Brett Favre was amazing in 2009 and this team almost went to the Super Bowl. Brett Favre was terrible in 2010, getting benched for Joe Webb, who also sucked. Now, former Eagles’ and Redskins’ quarterback Donovan McNabb is the starting quarterback and many Vikings fans feel he can get them back into the playoffs. However, this is not the same Donovan McNabb who led the Eagles to a Super Bowl in 2004.
In his first and last year in Washington, he was a very mediocre quarterback. Several things are at play here. Washington’s supporting cast was not very good. Also, McNabb is getting older. Finally, Andy Reid likely just made McNabb look better than he was in Philadelphia. Once leaving Reid’s offense, McNabb was exposed. It wouldn’t be the first time this has happened. AJ Feeley looked much worse after leaving Philadelphia for Miami in 2004. Meanwhile, Reid turned Michael Vick into a potential Super Bowl winning quarterback.
Besides, it’s not like the Vikings have the same supporting cast they had in 2009 either. Their struggles in 2010 weren’t just at the quarterback position and they figure to be even worse supporting cast wise in 2011. Gone are Pat Williams and Ray Edwards two starters on the defensive line. They will be replaced by Brian Robison and Remi Ayodele, two average at best players.
They will play alongside Jared Allen and Kevin Williams, who are still good players, but have lost a step since 2009. After a league leading 48 sacks in 2009, the Vikings had a mere 31 in 2010, a number that could be even lower this season with Edwards, 8 sacks and 32 quarterback pressures in 2010, gone. Pat Williams was not a great pass rusher, but they’ll feel his loss against the run, where even at his age, 39 in October, he was one of the better players in the league. Going from Edwards to Robison is also a major downgrade in terms of run stopping ability.
If new starter Ayodele struggles at defensive tackle, the Vikings have Letroy Guion, a promising young player, to plug in the hole. They also have Christian Ballard, a 4th round pick who could have gone in the 2nd had it not been for a positive test for marijuana at The Combine. I feel the positive test is a non-issue and that the Vikings are getting a very talented player for the future in Ballard, though he’ll be hurt by the lockout. At defensive end, however, their options behind Brian Robison are very limited. Everson Griffen was a 4th round pick in 2010, but he struggled as a rookie and got arrested several times this offseason.
At linebacker, EJ Henderson is an above average player in the middle when healthy, but he’s suffered several serious injuries in his career. He played a full game 16 set last year so maybe he’s put those days behind him. On the strong side, the Vikings were able to bring back Chad Greenway, 4th in the league in tackles last season, with the franchise tag. That’s obviously huge.
However, they were unable to resign Ben Leber. Leber was a fairly marginal starter for them, but he’s a hell of a lot better than what they now have on the weak side. Currently Erin Henderson is penciled in as a starter. Henderson, the younger brother of EJ Henderson, was an undrafted free agent out of Maryland in 2008 and has been nothing but a career backup since.
The Vikings say he is penciled in as the starter, but I don’t see who else on the roster could take his job unless Ross Homan can have a big preseason. That seems unlikely because Homan is a mere 6th round rookie who will be hurt by the lockout. He’s also currently listed as the 3rd stringer at middle linebacker so the chances of him taking the weak side job are very, very slim, at least for right now.
The Vikings actually ranked 9th in the league against the pass last year, but I’m predicting a steep decline in that ranking this season because I just don’t see the talent there. #1 cornerback Antoine Winfield is 34, right around the age when cornerbacks begin a steep decline. Opposite him is Cedric Griffin, who can’t stay healthy. He wasn’t a great player before his injuries and his injuries could have only made him worse.
The Vikings have spent a lot of picks on cornerbacks in the past few years, but 2009 3rd round pick Asher Allen and 2010 2nd round pick Chris Cook have both struggled in their careers to this point. 2011 5th round pick Brandon Burton is currently listed as 5th on the depth chart. I thought he was a steal of a draft pick when they got him, but he too will be hurt by the lockout.
At safety, Husain Abdullah struggles a bit against the pass, but is above average against the run. Meanwhile, new free safety Eric Frampton is a very inexperienced player. Fun fact, Eric Frampton went to Oak Grove High School, down the street from my house. Other alumni include Gibril Wilson, Andre Carter, and Seyi Arijotutu. Also, Mike Holmgren used to teach and coach there. Anyway, the Vikings secondary doesn’t have a lot of talent. They aren’t supported by a great pass rush either so they could really struggle this season.
Offensively, Donovan McNabb is now the quarterback. He should provide stability at the position for the season and allow Christian Ponder to ease his way into action, always a good thing. However, that’s about all he’ll do. He won’t win them a lot of games. He’s an average quarterback who borders on mediocre at this point in his career and I don’t know how much a change of scenery will do for him.
McNabb’s chances for a bounce back season are hurt by his supporting cast. Bryant McKinnie, long time left tackle of the Vikings, was cut in camp because he showed up at about 400 pounds. I don’t know how he thought he’d get away with that. What did he think the team wouldn’t notice? Anyway, he’ll be replaced by Charlie Johnson, who couldn’t even adequately protect Peyton Manning’s blindside for him. Peyton Manning’s blindside is the easiest to protect in the league. He has eyes in the back of his head. He doesn’t have a blindside (only sort of kidding). How is Johnson supposed to protect McNabb’s?
At right tackle, Phil Loadholt struggles with weight issues. He was a horrendous run blocker last season and committed 14 penalties. The Vikings drafted DeMarcus Love in the 6th round as a potential successor for Loadholt, allowing Loadholt to move to any easier position like guard. However, Love, like all rookies, will be hurt by the lockout. He’s currently a 3rd stringer and shouldn’t see much playing time this season.
At center, John Sullivan wasn’t as bad as he’s been in past years, but he was still pretty bad, especially as a run blocker. Left guard Steve Hutchinson is clearly their best offensive lineman. He’s not the beast run blocker he was in Seattle or in his early Minnesota days, but he’s still an above average left guard. However, opposite him, right guard Anthony Herrera is a terrible run blocker. I don’t know how he still has a job. The Vikings were hoping Brandon Fusco, a 6th round pick, would at least be able to challenge Sullivan at center or Herrera at guard, but he too was hurt by the lockout. He’s currently listed as a 3rd stringer.
Fortunately the Vikings have Adrian Peterson because they don’t run block very well upfront. Peterson is about as reliable as they come. They drafted him 7th overall in 2007 and he hasn’t disappointed. Last season he had a career low with 1298 yards. He’s also never had less than 10 scores in a season. The Vikings drafted Toby Gerhart in the 2nd round in 2010, but he won’t see much action unless Peterson gets hurt. Basically, he’ll have the same role he did in 2010.
At wide receiver, with Sidney Rice gone, the pressure will fall on Percy Harvin, a 2009 first round pick, to continue to improve and become a legitimate #1 receiver. He’s now in his 3rd season, that magical season when wide receivers tend to break out. He could be primed for a huge season if McNabb finds the same connection with him as he had with Santana Moss last season. They are similar players so it’s possible.
Opposite Harvin, Michael Jenkins and Bernard Berrian will fight it out to be the #2 receiver. Jenkins, a former 1st round pick, has never had more than 53 catches or 777 yards or 7 touchdowns in a season despite working with Matt Ryan and Michael Vick in his career. Meanwhile, Bernard Berrian is far from the #1 receiver he was in 2007 with Chicago or 2008 with these Vikings. He managed just 252 yards on 28 catches last season and didn’t score. It’s safe to say Donovan McNabb won’t be thrilled no matter who wins the #2 job.
Something McNabb does have to get at least a little excited about is his tight ends. Visanthe Shiancoe is still listed as the starter, though it’s very possible he’d be 2nd on the depth chart to rookie 2nd round pick Kyle Rudolph had Rudolph not been hurt by the lockout. The talented Rudolph is apparently lighting it up in camp. Meanwhile, Shiancoe is an average tight end. The Vikings will use a lot of two tight ends sets this season so both Shiancoe and the rookie Rudolph will have an impact.
People living in 2009 would say this team has a good chance to bounce back into the playoffs this season. In 2009, McNabb led the Eagles to the playoffs and the Brett Favre led Vikings made the NFC Championship. However, this team was not just a quarterback away in 2010. Favre did a great job of masking their flaws in 2009 and the supporting cast has declined since anyway. McNabb will give them decent quarterback play, but unless Detroit implodes, I don’t see any way this team finishes outside the cellar in the NFC North.
Quarterback: C+
Running backs: A
Receiving corps: C-
Offensive line: D
Run defense: B-
Pass rush: C
Pass coverage: C-
Coaching: C
Projection: 6-10 4th in NFC North
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