Monthly Archives: September 2013

Vikings, Spielman, made dumb move in releasing Antoine Winfield

Minnesota Vikings general manager Rick Spielman has made some decent draft picks in the last couple of years (Harrison Smith, Matt Kalil) but made a huge mistake in releasing cornerback Antoine Winfield this past winter. Winfield played well in 2012 and probably had one more good year in him at age 36. Perhaps if the Vikings had approached him when the season ended about restructuring his contract for 2013, he would have been agreeable.

Instead Spielman made a classless move by calling Winfield upstairs while he was working out at the team’s facility and unceremoniously dumped him.

The Vikings could have adjusted Winfield’s contract and remained under the salary cap, and still added the players that they did.

Now the team is 0-3, and the defense ranks 28th in the NFL against the pass. Toss in an injury to cornerback Chris Cook, and Minnesota now has a problem in the secondary.

Didn’t have to be that way. Some days I just wonder how guys like Spielman get their jobs.

Some TV studio bosses are full of baloney

In this week’s issue of TV Guide the heads of eight television studios were asked a number of questions, such as “What would you say is your new sleeper hit?” and “Which actor is poised to become a superstar?” I have no problem with their answers to most questions – even though for those two questions they’re just guessing – but the one question I sense some B.S. with their answers is “What would you be doing if you weren’t in the entertainment business?”

 

The most honest answer was from Jamie Erlicht, president of programming and production at Sony Pictures Television. His reply was “Trying to get back in.” Honest and funny.

 

But the two ridiculous answers were from Kevin Beggs, chairperson of Lionsgate Television Group, and Peter Roth, president and chief content officer of Warner Brothers Television Group. Their response? “Teaching.”

 

Really? I’m supposed to believe that these guys would give up their six or seven – or maybe eight – figure salaries and work as teachers? They would actually work at a difficult job such as teaching, for fifty or sixty thousand dollars a year? If they were not working in the entertainment business? Come on.

 

I guess I shouldn’t be surprised, since they’re really in the bullshit business, so they’re trying to make themselves feel honorable by saying they’d be teachers if they weren’t in entertainment. I’d like to see some of them spend even one day as a teacher. Actually they probably wouldn’t last two minutes in a classroom, let alone a day.

 

Come on Beggs and Roth. I could do your jobs better than you, and I’ve never work in the entertainment business. At least I’d pick some quality shows to be on TV instead of junk that lasts one episode.

Vikings out-coached in loss to Browns

For the second week in a row the Minnesota Vikings defense made a number of big plays, yet the team still lost the game. While the Browns played well, the Vikings coaching staff was outsmarted by their Cleveland counterparts on a few occasions.

 

The most glaring example would be the fake field goal attempt that resulted in a Browns touchdown. Minnesota has 23 assistant coaches, and not one of them saw Cleveland’s Jordan Cameron standing alone near the sideline? Come on. Coaches spend hours in their offices drawing X’s and O’s, and then during a game they miss something like that? Pathetic. On the other hand, the Browns coaches deserve some credit for coming up with the idea and for having the guts to try to it.

 

Even though Christian Ponder doesn’t have a cannon for an arm, and still again made some costly mistakes, this is a game the Vikings could have easily won. Hopefully Minnesota will play at a higher level when they meet some of the tougher teams on their schedule later this season.

At least Frazier takes blame for latest Vikings debacle

Minnesota Vikings’ fans ought to be used to losing games like Sunday’s last second loss to the Chicago Bears. Even with a number of big plays, the Vikings still managed to lose somehow.

 

Jared Allen’s sack and forced fumble of Bears quarterback Jay Cutler led to Brian Robison scooping up the fumble and racing down the field to score a touchdown. What a great play. Almost as good as Carl Eller and Jim Marshall of the old Purple People Eaters.

 

Letroy Guion’s stripping the football off Bears running back Matt Forte was another awesome play. Cordarelle Patterson’s 105 yard kickoff return to start the game was magnificent. Harrison Smith’s interception of a Cutler pass was a thing of beauty, as he leaped into the air and snared the ball in front of the receiver. Just like Bobby Bryant and Paul Krause used to do.

 

Yet the Vikings still lost the game. Head coach Leslie Frazier told reporters afterwards, “That last two-minute sequence I could have done some things different. I told our players after the game, as a staff I don’t think we could have asked for any better preparation, any better fight from our team. But personally I have to do a better job in guiding our team in that last sequence and I wanted them to know that. At the end of the day, there were some things that I didn’t do in my role that could have helped our football team.”

Frazier declined to get into specifics, but he said the personnel on the field for the Bears’ last meaningful drive wasn’t the problem.

“There were some things we could have done differently strategically and that’s my fault,” Frazier said.

 

OK.

 

The thing I’ll never understand is, with a team like the Vikings, they have 23 assistant coaches. They practice and prepare for a week. Then on game day the coaches don’t make the right decisions? Maybe having 23 assistant coaches is too many. What are all these guys doing? Maybe there’s so many X’s and O’ floating around out there that everyone is too confused to act.

The best offensive tackles in Minnesota Vikings history

The Vikings have had some pretty good blockers manning the offensive tackle position through the years. Here is a look at the top players in team history at the position:

7) Korey Stringer – Playing in 93 games and starting 91 from 1995-2000, Stringer was slected to one Pro Bowl while at right tackle.

6) Todd Steussie – Starting all 111 games at left tackle from 1994-2000, Steussie was named to two Pro Bowls.

5) Steve Riley –  A first round pick in 1974, Riley started 121 games at left tackle during his 11 year career, protecting the blind side of quarterbacks Fran Tarkenton and Tommy Kramer.

4) Gary Zimmerman – Named to three Pro Bowls in his seven years with the Vikings Zimmerman held down left tackle for 108 consecutive games during the late ’80’s and early 90’s.

3) Tim Irwin –  During his 13 years with the team he played in 188 games, starting 181 at right tackle. Standing at 6-7, he also blocked a few extra points and field goals while on the special teams unit.

2) Grady Alderman – Holding down left tackle on offense for 13 years – 1961-1973 – Alderman played in 193 games, starting 174, and was selected to the Pro Bowl six times.

1) Ron Yary – Selected to the Pro Bowl seven times in his 14 years with the Vikings, Yary played in 199 games and started 180 at right offensive tackle. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2001.

 

source for statistics: http://www.pro-football-reference.com/