Thoughts on Vikings Draft Options
by DHVikes12 on Dec 16, 2011 8:25 PM CST
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The Minnesota Vikings need to have a great draft this year to put some talent on the field next season. I think there are several options the Vikings can use to improve their roster.
1. They must establish a deep vertical threat: The Vikings need a tall lanky wide receiver to help boost an average wide receiving core. Percy Harvin is not meant to be a vertical threat. If the Vikings receive the #2 pick it is an absolute easy decision to take Justin Blackmon. He reminds me of a great receiver like Calvin Johnson of the Detroit Lions. He has great speed and great leaping ability. The Vikings cannot pass up a great athlete like Justin Blackmon. Many believed that the Vikings should have taken a quarterback over Adrian Peterson in 2007. The running back position wasn’t a huge need at the time, but the Vikings couldn’t pass up the talent. That decision has turned out quite well for the Vikings.
2. Must improve the offensive line: The Vikings have one of the worst offensive lines in the NFL. They need to pick up a large left tackle to replace Charlie Johnson. If the Vikings decide not to select Justin Blackmon, they must upgrade the offensive line by selecting USC offensive tackle Ryan Kalil. Christian Ponder needs to start receiving protection so he isn’t hurt every week. Kalil is one of the best players and in the draft and could be the center piece of the Vikings offensive line for a decade.
3. Trade the top draft pick: If the Vikings want to receive more talent they could trade the #2 or #3 pick to stockpile draft selections. They could then address the offensive line, and select several defensive backs. This would require the Vikings to sign a vertical threat receiver in free agency. A flashy name to watch is Vincent Jackson who could want out of San Diego.
4. Upgrade the worst secondary in team history: In later rounds, the Vikings need to take two cornerbacks who could make an immediate impact. The Vikings are getting shredded weekly by quarterbacks. Cedric Griffin is not stepping up and Antoine Winfield is coming off a broken clavicle. The Vikings have no depth at this position and need to establish some soon. Several options could be Jonathon Banks of Mississippi State, and Stephon Gilmore of South Carolina. If the Vikings don’t address this position in the draft they must sign several talented free agents.
5. Trim Cap Space: If the Vikings want to become younger they must free cap space to sign some talented players. Kevin Williams will need to take a significant pay cut or he will have to leave. Christian Ballard and Letroy Guion could step in and fill his role nicely if he isn’t willing to reach a sensible agreement. Steve Hutchinson is a free agent and doesn’t play as well as he did during his prime. If it comes down to a cap cutting decision, Steve Hutchinson could be on the way out.
Overall, the Vikings have many areas to fix and have a limited amount of cap space and time to get them resolved by the start of next season. Let the rebuilding mode begin!
This FanPost was created by a registered user of The Daily Norseman, and does not necessarily reflect the views of the staff of the site. However, since this is a community, that view is no less important.
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We NEED Kalil
We better not take Blackmon. BUST. I think Michael Crabtree is a better pro right now than Blackmon will ever be. That’s all that needs to be said about how I feel about Blackmon.
Kalil will give us something we’ve lacked for years. A GOOD LT. Johnson is terrible. McKinnie was average. If we had a good one, Ponder would have his blind side protected for 12 years. That’s easily worth a top 3 pick.
Matt Kalil
Ryan Kalil is his brother, who plays for Carolina. Also, I think there are bigger cap space concerns than Kevin Williams. Steve Hutchinson and EJ Henderson have larger cap space totals than K-Will, and I’d argue both of them have declined a lot more. Shiancoe isn’t too far behind K-Will and is a free agent in 2012. I’d be worried about those 3 guys before K-Will.
But, I agree those are essentially the best approaches for the Vikings to take.
Ponder. Peterson. Percy. Purple Perfection.
Kalil
and that is without argument…. if kalil isnt available, or ends up not declaring for the draft, then trade down and try to pick up either martin or Reiff, while also picking up a few extra draft picks… but if Kalil is available, we MUST take him….
Wish there was Kalil or trade back option.
I think if Kalil isn’t available, we need to trade back and try to pick up more picks.
Especially with the run on QBs there will be
We shouldn’t have trouble finding a trading partner this year.
by REVENGE4KLUWE on Dec 16, 2011 10:59 PM CST up reply actions
It's either Kalil or trade down for more picks
But if Kalil’s gone and we don’t have a trading partner, then we draft Mo Claiborne CB, I like Blackmon but after really thing about it Claiborne is the way to go, when you can draft a shut down CB you do it.
by nmvikesfan on Dec 16, 2011 11:29 PM CST reply actions 1 recs
A few thoughts
1. We’d be crazy not to draft Kalil. LTs are much, much harder to find than quality receivers.
2. Justin Blackmon is not a deep threat, he’s more of a possession guy like TO.
3. We have to keep KWill, he’s been dominant the past few games and Guion is not good.
Kevin Williams is too much of a fan favorite to trade away, imo
We would be certifiable not to draft Kalil if he was still on the board.
Are you familiar with TO’s early career though? He blew past everyone and made everyone look silly in his young years. He just developed himself more as he got older, and became a quality possession WR.
I see your point about Blackmon/TO
TO did generate a lot of explosive plays, but when you grow up watching Randy Moss, you tend to have extremely high standards for deep threats.
Agreed, I grew up watching him too, lol
But without an upgrade at LT no deep threat WR can help us unless they can run a 40 under 2 seconds. An upgrade at LT means our running attack becomes better, which means our PA pass becomes more deadly. I am of the opinion that with AP in the backfield any play, barring 3rd and 30, should start at least with the threat of AP running the ball. He is an awesome back and has the ability to house the ball anytime he touches it.
I am in the camp that given another year in our offense Aromashodu could become a viable #1 WR. He’s got big plays written all over him, and last week his catching ability was more up than down (but he will need to work on it in the offseason, still). I also believe that we should hedge our bets and try to sign away Reggie Wayne from the Colts. They have Garcon and Wayne to resign this offseason, and so one of them most likely will walk and I am preferential to Wayne because he doesn’t suffer from the dropsies like Garcon does. He’s a big framed WR, doesn’t disappear in the Red Zone, will fight for position, and I think he still has plenty in the tank.
Our defense though, well, that has been well documented and probably won’t turn around to being extremely dominant for a couple years.
Wayne is like 33.
No thanks. Peyton can keep him. If he had been available last season at the start, once we learned Sidney would miss the first 8 games, I’d have been for him joining up, but there’s not much point now.
I also doubt Aromashodu’s ability to become a #1 WR. I think that’s just us being desperate to fix the WR situation. He obviously has the ability to get open, because he gets targeted quite frequently by Ponder, but he just cannot hang onto the ball when he needs to. He can get hot, but when he’s cold, his hands are stone. He’s like a.. poor-man’s Brandon Marshall. Without the mood swings.
by REVENGE4KLUWE on Dec 18, 2011 8:37 PM CST up reply actions
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