A lot of people love him but I have no idea if the Vikings are in that camp. What I'm saying, is the VIkings have to be 100 percent sold on the next QB they draft and if they're not they can't take him. Manziel appears to have big-time football savvy but can he stay healthy? Is he mature enough to handle the NFL? THere are questions that must be answered. If Spielman decides he can not take that chance on Manziel than he can't trade up for him.
A lot of good Johnny Football stuff today. That's what I mean: the guy is polarizing and my only question is can he stay healthy in the NFL? If you trust that body type, take a chance on the talent.
This might include the Houston Texans organization. They say they would be open to trading the top overall pick but if Manziel took himself out of the draft, I bet they would keep it.
Lost, Good point. That's my concern with Spielman making the coaching hire and drafting the QB. Will he do what's best for the team long-term or will he look to preserve his own future with the club? Those two might lead to different decisions and that's troubling. He knows he can't miss on another high-round quarterback, so perhaps he won't swing? Just speculating but I could see that conflict being problematic.
Darqueze Dennard, the cornerback for Sparty?
Could be good and draft experts have him high
I don't watch enough college football to accurately evaluate that stuff
You know how much teams value draft picks. I'm not saying the Vikings wouldn't give up a pick for Cousins but I wonder how high of pick they would be willing to give up. Consider this: THis team doesn't want to build through free agency and wants to build through the draft. So unless you're totally sold on Cousins, you aren't going to give up a high pick to get him.
HIs future better be good. Kalil is the type of guy you take with a top pick, sign to a second contract and don't worry about for 10 years. Kalil was great as a rookie and, you are right, took a step back this season starting in training camp. That can't happen again. This guy needs to be a Pro Bowl left tackle and he needs to find that form this coming season.
Yes, but he could buy himself time by convicing the Wilfs that the quarterback of the future isn't available in this draft. The issue is if you take a QB in the first round in 2014, the expectation is that guy will step in and play right away. That means there isn't any time to develop him or be wrong about him. I see this as Rick buying time for himself, too.
I would guess he is done here. You can find guards without that big of a problem.
Nope. Who knows if he will play again?
Someone asked a question earlier about their options with Ponder and I didn't get to that so I'll just answer that here
The cop-out answer is that Joe Webb won't be on the roster next year, in all likelihood. They really like him as a blocking WR, but the pass-catching corps is strong enough that you easily can afford to lose him. They could cut Ponder, but I wouldn't be shocked to see both Ponder and Cassel return next season.
But no, InfraRen, I don't see a similar situation in another org playing out to the Vikings' favor
I just don't see it. Even without the Chris Kluwe situation, I think if Prieffer interviewed for the head coaching job that simply would be the Vikings being nice to an employee.
My ideal candidate would have this mix of qualities: Leadership; Ingenuity (willingness to adapt, preferably with a history of doing so); Young enough to be willing to build, because ideally this person will be the coach when the new stadium opens; and a bonus for good clock and timeout management skills ;-)
Of the names I've seen, Ken Whisenhunt is my guy.
As far as quotes go, Ken Whisenhunt is a good guy. As far as the best coach, that's hard to say because judging a coordinators ability to make that step to head coach is difficult unless you talk to the person and get their ideas. I want someone who can adapt and can delegate without having to micro-manage everything. That's key to me.
I'm sure teams are afraid that he might rub some of his players the wrong way but it could be interesting. Most important question is who would be his OC and if that person could mold and develop the next QB. The one issue with a guy like Zimmer is how long would he last before players tuned him out.
If Whisenhunt really wants to go to a team with an established QB, the Vikings have no chance and the LIons would be a good fit.
Ben, returning is a good option for Cassel. Can build more value here than elsewhere, I would speculate.