove. That allowed the Titans to retain possession and continue a drive that ended in a touchdown. A failed two-point conversion made the final score 25-16.
The Vikings inactive list had some surprises. Starting corner Xavier Rhodes missed most of the practices last week with a hamstring issue. He was reportedly inactive due to a knee issue that resulted from pregame stretching. That was a surprise. Trae Waynes started in his place. The second-year player did well. He made some plays, defended some passes, and kept everything in front of him. Waynes, Kendricks, and Hunter were the Vikings first, second, and third-round picks, respectively, in the 2015 NFL Draft. All three played big roles in yesterday's win.
Another inactive was receiver Jarius Wright. He's been a reliable contributor for nearly all of his four years with the Vikings. An injury forced him to miss a significant portion of training camp and it seems that missed time has put him on the wrong side of the weekly numbers game.
Most of Shaun Hill's passes went to receivers Stefon Diggs and Adam Thielen and tight end Kyle Rudolph.
Diggs had 7 catches for 103 yards. He and Hill just missed on a touchdown connection in the first half.
Thielen had 4 catches for 54 yards. His catches were of the clutch variety when down and distance weren't in the Vikings favor. Thielen has been a special teams ace for the past couple of seasons but he's become much more than that lately. He's a major contributor on offense.
Rudolph had 4 catches for 64 yards. Most of those yards were of the of the big play variety.
The biggest issue for the Vikings offense was probably the tremendous job that the Titans defense did on running back Adrian Peterson. 19 carries for the itty bitty total of 31 yards. He had nowhere to run. Stopping Peterson was a clear priority as the Titans had at least eight in the box whenever he was in the backfield and with little regard to down and distance. Whoever starts at quarterback for the Vikings moving forward has to make defenses pay for this sort of strategy. Hill made some plays down the field but there were some misses as well. Some of that itty bitty rushing total is on Peterson. He was hesitant in hitting the line on several of his carries. Dancing and waiting for holes rather than attacking. This is the second consecutive year in which Peterson has started a little tentative. Maybe the Vikings should rethink the policy of not playing their all-everything back in the preseason.
As rough as the Vikings running game was the remade offensive line did a fine job of protecting the immobile Hill. He was never sacked and rarely touched. It was great to see. Bridgewater was running for his life far too often last year.
Patterson made a couple of nice plays on offense. He's been a void on offense for most of the last couple of seasons. It would be great to see him get more touches each game. He's such a dynamic football player with the ball in his hands.
The Titans will be a fun team to watch. Mariota, Murray, and Henry will give defenses headaches in the backfield. Delanie Walker is a terrific tight end. Rookie receiver Tajae Sharpe is a very promising player. 7 catches for 76 yards yesterday.
The Vikings are 1-0 and hosting the Green Bay Packers in spectacular, new US Bank Stadium next Sunday night. It's Packers Week! The coaches will be peppered all week as to whether Hill or Bradford is under center for the Vikings. That should be a gas.
Here are some thoughts on the other games on the first day of the 2016 NFL season. There were some thrillers.
The Kansas City Chiefs came back from a 21-3 halftime deficit to beat the San Diego Chargers in overtime. 33-27 Chiefs. As big as the loss of this game for the Chargers was the possible loss of receiver Keenan Allen for the season. Again. That's quite a blow for an excellent pass catcher and his team.
The Oakland Raiders and New Orleans Saints were all set to go into overtime as well. The Raiders had other plans. Quarterback Derek Carr capped a clutch Raiders drive with a touchdown pass to Seth Roberts to make the score 34-33 with 47 seconds play. Instead of tying the score with the extra point they went for two. Bold move? Or stupid? It proved to be bold when Carr hit Michael Crabtree for the two. and the lead. The Saints had a shot to win but kicker Wil Lutz's 61-yard attempt was just left of good. 35-34 Raiders.
Bad news for the Saints. Promising second-year corner Delvin Breaux broke his fibula. Defense is already a challenge for the Saints. This makes defending even more challenging.
The Jacsonville Jaguars threw a significant scare into the Green Bay Packers. It felt like the Jaguars ran about a dozen plays from the Packers side of the field in the last minute. They were trying to do something about their 27-23 deficit. The Jaguars ran out of downs and the Packers were able to run out the clock.
A curious thing about the Jaguars strategy on that final possession was the frequency with which emerging star receiver Allen Robinson was on the sideline.
The supposedly high-scoring offenses of the Packers and Jaguars combined for 12 second half points. Two field goals apiece.
The Cincinnati Bengals squeaked past the New York Jets on a 47-yard Mike Nugent field goal with just under a minute to play. 23-22 Bengals. This was a back-and-forth field goal affair with the Bengals scoring a single point more than the Jets.
The New York Giants and Dallas Cowboys tangled for an interesting game. The Giants won the game 20-19. This game was interesting in that it felt like the Cowboys were often on the verge of blowing it open but they never did. The Giants hung in and held on to win.
Cowboys receiver Dez Bryant had what he thought was a touchdown taken away from him. It looked like a catch viewed live. It was obvious on replay that he never controlled the ball before he rolled out of bounds. Bryant really has to start understanding that the ball isn't caught until it's controlled. His ball security is pathetic.
Based on his outstanding preseason play, some people wanted to start chiseling the Hall of Fame bust and fitting the gold jacket for Cowboys rookie quarterback Dak Prescott. They might want to wait a bit on that Canton induction. Prescott was great in the preseason. He was good in his regular season debut. He completed 24 of 43 passes for 213 yards. Most importantly to Cowboys fans, the fourth-round rookie thrower doesn't look intimidated by the NFL.
I found that Prescott's most impressive play was one that ended in an incomplete pass. Giants defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul had Prescott in his sites. He smacked the quarterback's cocked throwing arm. Blows such as this usually result in a football rolling around on the ground. Instead it remained firmly in Prescott's hand and he extended the play. It was incomplete but it could have been much worse. Prescott is a strong man.
Philadelphia Eagles rookie quarterback Carson Wentz had a very nice debut. He wasn't supposed to be the starter but was named the starter when the Eagles traded Sam Bradford. Wentz completed 22 of 37 passes for 278 and couple of pretty touchdowns. The Eagles defeated the Cleveland Browns 29-10. Fittingly, the Browns were the team that publicly thought little of Wentz in the draft. I have no idea why a team would disclose such a thing. Even when asked.
The Indianapolis Colts and Detroit Lions were in a shootout. It was all Lions early as they scooted out to a 21-3 lead. Colts quarterback Andrew Luck brought his team back. The Colts took a 35-34 lead with 37 seconds remaining. That was too many seconds as Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford needed only about 30 to get his team in field goal position. Matt Prater hit the field for 37-35 win. A sad, desperate kick return by the Colts ended with an illegal forward pass in the end zone. The resulting safety made the official final score 39-35.
The Baltimore Ravens held off the Buffalo Bills 13-7. Free agent addition Mike Wallace caught the lone Ravens touchdown. An explosive 66-yarder. It's a real shame that Wallace couldn't come up with one, or more, of these big plays for the Vikings last year. Wallace and quarterback Joe Flacco should form a big play pair. That's why the mercurial receiver went to Baltimore.
A look at the top-10 receiving yardage producers in the early games shows the emergence of a new wave of pass-catchers.
1. AJ Green 180 yards, TD (54 yards)
2. Willie Snead 172 yards, TD (1)
3. Brandin Cooks 143 yards, 2 TDs (15,98)
4. Amari Cooper 137 yards
5. Spencer Ware 129 yards
6. Jordan Matthews 114 yards, TD (19)
7. Will Fuller 107 yards
8. Alshon Jeffery 105 yards
9. Stefon Diggs 103 yards
10. Mike Evans 99 yards, TD (45)
Spencer Ware doesn't count in this study due to the fact that he plays running back. AJ Green at 28 years of age and Alshon Jeffery at 26 are the grey beards of the group. The remaining receivers are 24 and younger. The NFL becomes more a passing league with each season and there's a load of young, talented receivers making it happen.
The first Sunday of the 2016 NFL season was capped by a fun game. The New England Patriots held on to defeat the Arizona Cardinals 23-21/ The Patriots were without quarterback Tom Brady to a trumped-up suspension and tight end Rob Gronkowski to injury. It didn't matter, the Patriots just find a way to win big games such as these, It also helps when your opponent misses a 47-yard field goal at the end.
It was reported earlier in the day that this season will be the last of Cardinals receiver Larry Fitzgerald's career. He's such a fun football player. One of the best ever pass catchers. If his last season is anything like his performance on the Cardinals final drive last night it could be one of his best. He willed his team down the field.
Football is back!
The Minnesota Vikings visited the Tennessee Titans in the opener. The Vikings defense was the difference in the 25-16 win.
Shaun Hill started at quarterback for the Vikings. While it wasn't quite the surprise that head coach Mike Zimmer made it out to be a few days ago the starter wasn't 100% certain until yesterday morning. The quarterback situation in Minnesota became a cloudy one when Teddy Bridgewater was lost for the season to an ugly knee injury on August 30. Three days later the Vikings traded a first and a conditional fourth-round pick to the Philadelphia Eagles for Sam Bradford. While Bradford is expected to be the eventual starter, perhaps as early as next week, the Titans game belonged to Hill. He played well in completing 18 of 33 passes for 236 yards. As important as the completions and the yards, he didn't make mistakes that cost his team. He had no turnovers and wasn't sacked.
One of the biggest problems that the Vikings had last season was their frequent inability to score touchdowns when they entered the red zone. They had too many short field goals. It was a problem yesterday. Kicker Blair Walsh was on the field way too often. For the day, he made four field goals and an extra point. That looks great until you consider the two field goals and the extra point that he missed. Missed extra points simply shouldn't happen. The Vikings made it to the Titans 11-yard line on their second possession. They had to settle for a 37-yard field goal attempt. Walsh missed it. He attempted a 56-yarder at the end of the first half. He missed that one as well. A 56-yard field goal is, at best, a longshot. Literally. The real problem here isn't the missed field goals. It's the missed touchdowns. The Vikings have to score touchdowns when they get inside the opponents 20-yard line. They move the ball down the field and then stall way too often. Walsh made a 33-yarder in the third quarter and a 30-yarder in the fourth quarter. The Vikings were inside the Titans 15-yard line on three occasions and they only scored six points on two field goals. If it wasn't for the defense the Vikings probably lose this game.
The Minnesota Vikings defense. The Titans offense spent nearly all of the first half on the move. Quarterback Marcus Mariota and running backs DeMarco Murray and Derrick Henry were difficult to contain. There's a lot of football talent in the Tennessee backfield. The one thing that the Vikings defense did right in the first half was contain Titans when they neared scoring territory. It felt like the Titans threatened to score on every one of their first half possessions. They only scored 10 points. That was all the points that the Titans scored until the final seconds. The Vikings defense was terrific in the second half. They turned a probable loss into a convincing win.
The Vikings started the second half in fine fashion when Cordarrelle Patterson returned the kickoff 61 yards to the Titans 34-yard line. Unfortunately, the Vikings offense could only move the ball two yards closer to the Titans goal line. That's not a very productive drive to follow a big play. Fortunately, Walsh made the 50-yard field goal. The Vikings were finally on the scoreboard. 10-3.
It was a disappointment to not take full advantage of Patterson's return but that return did seem to flip the momentum. Despite that 10-3 Titans lead it just felt like the Vikings were taking control. A Titans three-and-out was followed by an efficient Vikings drive that ended in another short field goal. 10-6. Then the Vikings defense really took matters into their own hands. Middle linebacker Eric Kendricks ended a nice Titans drive with an interception that he took 77 yards for the first Vikings touchdown. Walsh missed the extra point but the Vikings had a 12-10 lead. Patterson's return flipped the momentum but it was Kendricks' return that flipped the game in the Vikings favor.
The Vikings forced another three-and-out and the offense put together another efficient drive that ended with another Walsh field goal. 15-10 Vikings early in the fourth quarter.
Defensive end Danielle Hunter really put things in the Vikings favor when he scooped up a Mariota/Murray fumble and returned it 24 yards for another defensive score. Walsh made this extra point. 22-10 Vikings with about 11 minutes to play.
Vikings safety Andrew Sendejo collected another Titans fumble three plays into the Titans next possession. The defense was rolling. They Vikings had a late interception by Harrison Smith taken away by a knucklehead move by defensive end Everson Griffen. With the ball already heading to Smith, Griffen gave Mariota a shove. That allowed the Titans to retain possession and continue a drive that ended in a touchdown. A failed two-point conversion made the final score 25-16.
The Vikings inactive list had some surprises. Starting corner Xavier Rhodes missed most of the practices last week with a hamstring issue. He was reportedly inactive due to a knee issue that resulted from pregame stretching. That was a surprise. Trae Waynes started in his place. The second-year player did well. He made some plays, defended some passes, and kept everything in front of him. Waynes, Kendricks, and Hunter were the Vikings first, second, and third-round picks, respectively, in the 2015 NFL Draft. All three played big roles in yesterday's win.
Another inactive was receiver Jarius Wright. He's been a reliable contributor for nearly all of his four years with the Vikings. An injury forced him to miss a significant portion of training camp and it seems that missed time has put him on the wrong side of the weekly numbers game.
Most of Shaun Hill's passes went to receivers Stefon Diggs and Adam Thielen and tight end Kyle Rudolph.
Diggs had 7 catches for 103 yards. He and Hill just missed on a touchdown connection in the first half.
Thielen had 4 catches for 54 yards. His catches were of the clutch variety when down and distance weren't in the Vikings favor. Thielen has been a special teams ace for the past couple of seasons but he's become much more than that lately. He's a major contributor on offense.
Rudolph had 4 catches for 64 yards. Most of those yards were of the of the big play variety.
The biggest issue for the Vikings offense was probably the tremendous job that the Titans defense did on running back Adrian Peterson. 19 carries for the itty bitty total of 31 yards. He had nowhere to run. Stopping Peterson was a clear priority as the Titans had at least eight in the box whenever he was in the backfield and with little regard to down and distance. Whoever starts at quarterback for the Vikings moving forward has to make defenses pay for this sort of strategy. Hill made some plays down the field but there were some misses as well. Some of that itty bitty rushing total is on Peterson. He was hesitant in hitting the line on several of his carries. Dancing and waiting for holes rather than attacking. This is the second consecutive year in which Peterson has started a little tentative. Maybe the Vikings should rethink the policy of not playing their all-everything back in the preseason.
As rough as the Vikings running game was the remade offensive line did a fine job of protecting the immobile Hill. He was never sacked and rarely touched. It was great to see. Bridgewater was running for his life far too often last year.
Patterson made a couple of nice plays on offense. He's been a void on offense for most of the last couple of seasons. It would be great to see him get more touches each game. He's such a dynamic football player with the ball in his hands.
The Titans will be a fun team to watch. Mariota, Murray, and Henry will give defenses headaches in the backfield. Delanie Walker is a terrific tight end. Rookie receiver Tajae Sharpe is a very promising player. 7 catches for 76 yards yesterday.
The Vikings are 1-0 and hosting the Green Bay Packers in spectacular, new US Bank Stadium next Sunday night. It's Packers Week! The coaches will be peppered all week as to whether Hill or Bradford is under center for the Vikings. That should be a gas.
Here are some thoughts on the other games on the first day of the 2016 NFL season. There were some thrillers.
The Kansas City Chiefs came back from a 21-3 halftime deficit to beat the San Diego Chargers in overtime. 33-27 Chiefs. As big as the loss of this game for the Chargers was the possible loss of receiver Keenan Allen for the season. Again. That's quite a blow for an excellent pass catcher and his team.
The Oakland Raiders and New Orleans Saints were all set to go into overtime as well. The Raiders had other plans. Quarterback Derek Carr capped a clutch Raiders drive with a touchdown pass to Seth Roberts to make the score 34-33 with 47 seconds play. Instead of tying the score with the extra point they went for two. Bold move? Or stupid? It proved to be bold when Carr hit Michael Crabtree for the two. and the lead. The Saints had a shot to win but kicker Wil Lutz's 61-yard attempt was just left of good. 35-34 Raiders.
Bad news for the Saints. Promising second-year corner Delvin Breaux broke his fibula. Defense is already a challenge for the Saints. This makes defending even more challenging.
The Jacsonville Jaguars threw a significant scare into the Green Bay Packers. It felt like the Jaguars ran about a dozen plays from the Packers side of the field in the last minute. They were trying to do something about their 27-23 deficit. The Jaguars ran out of downs and the Packers were able to run out the clock.
A curious thing about the Jaguars strategy on that final possession was the frequency with which emerging star receiver Allen Robinson was on the sideline.
The supposedly high-scoring offenses of the Packers and Jaguars combined for 12 second half points. Two field goals apiece.
The Cincinnati Bengals squeaked past the New York Jets on a 47-yard Mike Nugent field goal with just under a minute to play. 23-22 Bengals. This was a back-and-forth field goal affair with the Bengals scoring a single point more than the Jets.
The New York Giants and Dallas Cowboys tangled for an interesting game. The Giants won the game 20-19. This game was interesting in that it felt like the Cowboys were often on the verge of blowing it open but they never did. The Giants hung in and held on to win.
Cowboys receiver Dez Bryant had what he thought was a touchdown taken away from him. It looked like a catch viewed live. It was obvious on replay that he never controlled the ball before he rolled out of bounds. Bryant really has to start understanding that the ball isn't caught until it's controlled. His ball security is pathetic.
Based on his outstanding preseason play, some people wanted to start chiseling the Hall of Fame bust and fitting the gold jacket for Cowboys rookie quarterback Dak Prescott. They might want to wait a bit on that Canton induction. Prescott was great in the preseason. He was good in his regular season debut. He completed 24 of 43 passes for 213 yards. Most importantly to Cowboys fans, the fourth-round rookie thrower doesn't look intimidated by the NFL.
I found that Prescott's most impressive play was one that ended in an incomplete pass. Giants defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul had Prescott in his sites. He smacked the quarterback's cocked throwing arm. Blows such as this usually result in a football rolling around on the ground. Instead it remained firmly in Prescott's hand and he extended the play. It was incomplete but it could have been much worse. Prescott is a strong man.
Philadelphia Eagles rookie quarterback Carson Wentz had a very nice debut. He wasn't supposed to be the starter but was named the starter when the Eagles traded Sam Bradford. Wentz completed 22 of 37 passes for 278 and couple of pretty touchdowns. The Eagles defeated the Cleveland Browns 29-10. Fittingly, the Browns were the team that publicly thought little of Wentz in the draft. I have no idea why a team would disclose such a thing. Even when asked.
The Indianapolis Colts and Detroit Lions were in a shootout. It was all Lions early as they scooted out to a 21-3 lead. Colts quarterback Andrew Luck brought his team back. The Colts took a 35-34 lead with 37 seconds remaining. That was too many seconds as Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford needed only about 30 to get his team in field goal position. Matt Prater hit the field for 37-35 win. A sad, desperate kick return by the Colts ended with an illegal forward pass in the end zone. The resulting safety made the official final score 39-35.
The Baltimore Ravens held off the Buffalo Bills 13-7. Free agent addition Mike Wallace caught the lone Ravens touchdown. An explosive 66-yarder. It's a real shame that Wallace couldn't come up with one, or more, of these big plays for the Vikings last year. Wallace and quarterback Joe Flacco should form a big play pair. That's why the mercurial receiver went to Baltimore.
A look at the top-10 receiving yardage producers in the early games shows the emergence of a new wave of pass-catchers.
1. AJ Green 180 yards, TD (54 yards)
2. Willie Snead 172 yards, TD (1)
3. Brandin Cooks 143 yards, 2 TDs (15,98)
4. Amari Cooper 137 yards
5. Spencer Ware 129 yards
6. Jordan Matthews 114 yards, TD (19)
7. Will Fuller 107 yards
8. Alshon Jeffery 105 yards
9. Stefon Diggs 103 yards
10. Mike Evans 99 yards, TD (45)
Spencer Ware doesn't count in this study due to the fact that he plays running back. AJ Green at 28 years of age and Alshon Jeffery at 26 are the grey beards of the group. The remaining receivers are 24 and younger. The NFL becomes more a passing league with each season and there's a load of young, talented receivers making it happen.
The first Sunday of the 2016 NFL season was capped by a fun game. The New England Patriots held on to defeat the Arizona Cardinals 23-21/ The Patriots were without quarterback Tom Brady to a trumped-up suspension and tight end Rob Gronkowski to injury. It didn't matter, the Patriots just find a way to win big games such as these, It also helps when your opponent misses a 47-yard field goal at the end.
It was reported earlier in the day that this season will be the last of Cardinals receiver Larry Fitzgerald's career. He's such a fun football player. One of the best ever pass catchers. If his last season is anything like his performance on the Cardinals final drive last night it could be one of his best. He willed his team down the field.
Football is back!
Sunday, September 11, 2016
The 2016 NFL Season Is Here. Finally.
The NFL offseason doesn't seem so long when you're in the middle of it. The Scouting Combine, Free Agency, the Draft, OTAs, and mini-camps. One significant offseason event leads into another. It all moves pretty fast and the anticipation of a new season builds with each step. That anticipation peaks with training camps and the preseason. By the time those practice games finally end it seems like it's been forever since we last had some decent football. The 2016 NFL Season is finally here.
The 2016 NFL season actually kicked off last Thursday. That still doesn't feel right. Thursday Night Football still doesn't sound right. No matter how much I love football I still find the professional version best served on Sundays. Fall Sundays are for the NFL. The NFL is for fall Sundays. At least last Thursday's game was a good one. If the midweek games continue as they have in recent seasons it might be the last good Thursday night game that we see.
As a Minnesota Vikings fan, this is a season with grand expectations. A talented football team, an outstanding head coach and a spectacular new stadium generated football hope the likes of which I've never seen in Minnesota. Those grand expectations took a serious hit 11 days ago when quarterback Teddy Bridgewater was lost for the season to a serious knee injury. Three days after that sad day the Vikings traded a first round pick and a conditional fourth to the Philadelphia Eagles for Sam Bradford. He isn't expected to start today but he should start soon. Probably next week against the Green Bay Packers in the game that opens that beautiful new stadium. The team is still talented. The head coach is still outstanding. And the stadium is still new and spectacular. The football expectations are still high in Minnesota. The 2016 Minnesota Vikings season should be a fun ride.
The deflategate nonsense has clouded two offseasons. It's simply stunning that this trumped-up bit of nothing lasted more than a day. Two offseasons! It finally ended when Tom Brady reluctantly gave up the fight of his four-game suspension. He's out of the plans of the New England Patriots for the first quarter of the season. We'll see if third-year thrower Jimmy Garropolo can hold down the fort for the annual Super Bowl contenders.
The NFL returns to Los Angeles. With profound apologies to the fans of the St. Louis Rams, the Los Angeles Rams just feels right. This franchise has played in three cities. Cleveland, Los Angeles, and St. Louis. They may have been in the latter for the last twenty years, a significant time, but they were in Los Angeles for the previous fifty. I grew up knowing the Rams as the Los Angeles Rams. It took nearly all of the last twenty years to get used to calling them the St. Louis Rams now they are back in Los Angeles.
Hopefully the Rams move is the last franchise move that we see, The San Diego Chargers have to stay in San Diego. Not only do they belong in San Diego but Los Angeles has to prove that they can support one team before another is forced upon the city.
Can a super talented Arizona Cardinals team get back to the Super Bowl? Can Cardinals quarterback Carson Palmer carry his MVP-level regular season play into the postseason?
The same question hangs over the Cincinnati Bengals and quarterback Andy Dalton. The Bengals have been one of the most talented teams in the league for a couple of seasons but they have yet to win a playoff game.
Are the Cleveland Browns finally headed in the right, but unique, direction?
Are the Jacksonville Jaguars as talented on the field as they are on paper?
Can Indianapolis Colts quarterback Andrew Luck rebound after an un-Luck like, injury-plagued season?
How about that rookie backfield in Dallas?
And that new, pricey New York Giants defense?
Those are just a few of the questions entering this NFL season. There are so many more? The next 17 weeks should answer some of them. The postseason will answer the rest.
The 2016 NFL Season is finally here.
Go Vikings!
Go Vikings!
Saturday, September 10, 2016
Teddy's Knee
Minnesota Vikings quarterback Teddy Bridgewater suffered a serious injury to his left knee on August 30. He had surgery to repair the knee on Thursday. All of the Vikings beat writers knew this and peppered head coach Mike Zimmer with questions about the health of his quarterback. All Zimmer had to say then was that the surgery was "a good repair." He's not a doctor. Vikings head trainer Eric Sugarman was more expansive in this statement that he released yesterday.
Teddy Bridgewater had his left knee surgically repaired yesterday. The procedure was performed by Dr. Dan Cooper at the Carrell Clinic in Dallas, TX. The knee dislocation resulted in Teddy needing a multi-ligament reconstruction. I was able to be present in Dallas, support Teddy and observe the entire procedure. The repair was excellent and gives Teddy every reason to be very optimistic.
Teddy already began the rehab process yesterday, will return to Minnesota to continue on the road to recovery very soon and looks forward to getting back on the field.
There was great optimism among Vikings faithful after Zimmer's brief comment. There was some mention from "sources" other than Zimmer that the ACL was the only ligament that required repair. That was a little difficult to believe as Bridgewater suffered a severe dislocation of his knee. This is one of many reasons that Zimmer doesn't much care for talking about injuries. Not being a doctor, he knows that he doesn't have the answers. Besides the fact that he simply doesn't want to answer those questions. Often, he doesn't want to answer any questions. He just wants to coach football. He's awesome. But, that's beside the point. Teddy Bridgewater's injury was serious but it still wasn't as serious as some feared. There wasn't the nerve or vascular damage that can occur in dislocations such as this. Perhaps that's what was meant in the brief and overly optimistic reports that came out immediately after the surgery.
A couple interesting nuggets regarding this surgery is that Dr. Dan Cooper is the Dallas Cowboys orthopedic surgeon. I'm sure glad that Sugarman was there to watch his every move. Cooper is also the doctor that performed the surgery on Notre Dame linebacker Jaylon Smith's knee following his brutal injury in last January's Fiesta Bowl. The Cowboys, with their insider knowledge of the injury and surgery, selected Smith in the second round of the 2016 NFL Draft. Due to the "look-away" nature of both, Bridgewater's injury has been compared to that suffered by Smith. The difference being that Smith suffered nerve damage as well as extensive ligament damage. That's the main reason he's still working hard to get back on the field. The absence of nerve damage in Bridgewater's knee is a source of optimism in Minnesota. No surgery and rehab is routine or easy but he has fewer obstacles in his return to the field than was feared. Like Zimmer, I'm no doctor but Teddy's knee injury sounds like it might be more like the one suffered by Adrian Peterson in 2011 despite the unfortunate similarities to Smith's. Hopefully, Bridgewater can come back in 2017 like Peterson came back in 2012. I do believe that Teddy Bridgewater made some reference to doing just that on the evening of August 30.
Get well soon, Teddy.
Friday, September 9, 2016
Flea Flicker Week 1 Predictions
Football's back! And the Carolina Panthers still can't beat the Denver Broncos as Trevor Siemian pulled off his best Otto Graham impression.
Here are the Flea Flicker predictions of the rest of the Week 1 games.
Minnesota Vikings at Tennessee Titans
Pick: Vikings
Who starts at quarterback for the Vikings?
Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Atlanta Falcons
Pick: Falcons
The other three NFC South teams watched the Panthers run away with the division last year. All three think that they are much closer this year. This is an early big game.
Cleveland Browns at Philadelphia Eagles
Pick: Browns
This game was also thrown for a loop when the Eagles traded Sam Bradford to the Vikings.
Oakland Raiders at New Orleans Saints
Pick: Raiders
The Raiders have been flying high, collecting fans all offseason. Now they have to show that they are really as good as a lot of people think that they are. The Saints are a tough first test.
Cincinnati Bengals at New York Jets
Pick: Bengals
The Bengals are one of the most talented teams in the league. The Jets have a lot of talent too. This should be one of the most entertaining games of the first week.
San Diego Chargers at Kansas City Chiefs
Pick: Chiefs
The AFC West is wide open. Any of the four can win it. I'm simply going with the home team in this one.
Chicago Bears at Houston Texans
Pick: Texans
The Texans feel like they finally have their quarterback in Brock Osweiler. When healthy, they are pretty much set everywhere else. Health issues on the offensive line could bring issues in this game. The Bears were a mess in the preseason.
Buffalo Bills at Baltimore Ravens
Pick Ravens
The Bills are having all kinds of issues. Every day seems to bring a new one. The Ravens should benefit this week.
Green Bay Packers at Jacksonville Jaguars
Pick: Packers
This should be a wildly entertaining game. The Jaguars are a team on the rise. The Packers are already there. And they have Aaron Rodgers.
Miami Dolphins at Seattle Seahawks
Pick: Seahawks
The Seahawks rarely lose at home.
Detroit Lions at Indianapolis Colts
Pick: Colts
A shaky Colts defense could make this game a shootout. Andrew Luck should do enough to win.
New York Giants at Dallas Cowboys
Pick: Giants
Big game. A new, expensive Giants defense look to make rookie quarterback Dak Prescott uncomfortable all game.
Sunday Night Football
New England Patriots at Arizona Cardinals
Pick: Cardinals
A Super Bowl LI preview? Tom Brady's stupid suspension takes some of the pizzazz out of this game. It should still be a fun one.
Monday Night Football
Pittsburgh Steelers at Washington Redskins
Pick: Steelers
A chunk of the Steelers offense is missing with the suspension of running back Le'Veon Bell. They still have Ben Roethlisberger and Antonio Brown. They're pretty good. Redskins quarterback Kirk Cousins is still tasked with proving to his team and everyone that he's the real deal.
Los Angeles Rams at San Francisco 49ers
Pick: Rams
Why the NFL finds it necessary to stack two Monday Night games in Week 1 is beyond me. How much is enough? We are asking the NFL that question far too often. Starting the first game at 4:00 pm on a weekday and the second game after 10:00 pm on a weeknight is ridiculous.
Football's back!
Here are the Flea Flicker predictions of the rest of the Week 1 games.
Minnesota Vikings at Tennessee Titans
Pick: Vikings
Who starts at quarterback for the Vikings?
Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Atlanta Falcons
Pick: Falcons
The other three NFC South teams watched the Panthers run away with the division last year. All three think that they are much closer this year. This is an early big game.
Cleveland Browns at Philadelphia Eagles
Pick: Browns
This game was also thrown for a loop when the Eagles traded Sam Bradford to the Vikings.
Oakland Raiders at New Orleans Saints
Pick: Raiders
The Raiders have been flying high, collecting fans all offseason. Now they have to show that they are really as good as a lot of people think that they are. The Saints are a tough first test.
Cincinnati Bengals at New York Jets
Pick: Bengals
The Bengals are one of the most talented teams in the league. The Jets have a lot of talent too. This should be one of the most entertaining games of the first week.
San Diego Chargers at Kansas City Chiefs
Pick: Chiefs
The AFC West is wide open. Any of the four can win it. I'm simply going with the home team in this one.
Chicago Bears at Houston Texans
Pick: Texans
The Texans feel like they finally have their quarterback in Brock Osweiler. When healthy, they are pretty much set everywhere else. Health issues on the offensive line could bring issues in this game. The Bears were a mess in the preseason.
Buffalo Bills at Baltimore Ravens
Pick Ravens
The Bills are having all kinds of issues. Every day seems to bring a new one. The Ravens should benefit this week.
Green Bay Packers at Jacksonville Jaguars
Pick: Packers
This should be a wildly entertaining game. The Jaguars are a team on the rise. The Packers are already there. And they have Aaron Rodgers.
Miami Dolphins at Seattle Seahawks
Pick: Seahawks
The Seahawks rarely lose at home.
Detroit Lions at Indianapolis Colts
Pick: Colts
A shaky Colts defense could make this game a shootout. Andrew Luck should do enough to win.
New York Giants at Dallas Cowboys
Pick: Giants
Big game. A new, expensive Giants defense look to make rookie quarterback Dak Prescott uncomfortable all game.
Sunday Night Football
New England Patriots at Arizona Cardinals
Pick: Cardinals
A Super Bowl LI preview? Tom Brady's stupid suspension takes some of the pizzazz out of this game. It should still be a fun one.
Monday Night Football
Pittsburgh Steelers at Washington Redskins
Pick: Steelers
A chunk of the Steelers offense is missing with the suspension of running back Le'Veon Bell. They still have Ben Roethlisberger and Antonio Brown. They're pretty good. Redskins quarterback Kirk Cousins is still tasked with proving to his team and everyone that he's the real deal.
Los Angeles Rams at San Francisco 49ers
Pick: Rams
Why the NFL finds it necessary to stack two Monday Night games in Week 1 is beyond me. How much is enough? We are asking the NFL that question far too often. Starting the first game at 4:00 pm on a weekday and the second game after 10:00 pm on a weeknight is ridiculous.
Football's back!
Thursday, September 8, 2016
Flea Flicker 2016 NFL Season Predictions
The NFL season starts tonight. Carolina Panthers @ Denver Broncos. Super Bowl rematch. Here's one guess as to how the season might play out in 2016.
NFC North
1. Minnesota Vikings-of course
2. Green Bay Packers
3. Detroit Lions
4. Chicago Bears
NFC East
1. New York Giants
2. Dallas Cowboys
3. Washington Redskins
4. Philadelphia Eagles
I can see any of the four winning this division.
NFC South
1. Carolina Panthers
2. Atlanta Falcons
3. New Orleans Saints
4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Th NFC South was the Panthers and three other teams last year. The other teams are on the rise.
NFC West
1. Arizona Cardinals
2. Seattle Seahawks
3. Los Angeles Rams
4. San Francisco 49ers
This division is finally geographically accurate. Sorry St. Louis. The Cardinals vs. Seahawks battle for the division crown might be the highlight of the NFL's regular season.
AFC North
1. Pittsburgh Steelers
2. Cincinnati Bengals
3. Baltimore Ravens
4. Cleveland Browns
The Steelers vs Bengals battle could be the AFC's version of Cardinals vs Seahawks. It's just a hunch but the Browns ownership of the bottom of this division might coming to an end. Not this year but soon.
AFC East
1. New England Patriots
2. Miami Dolphins
3. New York Jets
4. Buffalo Bills
Like the NFC East, the AFC East could end up in a variety of ways. Unlike the NFC East, the AFC East has a clear leader.
AFC South
1. Indianapolis Colts
2. Houston Texans
3. Jacksonville Jaguars
4. Tennessee Titans
It's interesting that some of the respective NFC and AFC divisions mirror each other. Like the NFC South, the AFC South teams are all on the rise. Unlike the NFC South, the AFC South doesn't have a clear leader. This division could be one of the most entertaining in the league. That entertainment is dependent, as always, on each team's talented, young quarterbacks.
AFC West
1. San Diego Chargers
2. Oakland Raiders
3. Kansas City Chiefs
4. Denver Broncos
This division is a coin flip. It wouldn't be a surprise if any of the four wins it. As a result, any of the four could come in last.
Super Bowl
Arizona Cardinals over New England Patriots
Super Bowl
Arizona Cardinals over New England Patriots
There it is. None of this should be used for gambling purposes.
Wednesday, September 7, 2016
Flea Flicker's 2016 NFL Awards Predictions
The NFL's 2016 regular season is so close. So, how about a look at some of the players that might take home some of the hardware at the end of the season.
MVP
Ben Roethlisberger, QB, Pittsburgh Steelers
Offensive Player of the Year
Antonio Brown, WR, Pittsburgh Steelers
Looks like a good year for the Steelers
Defensive Player of the Year
Tyrann Mathieu, everywhere, Arizona Cardinals
Comeback Player of the Year
Jordy Nelson, WR, Green Bay Packers
Coach of the Year
Mike Zimmer, Minnesota Vikings
Offensive Rookie of the Year
Corey Coleman, WR, Cleveland Browns
Defensive Rookie of the Year
Noah Spence, DE, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Passing Leader-Yards
Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints
Passing Leader-Efficiency
Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay Packers
Rushing Leader
Adrian Peterson, Minnesota Vikings
Receiving Leader-Catches and Yards
Antonio Brown, Pittsburgh Steelers
Scoring Leader-Kicking
Chris Boswell, Pittsburgh Steelers
Touchdowns Leader
Adrian Peterson, Minnesota Vikings
Sacks Leader
Khalil Mack, Oakland Raiders
Interceptions Leader
Reshad Jones, Miami Dolphins
It could happen.
Tuesday, September 6, 2016
Minnesota Vikings Projected Starters
With the Minnesota Vikings 2016 roster set (for now) here's a look at the projected starting lineup (for now).
WR Stefon Diggs
TE Kyle Rudolph
T Matt Kalil
G Alex Boone
C Joe Berger
G Brandon Fusco
T Andre Smith
WR Charles Johnson
QB Sam Bradford
RB Adrian Peterson
FB Zach Line
DE Everson Griffen
DT Shariff Floyd
DT Linval Joseph
DE Brian Robison
LB Chad Greenway
LB Eric Kendricks
LB Anthony Barr
CB Xavier Rhodes
CB Trae Waynes
S Harrison Smith
S Andrew Sendejo
K Blair Walsh
P Jeff Locke
LS Kevin McDermott
It's going to take some time to get used to seeing Sam Bradford rather than Teddy Bridgewater in the Vikings quarterback position. On paper and on the field.
This projection is subject to change by Sunday's game against the Tennessee Titans. Or at any point during the season. NFL rosters are a fluid thing. One position on offense that could change at some point is at split end. Laquon Treadwell was drafted in the first round to be a difference-maker. If he can avoid the drops that he had in the final preseason game he might soon take some snaps from Charles Johnson. On defense, the ageless Terence Newman might still have the edge over Trae Waynes at left corner. I think that Waynes starts. If not in week one he will at some point during the season. The safety spot opposite Harrison Smith has been up for grabs throughout the offseason and training camp. Andrew Sendejo's the incumbent and will likely begin the season as the starter. It shouldn't be a surprise if rookie Jayron Kearse forces himself into the starting lineup at some point. He has unreal, unteachable safety size at 6'4" and he started coming on at the end of training camp and in the final preseason games. Weak-side linebacker Emanuel Lamur could challenge Chad Greenway for starting snaps. Even if Lamur doesn't get those starts he will be on the field often. He has unique coverage skills. Defensive end Danielle Hunter is too talented to keep off of the field. He's still young and raw but he's such a dynamic talent. Good things happen for the Vikings when he's in the game. Head coach Mike Zimmer, defensive coordinator George Edwards, and defensive line coach Andre Patterson favor a heavy line rotation so Hunter will be on the field a lot even if Brian Robison still gets most, if not all, of the left defensive end starting snaps.
This is a lineup with a high ceiling. Even if they do have to quickly break in a new quarterback.
WR Stefon Diggs
TE Kyle Rudolph
T Matt Kalil
G Alex Boone
C Joe Berger
G Brandon Fusco
T Andre Smith
WR Charles Johnson
QB Sam Bradford
RB Adrian Peterson
FB Zach Line
DE Everson Griffen
DT Shariff Floyd
DT Linval Joseph
DE Brian Robison
LB Chad Greenway
LB Eric Kendricks
LB Anthony Barr
CB Xavier Rhodes
CB Trae Waynes
S Harrison Smith
S Andrew Sendejo
K Blair Walsh
P Jeff Locke
LS Kevin McDermott
It's going to take some time to get used to seeing Sam Bradford rather than Teddy Bridgewater in the Vikings quarterback position. On paper and on the field.
This projection is subject to change by Sunday's game against the Tennessee Titans. Or at any point during the season. NFL rosters are a fluid thing. One position on offense that could change at some point is at split end. Laquon Treadwell was drafted in the first round to be a difference-maker. If he can avoid the drops that he had in the final preseason game he might soon take some snaps from Charles Johnson. On defense, the ageless Terence Newman might still have the edge over Trae Waynes at left corner. I think that Waynes starts. If not in week one he will at some point during the season. The safety spot opposite Harrison Smith has been up for grabs throughout the offseason and training camp. Andrew Sendejo's the incumbent and will likely begin the season as the starter. It shouldn't be a surprise if rookie Jayron Kearse forces himself into the starting lineup at some point. He has unreal, unteachable safety size at 6'4" and he started coming on at the end of training camp and in the final preseason games. Weak-side linebacker Emanuel Lamur could challenge Chad Greenway for starting snaps. Even if Lamur doesn't get those starts he will be on the field often. He has unique coverage skills. Defensive end Danielle Hunter is too talented to keep off of the field. He's still young and raw but he's such a dynamic talent. Good things happen for the Vikings when he's in the game. Head coach Mike Zimmer, defensive coordinator George Edwards, and defensive line coach Andre Patterson favor a heavy line rotation so Hunter will be on the field a lot even if Brian Robison still gets most, if not all, of the left defensive end starting snaps.
This is a lineup with a high ceiling. Even if they do have to quickly break in a new quarterback.
Monday, September 5, 2016
Minnesota Vikings 53-man Roster
With the dust cleared from an active couple of days, here's the Minnesota Vikings final (for now) 2016 53-man roster and 10-man practice squad. And the players on reserve lists.
Quarterbacks
Sam Bradford
Shaun Hill
Running backs
Adrian Peterson
Jerick McKinnon
Matt Asiata
Zach Line-fullback
Receivers
Stefon Diggs
Charles Johnson
Adam Thielen
Laquon Treadwell
Jarius Wright
Cordarrelle Patterson
Tight ends
Kyle Rudolph
MyCole Pruitt
Rhett Ellison
David Morgan
Offensive line
Matt Kalil
Alex Boone
Joe Berger
Brandon Fusco
Andre Smith
T.J. Clemmings
Nick Easton
Zac Kerin
Jeremiah Sirles
Defensive line
Everson Griffen
Shariff Floyd
Linval Joseph
Brian Robison
Danielle Hunter
Tom Johnson
Shamar Stephen
Justin Trattou
Linebackers
Anthony Barr
Eric Kendricks
Chad Greenway
Emmanuel Lamur
Audie Cole
Kentrell Brothers
Edmond Robinson
Cornerbacks
Xavier Rhodes
Trae Waynes
Captain Munnerlyn
Terence Newman
Mackensie Alexander
Marcus Sherels
Safeties
Harrison Smith
Andrew Sendejo
Anthony Harris
Jayron Kearse
Kicker
Blair Walsh
Punter
Jeff Locke
Long snapper
Kevin McDermott
10-man Practice Squad
QB Joel Stave
WR Moritz Boehringer
RB C.J. Ham
TE Kyle Carter
OL Willie Beavers
OL Isame Faciane
DE Stephen Weatherly
DT Toby Johnson
CB Tre Roberson
S Shamiel Gary
The biggest surprise is that Sam Bradford is at the top of quarterback depth chart rather than Teddy Bridgewater but injuries can change football plans in an instant. Other than the quarterback position there aren't many surprises with the Minnesota Vikings 53-man roster. I thought that rookie Stephen Weatherly might grab the fourth defensive end spot but Justin Trattou really made that spot his. Weatherly is a talented, but raw, pass rusher. He has an NFL future but a year on the practice squad will do him some good.
With Willie Beavers, Moritz Boehringer, and Stephen Weatherly signed to the practice squad all of the Vikings 2016 draft picks made the roster in some fashion. Beavers, as a fourth-round pick, "only" making the practice squad might be seen as a disappointment but nearly every rookie is a project. He wasn't expected to contribute this year. So, it's a good thing that he has a year to learn and develop without counting against the 53-man roster. Roster spots are limited. Especially on game day.
9 of the 10 players signed to the practice squad were on the Vikings roster through training camp and the preseason. Safety Shamiel Gary is the lone import. He was waived by the Miami Dolphins on Saturday. He also spent some time with the New England Patriots and Chicago Bears. He's the lone player on the practice squad with some NFL regular season snaps.
As for the reserve lists. The Vikings already have six players on injured reserve. That's an unfortunate but not an unusual start to an NFL season. The Vikings also have a couple of players on injured reserve with non-football issues.
Injured Reserve
QB Teddy Bridgewater
DE B.J. DuBose
DT Scott Crichton
S Antone Exum, Jr.
S Michael Griffin
CB Jabari Price
Teddy Bridgewater and B.J. DuBose suffered significant injuries. Jabari Price left the final preseason game with a knee injury. The extent of which has yet to be revealed, The injuries to Scott Crichton, Antone Exum Jr., and Michael Griffin are probably more of the "let's protect these players" types of injuries. Exum and Griffin could be candidates for the "likely to return" injury list.
Reserve/Non-Football Illness
G Mike Harris
The particulars of Mike Harris' "illness" has been a mystery since it was disclosed at the start of training camp.
Reserve/Non-Football Injury
QB Taylor Heinicke
Taylor Heinicke severed a tendon in his foot when he put that foot through a window a couple of weeks before the start of training camp. The injury to Bridgewater ultimately forced the need to trade for Sam Bradford but Heinicke's injury didn't help matters. If Heinicke had entered training camp healthy made he's opening the season as the starter. There's no way of knowing that for sure but his injury did play a role in the Vikings recent quarterback drama. He's currently ahead of schedule in his rehab and should start practicing in a couple of weeks.
And there's the 2016 Minnesota Vikings. A fine group of football players!
Quarterbacks
Sam Bradford
Shaun Hill
Running backs
Adrian Peterson
Jerick McKinnon
Matt Asiata
Zach Line-fullback
Receivers
Stefon Diggs
Charles Johnson
Adam Thielen
Laquon Treadwell
Jarius Wright
Cordarrelle Patterson
Tight ends
Kyle Rudolph
MyCole Pruitt
Rhett Ellison
David Morgan
Offensive line
Matt Kalil
Alex Boone
Joe Berger
Brandon Fusco
Andre Smith
T.J. Clemmings
Nick Easton
Zac Kerin
Jeremiah Sirles
Defensive line
Everson Griffen
Shariff Floyd
Linval Joseph
Brian Robison
Danielle Hunter
Tom Johnson
Shamar Stephen
Justin Trattou
Linebackers
Anthony Barr
Eric Kendricks
Chad Greenway
Emmanuel Lamur
Audie Cole
Kentrell Brothers
Edmond Robinson
Cornerbacks
Xavier Rhodes
Trae Waynes
Captain Munnerlyn
Terence Newman
Mackensie Alexander
Marcus Sherels
Safeties
Harrison Smith
Andrew Sendejo
Anthony Harris
Jayron Kearse
Kicker
Blair Walsh
Punter
Jeff Locke
Long snapper
Kevin McDermott
***
10-man Practice Squad
QB Joel Stave
WR Moritz Boehringer
RB C.J. Ham
TE Kyle Carter
OL Willie Beavers
OL Isame Faciane
DE Stephen Weatherly
DT Toby Johnson
CB Tre Roberson
S Shamiel Gary
The biggest surprise is that Sam Bradford is at the top of quarterback depth chart rather than Teddy Bridgewater but injuries can change football plans in an instant. Other than the quarterback position there aren't many surprises with the Minnesota Vikings 53-man roster. I thought that rookie Stephen Weatherly might grab the fourth defensive end spot but Justin Trattou really made that spot his. Weatherly is a talented, but raw, pass rusher. He has an NFL future but a year on the practice squad will do him some good.
With Willie Beavers, Moritz Boehringer, and Stephen Weatherly signed to the practice squad all of the Vikings 2016 draft picks made the roster in some fashion. Beavers, as a fourth-round pick, "only" making the practice squad might be seen as a disappointment but nearly every rookie is a project. He wasn't expected to contribute this year. So, it's a good thing that he has a year to learn and develop without counting against the 53-man roster. Roster spots are limited. Especially on game day.
9 of the 10 players signed to the practice squad were on the Vikings roster through training camp and the preseason. Safety Shamiel Gary is the lone import. He was waived by the Miami Dolphins on Saturday. He also spent some time with the New England Patriots and Chicago Bears. He's the lone player on the practice squad with some NFL regular season snaps.
As for the reserve lists. The Vikings already have six players on injured reserve. That's an unfortunate but not an unusual start to an NFL season. The Vikings also have a couple of players on injured reserve with non-football issues.
***
Injured Reserve
QB Teddy Bridgewater
DE B.J. DuBose
DT Scott Crichton
S Antone Exum, Jr.
S Michael Griffin
CB Jabari Price
Teddy Bridgewater and B.J. DuBose suffered significant injuries. Jabari Price left the final preseason game with a knee injury. The extent of which has yet to be revealed, The injuries to Scott Crichton, Antone Exum Jr., and Michael Griffin are probably more of the "let's protect these players" types of injuries. Exum and Griffin could be candidates for the "likely to return" injury list.
Reserve/Non-Football Illness
G Mike Harris
The particulars of Mike Harris' "illness" has been a mystery since it was disclosed at the start of training camp.
Reserve/Non-Football Injury
QB Taylor Heinicke
Taylor Heinicke severed a tendon in his foot when he put that foot through a window a couple of weeks before the start of training camp. The injury to Bridgewater ultimately forced the need to trade for Sam Bradford but Heinicke's injury didn't help matters. If Heinicke had entered training camp healthy made he's opening the season as the starter. There's no way of knowing that for sure but his injury did play a role in the Vikings recent quarterback drama. He's currently ahead of schedule in his rehab and should start practicing in a couple of weeks.
And there's the 2016 Minnesota Vikings. A fine group of football players!
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