More Lingering Questions for Training Camp

#6

I don’t think Chris Cook is going to see the field very much, I would expect to see more of Asher Allen. Antoine should be healthy, and with Jamarca Sanford nipping at Madieu’s heels, we should see a boost in his performance.

Even though Madieu didn’t shine, he was one of our top tacklers in ’09.

#7

I was initially skeptical at the heavy ball that AP has been practicing with, I thought it was a terrible idea.

But the more I think about it, the more I realize that it is likely VERY difficult to keep a ball that heavy secure when he swings his arms out like we are used to seeing. So I am pretty sure that ball will make him have a habit of keeping it high and tight, rather than swing it out like he likes to do.

#8

I think both Rice and Harvin will have great years, and Berrian should have a resurgance assuming he doesn’t have lingering issues from his hammy.

Rice’s hip injury worries me, but it did not seem to affect him much at the end of the season last year.

Even without Brett, they will likely have a great year considering Tjack will be more confident with their ability to come down with the ball. He won’t be afraid to throw those jump balls to Sidney, and harvin can come across the middle much better than Troy Williamson.

#9

EJ, yes. He has had much more time to heal than Griffin, and there was no ligament damage so I am very optomistic.

Griffin, on the other hand, likely will play the entire season at around 80%. Considering he has to give recievers a 10 yard cushion while healthy, he is going to be a bit of a liability.

#10

Absolutely.

Berrian is not the fastest guy in the world, but he can outrun most of the corners in the NFC north. That and his abiliity after catching the ball is very impressive. As long as he is able to practice the timing routes at full speed, he will be very good this year.

Is her spot on the roster at risk?

One thing that keeps me generally confident is the return of Frazier. He’s going to be a great head coach I believe.

Adrian – it seems like guys with fumbling issues diminish them by holding the ball high and tight and using 2 hands when they are swarmed. Don’t know, but its going to be an opponent focus, so he better do whatever.

6. The Secondary – Assuming Winfield and Griff make it back, it’d be hard for the secondary to be much worse than it was last year. There’s a chance that Tyrell will be ready to step up, and Madieu was looking better in the playoffs than he did the rest of the year. Just maybe, they’ll all be doing better than they were. If not, let’s not forget Asher Allen and Jamarca Sanford, I think both of them are champing at the bit for a chance crack the 1st string. Cook… I don’t know. I hope he’s going to be what Chilly seems to think he is… There’s just so much unknown about the secondary, it’s difficult to even guess what the shape of it’s going to be by the start of regular season.

7. AP and his buttery fingers… well…. hopefully he’ll do better. That’s all we can do. He says he’s going to work on it, and I agree with all your sentiments. It wasn’t the number of fumbles, it was the circumstances, and the fact that other teams are keying on him to strip the ball.

8. I think Rice is for real. I think Harvin can be, but he has to be utilized correctly, and that means getting him the ball when he has some wiggle room to get his mojo on. If the Vikings can’t make that happen, Percy isn’t going to produce very much.

9. The status of E.J. and Griff…. They say EJ’s progress is very good… my concern there is that even before his injury against the Cards, he wasn’t playing up to the level he had demonstrated in 2008 prior to his injury that year. If he gets injured in 2010, that will make 3 years in a row; tough to overcome. As for Griff… fingers crossed.

10. Berrian. No. He looks fast, but seldom is he actually able to outrun anyone. If Jaymar has his breakout year in 2010, they should trade Berrian before his contract runs out, get something for him.

I’m probably being too nitpicky, this is the squad that many folks feel should have hoisted the Lombardi last year and if they can field the same level of capability as they did last year, they stand to go at least as far as the NFC Championship. I would have liked to see the Vikings take more aggressive strides to shore up whatever weaknesses they have in the offseason, but there wasn’t much of that. This leads me to believe that the Vikings staff feels they’re ready to go in 2010 with what they have, in the expected condition by the start of the season.

I hope they’re right.

Not sure how to respond to your analyses though. Pretty much every response to thee concerns comes down to your faith that the problems won’t materialize, not reasoning per se. Hard to say much either way about that, except … I’m right with you, brother :)

I’m personally reassured though that you state that you’re nervous about the CB depth situation (#6 and #9). I felt kinda lonely beating that drum here before the draft, while everyone else was bemoaning not grabbing Clausen or some other QBOTF in the draft threads, I was sitting almost by myself saying, what about the CBOTD (Cornerback of Today?) That was my biggest disappointment of the draft, no action there. I guess we (FO) decided Lito would be enough.

That is whe we took Cook..And at position they drafted, Cook was as good as anyone else left at that time…And I for one, would have loved to have seen Clausen or McCoy drafted. Giving either of them a yr to learn under Favre would have been a great learning experience for either of them.