Archive for April, 2009

Sources have told FOX Sport’s Alex Marvez that the Vikings had West Virginia quarterback Pat White in for a private workout on Tuesday, and are interested in him as both a quarterback and a wide receiver.  This will of course open the floodgates on speculation that the Vikings are looking to implement, at least to some degree, the “Wildcat” formation that was so successful last season for the Dolphins, White being a guy who isn’t viewed as a regular pro-style QB, but a slash-type who could be successful in such a formation.  I still say Brad Childress is a stubborn [...]

The 2006 NFL draft marked the debut of Brad Childress and his new regime, who inherited from ousted coach Mike Tice a 9-7 squad that had huge question marks all over the defense and offensive line, and was still reeling from the departures of superstars Randy Moss and Daunte Culpepper (the latter was traded to Miami a little more than a month before the draft; the former had been gone a good while but the reverberations were still being absorbed).  The Vikings held the 17th pick in the first round, but there was plenty of speculation about their wanting to [...]

After a couple days of sending memos back and forth between myself and myself, hashing the whole matter out and what not, I have elected to hold a live blog on draft day.  Said live blog will be open for audience participation, so if you have a minute on Sat., drop by and tell me how stupid I am.  Whether the live blog lasts through the entire first round will depend on how much of the crap I can stand before my sanity starts slipping away.  There will be no day 2 live blog…I have my limits.

The new Mel Kiper thinks Darrius Heyward-Bey could be this year’s Troy Williamson.  I personally can’t think of a more insulting thing to call a person.  He also thinks Josh Freeman‘s potential is over-estimated. I personally think Todd McShay‘s potential to unseat Mel Kiper is over-estimated. Kiper’s the brand-name, McShay is just some guy. When McShay becomes big enough to start pissing off NFL owners and execs the way Kiper does, come back and call me.

Mining for news, rumors, speculation, anything Vikings draft related has become a little like looking for a sober Packer fan:  a seeming exercise in futility.  I did however manage to churn up one bit of opinion, from Sirus radio’s Gil Brandt via Ralph Vacchiano of the New York Daily News, touching on possible Vikings draft target Phil Loadholt.  According to Mr. Brandt, Loadholt, who has been rated as a 1st/2nd round tweener by most scouting reports, will get snapped up by someone in the first round.  In other words, the Vikings may be looking at working a trade with someone [...]

Please now enjoy my one and only mock draft for 2009.  It is very similar to every other mock draft that you have seen.  That is the nature of mock drafts.  It is the same stuff regurgitated over and over.  And I do mean “regurgitated.” 1. Detroit Lions:  Matthew Stafford, QB Question:  If you were facing the prospect of going into the season with an aging, weight-challenged Daunte Culpepper as your starting QB, and you had the #1 pick in the draft, would you not feel obligated to take the best QB available?  Mel Kiper says:  “Stafford is worthy of [...]

You get 12 days of Christmas, but only 7 days of Draftsmas.  There might’ve been 12 if I’d thought of the bit 5 days sooner.  Anyway, 7 is enough for anyone, I would think.  Let’s begin by remembering a (not so) great moment in Vikings draft history: He’s crying cause he’s happy, not cause he knows it’s all downhill from there.

The problem with forming a firm consensus on who the Vikings should and will take with the #22 pick in this year’s draft is that, frankly, there doesn’t seem to be one guy worthy of such a commitment.  Percy Harvin, talented Florida wide receiver, seemed to be taking on favorite status there for awhile, but then the stories came out about his failing a drug test at the combine – stories that have yet to be denied by the player and his agent – and suddenly Harvin was off the board.  Offensive tackle Eben Britton then stepped into the void [...]

There’s nothing about this picture (via Busted Coverage) that suggests Jay Cutler is actually buds with Coolio – who, incidentally, was recently arrested at LAX for having crack on him.  It’s just a picture that happens to have both Jay and Coolio in it, with a couple of ladies between them.  Innocent.  Not even worthy of a second thought.  Probably not worthy of a blog post.  Did I mention Coolio was busted for crack possession at LAX recently?

If your dreams for the 2009 NFL season include the Vikings going to war with Eben Britton at right tackle and Anquan Boldin at receiver…well, it looks like you’re only going to get half your wish.  The Britton half, as far as I can see, is getting close to a sure deal.  I wasn’t so certain about two weeks ago when Percy Harvin looked like a realistic prospect, but Harvin has fallen so far in everyone’s esteem that, reportedly, even the “don’t give a rip about character” Cowboys have dropped him from their board.  Trust me, if Jerry Jones won’t [...]