Generally speaking, the big-name players tend to get the majority of the attention during training camp. Adrian Peterson, Percy Harvin, Christain Ponder, Jared Allen, Kevin Williams, Antoine Winfield, et al. will attract the bulk of media coverage and autograph seekers alike. As well, draft picks like Matt Kalil, Harrison Smith, Josh Robinson and Greg Childs naturally command attention as their NFL careers are launched and the public gets its first look at the newest arrivals and what they may be able to contribute thenceforth.
But what about those players flying under the radar this training camp with a lot to prove and whose play could be pivotal to the Vikings chances this upcoming season. The following is a list of the top ten most interesting players to keep an eye on this training camp/preseason excluding the usual headliners:
10. Tyler Nielsen
Because of the success of players like John Randle, James
Harrison and Wes Welker, the next great undrafted free agent is always
worth keeping an eye out for. There's nothing more exciting for a team
or its fanbase than discovering during the course of training
camp/preseason that it may have found a "diamond in the rough," let
alone possibly the next Victor Cruz. Might there possibly be any in
Mankato this year for the Vikings? With holes aplenty on the roster one
would think that there's a decent chance an undrafted player makes the
team. If it was to be wagered upon, my bet would be on Iowa linebacker
Tyler Nielsen. The Vikings linebacker corp appears less than tenable and
lacks depth. Nielsen is tough, gritty and hardworking. He played
through injury last season for the Hawkeyes and
was a favorite of NFL
Network draft guru Mike Mayock. If nothing else, special team players
are needed and Nielsen could flourish there while providing valuable
depth at a position lacking it.
9. Charlie Johnson
We heard it throughout the offseason: That by drafting Matt
Kalil the Vikings would be killing two birds with one stone on account
that Johnson could be kicked over to the left guard position vacated by
Steve Hutchinson. But is this as much of a slam dunk as we are lead to
believe? Johnson has limited experience at guard, is a bit undersized
for the position and his pass-blocking deficiencies can just as easily
be exploited at guard as they were at tackle. The Vikings have depth
along the offensive line now, so if Johnson has a second consecutive
camp where he looks like he doesn't belong in the NFL it shouldn't take
the Vikings long to revise their depth chart.
8. Nick "the Point Guard" Taylor
The Vikings signed Nick Taylor to a three-year contract. A
onetime point guard on the Florida International University basketball
team, Taylor burned up the track at 4.27 and 4.34 in the forty at FIU's
pro day. The Vikings told Taylor up front he was a long shot to the make
the team, but he will get a look at corner, punt returner, and possibly
receiver. It will be interesting to see during the course of training
camp whether he demonstrates more potential than Brock Lesnar did in
2004.
7. Letroy Guion
Over recent years, it can be arguably said that no team has
emphasized stopping the run more than the Vikings—and for the most part
of the last decade they were very good at it. Last year, though, the
Vikings did not feel the need to bring Pat Williams back as a
lane-clogging nose-tackle capable of keeping blockers off the
linebackers. The result was that opponents displayed an unprecedented
ability to run the ball on them. The Vikings were confident entering the
year that Letroy Guion was ready to take the proverbial "next step" and
take over for Williams while providing more of a pass rush. But Guion's
game actually regressed and the Vikings at times looked completely
inept over the nose of the ball. The Vikings gave Guion a contract
extension in the offseason expecting him once more to elevate his game
and provide an active run-stuffing presence in the middle of their
defense. If he cannot step it up the middle of the defense is bound to
be exploited again.
6. Everson Griffen
The former USC defensive end came into the league with
first-round talent, but off the field behavior and an inconsistent motor
on it knocked him into the fourth-round where the Vikings decided to
gamble on his potential. Ever since, they have searched for ways to get
Griffen on the field including using him as a "gunner" on punt coverage
last season. This year, the Vikings have announced that they intend to
try him at linebacker. A 6'4", 273 lb. LB in a 4-3 defense? It should
make for some interesting practices.
5. Joe Webb
Bottom line: If Ponder's 2011 struggles carry over into this
preseason, Webb is bound to become quite popular. What is more, it will
be intriguing to see whether Webb continues to be featured in offensive
coordinator Bill Musgrave's amateurish "Blazer Formation," even though
Webb was about as effective running the Wildcat offshoot as Mark Sanchez
was at
playing receiver.
4. Jasper Brinkley
He was annointed the starting MLB when the Vikiings chose not
to extend E.J. Henderson nor pursue any of the legitimate "Mike"
candidates during free agency (Stephen Tulloch, Curtis Lofton, David
Hawthorne). Two seasons ago, Brinkley struggled mightily in coverage and
came off the field on passing downs. He missed the entire year last
season to a hip injury. It was most peculiar that the Vikings made no
apparent pursuit of an alternative knowing how pertinent a MLB is in a
Cover-2 defense—even an up-and-coming Dan Connor, who signed for only
$800,000 with Dallas, could have been an upgrade. Brinkley missed
valuable practice reps at minicamp while still recovering from injury.
The Vikings have played their best defense with strong play up the
middle. How Brinkley performs at camp could be telling of how their
defense will play this year.
3. Brandon Fusco
Since the Vikings drafted Fusco in 2011 he has been compared
to former Viking standout Matt Birk, and not just because they were both
selected in the sixth-round of the draft. With similar size and
skill-sets, Fusco's reputation, though, leans more towards the "nasty"
than Birk's finesse game. It is rumored that Fusco has put on in excess
of twenty pounds of muscle since being drafted and the Vikings have
intimated that he is the leading candidate to start at right guard. If
Fusco's play can match his hype the Vikings might have one of the
best young offensive lines in the league... and wouldn't that (finally)
be something!
2. Blair Walsh
The kicking job is all his after the Vikings bid adieu to
veteran placekicker Ryan Longwell in the offseason.
It was obvious the
Vikings wanted to get younger at the position and find someone with a
big leg so to take advantage of the new kickoff rules favoring
touchbacks over returns. But Walsh's senior year at Georgia was
remarkably unimpressive as he converted only 21 of 35 field goal
attempts. The Vikings having been on the wrong side of so many close
games a year ago, not having a reliable kicker could offset any progress
that they've made in other areas on the roster. If the Vikings are
forced to bring in another kicker by the end of camp Rick Spielman is
going to look rather foolish.
1. Chris Cook
It is remarkable to recall that he was the Vikings' first
selection in the 2010 NFL draft. His rookie year was plagued by injury
and erratic play; his second year was essentially wiped out by a paid
leave of absence while awaiting conclusion of his domestic violence
trial. Having survived that ordeal, the Vikings welcomed him back with
open arms; believing, without a doubt, that an over-sized, athletic
corner can pay dividends in a division with mammoth wideouts like Calvin
Johnson, Jordy Nelson and Brandon Marshall in it. Cook then suggested
to the media that the leave of absence was probably for the best because
— entering but his third season — he now feels "fresh" after missing
last year. And what remains the utmost issue in all of this is that
nobody knows whether or not Cook is any good. To think what the Vikings
have already gone through with him, if they were to find out only now
that he can't play... well, draw your own conclusions. With that said,
there is no player with more to prove to the team, his teammates, the
fans, and to himself than Chris Cook.
