Pompei: Vikings Nab Best Undrafted Free Agent Class

by Christopher Gates on May 5, 2008 7:30 PM CDT in Minnesota Vikings

Well, it looks like someone on the other side of enemy lines likes what the Beloved Purple did after the draft, as Dan Pompei of the Chicago Tribune has declared the Vikings' UDFA class as the best in the NFL.

The consensus among NFL scouts is the Chiefs added the most talent in the draft. And the team that added the most talent after the draft was the Vikings.

Because the Vikings had only five picks, they decided to be more aggressive than usual with undrafted free agents, paying as much as $20,000 apiece in bonus money to those players.

A source said the Vikings signed eight undrafted free agents who they rated as draftable: wide receiver Darius Reynaud, guard Drew Radovich, linebackers Erin Henderson and J Leman, safeties Marcus Griffin and Husain Abdullah, and cornerbacks Brandon Sumrall and Marcus Walker.

Don't be surprised if a number of them contribute.

We'll take a closer look this week at which of those free agents have the best chance of making the roster, as well as breaking down the roster as a whole and what we should expect. I don't know if I'd say that any of the UDFAs are stone cold locks or anything. . .but I'll be very, VERY surprised if we don't have two Hendersons on the roster come early September.

Still not a whole lot written by anyone about the mini-camp. According to our good pal Mr. Cheer or Die, the Vikings will be having OTAs from 20-22 May, 27-28 May, and a mini-camp from 6-8 June. Players will then report to training camp on 23 July, with camp formally kicking off on 25 July.

Shoot, I just saw an ad somewhere that says that the NFL preview issues are going to start hitting newsstands in early June. EARLY. . .JUNE! It does get earlier every year, doesn't it? And I'll be at Barnes & Noble looking for them every darn day. Unless, of course, I order the ones with the Viking-related covers from the various sites.

That's all for tonight, ladies and gentlemen. . .take care, stay off Cedric Benson's boat, and we'll see you back here tomorrow.

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Comments

Acquisitions?

It seems to me that over the past couple of years we (the Vikings) have done exceptionally well with acquisitions, both in the Draft and and in Free Agency. That is, 2006, 2007 and now in 2008. Who can take the credit for this turnaround? Spielman? I”m just wondering?

by Bears Paw on May 5, 2008 9:45 PM CDT reply actions

Are you kidding?

Speilman was so bad in Miami that he was run out of town. If you don’t believe me, take a look at his drafts and then add in the horrible trades that included high draft picks for flops like Lamar Gordon and A.J. Feeley among others.

I think it’s obvious that Scott Studwell and his scouting staff is having a stronger influence on player personnel decisions. Rick Speilman is the figurehead and understands how a personnel department is managed, but he does not have an eye for talent and has learned to better trust his scouts.

by Viking4Life on May 6, 2008 7:26 AM CDT reply actions