Vikings Offseason Thread

[Mike Sixel]

1 minute ago, nicksaviking said:

Yeah,  I doubt KC franchises him unless they think they can get a 1st, or an early 2nd at worst.

No way should MN do that, given the team and cap. They have zero DL and edge rushers on the roster that a team can build around. Zero. 

[Mike Sixel]

If they want one of the top 4 QBs, they are dealing with SD......and have to outbid a bunch of other teams. 

Is that worth it? Will they be bad enough next year w/o a real QB to pick high (I'm guessing no, given JJ and Addison and Hockenson). Therefore, 

I think they need to ....holds nose and ducks....deal JJ to get a QB this year. If you really think one of these 4 is a top 10-12 QB in the league for the coming years, then ya, trading JJ makes sense. But you better be right. And no, I don't know if I'd do this or not....

[nicksaviking]

7 minutes ago, Mike Sixel said:

If they want one of the top 4 QBs, they are dealing with SD......and have to outbid a bunch of other teams. 

Is that worth it? Will they be bad enough next year w/o a real QB to pick high (I'm guessing no, given JJ and Addison and Hockenson). Therefore, 

I think they need to ....holds nose and ducks....deal JJ to get a QB this year. If you really think one of these 4 is a top 10-12 QB in the league for the coming years, then ya, trading JJ makes sense. But you better be right. And no, I don't know if I'd do this or not....

Another thing to think about is that had McCarthy stayed in school, he'd likely be the top QB prospect in next years draft at this moment. As it is, Quinn Ewers, Sheduer Sanders, Cam Ward and Riley Leonard all could have come out this year but didn't. I do like Ewers, but next year's QB class may all be closer to Nix and Penix than they are to the top group this year.

But I'm not trading JJ. Other teams have been able to move up without giving up a star player, the Vikings should be able to too.

[Mike Sixel]

53 minutes ago, nicksaviking said:

Another thing to think about is that had McCarthy stayed in school, he'd likely be the top QB prospect in next years draft at this moment. As it is, Quinn Ewers, Sheduer Sanders, Cam Ward and Riley Leonard all could have come out this year but didn't. I do like Ewers, but next year's QB class may all be closer to Nix and Penix than they are to the top group this year.

But I'm not trading JJ. Other teams have been able to move up without giving up a star player, the Vikings should be able to too.

Sure, but they have so many holes, so many..... They lose at least three top picks over the next two years to trade up. How do they fill those ... They'll have zero picks besides QB this year before round four of they trade up. So, no real help this year should be expected, while losing Hunter and maybe Risner.... And they'll likely have no first or second next year either..... Trading JJ closes most of those holes. I'm not saying it's a good idea, I'm saying it's something they need to think about. 

[gunnarthor]

5 hours ago, Mike Sixel said:

Sure, but they have so many holes, so many..... They lose at least three top picks over the next two years to trade up. How do they fill those ... They'll have zero picks besides QB this year before round four of they trade up. So, no real help this year should be expected, while losing Hunter and maybe Risner.... And they'll likely have no first or second next year either..... Trading JJ closes most of those holes. I'm not saying it's a good idea, I'm saying it's something they need to think about. 

I think they are actually in pretty good cap space after this year so that could be a fix but I could be wrong. 

[Mike Sixel]

21 minutes ago, gunnarthor said:

I think they are actually in pretty good cap space after this year so that could be a fix but I could be wrong. 

Agreed, after this year they should have a ton of money, but you can only buy so many good FAs .. I can't recall any team signing four to six good starters in one year

[nicksaviking]

10 hours ago, Mike Sixel said:

Agreed, after this year they should have a ton of money, but you can only buy so many good FAs .. I can't recall any team signing four to six good starters in one year

I can only recall about four to six good free agents this team has signed this century.

Certainly they can get some good ones if they do it right, but developing your own players is way more important in the NFL than any of the other sports.

[nicksaviking]

Teams are cutting safeties left and right, I'm starting to get the feeling that Harrison Smith is sticking around. It would be very un-Viking like to cut him late in the offseason and screw him over. They have the cap space now I suppose but they have other needs. I'd have thought Metellus would have been moved out of the nickel spot or Jay Ward would have been ready to take the job, but unless Smith is secretly planning on retiring, I'd guess he's here next year.

[Mike Sixel]

46 minutes ago, nicksaviking said:

Teams are cutting safeties left and right, I'm starting to get the feeling that Harrison Smith is sticking around. It would be very un-Viking like to cut him late in the offseason and screw him over. They have the cap space now I suppose but they have other needs. I'd have thought Metellus would have been moved out of the nickel spot or Jay Ward would have been ready to take the job, but unless Smith is secretly planning on retiring, I'd guess he's here next year.

Not a fan unless he's taking near nothing. They have so many holes without plans, and safety is not one of those. It's not like he was good last year. 

[Danchat]

2 hours ago, nicksaviking said:

Teams are cutting safeties left and right, I'm starting to get the feeling that Harrison Smith is sticking around. It would be very un-Viking like to cut him late in the offseason and screw him over. They have the cap space now I suppose but they have other needs. I'd have thought Metellus would have been moved out of the nickel spot or Jay Ward would have been ready to take the job, but unless Smith is secretly planning on retiring, I'd guess he's here next year.

I just don't see the point of bringing back Smith for his age 35 season after his play fell off last year. 2023 seemed like his swan song, and with so many safeties out there so cheap... they can easily find a better replacement and keep Metellus in his roving position.

[Mike Sixel]

43 minutes ago, Danchat said:

I just don't see the point of bringing back Smith for his age 35 season after his play fell off last year. 2023 seemed like his swan song, and with so many safeties out there so cheap... they can easily find a better replacement and keep Metellus in his roving position.

Decisions like that are often less than rational.....

[nicksaviking]

1 hour ago, Mike Sixel said:

Decisions like that are often less than rational.....

The guys they've unnecessarily held on to a couple years too long is getting quite lengthy.

[Mike Sixel]

8 minutes ago, nicksaviking said:

The guys they've unnecessarily held on to a couple years too long is getting quite lengthy.

Yes. 

[nicksaviking]

https://www.nbcsports.com/nfl/profootballtalk/rumor-mill/news/report-vikings-re-sign-johnny-mundt

Phew, finally some contract action with the important players.🙄

[Mike Sixel]

2 hours ago, nicksaviking said:

https://www.nbcsports.com/nfl/profootballtalk/rumor-mill/news/report-vikings-re-sign-johnny-mundt

Phew, finally some contract action with the important players.🙄

Best third TE in the game, apparently

[Vanimal46]

Here we are… Legal tampering day for FA. I think Kirk and Danielle are both out the door. I am crossing my fingers for a big splash signing of DT Christian Wilkins. 

[gunnarthor]

52 minutes ago, Vanimal46 said:

Here we are… Legal tampering day for FA. I think Kirk and Danielle are both out the door. I am crossing my fingers for a big splash signing of DT Christian Wilkins. 

I think you're right on both Cousins and Hunter. Wilkins seems like a likely fit. 

I've read in a few places that the Vikings are likely to draft a QBOTF (whether it's Nix, McCarthy, or even Spencer Rattler, who knows?) and sign Joe Flacco as the mentor/bridge guy.

[nicksaviking]

24 minutes ago, gunnarthor said:

I think you're right on both Cousins and Hunter. Wilkins seems like a likely fit. 

I've read in a few places that the Vikings are likely to draft a QBOTF (whether it's Nix, McCarthy, or even Spencer Rattler, who knows?) and sign Joe Flacco as the mentor/bridge guy.

I really don't care who the 'mentor' QB is, but I think if the Vikings move into the top 10 for McCarthy, he's got to start right away. Taking advantage of the rookie contracts for QBs is the biggest advantage in the game. And Bo Nix is 24 already. If he needs a year to sit (which I don't think he does), I'm not sure he should be considered. A veteran for the back up role would be fine, but not a bridge QB.

Rattler is 23, but he does interest me while still being pretty raw. He'd be the one I'd look at for the sit-a-year approach. And I'd take him over Pennix. He'd be my QB six at this time.

[Mike Sixel]

Vikings sign Jonathan Greenard, who had an unsustainably high sack rate last year (as a % of pressures).....they needed edge, so if it isn't huge money, this should be good.

[Mike Sixel]

76 million, so Hunter is gone I'd bet.....and that's more than I was hoping to read by at least 5 million a year.

[nicksaviking]

I liked Greenard actually. He had the 6th highest Win Rate in the league last year. He might not put up Hunters numbers, but he's much younger. 

Still, have to hammer the interior OL now. And I'm not sure what they should do with the interior DL.

[Vanimal46]

There goes my pipe dream of signing Wilkins. 

[nicksaviking]

10 minutes ago, Vanimal46 said:

There goes my pipe dream of signing Wilkins. 

He's going to the dysfunctional Raiders though, so two years from now after they cut him and eat something like 20M in doing so, we can take another look.

[gunnarthor]

Greenard is #6 on the free agent list, according to this list. Bummer we missed onWilkins.

https://www.nfl.com/news/top-101-nfl-free-agents-of-2024-who-are-the-best-players-available

[nicksaviking]

Two good interior OL have gone. Lloyd Cushenberry and Tyler Biadasz. I hadn't looked into the players available too deeply, but these two did stand out. The Vikings re-signed Quesenberry and Brandel. I really hope they don't think they can keep moving forward with all these spare parts. They need actual good players on the interior.

[nicksaviking]

Cousins to Atlanta. It wasn't very fruitful, but it was fun. Good luck to him.

Not the Falcons though, no luck to them.

[Vanimal46]

4 years… Amazing. Good luck with that Atlanta. 

[Aggies7]

I have a feeling the Vikings are going to rue this decision.

[cHawk]

The Vikings will host the Falcons this coming season. Watch for ATL/MIN as a potential TNF matchup.

[nicksaviking]

9 minutes ago, Aggies7 said:

I have a feeling the Vikings are going to rue this decision.

Rue not giving a 4 year deal to an injured 36-year-old? Seems unlikely. I'm sure Atlanta will be much improved, but probably no better off than the Vikings were at their best with him. I'm seriously not trying to rip Cousins as much as the organization, but they won one playoff game in his six years. What is there it rue?