Honest-to-God News from the Vikings' OTAs

The Vikings' official website has a blog now, and it's currently being used to document some stuff from the Vikings Organized Team Activities (OTAs).  There's not a heck of a lot there at the moment, but damn it, it's better than nothing.

A couple of particularly encouraging passages:

The last play of highlight-caliber also came from Jackson, only this time he hooked up with second-year receiver Sidney Rice. On the play, Jackson dropped back and looked at a few different options, only to find all of them were covered by defenders. Finally he looked down the middle of the field and noticed a streaking Rice, hitting him almost in stride for what would’ve been a touchdown. Offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell was so excited he nearly jumped out of his shoes and then gave Jackson a big high-five on his way back to the huddle.

I asked Jackson after practice what was going on with all the excitement following that play, and here was his response:

“Last year we didn’t make that throw,” Jackson said. “We didn’t even bother to make that read. It was an alert, so we (Jackson and Rice) were on the same page and we knew that he (Rice) would have a legitimate chance to make that play. We didn’t make that throw last year and it’s been a big emphasis this offseason to make that read and make that throw. We got what we wanted out of the coverage, and we were able to make the throw and the catch.”

I've said it before, and I'll say it again. . .anyone that feels compelled to just write Tarvaris Jackson off is going to end up looking really stupid, and they'll end up looking that way sooner rather than later.

And this second one:

Allen’s physical presence is imposing and it would’ve been interesting to see the results had today’s practice been a typical training camp workout. Several times during full-team drills, Allen found his way through or around the offensive line and in the backfield, either flushing the quarterback out or ending a running play prematurely.

With personalities like Allen, Pat Williams and Brian Robison, there was always plenty of chatter coming from the defensive line. But often times the lineman weren’t chastising players in other positions, they were giving each other a hard time, in a joking manner.

“It’s a great group of guys and we just have fun out there,” Allen said. “It’s football, and if you can’t have fun then you shouldn’t be playing.”

Yeah. . .I look forward to seeing Jared and Pat and Kevin having a lot of fun this year, starting on 9 September when they take turns planting Aaron Rodgers like a tulip bulb.  Nice to seeing the best pass-rushing DE in the game picking up right where he left off last season.

Man, is it August yet?  It needs to be here very soon. . .I hate this waiting garbage.

That's all for tonight, folks. . .enjoy the rest of your Monday, and we'll see you back here again tomorrow!