Much has been made of the offseason personnel battle between the Vikings and the Seattle Seahawks. It actually dates back to last offseason when both clubs were trying to sign QB Brad Johnson. Fittingly, Minnesota will look a lot like Seattle this year, at least on the offensive side of the ball. Brad Childress served as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach under Andy Reid (Mike Holmgren's quarterbacks coach in Green Bay).
The Vikings biggest acquisition this offseason was All-Pro LG Steve Hutchinson (Seattle). With C Matt Birk returning from injury and Bryant McKinnie at left tackle, Minnesota should have one of the better lines in the league, especially if Hutchinson's leadership has an impact on the rest of the unit. The right side leaves something to be desired. Childress brought OG Artis Hicks with him (via a draft day trade) from Philadelphia, and he should start at RG. The Vikings also added FB Tony Richardson (Kansas City). This is all good news for the new starting halfback Chester Taylor (Baltimore). Taylor has played well when given the chance, and can catch the ball out of the backfield. This will be his first time as a featured back, and it remains to be seen if he can hold up for an entire season. They lost Michael Bennett (New Orleans) in free agency, but he did not really fit with the scheme Childress is planning to implement.
Daunte Culpepper was traded to Miami, leaving the fate of the offense in Brad Johnson's hands. Johnson played well last season, going 7-2 as the starter, and he has led a team to a championship. However, he will be 38 in Week 2, making it a risky proposition to rely on him. WR Nate Burleson signed with Seattle as a restricted free agent, but the team still has Koren Robinson, Marcus Robinson, and last year's first-round pick Troy Williamson. Relying on KoRo as a the number one receiver could prove risky as well. For the Vikings to be successful, Childress has to remain committed to running the football to take some pressure off of Brad Johnson, something that Philadelphia did not do last year for McNabb. Ironically, if Johnson goes down, we will again see QB Mike McMahon (Philadelphia). McMahon had a 55.2 passer rating last year (his career rating is 55.1), but at least he knows the offense Childress runs.
The Vikings are a bit of an enigma on the defensive side of the ball, in the sense that they should be better than they play. The defensive line is solid with the two huge tackles, Kevin Williams (6'5", 311) and Pat Williams (6'3", 317), dominating the middle. The secondary should be exceptional with Antoine Winfield and Fred Smoot as the starting corners and Darren Sharper at free safety. However, it would be difficult to find a corner back that got burned more often than Smoot did last season. The secondary lost nickel corner Brian Williams (Jacksonville), and a leader in SS Corey Chavous (St. Louis), but the linebackers remain the biggest weakness of this defense. However, the Vikings added SS Tank Williams (Tennessee) who plays almost like an extra linebacker. Chavous is better than Williams, but the linebackers need a lot more help than the other DBs. The Vikings are hoping first-round pick OLB Chad Greenway (Iowa) can provide that as a starter in his rookie year. In addition to Chavous (4th-leading tackler in 2005), the team also lost last year's 2nd-leading tackler Sam Cowart (Houston) in free agency.
Minnesota has a chance to contend for the division crown. However, the defense needs to play consistently. Specifically, the secondary needs to live up to their respective salaries. They intercepted the ball a lot last season, but gambled too much and allowed opponents to move the chains on third and long much too often. The offense has the potential to do some special things in the running game, but a group of somewhat suspect receivers and a 38-year old quarterback could limit them, especially in the important matchups with the Bears and their remarkable defense. Minnesota's schedule is actually easier than Chicago's if you do not include the games they play against each other. Minnesota had a lot of turnover on both sides of the ball as well as in the front office and the coaching staff, so the team could take some time to put it all together. Chicago may have been somewhat complacement, but should at least benefit from continuity.
Key Additions: LG Steve Hutchinson (SEA), RB Chester Taylor (BAL), FB Tony Richardson (KC), LB Chad Greenway (R), SS Tank Williams (TEN)
Key Losses: QB Daunte Culpepper (MIA), SS Corey Chavous (STL), WR Nate Burleson (SEA), RB Michael Bennett (NO), LB Sam Cowart (HOU), CB Brian Williams (JAX)
0 comments:
Post a Comment