Luft’s Locker Room

We all knew, that sooner or later there would be interest in the Vikings restricted free agents, and the first to get high profile sniffs turns out to be Ray Edwards.

This makes sense for teams that want to upgrade the DE position and feel a first rounder for 25 year old better than average and getting better defensive end is worth it, especially when that pick is in the later part of the first round.

Ray had 8.5 sacks last year and 4 in the playoffs. As long as he has been healthy, he has steadily improved as the “other” DE on the line. If I were the Eagles or Saints [the first two teams reported to be in pursuit] I would look to sign him for a decent multi-year contract, throw in a little poison pill and give the Vikings my #1 pick.

Kevin Brown of VikingBuzz BLOG put it best.

Analysis: The Vikings have thought this through and it’s no accident they tendered Edwards at the first-round level. They know full well that will not necessarily scare teams away from making a run at him. So this scenario is not unexpected for them.

The most preferred option would likely be to retain Edwards at that $2.521 million level. However, the Vikings do have a lot of confidence in Brian Robison as a potential replacement for Edwards, especially on passing downs. They also like Jayme Mitchell, who has the tools to be an effective base end in their scheme.

Expect to see Ray Edwards playing against The Vikings next year. Look for Rick Speilman and crew to draft a DE for depth and development. The question is what and who will we be getting excited over with that second #1 pick?

What is your opinion?

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