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Minnesota Vikings Team Thread (7 Viewers)

Revisiting Anthony Barr’s role as a pass rusher

I guess Barr i mixing in with the defensive line in practices a bit more now. Zimmer is having him focus on working on pass rushing technique and some speculation in this article about Barr possibly being used as pass rusher more this season.

Barr has been playing almost all of the defensive snaps since he got to the Vikings. Last year he rushed the passer on 11% of his snaps, maybe that number increases this year, we shall see.

I know I saw Barr getting blocked by RB and other players. This is another instance of me being surprised that PFF rates him as a top 5 pass rusher for an inside LB. I thought he got blocked too easily and too often.

 
Biabreakable said:
Revisiting Anthony Barr’s role as a pass rusher

I guess Barr i mixing in with the defensive line in practices a bit more now. Zimmer is having him focus on working on pass rushing technique and some speculation in this article about Barr possibly being used as pass rusher more this season.

Barr has been playing almost all of the defensive snaps since he got to the Vikings. Last year he rushed the passer on 11% of his snaps, maybe that number increases this year, we shall see.

I know I saw Barr getting blocked by RB and other players. This is another instance of me being surprised that PFF rates him as a top 5 pass rusher for an inside LB. I thought he got blocked too easily and too often.
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Yeah, I'm excited for Barr to work more with Andre Patterson but at the same time I'm wondering why he hasn't done more of this in the past?  With his size and athleticism he should be a blitzing beast.  

With Sheldon next to Linval maybe they won't need a rusher up the middle and can experiment more with Barr rushing on the edge like he did in college.  

 
frigid5 said:
Yeah, I'm excited for Barr to work more with Andre Patterson but at the same time I'm wondering why he hasn't done more of this in the past?  With his size and athleticism he should be a blitzing beast.  

With Sheldon next to Linval maybe they won't need a rusher up the middle and can experiment more with Barr rushing on the edge like he did in college.  
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According to the article Barr rushed the passer on 14% as a rookie which was a high mark for him.

I have to think that if he was good at this, that they would use him as a pass rusher more.

The defense needs the LB to cover and stop the run moreso than blitz from what I have seen over the last 3 years, so I am still wondering why the pick was Barr 9th overall. It has actually worked out better than I feared. He has been one of the reasons the screen game by opposing offenses does not work well against the defense. Barr does have a lot of range and speed. There are some very good things about him that I don't think would be easy to replace, however as a pass rusher he has been not as good as advertised.

More pressure from Barr this season could push this defense over the top I think, but there is a reason why Brian Robison has been playing a lot in the middle and as a rover. Better pass rushing skills than Barr has.

 
Just trying to catch up on ota news now that this has wrapped up.

Mike Hughes has been playing well according to Pelissero. Breaking up 3 passes and a interception in one practice, then another pass broken up in the last practice. He is still working with the 2nd team right now, but making plays.

Mike Hughes ends offseason making a couple of plays

Vikings rookie WR Brandon Zylstra turning heads with acrobatic catches

The drumbeat on this guy has been pretty steadily positive. If this keeps up he may be this years Mr. Mankato although I suppose we need a new name for this now.

David Morgan has stood out according to Wobby.

The defense is still ahead of the offense right now and the pads haven't come on yet. I suppose this makes sense as the defense has been working in the same system for 3 years now while the offense is having to adjust to DeFlippo and Cousins still. The offense hasn't changed that much as Flip said they are keeping most of last years offense and using the same language for plays. He is just adding some new wrinkles to it.

Progress made, but still some assembly required on Vikings offensive line

After the first week of organized team activities, when the Vikings had Remmers at right tackle, they used him at right guard in every practice open to the media, including all three days of minicamp. He played right guard in the Vikings’ Week 17 victory over the Bears last season, then shifted to left guard in the playoffs with Easton out because of a fractured ankle.
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Rashod Hill is looking like the starting right tackle based on Remmers playing inside for the most part so far. He reportedly has lost weight to improve his stamina.

Riley Reiff was at left tackle while Danny Isidora and Tom Compton split time at left guard. Nick Eastonwas at center as Pat Elflein continues to recover from offseason ankle surgery. Mike Remmers lined up at right guard while Rashod Hill was at right tackle.

The second-team line consisted of left tackle Aviante Collins next to Isidora or Compton at right guard. Josh Andrews and Cornelius Edison both played center. The Vikings lined up a pair of rookies on the right side as Colby Gossett was at guard and Brian O’Neill was at tackle. LINK
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Brian O'Neil has gained some weight and may be looking to add more. It is too early to say if he can push the starters or not. I doubt he will, Hard to judge these guys before the pads come on though. While Hill is alright, it would be great if someone could push  or replace him.

Vikings rookie DT Jalyn Holmes recovering from broken right hand

Supposed to be ready for training camp.

Terrence Newman has been playing some safety at times during drills as well as nickle and outside corner.

 
Biabreakable said:
Vikings may be banking on a better conditioned Rashod Hill in 2018

Who do you think is the better option at right tackle?

Hill or Remmers? I don't think O'Neil is a serious option right now. Maybe on some special packages like unbalanced line or as a TE at times, not much. Would be happy to be surprised about that.
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I personally like Remmers at tackle better than at guard, but the coaches seem to prefer playing him at RG with Hill at RT. They said something about that during the playoffs... it allows them to get their best 5 on the field. They'll probably do the same thing this year, since not much was added to that group.

I guess they feel like they don't have anyone else that can play RG right now? All I know is, the O-Line better stay healthy, or this promising season could be a disaster.

 
-arcK- said:
I personally like Remmers at tackle better than at guard, but the coaches seem to prefer playing him at RG with Hill at RT. They said something about that during the playoffs... it allows them to get their best 5 on the field. They'll probably do the same thing this year, since not much was added to that group.

I guess they feel like they don't have anyone else that can play RG right now? All I know is, the O-Line better stay healthy, or this promising season could be a disaster.
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For sure.

I have read conflicting reports about the quality of the Vikings offensive line from other sources. Some seem to think the Vikings offensive line was good last year, like a top 10 type group, some seem to think it was one of the bottom five offensive lines, so pretty bad.

We know that Kirk Cousins is more likely to throw interceptions when he is being pressured.

In my view the Vikings offensive line improved their run blocking, as was somewhat expected based on the skill set of Reiff and Remmers. I don't know how much better they have gotten at pass protection though. Case Keenum was pretty mobile QB who was able to escape the pass rush and extend plays. I think Cousins is similarly gifted in pocket presence and will be able to do the same things as Keenum, just noting that poor pass protection can be a serious problem still.

It is possible they think Hill is better in pass protection at tackle than Remmers is, moreso than they do not have anyone besides Remmers who they want to play RG.

Hill is okay, just a player who I think would be better as a back up. Perhaps Remmers too, but the Vikings coaches think they are part of their top 5 so want them both to start.

The Vikings offensive line seemed better early on last season before some injuries caused them to have to rely on their depth more.

 
Vikings Training Camp Notebook: Day 2

Danny Isidora replaced Tom Compton as left guard for the majority of first team offesnive line snaps. The rest of the line remained the same: Riley Reiff at left tackle, Nick Easton at center, Mike Remmers at right guard, and Hill at right tackle. Once again, Brian O’Neill appeared to receive most of the first team snaps when Hill went out.
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The biggest development on the defensive side on Sunday was how Anthony Barr practiced. The Vikings have talked about bringing in Barr off the edge as a pass rusher more often this season, and they appear to be backing it up. Barr practiced with the defensive linemen instead of the linebackers nearly the entire practice. In 11-on-11 he lined up on the edge fairly often, including a “4-3 Under” look out of the base package. For those that might be unfamiliar with the concept, here’s a good article from Danny Kelly explaining the defense. I’d guess that we might see a lot of it this season from the Vikings.
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Zimmer was asked specifically about this and he said he isn't much of an under front coach.

 
jtd13 said:
I'm impressed that Minnesota has been able to lock up Hunter, Kendricks, and Diggs this offseason after signing Cousins. 
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i thought Diggs might try the free agent market based on what has been reported about it for a long time.

Great to have him signed long term.  

The Vikings do look like they will be able to keep this core of players together for the most part the next 3 to 4 years. Anthony Barr and Sheldon Richardson are the only expected starters who are not under contract for 2019 or longer.

 
Vikings Training Camp Outlook and Insights: Offense

In regards to Mike Remmers injury.

Remmers (leg) is not considered in danger of missing Week 1, Courtney Cronin of ESPN.com reports.

Remmers could reportedly be sidelined for a week or more of practice, but Minnesota does not seem concerned with rushing the 7th-year veteran back onto the field. Assuming Remmers is able to recover by Week 1 without issue, he should return to his role as starting right tackle to begin the 2018 season.
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Pretty vague as far as what kind of leg injury. 

 
Here's a slice of life for you, my Viking fan friends.

I'm a life long Packer fan, as some here know.  I went to Law School in the Twin Cities and worked two years out in Marshall, so I have lived amongst you all.  I have a friend from back in those times who will still call me anytime the Vikes beat the Packers to do nothing other than to play the Viking horn sound and then hang up.  I respect that.

I live in Bronco country now.  At my work place there are two transplanted 'Sotans, Vikings fans, naturally. The ribbing goes back and forth.  Last week one of them who has to route work through me for approval ordered up his routing forms.  He had them printed on Viking's purple stationary and he ordered up a supply that will last several years.  To accomplish this he needed the signature of one person, yep, the other Vike's fan.  Now I have to see that purple stain come across my desk several times a week.  I admire that, it was well played.

 
Zimmer: I'm Glad We Didn't Win That Game ... We Didn't Deserve To

He says Remmers should be back this week. Elflien pretty soon and Hill he is not sure.

He says they will play the screens better moving forward. Believe me (with emphasis of this being important to him).

He says the offense looked a lot like they did in practice earlier in the week. The Jaguars defense being able to dictate what the offense can do and similarly on the other side of the ball too the Vikings defense usually winning.

He said Collins had a better week of prctice than O'Neil and that is why he started at right tackle with the first team with Hill out. He said Collins does better against powerful defenders specifically. So O'Neil is still working on getting stronger.

 
It will be interesting to see what they do with Roc Thomas and Mike Boone (or even Latavius Murray)...thinking they will end up shopping one with how well they have looked and the team not having room for all of them. Probably be better than cutting and taking the chance that they make it to the practice squad. Good problem to have. They should be able to get a pick but if they could somehow get some o-line help that would be even better.

 
Re: the RB's I hope we only keep Boone as he is more explosive over the Roc and perhaps we can stash Roc in the Practice Squad.  

Re: Iloka, sure bring in someone who knows Zimmer's system but hopefully not over-pay for him.

What I'd like to see moving forward is that we trade away a 6th or 7th round pick in 2019 and get some veteran who isn't worth his current contract but good enough for us.  Yes not over-pay for Iloka but over-pay if we must for O-line help.  This team will go as far as the O-Line will carry them and we need help.

Don't see how we will keep Newman when we cut down.  Possibly we can re-sign him after Week 1 where his contract will be pro-rated instead of being guaranteed.  I have no idea who we might keep along the D-Line, seems we have great depth there and I hate to see us lose any of them.  Love the young new LB'ers in Wilson and Downs so I expect them to make the team.  Not crazy about our OTHER TE's after Rudolph so hopefully Rudolph can stay healthy this year.

 
Andy Dufresne said:
Are my dreams coming true? Are they actually upgrading from Sendejo? 

https://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2018/08/22/report-vikings-expected-to-sign-george-iloka/
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I am not sure if Iloka would actually be an upgrade over Sendejo. The Bengals are cutting him for a reason.

He is a big strong safety type similar to Jermaine Kearse who he likely would be an upgrade over.

I would be happy to see the Vikings add Iloka to the team, I just don't think it affects the starting lineup.

Also Iloka can't block. I would prefer to see the Vikings try to upgrade their depth there more than anything else.

 
Vikings to release Robison, per Schefter

Bummed to see this as Robison has been a stalwart for the team, but seems to me this bodes well for the depth of the D-Line if they're comfortable enough with other players to let a guy like B-Rob go.  He was a great locker room guy, and versatile enough to play end or tackle.

 
Robison has played a lot of snaps for the Vikings the last couple of seasons and not just as a defensive lineman. They would have him play like a LB threatening blitz from a standing up position as well. Basically taking Barrs role in the defense on certain down and distance situations.

He has been a good player for the Vikings and as Herb said a good leader.

He took a pay cut to the veteran minimum to stay with the team, so this decision isn't about money. It is about productivity on the field.

Bower has really stood out this preseason and Odenigbo has too. Weatherly not as much as these two but he did very well in the 4th preseason game.

These 3 must have played well enough that they were going to play them over Robison, and thus no role left for Robison.

If they kept Robison they would likely feel committed to playing him more than they want to. So letting him go for these other 3 to earn playing time.

I wish Robison the best. He has been a great player for the Vikings. He seems interested in doing stuff with the media, so maybe that is what he will do next and we will still see him that way.

 
53 man roster:

Quarterbacks (3): Kirk Cousins, Trevor Siemian, Kyle Sloter

Running backs/fullback (5): Dalvin Cook, Latavius Murray, C.J. Ham, Mike Boone and Roc Thomas

Receivers (5): Adam Thielen, Stefon Diggs, Laquon Treadwell, Brandon Zylstra and Stacy Coley

Tight ends (3): Kyle Rudolph, David Morgan and Tyler Conklin

Offensive linemen (9): Riley Reiff, Tom Compton, Pat Elflein, Mike Remmers, Rashod Hill, Brian O’Neill, Brett Jones, Aviante Collins and Danny Isidora

Defensive linemen (9): Everson Griffen, Danielle Hunter, Stephen Weatherly, Tashawn Bower, Linval Joseph, Sheldon Richardson, Jaleel Johnson, David Parry and Jalyn Holmes

Linebackers (5): Anthony Barr, Eric Kendricks, Ben Gedeon, Eric Wilson and Devante Downs

Defensive backs (11): Xavier Rhodes, Trae Waynes, Mackensie Alexander, Mike Hughes, Marcus Sherels, Holton Hill, Harrison Smith, Andrew Sendejo, Anthony Harris, George Iloka and Jayron Kearse

Specialists (3): Daniel Carlson, Ryan Quigley and Kevin McDermott

 
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