SI Hands Out Off-Season Grades

Sports Illustrated handed out their grades for the off-season, and the Vikings came in pretty much where I thought they might be. According to SI:

Christian Ponder now has a new left tackle in Matt Kalil and a new receiver in Jerome Simpson (though a three-game suspension limits Simpson’s impact). Other than that, we’ll have to wait and see. Can Chris Carr, Harrison Smith and Robert Blanton help a terrible secondary? Grade: C-plus

When you take into consideration the entire off-season, I can't really quibble too much with that grade. Maybe a B-minus because of what I thought was a pretty strong draft, but free agency was pretty underwhelming. Although to answer the question posed about Smith, Carr, and Blanton helping, I would most defintiely have to say 'yes'. I mean, how couldn't they get better? Minnesota's secondary was a dumpster fire in 2011, and if Carr can stay healthy, he's a pretty solid upgrade. I really like the Harrison Smith pick, and unless he's a total bust, he's going to be an upgrade.

Overall, SI handed out only two 'A' grades (Cincy and Buffalo), and the lowest grade was a 'D' (Jets). As for our NFC north counterparts, the Vikes fared worse than Chicago and Green Bay (B), but better than Detroit (C).

Either way, we'll find out in about a week or so, as training camp begins. WOOOOOOOO HOOOOOOOOO!