Give Me a B for Vikings

Draft grades are nearly impossible to give out, because no matter how much film or game tape one has on a player, they don’t know how that is going to translate into the next level.  There are too many examples of players who are still on the board in the later rounds that end up being great for anyone to say, this team or that team has had a good or bad draft moments after it happens.   We can only assess a team’s draft after those late round surprises and first round busts sort themselves out over the next few years.

In saying that, I would give the Vikings a B after the first two days of the draft.  It’s tough to give them credit for Matt Kalil, but it is easy to give Spielman credit for high-jacking a few extra picks from Cleveland and drafting the guy they wanted all along.  In the Brown’s defense, they had the extra picks and if Richardson was their guy, why not make sure you get him.

I also give Spielmen credit for using those extra picks to jump into the end of the first round and just like what Cleveland did, the Vikings made sure they got the guy they wanted.  Unlike Cleveland, Harrison Smith most likely would have been available when the Vikings drafted in the second round.

The corner back they grabbed (Josh Robinson) in round three is supposed to be the fastest defensive back in the draft.  Though, as a Vikings fan, we all know speed does not equal success.  Does the name Troy Williamson ring a bell?  We’ve been told the Vikings didn’t reach on Robinson and actually got some great value with the pick.  So three picks in, what do we know about the Vikings draft after two days?  The additions look good on paper and Spielmen’s been patted on the back for his moves. What don’t we know?  Everything else, but speculating is too much fun to pass up.

Let’s Dust This Off

We’re in the midst of a very interesting time to be a Minnesota sports fan.  The Vikings are coming off one of the worst seasons in franchise history and there’s still a chance, it has become slim, but they might become the L.A. Vikings.  The team has also just made some moves in the first round of the NFL Draft last night as they try to take a step forward on the field and off it with local politicians.  The Twins are finally in a new stadium, which may be old news at this point.  They also share something with the Viking and that is being one of the worst teams their respective professional league.  There is definitely a theme in this town as the Wild and Wolves are also near the bottom in the NHL and NBA.  Between these four teams, the Wolves are the only one showing a sign of life.

Since my last post on Fire David Kahn a lot has changed.  We’ve seen Brett Favre come and go and in between, lead us within a first down of the Super Bowl.  The Twins have gone from a perennial playoff team to a doormat, the Wild are still the Wild and as I said, the Wolves are finally respectable.  The one constant has been David Kahn’s ineptitude.  He got Rubio here, so he’s done something good, but he also drafted Johnny Flynn, Wes Johnson, signed Darko, went cheap on resigning Kevin Love and regardless of the hope, he’s still assembled a roster full of players who have no idea how to win.

One reason why I stopped writing this blog a few years back was because there are only so many ways you can say, David Kahn is an idiot.   It got old and we got bored, so this time around we’re going to broaden our horizons and step into the world of pop culture and even book publicity.  We’re going to talk about the Vikings stadium, the Wolves off-season, the Vikings off-season, The Twins and yes, we’ll still discuss why Kahn isn’t an NBA caliber GM.  We’ll dip our ink into what is happening in the world of pop culture and for those hopeful authors, you will get some advice on how to sell a book.