The Minnesota Vikings Draft Needs

The pink elephant in the room is QB.  What will the Vikings do at QB?  In today’s NFL you have a short window to be great, then a window to rebuild so you can have a short window to be great again.

All Day isn’t getting younger.  With LT’s latest woes it’s safe to say an RB has 3-8 great years in him.  With a run heavy offense and an all around superior, but aging D, the Vikings window in now 2…maybe 3 years.

Let’s not forget going into last year and the year before expectations were high with the Vikings and they failed to deliver.  To this point the team has underperformed in a very weak NFC North Division.

With the league’s #1 rusher you can only blame the offensive play caller or the quarterback to why the offense shuts down in big games (and little one’s, ie. Detroit twice when most teams where winning by 20).

I can’t reiterate the play calling failures enough when you consider having the #1 rusher.  The rusher makes the passer better.  When teams put 8 in the box 90% of the time you have to make smart throws, you have to make play action throws – where were all the play action throws?

The Vikings were the 25th rated passing team in 2008, Detroit was 24th.

So diehards will argue T Jack will work in 2010, but these are same ignorant people who thought Troy Williamson would replace Moss (just give him more time, they say).  But we don’t have time.  The window of opportunity is closing.

With that said, here are the 2009 Minnesota Vikings Draft Needs.

The first two you can’t really draft for in 2009, I’d be looking to trade a #1 or #2 pick to get them.

QB – Don’t draft one, you don’t have time.  Find someone in Free Agency while the window is open.  As we learned with Jared Allen, a proven veteran is worth far more than any 1st round pick.

Unrestricted Free Agents:

Warner, Garcia

Trading a 1st or 2nd Round Pick for guys I would target who are FA’s in 2011 and their team may not want them:

Hasselbeck – I would go after Hasselbeck pending a back check
Thigpen (how did we let him get away? Oh, thanks Brad Childress)

Remember this is a 2 year solution you need to address now while you have a window of opportunity.

If I were the Vikings I would be pursuing Hasselbeck and/or Thigpen asap.

Shut Down Corner – Antwoine Winfield only has a couple more years and the Vikings are one shut down corner away from being unbelievably great.  With the Viking front line, a healthy LB core and hard hitting safeties, just imagine what taking out both WR threats each game would mean for this team?

Will the Vikings make a run for Nnamdi Asomugha?

What you can draft.

Kick Returner / WR – If the Vikings don’t trade away the 1st round pick for a QB, I’d look for them to consider filling one of their biggest glaring needs, the kick return game.  The Vikings have no return threat and last year’s hope broke his leg half way through the season in the most disgusting way.

If Jeremy Maclin (doubtful) or Percy Harvin (probable) is available here in the 1st, I take him.  A slot solution to help your passing game ala DeSean Jackson, ala Steve Breaston.  A solid threat to return kicks and punts.  You fill two needs.

OT and/or C – Will Birk be back?  What about the right side of the line?  Do you move Cook to his college position of Center?  Does Bryant McKinnie run block or just sort of stand up and whiff at a guy while he looks confused?  Isn’t he about one strike away from being suspended for a year?

Punter – Think Eagles Playoff Game...Please can we find someone with hangtime?  Or do we have to sit through another year of our punter kicking long line drives 20 yds in front of the coverage?  I’d take 5-10 less yards of kicking distance for a higher chance of no return.  My favorite line from the video, "By the way, don't kick to Reggie Bush right now. They did Mike. And it's a line drive."

Kluwe ranks 33rd in Net Avg and 25th in fair catches with 8.  By comparion the leagues top 5 punters all have more than 20 FC’s.  It’s all about hang time and as we saw with SD in the playoffs, when you have a punter with 5+ sec hang times you can single handedly win a game.  Kluwe meanwhile I’m sure will keep trying to kick it 60 yds inbounds with 3 sec of hangtime.

And that’s about it for needs that need to be solved before the season starts.  The rest of the Viking needs would be for development reasons.

DT and/or S – Pat and Sharper will be shutting it down soon.  Use your late round picks to find value and talent that can develop under these two in the next year or two.

Special Teams Coach – if only you could draft someone to fix the worst punt coverage unit in NFL history.

I’m sure I missed something or you have a different opinion.  I’d be glad to hear it.