Showing posts with label Minnesota Vikings. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Minnesota Vikings. Show all posts
Thursday, April 25, 2013
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Let the (football) games begin
Even though Mankato Loyola has already played one game, the football season really begins this week, and for local football fans, it's going to be an interesting season to watch quarterbacks.
At Mankato West, senior Philip Nelson will likely be remembered as the best quarterback in program history, and he'll surely end up with most of the prominent passing records by the time he leaves for the University of Minnesota next fall.
If West is to win another state championship, which is Nelson's stated goal, he'll have to be very productive, both passing and running, to overcome some of the Scarlets' weaknesses.
Loyola has a returning starter in Blake Matuska, while Mankato East will send in an inexperienced starter Friday, be it senior Matt Roberts or sophomore Quinn Frisell. Both teams had losing records last season, meaning it's up to the quarterback to help turn things around.
Minnesota State, which had poor quarterback play for much of last season, is going to Jon Daniels, a senior transfer from Nebraska-Omaha. The early reports have been good on Daniels, but sophomore Jon Wolf looked promising at the end of last season.
Gustavus Adolphus brings back senior Logan Becker, who put up pretty good numbers last season but threw 12 interceptions. Ball security should be better as a senior, in his second season as a starter, but the Gusties won't go far with that kind of turnover number.
The Minnesota Vikings acquired Donovan McNabb to be the starter until Joe Webb or Christian Ponder are ready to take over, and McNabb has looked a little better in each preseason game. The Vikings aren't likely to get much out of this season so you wonder how long McNabb will remain engaged.
It's often said that quarterbacks get too much blame and too much credit, but this season, in this area, quarterback play has never been so important.
At Mankato West, senior Philip Nelson will likely be remembered as the best quarterback in program history, and he'll surely end up with most of the prominent passing records by the time he leaves for the University of Minnesota next fall.
If West is to win another state championship, which is Nelson's stated goal, he'll have to be very productive, both passing and running, to overcome some of the Scarlets' weaknesses.
Loyola has a returning starter in Blake Matuska, while Mankato East will send in an inexperienced starter Friday, be it senior Matt Roberts or sophomore Quinn Frisell. Both teams had losing records last season, meaning it's up to the quarterback to help turn things around.
Minnesota State, which had poor quarterback play for much of last season, is going to Jon Daniels, a senior transfer from Nebraska-Omaha. The early reports have been good on Daniels, but sophomore Jon Wolf looked promising at the end of last season.
Gustavus Adolphus brings back senior Logan Becker, who put up pretty good numbers last season but threw 12 interceptions. Ball security should be better as a senior, in his second season as a starter, but the Gusties won't go far with that kind of turnover number.
The Minnesota Vikings acquired Donovan McNabb to be the starter until Joe Webb or Christian Ponder are ready to take over, and McNabb has looked a little better in each preseason game. The Vikings aren't likely to get much out of this season so you wonder how long McNabb will remain engaged.
It's often said that quarterbacks get too much blame and too much credit, but this season, in this area, quarterback play has never been so important.
Friday, April 29, 2011
Ponder seems like a good choice for Vikings
There's no doubt that the Minnesota Vikings were going to draft a quarterback this week, though many were caught off guard when they took Christian Ponder at No. 12.
Three quarterbacks had already been selected, and presumably, the Vikings had some interest in one, two or all three. So when it came time to pick, the Vikings used their choice on Ponder, a player whose strengths seems to be intelligence and leadership but has concerns about arm injuries.
If the Vikings have faith that Ponder will be a starter for the next 5 to 10 years, it was a good choice, regardless of what self-titled "draft experts" say.
Could the Vikings have drafted Ponder at No. 20? Probably.
But the problem is that the Vikings didn't draft at 20. They were 12.
The Vikings may have tried to trade down, but apparently, no team was willing to offer much. So the Vikings were stuck at 12, and they took the player they wanted.
That makes it a good choice.
Does that mean that Ponder will work out? No.
But none of the players drafted Thursday, or any of the ones selected in the next two days, carry any money-back guarantee.
The Vikings could have taken a defensive lineman or offensive lineman that would have been safer, but if you have a chance to draft a starting quarterback, you do it.
For that reason, give the Vikings the benefit of the doubt. If the Ponder selection doesn't work out, GM Rick Spielman or coach Leslie Frazier won't be around the next time the team drafts a quarterback.
Three quarterbacks had already been selected, and presumably, the Vikings had some interest in one, two or all three. So when it came time to pick, the Vikings used their choice on Ponder, a player whose strengths seems to be intelligence and leadership but has concerns about arm injuries.
If the Vikings have faith that Ponder will be a starter for the next 5 to 10 years, it was a good choice, regardless of what self-titled "draft experts" say.
Could the Vikings have drafted Ponder at No. 20? Probably.
But the problem is that the Vikings didn't draft at 20. They were 12.
The Vikings may have tried to trade down, but apparently, no team was willing to offer much. So the Vikings were stuck at 12, and they took the player they wanted.
That makes it a good choice.
Does that mean that Ponder will work out? No.
But none of the players drafted Thursday, or any of the ones selected in the next two days, carry any money-back guarantee.
The Vikings could have taken a defensive lineman or offensive lineman that would have been safer, but if you have a chance to draft a starting quarterback, you do it.
For that reason, give the Vikings the benefit of the doubt. If the Ponder selection doesn't work out, GM Rick Spielman or coach Leslie Frazier won't be around the next time the team drafts a quarterback.
Thursday, April 28, 2011
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
Battle survives Vikings' first cuts
The Minnesota Vikings made four roster moves Tuesday to get to the 75-player limit, and former Minnesota State lineman Adrian Battles was not one of the victims.
The Vikings put receiver Sidney Rice, who recently had hip surgery, on the reserve/physically-unable-to-perform list, meaning that he's not eligible to return to the roster for at least six games.
The team also put linebacker J Leman on the injured reserve so he's done. Receiver Marko Mitchell and tackle Bill Noethlich, who is from Southwest Minnesota State, were both released.
The next cuts come Friday, and Battles, who is listed at third-string guard, is almost certain to be waived. However, the fact that he's made it this long bodes well for his chances of being added to the Vikings' or some other team's practice squad or be invited back to the organization next season.
Battles has not gotten much playing time during the preseason, though with the starters unlikely to play in Thursday's home game against Denver, he has a good chance of seeing extended minutes in that game.
The Vikings put receiver Sidney Rice, who recently had hip surgery, on the reserve/physically-unable-to-perform list, meaning that he's not eligible to return to the roster for at least six games.
The team also put linebacker J Leman on the injured reserve so he's done. Receiver Marko Mitchell and tackle Bill Noethlich, who is from Southwest Minnesota State, were both released.
The next cuts come Friday, and Battles, who is listed at third-string guard, is almost certain to be waived. However, the fact that he's made it this long bodes well for his chances of being added to the Vikings' or some other team's practice squad or be invited back to the organization next season.
Battles has not gotten much playing time during the preseason, though with the starters unlikely to play in Thursday's home game against Denver, he has a good chance of seeing extended minutes in that game.
Saturday, August 28, 2010
Vikings could really use another preseason game
A couple of observations from the Minnesota Vikings' preseason game against Seattle on Saturday.
If the proposed 18-game schedule were in effect now, meaning only two preseason games, the Vikings would have been opening the season Saturday. This team seemed ill-prepared for that, playing a sloppy game injected with a few big plays.
The offensive line didn't open many holes, nore did it protect Brett Favre very well.
Favre had his moments, but he also threw two interceptions, one of which was more Bernard Berrian's fault than his. But Favre also fumbled twice.
You probably shouldn't have expected him to be sharp, given that he's only been here for less than a week.
New receiver Greg Camarillo may be an unexpected asset. The trade, which sent cornerback Benny Sapp to Miami, didn't seem like much of transaction earlier this week, but he got open and held on to the ball, which can't be said for all the receivers.
The defense looked good, though that unit will get tougher tests in the regular season, especially that opener at New Orleans on Sept. 9.
The Vikings looked like a team that hasn't practiced together much, which has certainly been the case. There seems to be plenty of work to do before the season begins, if this team hopes to achieve its stated goal of getting to the Super Bowl.
If the proposed 18-game schedule were in effect now, meaning only two preseason games, the Vikings would have been opening the season Saturday. This team seemed ill-prepared for that, playing a sloppy game injected with a few big plays.
The offensive line didn't open many holes, nore did it protect Brett Favre very well.
Favre had his moments, but he also threw two interceptions, one of which was more Bernard Berrian's fault than his. But Favre also fumbled twice.
You probably shouldn't have expected him to be sharp, given that he's only been here for less than a week.
New receiver Greg Camarillo may be an unexpected asset. The trade, which sent cornerback Benny Sapp to Miami, didn't seem like much of transaction earlier this week, but he got open and held on to the ball, which can't be said for all the receivers.
The defense looked good, though that unit will get tougher tests in the regular season, especially that opener at New Orleans on Sept. 9.
The Vikings looked like a team that hasn't practiced together much, which has certainly been the case. There seems to be plenty of work to do before the season begins, if this team hopes to achieve its stated goal of getting to the Super Bowl.
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