Archive for April, 2011

The 2011 schedule is here. Let’s not waste any time getting to it (via Vikings.com): Two prime time games, both against division opponents, and a whole lot of noon Sunday starts. Clearly the Vikings are not considered a prime time team this year. What changed from last year? Oh right: no Favre. Obviously this schedule is subject to change, for various reasons, some having to do with the CBA, some to do with flex scheduling and some the possibility of unforeseen roof-related disaster. Follow FanSided on Facebook. Follow The Viking Age on Twitter.

Drafting a new young QB-of-the-future and pairing him with Joe Webb apparently won’t be enough for the Vikings. According to persistent reports, the team wants to add a veteran QB to the mix, and not just any veteran QB. They want Donovan McNabb. This rumor will not be new to anyone who’s followed the team this off-season. What is new is that, for once, there’s an actual legit source involved. Mike Jones of The Washington Post is that source. “The Vikings are indeed one of the teams interested in McNabb, according to two people with knowledge of the situation who [...]

The Vikings Age is looking to add staff writers. And what exactly does it mean being a staff writer for The Viking Age? Here’s a rundown: 1. You write about the Vikings on a site that gets not-terrible traffic, and has fruitful linking relationships with places like SI.com. In other words, there is exposure to be had. The good kind of exposure. Not the Bleacher Report kind where everyone thinks you’re an idiot because you write for Bleacher Report. 2. You don’t get paid. I barely get paid, so don’t let it worry you. 3. If I show up at [...]

Bad news for those who favor the trade down option for the Vikings in the draft: according to NFL front office people, the trade market right now is basically non-existent. “It’s completely dead out there this year,” an unnamed NFC North exec told Yahoo!. “Nothing!” The lockout is partly to blame for the dearth of action, but there’s also a certain lack of separation among this year’s top-tier prospects, which is fueling teams’ reluctance to pursue trades. There are good players to be had high in the draft, but none who leap out to the extent that teams would be [...]

The Donovan McNabb talk isn’t going away any time soon. Today Adam Schefter tweeted that he “senses” Donovan would like to play for the Vikings. This a few weeks after Peter King said he believes the Vikings would be a good fit for the disgruntled Washington quarterback. What else does Adam Schefter sense? A great disturbance in the Force, as if millions of voices suddenly cried out in terror and were suddenly silenced? Because Adam Schefter is a nationally-known football insider, when he senses something, we listen. And blog. A few things bear reiteration however. One, the Redskins are reportedly seeking a [...]

When reviewing QBs that are available for NFL teams pickings at the end of the month something really stuck out to me on two familiar faces. Both were 4-year hometown grown college starters that are also heavily linked to Minnesota. One is Adam Weber who obviously played for the Gophers and the other is Jake Locker who multiple football writers mock to the Vikings at 12th overall. So lets take a test together – The Eye Ball Test. Both stats and scouting reports will be presented below without their names exposed. Can you pass the test and tell them apart? [...]

The wide receiver position is a matter of some concern for the Vikings this off-season. Sidney Rice‘s free agent status is up in the air thanks to the lockout, and there’s a very real possibility he could depart. That would leave Percy Harvin as the #1 man with not much behind him, unless Bernard Berrian stays with the team and bounces back big-time from a dismal 2010. Call me a skeptic but I don’t see Berrian as a viable #2. So if the Vikings lose Rice…big issue at wide receiver. Rick Spielman is well-aware of this potential problem, as indicated [...]

April has brought us another Final Four worthy of paying attention to. That’s right, Adrian Peterson has worked his way into the semifinals of EA Sports Madden ’12 cover vote. He’s steamrolled through the bracket of 32 so far beating Drew Brees, Philip Rivers and Julius Peppers now to face Michael Vick in fan voting. And while it would be normally be enjoyable to see our favorite face on the cover of an immensely popular video game, a dreaded word applies that rhymes with verse. We’re still all too familiar with the Madden Curse getting the best of Daunte Culpepper. [...]

For all we know there won’t even be a preseason this year, but that hasn’t stopped the NFL from releasing the schedule. Hope springs eternal. And for the Vikings, here is how the preseason will go down: Aug. 13 at Tennessee Aug. 20 at Seattle Aug. 27 vs. Dallas Sept. 1 vs. Houston Note that the schedule is front-loaded with road games, allowing more time for crews to finish repairing the broken Metrodome roof. A few days ago it was reported that no teams wanted to travel to Minnesota for the preseason, because of uncertainty over the state of the [...]

Believe it or not, the Vikings have needs at positions other than quarterback. You’d never know it by the preponderance of QB speculation, but defensive end is also a big area of concern going into the draft. If the Vikings do decide to go DE, this is a good year to do it. Draft wonks agree that the first round is rich in talented players who could step in and become difference-makers right away. Don’t you just love the term “difference-makers?” I feel like Mel Kiper but with less-annoying hair. And who exactly are these potential difference-makers? Line them up [...]