Minnesota Vikings 2007

Runningback Adrian Peterson

The Minnesota Vikings open 2007 with a ton of question marks and a bunch of angry fans (including the author) who are calling for Head Coach Brad Childress' head. After a terrible season in 2006 where both defense and offense proved to be among the league's worst, the Vikings are hoping for somewhat better results. Their 6-10 record was an all too painful reminder of missed opportunities and botched play-calling which had led to their demise as one of the NFC's contenders.

The problem starts and is ultimately the biggest at the coaching level. Childress' big-mouth, trash-talking, player-bashing ways was very detrimental to the Vikings' morale throughout the season and several fans were wishing he would just shut up. Is it any wonder with a Head Coach like that that promising young defensive co-ordinator Mike Tomlin bolted for Pittsburgh? Now the Vikings have Indianapolis Colts' defensive co-ordinator Leslie Frazier calling their defense and the sudden change will have a negative impact on the young defense. There are no doubts about that. Plus the offense will probably still continue to stink under Childress' play calling until he departs Minnesota.

As for the team itself, it all begins on offense. Childress has handed the reigns to Tarvaris Jackson at Quarterback while leaving the door open for Brooks Bollinger to win the job if Jackson falters. However, neither quarterback was competent enough to steal the job away from Brad Johnson during the 2006 season and the only reason Jackson ended up starting for the rest of the season was to get some game experience because the season was clearly lost. This year in the draft though, the Vikings picked up a jewel in seventh round pick Tyler Thigpen from Coastal Carolina. A tough thrower with all the skills and abilities to be a full-time starter, don't be surprised if the season is lost by Week 13, then Childress (or his replacement) benches Jackson and Bollinger and hands the reigns to Thigpen to see what he can do.

Runningback has always been a position of strength on the team, and this year is no different. Good money was spent on the hard-running Chester Taylor who posted a 1200 yard rushing season in 2006. Now in marches No.1 draft choice Adrian Peterson who looks to be a star rusher in the mold of Priest Holmes, LaDanian Tomlinson, Clinton Portis and others. With Peterson and Taylor sharing the carries and Mewelde Moore coming in as the 3rd down back, the Vikings look to be set at runningback. In addition they have good blockers in front of them in Tony Richardson and Jeff Dugan as Richardson has proved to be an excellent fullback and Dugan an excellent H-back for the running game.

Wide Receiver is a wide open position that has fallen a long ways from the days of Randy Moss, Cris Carter, Jake Reed and Matthew Hatchette. After a sub-par season last year from the receivers, the Vikings moved quickly to try and address the problem. They drafted three receivers, Sidney Rice in the second round, Aundrae Allison in the fifth round and Chandler Williams in the seventh round and signed Bobby Wade from Tennessee and Cortez Hankton from Jacksonville to try and complement last year's holdovers Troy Williamson, Billy McMullen, Martin Nance and Jason Carter. At the time of writing, the Vikings' depth chart looks like Williamson and McMullen will be the starters with Rice, Allison and Williams battling for the number three spot and Wade, Hankton, Nance and Carter fighting for their very spots on the roster. If the rookies can contribute as fast as the coaching staff hopes, than the Vikings could be in a lot better shape than they were last year.

Tight end is anyone's guess. Jim Kleinsasser returns for another season as the Vikings' starter, but Jermaine Wiggins was replaced by Visanthe Shiancoe, the ex-Giant and now big question marks remain at tight end as to whether it will still have good production. The team does like what it has seen from Richard Owens and he could be a productive factor at the position this year as well.

On the line, the Vikings have one of the best left sides in football. Center Matt Birk and Guard Steve Hutchinson both went to the Pro Bowl last year and Tackle Bryant McKinnie almost made it. This side of the line has no worries. The worry rests in the right side. Artis Hicks was not the force he was expected to be at right guard when he was acquired from the Eagles, and so Anthony Herrera has been getting long looks at the position. At right tackle, Ryan Cook, the converted center, has been struggling and is now battling ex-starter Marcus Johnson for the position. Depth is thin here too, so the Vikings must be careful with their starters if they want any chance of running the ball and keeping their quarterback upright.

On the defensive side of the ball, the Vikings have hopes that Frazier might be able to pick up where Tomlin left off. The defense was improving, but still one of the league's worst last season and that will need to be remedied quickly if the team wants to compete.

The defensive line is where it starts. Talent abounds up front, and all they need is confidence and a coach who can put them into the right schemes. At the tackles, Kevin Williams and Pat Williams are one of the most formidable duos in football and Spencer Johnson and Darrion Scott provide good depth as their backups. On the ends, Kenechi Udeze didn't have any sacks last year, but that could change dramatically this year. Erasmus James is still fighting his way back from a knee injury and it is unknown when he will be able to get back to full speed. In the meantime the Vikings have two old fourth round picks, Ray Edwards and Brian Robison, who have shown flashes of big time talent and could be pushing to get plenty of playing time in the near future. Edwards now looks like a starter until James returns and Robison could be the wildcard if he can start blocking kicks on special teams. This unit has great potential. Whether it lives up to it remains to be seen.

At linebacker, the Vikings haven't had this much depth since their Super Bowl days. E.J. Henderson finally moves in at middle linebacker for the team and he has shown the signs of being a great one. Flanking him is last year's star free agent Ben Leber, and last year's No.1 draft pick Chad Greenway and both look to be solid so far. Depth is provided in the form of Dontarrious Thomas, (who sees action when four LBs are on the field), Rod Davis, sixth round pick Rufus Alexander, free agent Vinny Ciurciu, and special teamer Heath Farwell.

The secondary looks to be in much better shape for the Vikings than it ever has been. Antoine Winfield has solidified himself as a starting cornerback and opposite him second-year man Cedric Griffin is turning into a real good cornerback. Rookie third round pick Marcus McCauley has also turned in a great training camp and he looks to be the head nickel back while Charles Gordon and Dovonte Edwards are running neck to neck for the dime back spot. At safety, the Vikings have so much depth that they don't know what to do with it. Darren Sharper and Dwight Smith look to be the front runners for the starting spots, but free agents Tank Williams and Mike Doss plus last year's opening day starting rookie Greg Blue are all giving them a run for their money, and this battle will come down to the wire.

Special Teams for the Vikings looks to be in good shape as well. Ryan Longwell was well worth the money the Vikings paid to lure him away from Green Bay, and as a result he is unopposed for the kicking job. Punter Chris Kluwe turned in another nice season last year, but he is being challenged by rookie Alex Reyes and this battle won't be decided until the pre-season ends. Mewelde Moore and Troy Williamson look to have the return jobs in hand if they secure their roster spots while Cullen Loeffler returns as the Vikings long-snapper and he looks to have his job nailed down.

The 2007 Vikings are a work in progress, and they probably won't go very far. Their best bet is to continue to work through this season, get their starting quarterback (whoever that ends up being) some experience, let the receiving corps come together, let the defense jell under the new co-ordinator, and just watch and see who looks like the teams they will have to face down in the near-future for the playoffs and championship runs. They will only go as far as their morale will take them, and right now it doesn't look like very far. Still, there is hope for the future.

Go Vikings!