Luft’s Locker Room

Archive for May, 2008

Judd Zulgad was answering some questions from fans, and one I found quite interesting.

Q. Any chance the Vikings are looking at Shane Olivea to help shore up the offensive line? – akvikesfan

A. The Santa Rosa Press-Democrat recently reported the San Francisco 49ers were told that Olivea has agreed to terms with a team and that he will sign the deal in June. No word on which club Olivea plans on joining. The right tackle started 57 of 60 career games with San Diego but was benched in 2007 and released after the season. The depth chart for the Vikings at right tackle at the latest OTA practice went like this: Ryan Cook, Marcus Johnson and rookie free agent Drew Radovich.

The embedded link takes you to a Josh Alper (the new guy) story over at PFT.  He has supposedly agreed to terms with some team, not the 49ers and obviously not the Chargers.  According to the report he is expected to sign in June.  June 1^st cuts anybody?  Being a free agent, any team with cap space should have been able to consummate a deal before now which means there is a team that doesn’t have cap space waiting for a June 1^st cut to spread the cap hit and get under to have room to sign Olivea.  This means most likely, the Vikings are not that team because they have had plenty of cap to do the deal. 

Let’s look at Olivea anyways:

He is 26 and from THE Ohio State, Height: 6-4 Weight: 312.  He started all those games his first 4 seasons before he was benched.  But why?  He had a back injury in 2007 and missed one game, but did have tightness in it after that and played.  Reports were that his play regressed over the last year and a half he played for Norv Turner and in the game against Baltimore he was benched. 

How can a player digress in that time when there was no major injury to show for it?  Was his play before an aberration?  Some team believes not, and at least wants him for depth if not to compete for a starting spot on the right side. 

Looking at his stats, his pass blocking stats in particular, his first three seasons in the league, Olivea allowed 4.5, 5 and 5.75 sacks in 16, 15 and 16 games started but had problems with false starts. In 2007, he allowed 3 sacks in the 10 games started. He didn’t record a single hold – charged with only 2 in his entire career – and was penalized for just 1 false start.

His run stats show a different story though with his first 3 seasons, the Chargers were consistently top 10 rushing around right tackle. In 2007, they were among the league’s worst, 29^th.

Now compare that to Ryan Cook, and you see even more evidence that the Vikes are not the team about to make this deal.  The thought of depth would sure be nice though.  We will find out soon enough.

Reading a story from KSTP channel 5 on Sidney Rice and getting his starting spot on the team.  The story, KIBBE: Vikings’ WR Rice gets starting nod in 2008 tells of the how he has bonded with Bernard Berrian, but that misses the point.  The point that folks should take away from this story is of the teamwork that is taking place.  Let me explain…

There were a few quotes that demonstrated the caring aspect of the entire receiving corps.  They are caring to make each other the best possible receivers that they can be.  From what to eat. 

And his veteran teammates also give Rice some diet tips.“Watching what they eat, going through the line and listening to them. They always say you aren’t going to be young all your life. So you have to get ready for that,” he said.

Rice put on about eight pounds this offseason without losing a step and his teammates have noticed a difference. And in the redzone, Rice can leap with the best in the business.

To spending extra time in the film room together to get better.

 “Today, you know, we broke our little individual meetings and we stayed in and watched film and made sure we finished it,” Berrian said. “It’s little things like that you can tell he wants to get better.”

But is because of this selfless devotion to getting better, and knowing that as a group they can reach their goals more quickly [and for us that means a pretty silver trophy with a football on top of it] an not only play better and more successfully, but help the team win. 

“Some of the other rookies that we talked to in the league, (said Robert Ferguson) the vets don’t even talk to them. They don’t tell them what to do. They mess up and just curse them out or whatever. Here it’s different. We are all together. I feel like it’s just one group.”

Effort and selfless teamwork like this is special.  A lot of teams, a player will arrive and he is expected to be able to play.  This is demonstrated where coaching staffs have the philosophy of trying to manage how to assembly players to win versus the coaches that feel their calling is to teach, to make the players better.  Teammates and coaches working to make each other better will not only help “Sid the Kid” as Berrian calls him, but everyone that is willing.

Say what you may about Childress and his KAO, but he has stressed teaching.  He has assembled assistants that do the same thing, and he has assembled and kept players willing to learn.  There was improvement last year and there will be even greater improvement this year because of what was reported above.  Teamwork to make each other better is rare, and is definitely a good sign to see in Minnesota.

The unveiling of this site has come earlier than anticipated due to what Emmitt Smith would report as the Vikings Valhalla best fan website being “blowed up”.  Because the site has gotten popular, it exceeded the allotted ram on this shared hosting server and failed.  The present effort to get well and back up and running is taking a lot longer than anticipated.  Until we can talk in all of VV’s glory, I will attempt to keep everybody updated with the latest exciting Vikings topics.  Enjoy this Valhalla Voice’s blog as it develops and grows as an enhancement Vikings Valhalla.  Please feel free to comment and talk with each other in the comment fields, and as always, “Skol!”

The big news of the weekend was Ray Edwards stated goal of getting the NFL single season sack record.  Channel 5 reported yesterday the story. 

[H]e is stalking the NFL sack record, held by NY Giants star end Michael Strahan. “I look up to Strahan. I learned a lot from him watching and studying his film.” Then Edwards threw in another eye-popping statement: “This year I definitely plan on going out here and breaking Strahan’s record of 22 and 1/2 sacks this year.”

There are indicators that he wasn’t joking.  He has been working on his new boxing training regiment that will help with his eye and hand coordination, his punch against offensive tackles, and the speed and agility of his footwork.  All of that combined with increased shoulder and upper body strength on top of an added 5 to 10 pounds should spell a warning for opposing right tackles and blocking tightends.  But that is not the best of it… Ray will be lining up with three Pro Bowlers in the Williams Wall [Kevin and Pat] and the 2007 sack leader and newest Viking Jarred Allen.  What that means is that Edwards should be seeing one on one blocking all season as offenses try to figure out how to double team everybody else with not near enough blockers to do it.

Will Edwards achieve 23 sacks?  Time will only tell, but it is good to have goals.

Good luck Ray!

Please indulge me a second… Can you just fantasize for a second if that becomes true?  Edwards with 23, K-Will 11, P-Will 4, Jarred Allen 12 and that equals 48 just from the starters.  There will be a linebacker or three with one and maybe a DB or two, Then Robison jumping up and down screaming to get playing time anywhere, begging to relieve these guys so he can get some of that QB lovin’. 

That is down right scary, especially for opposing quarterbacks and the guys that must block for them.  Offensive coordinators will be keeping guys back to help, leading to Sharper and the rest of the DBs eyeballing the QB for the lame duck throws and the opportunities to pick 6.  Every defensive step would feed on the previous one to make a category 5 Purple torrent of destruction.

The only questions are…

Who will be more fun to watch, Adrian Peterson and his supporting crew on offense or what looks on paper to be an exciting and aggressive top rated defense?  Plus, who’ll get the Vikings D for their fantasy team?

The disappointing news leading into the weekend was Friday’s waiving of Erasmus James.

As a fan, over the last few days since the announcement of James being released and put on waivers, there have been numerous reasons speculated over in the press and on the web.  James, a first round pick in 2005 was a dominant defensive end in college and showed everything necessary to continue that in the pros but it never materialized in his first three seasons, due to a holdout as a rookie causing him to be behind the learning power curve.  Then not reporting in shape to compete compounding it.  But he did show glimpses of the explosive rush that could dominate.  He later picked a fight with Chester Taylor sure to sour his impression amongst the rest of his teammates.  Those actions were fully under his control and those poor decisions resulted in hurting the team.  Then came his first knee injury and surgery followed by the sequel injury and additional two surgeries to follow.  Three surgeries in 13 months and poor production over the three may have spelled his doom.

A lesser known explanation caused me to wonder if the 80 man roster was the reason for Erasmus James getting a pink slip?  Coaches have been complaining at almost every owners meeting that they want to grow their training camp rosters to over 100 players, but this with the dissolution of NFL Europa and other exemptions, the roster are now fixed at 80.  Peter King at SI.com has reported,

“Because teams are not allowed roster exemptions for players who played in NFL Europa or various other restricted lists, you’ll see every team, in all likelihood, go to camp with fewer than 80 able-bodied players. (Players on the Physically Unable to Perform List count against the 80-man limit.) So if you have five or six players unable to practice because they’re returning from offseason surgery or from various rehab stints, you’ll have a comparatively bare-bones team starting training camp.”

With that in mind, did the Vikings make their decision based on wanting to have a live, 100% healthy and productive player in camp?  Did they view Erasmus as a PUP candidate that would take that needed spot and not be able to practice at 100%?  This changes what in previous years what was a legitimate way to carry along players that were rehabbing.  Teams could keep all of those players on the rosters under exemptions just to bring them to the active roster later or to eventually place the player on IR until the following season.  This may not have been the sole reason James was unceremoniously told to take a hike, but it may have been the proverbial final straw.

Good luck Erasmus…

OWNERS VOTE 32-0 TO OPT OUT OF CBA (PFT) / NFL owners vote unanimously to opt out of labor deal (ESPN) are just two of the many stories on the death by unanimous vote of the current CBA.

My question is how will this affect the future of Vikings football?  The next two years look really good but after that is when it will get cautious looking like 2010 will be the first uncapped year and 2011 the walkout or lockout.  The gist of the owner’s argument is that 60% of all revenue going to the players is too much when the owners are carrying huge debt loads, especially with a lot of it is tied up in new facilities and stadiums that the players and fans want.  Plus, they say that the cost of doing the rest of the business has gone up dramatically and if persists will endanger the league’s ability to survive long term without passing the costs even further and greater than it already is.

The players view themselves as the prized commodity, just like the barrel of oil; they deserve what they can get, because without them, the league does not run (at least for very long).  Gene Upshaw has built his legacy on the 60% number that he managed to get the owners to buy off on during the last extension agreement.  They would like an uncapped arms race so that they can make baseball type money.  But what is the cost?  If teams cannot financially make it, they won’t pay anything.  Do you think that there are 32 billionaires willing to play in that financial pool and from small city markets that will not be able to compete?

Now what does this mean for the Vikings?

They do not have a huge brand new stadium debt load.  [They would like one so that they can be more competitive.]  Zygi has shown a willingness pay players to improve the team, and that will definitely come into play in an uncapped year. 2005 and 2006 draft classes will be hitting free agency and if they contributed greatly to Vikings success might be in for huge pay days.  And lastly, the Metrodome lease expires in 2011 and could easily be bought out early.

Without a new stadium and the revenue that will generate, Wilf cannot compete in an all out arms race.  He obviously is willing to pay good salaries, but do you envision a baseball like world where a few teams have mega budgets and then there is the rest of the league trying to compete on the cheap and hoping to get a lucky year or two.  (Just like the Twins [but they got a new stadium].)

But one of the factors for the owners is debt load, due in part to new stadium construction over the years.  That is one factor that Zygi doesn’t have.  He may play in a dump, but it is a completely paid for dump that he basically leases out.  He doesn’t pay a huge mortgage.  That may help him come out competitive through any sort of work stoppage [even though the owners say there will not be one] for the short term.  After the 2011 possible work stoppage he and the Vikings will be free agents to fill any void the league wants because there will be no lease to the Metrodome.  That may be too resistible to some other billionaire wanting to join the boys club.  I can see the logo now, “Have team, no debt, will travel.”  …Not good.

I just worry how this uncapped year, if it materializes [no new CBA by then] will affect the competitive balance of the league?  That is what the league has going for it and everybody watches with baited breath to see who comes from worst to first, or slowly climbs that mountain like your local team, or visa versa and plummets after a Super Bowl year just to be laughed at because they were division rivals.  Now, it is a matter of the skill of your front office and coaching staff to bring in and assemble a championship football team.  In that unrestricted arms race, it will be up to the guy willing to pay the most for it.  That cannot be good for the league.

I say compromise in negotiation and give the vets more of the payroll percentage, but do it at the cost of the rookies that haven’t played a single down in this league.  Tie in the rookie pay scale that everyone except the agents want, and you are there.  The agents may see an economic downturn of sorts for a few years until those rookies are becoming unrestricted and making the big bucks, but it is not like they [the agents] are contributing to the game we all love like the players and the owners.  They are just glorified talent leaches that are in Upshaw’s back pocket pulling his strings, so that is where the problem’s lie.

Is this good news for the Vikes, it doesn’t look that way, but Zygi may be even more viable in the short term due to the Metrodome being paid for and might come out on the backside of this hopefully keeping the Vikings just where there are.

I know… Keep dreaming.

Mirror Image: 69 and 96

I just read where “a source familiar with the situation” said that the trade talks with Kansas City for Jarred Allen were a little contentious, not just for the kings ransom demanded by king Carl [Peterson], but by the asking for DE Brian Robison in return. The denial of the Robison trade is what supposedly drove up the pick count. (Not that Greed had anything to do with it.)

This just points to how talented and tenacious the Vikings think Robison is. He is expected to be the first DE of the bench this season. He, and the rest of the Vikings world, hope to see that significant jump in level of play that comes from “getting it” after your rookie season. Last year with limited time playing, he compiled 18 tackles, 5 assists, 4.5 sacks and 1 forced fumble. Not a bad place to start. Then let’s throw Jarred Allen into the mix giving pointers and spurring competition from not only from Robison, but from Ray Edwards [the presumed left starter] and Jayme Mitchell. This group combined with the Williams’ Wall [Kevin and Pat] should be a blast to watch.

Does anybody else see the scary potential of sacks this year?

(I’ll bet Aaron Rodgers does.)