>>>ALL THINGS VIKINGS<<<

I used to get upset when they talked bad and showed disrespect toward the Vikings,but not anymore it seems like an annual thing every year some talking head or a former coach says something to put the Vikings down now I just laugh cause it's OLD!!!

 

The Vikings are scheduled to hold the first of nine Organized Team Activity practices on Monday at TCO Performance, as phase three of the offseason gets underway.

These practices come with strict guidelines — no live contact is permitted — and participation is not mandatory, but 7-on-7, 9-on-7 and full team drills are allowed for the first time this spring.

This will give second-year coach Kevin O’Connell an opportunity to step up the pace on the installation of his offense, as well as new coordinator Brian Flores’ defense.

These nine sessions also will lead into the Vikings’ mandatory minicamp on June 13-14. While these practices aren’t open to fans, there will be some interesting storylines to follow.

Brian Flores begins process of making defense respectable

Brian Flores has a big task ahead of him as he takes over a defense that suffered a substantial drop-off under former coach Mike Zimmer and was among the NFL’s worst last season under coordinator Ed Donatell.

Flores, who was hired in February after spending a season as a senior defensive assistant and linebackers coach with the Pittsburgh Steelers, has never had a coordinator title since joining the New England Patriots coaching staff in 2008, but he was head coach of the Miami Dolphins from 2019 to 2021.

O’Connell has made it clear this offseason how much he enjoys working with Flores and how the two think alike.

Flores, like Donatell, will run a 3-4 scheme but that’s where the comparisons end. Flores is expected to bring a faster and more aggressive approach to a unit that will include some new faces. The easiest way to put it is the Vikings’ problem in 2022 was predictability and Flores prides himself on giving opponents unpredictable looks.

Among the veterans who have departed are middle linebacker Eric Kendricks, who was released and signed with the Chargers; defensive tackle Dalvin Tomlinson, who signed with Cleveland in free agency; cornerback Patrick Peterson, who signed with Pittsburgh as a free agent; and outside linebacker Za’Darius Smith, who was traded to the Browns.

The Vikings would have liked to have kept Tomlinson and Smith, but the former was too expensive (four years, $57 million) and the latter made it clear he wanted out.

Among the first items on Flores’ to-do list will be getting the Vikings’ young cornerbacks up to speed, as well as second-year linebacker Brian Asamoah, who is expected to take over for Kendricks.

Will Danielle Hunter and Dalvin Cook attend OTAs?

Defensive end Danielle Hunter and running back Dalvin Cook reportedly have stayed away from offseason workouts and that’s not likely to change this week.

Cook isn’t expected to return to the Vikings, and the only question now is whether he will be traded or released. Cook, who will turn 28 in August, has been in Florida rehabbing his shoulder after undergoing surgery early in the offseason.

He has a salary-cap hit of $14.1 million but only is due $2 million in guaranteed salary. A breakup between the sides, especially with the Vikings’ decision to bring back Alexander Mattison, makes a lot of sense.

The 28-year-old Hunter is another story.

He led the Vikings with 10.5 sacks last season after missing all of 2020 and a large portion of 2021 because of injuries. Hunter was moved from defensive end to outside linebacker in Donatell’s defense and posted double-digit sacks despite too often playing a role that didn’t appear to be a great fit for him.

Hunter will be entering the last season of his contract and has no guarantees left in a deal that calls for him to earn a base salary of $4.9 million. There is little chance Hunter is going to return to the Vikings unless he gets a new and lucrative multi-year deal.

The ideal agreement probably would be something in the three-year range. The Hunter camp is dealing from a position of strength given Smith’s departure and the fact that newly signed Marcus Davenport had only half-a-sack with New Orleans last season.

Flores likely is pushing for Hunter to get an extension and it wouldn’t be surprising to see that happen in the coming weeks.

Let the competition at cornerback begin

About the only thing we know for sure about the cornerback situation is that Byron Murphy Jr., the Vikings’ marquee free agent pickup, will play the outside corner in base and inside nickel.

Otherwise, there will be an open competition for the other two starting spots with the candidates including 2022 draft picks Andrew Booth Jr., and Akayleb Evans and 2023 pick Mekhi Blackmon.

Although Flores was not here last spring, it’s worth noting that first-round safety Lewis Cine lost an opportunity to start during these workouts and never got the chance to beat out Cam Bynum before Cine suffered a season-ending injury in Week 4.

Blackmon doesn’t have the experience that Booth and Evans gained last season, although both battled injury issues, but it is worth noting that his advantage is that he was drafted with Flores having given his approval.

Kevin O'Connell begins work with "his" offense

O’Connell brought a new scheme to the offense last season as he took over as the Vikings’ play-caller and helped Kirk Cousins become one of the NFL’s best late-game quarterbacks.

But O’Connell will have more offensive personnel this season that he hand picked. First-round wide receiver Jordan Addison replaces the aging and slower Adam Thielen. Free-agent signee Josh Oliver will bring a productive, blocking tight end that O’Connell was lacking last season and, thus, give the coach an opportunity to use different personnel groupings more often.

Cook’s expected departure likely means O’Connell will go with a running back by committee that begins with Mattison but also includes Ty Chandler and, perhaps, 2023 seventh-round pick DeWayne McBride.

The Vikings finished seventh in total yards last season and eighth in scoring. O’Connell probably would like to see the latter in the top five and that’s possible if his offense can be more consistent and not disappear for portions of games.

A year ago, Cousins admitted his head was swimming because of all the new verbiage and concepts O’Connell installed. The language of the offense now should be second nature for Cousins and his teammates, but that means the details can be perfected starting this week.

VIKINGS WIRE

 

It's kinda weird I want the Vikings to have a good year but I wouldn't be all that up upset if they didn't which means a high draft pick something the Vikings have not have in a while,I don't understand why some people think the Vikings will be piss poor it was one of better one's in the NFL if Brian Flores can make the defense decent cause the defense was the Vikings weak spot not the Vikings Offense

 

The Vikings have added a receiver from the XFL.

Minnesota announced on Tuesday that the club has signed Dontavian “Lucky” Jackson.

Jackson played for the D.C. Defenders this year, making 36 catches for 572 yards with five touchdowns. After playing his college ball at Western Kentucky, Jackson also played in The Spring League and the CFL in 2021 and 2022, respectively.

As a corresponding move, the Vikings waived edge rusher Kenny Willekes. A seventh-round pick in 2020, Willekes missed all of the 2020 and 2022 seasons due to injury. But he recorded 2.5 sacks, two tackles for loss, and seven QB hits in six games for Minnesota in 2021.

 

I still think they will be good, not elite, but good enough to contend for the North. Last season they did well with a near the bottom defense... Im expecting an improved offense and defense, so why all the doomsdayers, I dont know.

 

Kirk Cousins Cracks Top 10 in PFF's Quarterback Power Rankings

This is a little more respect for Cousins than you typically see in national QB rankings.

Kirk Cousins, top-ten quarterback?

In recent years, most rankings tend to have the Vikings' veteran signal caller somewhere in the 12-15 range. But Pro Football Focus and its grading system have always been pretty high on Cousins, so maybe it's not surprising to see him crack the top ten in their recent QB power ranks. In fact, PFF analyst Sam Monson slotted Cousins in at ninth on his list.

Cousins is probably at the top of the second tier of quarterbacks — those who you can win with but are unlikely to transform a team into a contender simply by their presence. Cousins has earned a PFF passing grade of at least 77.7 every season in Minnesota. He is an exceptionally accurate passer with plenty of big plays in his arsenal who maybe lacks that transcendent, intangible talent that every team chases at the position.

I think that's a very fair assessment of who Cousins is as a quarterback. He's behind Mahomes, Allen, Burrow, Herbert, Rodgers, Lamar Jackson, Hurts, and Lawrence in Monson's rankings, and it's hard to argue with any of those. They all have that special playmaking quality that Cousins hasn't consistently shown during his career.

Behind Cousins are Prescott, Tagovailoa, Stafford, Watson, Carr, Geno Smith, Goff, and Daniel Jones. That all feels like one big tier, and Cousins certainly has a case to be on top of it with his history of accuracy and production, even though there are a lot of people who would argue that he should be more like 13th or 14th.

PFF grades are just one metric, but here's how Cousins has ranked during his Vikings career among quarterbacks with at least 300 dropbacks in that season:

• 2018: 79.3 grade (14th of 31)
• 2019: 84.4 (5th of 30)
• 2020: 83.4 (9th of 32)
• 2021: 88.2 (5th of 31)
• 2022: 73.4 (T-13th of 31)

After taking a step back in his grades and efficiency metrics during his first season in Kevin O'Connell's offense, it'll be interesting to see if Cousins bounces back during his second year in the system.

Inside The Vikings/Fan Nation

 

The difference we saw in Capt Kirk was just amazing when we saw KOC put his main focus on the Offense side of ball ok he's not the greatest QB but the constant disrepct had gotten crazy IMO

 

Some respect is nice a top ten QB I don't know about that he's got no playoffs wins to speak of except the Saints game for Minnesota and no SB's

 

EAGAN — Brian Flores has already made his presence felt immediately on the practice fields at TCO Performance Center.

During the practice open to the media on Tuesday, linebackers, cornerbacks and safeties were lining up all over the place. They were creeping up at the line of scrimmage, never making it clear who was dropping back and who was rushing. Players on the offensive side were pretty surprised to see what was going on across from them.

“It’s crazy, it’s only Day 2 of OTAs and Flo[res] is bringing looks that you’d be getting on Day 15 but it’s only going to help us get better and I’m excited to see them boys fly around when they have a different opponent, it’s going to be fun,” left tackle Christian Darrisaw said.

Flores makes no bones about it: He’s here to take names and send blitzes. On paper you can see his aggressive nature. As Dolphins head coach in 2021, his defense ranked second in blitz percentage per Pro-Football Reference. His safeties’ usage data on PFF looked more like some of those players had no position at all. You would think that the defensive players would be asked to mold to their go-get-’em coordinator’s scheme but Flores isn’t exactly looking at it that way. He wants the players’ skills to meld with his style to create their own unique defense, not just manufacture it by throwing heat.

“We are installing an aggressive style of defense but I think identity is a big part of it as well, building an identity is a big part of playing defense in this league,” Flores said.

“All of this is exciting to me, getting to know the guys, spending time with them and finding out the things that they do well and what buttons to push and what buttons not to push,” Flores added.

The former Patriots position coach and Dolphins head coach has a similar philosophy as head coach Kevin O’Connell when it comes to making all of the pieces fit together: Use players to their strengths.

“We’re all trying to find out what guys do best and put them in positions to do what they do well,” Flores said. “It’s hard to do that because so much of the game is physical so you’re forecasting based on what you’ve seen [without pads]… a lot of the final decisions of what we’re going to be are going to be made down the road.”

The interesting part of this particular group is that Flores inherited players whose strengths and weaknesses may not be entirely defined yet. Projecting the starting lineup, about half the players will have one season or less worth of defensive snaps. Two corners and one safety were drafted last year and battled injuries. One starting inside linebacker sat behind Eric Kendricks. All the depth pass rushers are still developing. It’s almost a blank slate for Flores.

“Everyone is going to play some piece of coverage, some piece of pass rush [in OTAs] and give us a chance to see what guys’ natural IQ for those things are and get us to work with other positions,” inside linebackers coach Mike Siravo said. “Brian is a fundamental and technique based guy with a great scheme but we’re going to be great at the techniques and move the pieces around.”

The blankness of that slate is different for Flores than other defensive minds because he isn’t trying to make any square pegs fit into round holes. He shapes the pegs and the holes. His defense is known for using players in versatile roles and you don’t have to look far to see that the Vikings drafted three players on defense who they projected as being able to play several different positions.

“I’ve been in some situations where the answer to everything is scheme and what I love about our staff is that the answer is toughness first and then fundamentals, technique, effort and then the scheme,” Siravo said.

The next OTA phase and mandatory minicamp will be about the players learning Flores’ techniques and Flores learning the players’ skills. He knows that whether it all comes together and whether the Vikings’ defense improves depends on those two things intersecting.

“Every time you step on the practice field, what is our identity and what are people going to say about us…what do we want it to look like?”

 

Small fire becomes a blazing fire then a out of control fire love it something the Defense needed bad

 

Lewis Cine: I feel like I’m a better player, person having gone through injury rehab



Vikings safety Lewis Cine‘s took another step forward on the path back to the playing field this week.

Cine is working with the team at their OTAs as he continues to recover from the compound fracture of his leg that he suffered in Week Four last season. The 2022 first-round pick missed the rest of the year, but says he’s “been going like everyone else” in the offseason program and that he believes he will benefit in the long run from having to fight his way back from such a serious injury.

“I feel like as a player and as a person I’m better for it,” Cine said, via Dane Mizutani of the Pioneer Press.

The Vikings defense underwhelmed last season, which led to the hiring of Brian Flores as their new defensive coordinator. It’s unclear exactly how Cine will be used in Flores’ defense, but having him healthy and able to contribute should help the team’s bid for a better showing on that side of the ball.

PFT

 

Got to love that attitude that comes from a winning football program it can spread from player to players, it just amazing to me how the defensive mindset is different from Donatell

 

Be aggressive and attack will be the MO in Minnesota. Im going to like that a lot. Hopefully with a new scheme in place defensively and a good offense under Cousins, this Vikings team will surpass the early talking-heads lousy predictions.

I am concerned with who's going to be RB1... is Cook gone or is Cook staying? Can Mattison step up?

Most teams, to be successful have 2 RB's that can produce... Im still not sure if the Vikings have one, at the moment.

 

I just refuse now to let the talking heads get to me anymore these guys will drive you crazy they say the Vikings ain't this or that their defense is beyond repair don't know if Cook stays or go it's just time to turn the page give Ty Chandler and DeWayne McBride a chance to play you got nothing to lose here

 

That's a real good question can Alexander Mattison can he step up to be the main man

 

Brian Flores wants Vikings’ defense to develop an identity as aggressive but not reckless

In his first few months as the Vikings’ defensive coordinator, Brian Flores has been at work explaining to his players what kind of identity he wants his defense to have.

“I think building an identity is a big part of playing defense,” Flores said, via the St. Paul Pioneer Press. “I try to impart that to our players. That happens over time. Every time we step on the practice field, it’s ‘What is our identity? What are people going to say about us? What do we want it to look like?’”

So what does Flores want that defense to look like?

“I think they understand my nature as far as wanting to be aggressive but not reckless,” Flores said.

Flores indicated that he has liked what he has seen from players during Organized Team Activities, but he also indicated that as long as practices are non-contact, the Vikings’ defensive identity can’t be established.

“It’s hard to do that in this setting because so much of the game is physical,” Flores said. “We’re kind of forecasting based on what we’ve seen. That’s part of it too. We have to forecast. The final decisions of what we’re going to be are going to be made down the road.”

Although Flores has had a number of defensive assistant jobs and spent three years as head coach of the Dolphins, this is the first time he has been a defensive coordinator. He’ll be establishing his own identity as a coordinator just as the defense establishes its identity.

PFT

Bring back the Purple People Eaters!!!

 

He finished strong last season, just hope he can be an every-game type guy... this remains to be seen.

 

Again its the mindset not reckless but aggressive a little Zimmer here and there when he first became the Vikings HC it was an aggressive Defense

 

Kevin O’Connell looking for Vikings players to take personal leadership to the next level

The Vikings kicked off the offseason by releasing linebacker Eric Kendricks and wide receiver Adam Thielen in moves that foreshadowed further veteran departures once free agency got underway.

Defensive tackle Dalvin Tomlinson and cornerback Patrick Peterson moved on to other teams in March while edge rusher Za'Darius Smith was traded to the Browns this month. There’s still some thought that running back Dalvin Cook could be dispatched, but head coach Kevin O’Connell said the team will be looking for less experienced players to step into new roles as leaders whether Cook is around this season or not.

“It’s like, hey, I think you’ve earned the right. Your performance and production is one thing, but now you’re filling a void of some players that aren’t here anymore, that were here since you’ve been here. And you’ve become the player you’ve become, maybe because of the exposure to those guys,” O’Connell said, via Albert Breer of SI.com. “Now it’s, can you take your own personal leadership to the next level and help guide this team? And, time and time again, in those conversations, it’s something that those players are excited about.”

The Vikings were able to win the NFC North with the help of those departed players and filling the tangible and intangible holes they left behind will help determine if they can repeat that kind of success in O’Connell’s second season with the team.

PFT

 

The Pressure is on who's going to step up into the leadership role?,the door is wide open