Who Are The Minnesota Vikings Looking At In Mobile?
by Christopher Gates on Jan 26, 2011 2:44 PM CST
in 2011 NFL Draft
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PrintIt's Senior Bowl week, as I think I've mentioned once or twice already, and that means that scouts from every NFL team are descending on Mobile, Alabama to watch some of the bigger stars in the college game practice and engage in all-star competition. It's always interesting to see who teams are talking to, and the good folks at SB Nation's NFL Draft site, Mocking the Draft, have a comprehensive list of who each team has been seen hobnobbing with in Alabama this week.
Here's a complete list of who the Vikings have been speaking with and/or have been rumored to have an interest in.
Christian Ballard, DL, Iowa (6'4", 290)
Kendric Burney, CB, North Carolina (5'9", 180)
Colin Kaepernick, QB, Nevada (6'5", 225)
Lance Kendricks, TE, Wisconsin (6'3", 240)
Joe Lefeged, S, Rutgers (5'11", 210)
Owen Marecic, FB, Stanford (6', 245)
Courtney Smith, WR, S. Alabama (6'4", 220)
Lee Smith, TE, Marshall (6'6", 270)
The team has also been rumored to be speaking with Brandon Fusco, a 6'4", 300-pound center from Slippery Rock University that was the D-II Offensive Lineman of the Year in 2010.
As we get more names to add to this list. . .a couple of which will undoubtedly have "QB" listed as their position. . .we will add them to the list. If anyone has any insights on any of these players, feel free to share them below.
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As an Iowa fan....
It makes me happy to see them talking to/watching Ballard. He can play any spot in the D-Line (help replace ray, spot the guys in the middle), has incredibly long arms, and is a good run stopper.
Of course, 12 would be a reach for him and he probably won’t last until the 2nd round, so it’s a moot point.
Agreed
But I think he would actually be available in the 2nd round. Who knows? They might have to trade up if they really like him. As a Hawk fan, I would like to see him in Purple. He’s big, strong, fast, and you know he’s been well-prepared for the NFL w/ the coaching staff.
As a Vikings Fan
not happy that they were scouting only one O-Lineman so far,
Very happy with Owen Marecic; he could replace Tahi immediately.
The Vikings have talked to an outstanding lineman
Here is Antony Castonzo’s diary from the Senior Bowl and cbssports.com …
http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/story/14590683/castonzos-catalogue-getting-settled-in-mobile
I came back expecting to go to bed, but was instead snagged by the Atlanta Falcons and then the Minnesota Vikings for some more in-depth interviews.
Obviously the front office is not that stupid!
Castonzo is the most polished of all OT prospects
I would not be disappointed at all if we drafted him.
"I am patient with stupidity but not with those who are proud of it."
I’m obviously a homer, but I think Carimi could be a really good fit for you guys too. He’s an exceptional run blocker, and good pass blocker. He comes out of his stance to high sometimes, but I think that’s something that could be fixed. He’d probably be a bit of a reach at 12 though.
Fire Slocum
by packallday555 on Jan 26, 2011 4:57 PM CST up reply actions
I'm a Badger
I like Carimi enough. He may not be the most fluid athlete as a LT, but he has a knack for doing enough to ride his guy out of the play when he does get beat.
I’m also really interested in Kendricks. I think if the Vikings wanted to bring an h-back type player into the mix he’d be fantastic.
Carimi would be great
and he may be what they really want.
Frazier already said he was going to be running the ball more and Carimi is clearly the best run blocker.
I keep saying it and will continue to do so…
Carimi is the Outland Trophy winner & All American (same as Mkinnie) so if they are ever going to find a replacement for BM well they will be hard pressed to do better.
And I like Solder too.
dont think he has what it takes to be a great LT
His skill set is more set for the RT position.
I don't know
I think he’s a comprable athlete to a guy like Bryan Bulaga, whom most seem to think is a LTOTF. From what I understand, the think scouts are concerned about with Carimi is he’s not a natural knee bender, and hence gets knocked to the ground on too many plays. Not sure if that’s a technique issue that can be resolved with good coaching or not.
The dude can play!
He won the Outland Trophy.
What more can you ask for if you are going to be replacing McKinnie?
I am sure they said the same things about McKinnie too.
He doesn’t bend his kness, not a natural knee bender, takes choppy steps, etc, etc, etc.
All I know is he did enough to win the stinking Outland.
So he must do some things pretty damn good!
I know all these playoff teams are hoping and praying that the teams above them feel this way about the tackles. They will jump on them if they need one. I certainly do not want to see Chicago or Green Bay get Carimi.
As much as the Vikings need a QB, the line is in serious need of help as well. And they may not get another chance to get a top offensive lineman.
I have serious doubts about them going for any DE in the first round since they are trying to sign them now out the ying yang.
There really are no DTs unless Dareus or Fairly drops.
There are no LBs besides Ayers.
There could be a WR or CB if Jones or Amukamara drops.
There are not S or TE or G or C that are worth the 12th pick.
They do not need a RB.
That leaves QB or OT IMHO.
I am all in for the LTOTF!
Trading down for Carimi...
…could certainly fit the bill. not sure if he’d be the LTOTF but he could certainly replace Loadholt right away.
i wonder if drafting Moffitt to pair with him at RG wouldn’t be such a bad idea…we wanna run the ball, don’t we?? talk about a commanding right side of the line with two guys that already have chemistry.
Joe Lefeged?
I clicked that link and his stats read 12 Games, 1 INT, 0 Tackles.
Why are they interested in this guy?
I believe Kendrick Burney was one of the UNC players that missed time due to the agent scandal at that school. Not sure what the story is on Lefeged. If you want to double check on this years stats or their entire college career, check out CFBstats.com
here is more accurate info about burney also. http://www.fftoolbox.com/nfl_draft/profile_display.cfm?prospect_id=2537
Thanks, that was helpful.
Both guys actually look pretty good.
Both have been good since their Freshman years and only got better.
Joe Lefeged sounds like a real good hard hitting SS.
He can also PR/KR and he’s good at blocking K’s and P’s as well.
Kinda Sounds like a good multi-purpose guy. If he can’t start at SS, he can shine on ST’s.
I was thinking the same thing.
I was like, “we already have those guys with M.Williams and L.Sheppard.” :)
Your words will not help this team. AT ALL
Ricky Stanzi MIGHT become a good QB, he just won’t do it on the team as it’s constructed now. Who’s going to block for him? Survey say NO ONE. First 2 picks need to be Offensive Linemen. Hell they might be best served to trade out of round one and get more picks. Because offensive line isn’t the only problem.
Now if they continue to take the best from the CFL, then that creates another, better, situation. Right now WR might already be addressed. SO might DE. All that leave is OLine, DT, CB (? injuries caused a lot of problems there. And Frank “Porn King Video Pimp” Walker) and safety.
SO how does a rookie QB make this a better team??
You want two words -—————> Joe Webb.
Learn them, love them, embrace them.
Because developmentally Stanzi will be BEHIND Webb. And I’m discarding the argument that Stanzi played in a Major conference. Worthless argument, so did Jay Cutler, Ryan Leaf, Matt Leinhart, Jamarcus Russell, and Joey Harrington.
Tom Brady never started at MIchigan. Is Webb on Brady’s level? Not now, but the Patriots developed him, instead of continuing to look for another QB. We have 2, develop them grow them, give them an offensive line that blocks for them. It worked for Matt Ryan and Big Ben.
Bring in a young QB that might be something, behind an OLine that couldn’t stop ANYTHING. And be prepared to call him David Carr.
"Empty your mind, be formless, shapeless - like water. Now you put water into a cup, it becomes the cup, you put water into a bottle, it becomes the bottle, you put it in a teapot, it becomes the teapot. Now water can flow or it can crash. Be water, my friend."
Bruce Lee (1/27/40 - 7/20/73)
by Marcus.Grayson on Jan 26, 2011 8:11 PM CST up reply actions
Tom Brady never started at MIchigan
False. Brady started two years at Michigan. You’re thinking of Matt Cassell.
Also, who do you think the Dolphins wish they had now, Matt Ryan or Jake Long? Long’s a good left tackle, but a good left tackle doesn’t make up for missing on a franchis QB.
RIght I was thinking about Cassell
But the point still stands, an offensive line is number one.
It’s IMPOSSIBLE to identify a franchise QB if he doesn’t get the time in the pocket to make good/bad reads. The Dolphins know what they have at QB only becuase their OLine has given the QB’s they have the opportunity to be bad. So while the Dolphins might wish they had Matt Ryan, they understood that it really starts up front, on the OLine.
"Empty your mind, be formless, shapeless - like water. Now you put water into a cup, it becomes the cup, you put water into a bottle, it becomes the bottle, you put it in a teapot, it becomes the teapot. Now water can flow or it can crash. Be water, my friend."
Bruce Lee (1/27/40 - 7/20/73)
by Marcus.Grayson on Jan 27, 2011 4:41 AM CST up reply actions
Drafting a Franchise QB is not the same thing
as drafting a starting QB. We have an opportunity to draft a QB because we are picking 12th. This might not happen again for awhile. Good Lineman come out of the 2nd round ( Loadholt), good QBs do not.
The Vikes have to be ready on draft day with several different plans since we don’t know who will be available.
IT IS TIME TO DO WHAT IT TAKES TO DRAFT A FRANCHISE QUARTERBACK.
No more old guys. No more excuses. No more passing up our own great drafted quarterback.
by lifelongvike on Jan 27, 2011 5:22 AM CST up reply actions
OVR Pos. Rank Player Pos. School Ht. Wt. Proj. Rd. Stock 40 Time
8 1 Blaine Gabbert QB Missouri 6-5 235 1 same 4.72
13 2 Cam Newton QB Auburn 6-6 250 1 same 4.52
20 3 Jake Locker QB Washington 6-2 228 1-2 same 4.53
38 4 Ryan Mallett QB Arkansas 6-6 238 1-2 same 5.12
81 5 Christian Ponder QB Florida State 6-2 222 2-3 injury 4.68
99 6 Pat Devlin QB Delaware 6-4 227 3 same 4.82
118 7 Colin Kaepernick QB Nevada 6-5 225 3-4 same 4.53
136 8 Andy Dalton QB TCU 6-2 213 4 same 4.94
168 9 Greg McElroy QB Alabama 6-2 222 5 same 4.96
190 10 Tyrod Taylor QB Virginia Tech 6-1 216 5-6 same 4.55
209 11 Ricky Stanzi QB Iowa 6-4 221 6 same 4.80
Looks like, if we’re picking a QB in the first round that we’ll be choosing from the names in bold.
Mixed bag. I’m a FSU fan, so I know about Ponder. His elbow injury worries me. If he fixes it then he’s shown good things. I know nothing about Devlin, I’ve seen Kaepernick a few times, throws a decent deep pass. Haven’t relly seen him show the ability to read defenses pre/post snap. Stanzi is rated as a 6th round pick, who knows. Locker seemed to regress this season and Mallett at times made me a functioning alcoholic with his decisions.
Who’s the best of them?
It’s a crap shoot.
Can we trade for a QB (Orton, Kolb, just saying) and then trade down and get more picks?
"Empty your mind, be formless, shapeless - like water. Now you put water into a cup, it becomes the cup, you put water into a bottle, it becomes the bottle, you put it in a teapot, it becomes the teapot. Now water can flow or it can crash. Be water, my friend."
Bruce Lee (1/27/40 - 7/20/73)
by Marcus.Grayson on Jan 27, 2011 9:17 AM CST up reply actions
From what I've been reading...
Stanzi has been performing much better than Locker in prepping for the Senior Bowl. Isn’t Locker injury prone?
I’m going to go ahead and say that Stanzi will be picked much higher than the 6th round (even though that round has produced some pretty legit QB’s)
Locker is not injury prone.
Locker is a great athlete that has already signed a major league Baseball contract. He can escape that contract if he decides to go into the NFL. He missed a couple of games due to an injury.
In the last ten years no decent QB has come out of the 6th round that I know of. Tom Brady is always the example but that was 11 years ago. Its hard to find any starting QB in the NFL that came out later than the 2nd round. Garrard, Orton, and Cassel are the only ones I know of. That is out of all the QBs drafted after the 2nd round . # out of 95 Qbs drafted after the 2nd round in ten years. These guys are mostly long term projects and perpetual back-up players. Not that they are not important but the Vikings need a true starter for the future, not a back-up.
Stanzi had a horrible last day of Senior bowl practice. He did not get better. He will probably be a late round pick like suggested.
IT IS TIME TO DO WHAT IT TAKES TO DRAFT A FRANCHISE QUARTERBACK.
No more old guys. No more excuses. No more passing up our own great drafted quarterback.
by lifelongvike on Jan 27, 2011 11:41 AM CST up reply actions
Sorry that was suppose to be 3 out of 95 QBs drafted after the second round.
IT IS TIME TO DO WHAT IT TAKES TO DRAFT A FRANCHISE QUARTERBACK.
No more old guys. No more excuses. No more passing up our own great drafted quarterback.
by lifelongvike on Jan 27, 2011 11:42 AM CST up reply actions
Stanzi is the Manzi
I think you must have Stanzi projected in the first 3 rounds. He’s more likely a 4th or 5th rd pick so i think if we get some OLine early in the draft and possibly a Dback, then taking a flyer on Stanzi would be a good play. He’s tall, has a relatively strong arm and I think he’s just starting to blossom. BIG improvement from last year til now. He may be on his way up and get him in the cheap.
Which is why they wait till fifth or sixth pending stanzi is available before they draft him, priorities first
by SoDakNorseman on Jan 26, 2011 8:27 PM CST via mobile up reply actions
Ok...
I’m not saying take Stanzi with the first pick, or even their second if he’s still out there. The O-line is definitely an issue. I’m just saying that if they truly are considering selecting a QB, Stanzi would be a good pick. I really think he has a great chance to develop into a good QB, especially with Musgrave coaching him. He’s the type of player who is willing to learn and respects the game. Nothing against Webb, either. I’ve just seen a lot of QB names thrown around, and not his.
I can respect that.
If it’s a later pick then yes. As I’ve harped on earlier, there’s too much to do, too many chances for the team to improve. It’s not a knock on you, I just get tired of hearing people say that the Vikings are QB away. Our Oline couldn’t stop a dead dog from stealing a buried bone.
Stanzi in the later rounds makes sense. Even better if we trade down and accumulate picks. Cause somebody has to block or the next QB and Purple Jesus will get killed.
"Empty your mind, be formless, shapeless - like water. Now you put water into a cup, it becomes the cup, you put water into a bottle, it becomes the bottle, you put it in a teapot, it becomes the teapot. Now water can flow or it can crash. Be water, my friend."
Bruce Lee (1/27/40 - 7/20/73)
by Marcus.Grayson on Jan 26, 2011 10:03 PM CST up reply actions
The info presented, when clicking joe lefeged name is inaccurate. this site will give you more info on him as a player. According to this scouting report on him. He is more of a special teams player. http://www.fftoolbox.com/nfl_draft/profile_display.cfm?prospect_id=2607
Frasier goes on record even more than before.
HERE is the quote
“I really hope we can get that quarterback position settled before we get to training camp. We (need to) have a good feel for, OK, this guy is going to give a good chance when we get to camp to really compete and we’ve got the right two or three guys there who we feel like we’re going to compete for the NFC North next season, and then you can fill in all the other pieces to the puzzle,” Frazier said. “But just being able to sleep at night knowing that you put that to rest.”
Looing more and more like a QB with the first pick, if our guy is available. Vince Young is the wild card but how can that be settled before TC? Probably can’t so the draft is looking like a more probable solution.
IT IS TIME TO DO WHAT IT TAKES TO DRAFT A FRANCHISE QUARTERBACK.
No more old guys. No more excuses. No more passing up our own great drafted quarterback.
I am not sure that means they are taking a QB with the first pick
I also do not know if they will not agree to a new CBA prior to training camp.
I think they will get it done. They know that nobody in the public has sympathy for either side.
I think they are probably closer than we all know. I think they many of the little details worked out and are just trying to settle the major issues. I think once they agree on the details of a 18 game season that the rest will probably go easily.
You said you like Locker & Devlin at this point the other day. Maybe that has changed? If it stayed the same and Locker is gone then Devlin is definitely not worth the #12 pick right?
I said I liked Locker and Newton.
I said I hadn’t evaluated Devlin and Dalton.
Since that time Devlin had a pretty poor Shrine Game week. Unless he shows dramatic improvement ( How I don’t know) I wouldn’t consider him as a Franchise Guy.
I really like the way Locker has shown improvement at the Senior Bowl from day to day. He could be the real deal. Newton is going to be interesting to scout. Can he learn to read defenses? That is the issue. My only hope is to pick up on interview rumors during the combine, I suppose.
But I am a believer that the lock-out is closer to reality than agreement. The owners wouldn’t have opted out if they were not serious. They are giving the players nothing to agree to. Lower pay, less benefits, and a longer work schedule are not easily agreed to at all.
Since FA isn’t a reality before TC I think Frasier is pointing to the draft for the #12 pick ( or higher). But if our man is gone then we have to pick BPA and get a veteran whenever it is possible. At least we could start Bomar and win the Luck sweepstakes.
IT IS TIME TO DO WHAT IT TAKES TO DRAFT A FRANCHISE QUARTERBACK.
No more old guys. No more excuses. No more passing up our own great drafted quarterback.
by lifelongvike on Jan 27, 2011 8:58 AM CST up reply actions
From what I have read
it appears that Locker and Dalton are the best bets. I don’t know about the Kaepernick kid. Locker in the first or Dalton in the second.
Here is the best report from the Senior bowl that I know of
It was made after the Wednesday practice which is after the QBs get use to their receivers, the coaches, and the system.
South Team, which includes Ponder, Dalton, and McElroy
North team, which includes Locker, Stanzi, and Kapernick
IT IS TIME TO DO WHAT IT TAKES TO DRAFT A FRANCHISE QUARTERBACK.
No more old guys. No more excuses. No more passing up our own great drafted quarterback.
by lifelongvike on Jan 27, 2011 12:01 PM CST up reply actions
You can find good notes on what teams talked to who from DraftCountdown.com’s coverage of the Senior Bowl and another place I have found that lists when they saw teams talk to players is OptimumScouting.com. Optimum mentions in their Tuesday notes that the Vikings “attacked” Locker and Kapernick and showed a lot of interest in both. Draft Countdown has only mentioned the same players that are listed in this thread, so right now, it seems like the list Chris has, plus Locker, are the bigger targets from the practices the Vikings have been talking to.
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