Friday Open Thread: August 31st Youth Harrison Smith Jersey , 2018 Good Morning! and looking forward to the onset of the regular season. I was able to watch last night’s final preseason game via Sunday Ticket on my laptop, (thank you Sunday Ticket, I take back all the things I said about you earlier and didn’t mean them).The Vikings won 13-3 over the Titans, yes it’s preseason but still fun to watch.Good luck to all the guys on the roster bubble and if they are cut by the Vikings I hope they are able to pursue their football dream with another team.In the meantime, while we’re waiting impatiently for the regular season we’ll continue with our daily thread full of beer recommendations, nap strategies, crock pot and smoker recipes. Have another cup of coffee and drop by for some fan wisdom and snark. With that, let’s do this.Around the DN since our last thread:Chris has the final preseason game wrap up as the Vikings defeated the Titans 13-3.SB Nation has added a new blog “Against All Enemies” which will follow all the Service Academies sports.Welcome Aboard!Mzahorsky105 gives us the lineup where the Vikings are landing in fantasy drafts.Jonah takes a look back at the day that changed Vikings history forever.Dan reports the AP Pro 32 power ranking places the Vikings third overall.Vikings news from other sources:From Vikings.com HC Mike Zimmer addressed the media after the conclusion of the Vikings-Titans game.Vikings close the 2018 preseason with win over the Titans. WR Brandon Zylstra addressed the media following the Titans game.Pete Bercich guarantees a touchdown ... and Zylstra delivers.League News:From NFL.com Takeaways from Thursday night’s final preseason games.Baker Mayfield finishes the preseason strong with a win, (QBwinz)The Cowboys traded CB Charvarius Ward to the Chiefs for G Parker Ehinger.At NFL.com they have a roster cuts tracker as all 32 NFL team finalize their 53 man roster.Finally, Deadspin continues their “Why Your Team Sucks, 2018”-today the Saints.We come to today’s media selection: Lenny Kravitz-Fly AwayAgain, we all know the rules, but in case someone is new:-No discussion of politics or religion-No feeding of the trolls-This isn’t a male version of The View, so leave the gender hatred at the door-Keep the bad language to a minimum (using the spoiler tags, if you must)-Speaking of which, if discussing a newer show or movie, please use spoiler tags-No pictures that could get someone fired or in serious trouble with their employer-If you can’t disagree in a civil manner, feel free to go away-While navigating the open thread, just assume it’s sarcasmWith that, the beer light is on and the bar is open. Belly up and tie one on. Don’t forget to tip your waitress Youth Stefon Diggs Jersey , try the venison chili and as always, Welcome Aboard and Skol Vikings!George Iloka: How Does He Fit as a Viking ? When I saw George Iloka got cut by the Bengals - apparently a salary cap casualty - I wondered if Mike Zimmer would attempt to sign him.After all he made an attempt a couple years ago, and sure enough he did - only this time successfully.Signing Iloka looks more to be an opportunity signing, rather than a need signing, as the Vikings have All-Pro Harrison Smith, and Andrew Sendejo - who is coming off his best season - as returning starters.So how does Iloka fit as a Viking?WHAT ILOKA BRINGS TO THE VIKINGSFirst, coming from Cincinnati - which still runs a Zimmer defense - Iloka is well versed in the Vikings defensive scheme.Zimmer and Iloka both said he was familiar with around 80-85% of the Vikings’ defensive calls, so that’s about as close to plug-and-play as you can get for a free-agent signing.Iloka is also coming off his 2nd best year with a 71.4 overall PFF rating last season - average and below Smith, Sendejo and even Anthony Harris. So, it’s doubtful Iloka starts at either safety spot this year, barring injury, given Harrison Smith is an All-Pro and Sendejo is an established starter coming off his best season.But even though Iloka may not be a starter, he could see the field in a number of ways.First, Iloka could likely have a special teams role.Obviously the Vikings punt coverage team could use some help after it's performance the first two preseason games, and Iloka could help out there and in other special teams as well.He is a larger (6’4”, 225 lbs.) safety with presumably more speed than a linebacker, so that has value on special teams.And speaking of linebackers - Iloka could fit as a strong safety/linebacker covering a tight end.His 6’4” frame and greater athleticism than a typical linebacker could be a better matchup in coverage - particularly in the red zone - who could deny the tall throw to a tight end in the end zone.It could be also that if Anthony Barr is used more as a pass rusher this year, having a taller safety/linebacker to cover a tight end makes some sense.That is usually a more difficult assignment for either Sendejo or Smith, and it’s also not Barr’s forte either.IF ILOKA IS IN, WHO’S OUT?Lastly White Eric Kendricks Jersey , if the Vikings choose to keep Iloka on the roster - which seems likely - that will likely impact the status of other safeties - sooner and/or later.Beyond Smith and Sendejo as starters, Anthony Harris, Jayron Kearse, Tray Matthews and Jack Tocho are fighting for backup spots.Harris and Kearse have been core special teamers that have played very well in those roles.Tocho has flashed well in coverage during preseason, but has been inconsistent as well.Matthews has made some good plays both as a safety and special teamer, but isn’t up to speed on the defensive scheme.Kearse has missed both pre-season games with minor injuries - which may not be the real reason - and this hasn’t been Anthony Harris’ best training camp either.This is also his last year on Harris’ rookie deal.Beyond that, Andrew Sendejo is going from a $3.5 million salary cap hit this year to a $5.5 million cap hit next year, with only $50k dead cap this year.While I doubt Zimmer would replace Sendejo at the last minute in training camp this year, it may be that Sendejo - who turns 31 next month, may not be in the Vikings plans beyond this season.It’s also possible that the Vikings opt to keep five safeties on the roster this season, and one less linebacker, particularly if Iloka can fulfill special teams responsibilities.But if I had to guess at the moment, it seems more likely Iloka replaces Kearse, and Harris may have more of a challenge from Tocho than last year.Beyond that, Iloka, 28, could be groomed as Sendejo’s replacement next year if he’s deemed worthy of an extension.Last, it’s also possible that Iloka doesn’t make the roster in two weeks and is released.That’s also happened before with defensive guys Zimmer has signed from his old team.But at the end of the day Iloka’s release was an opportunity for the Vikings to explore a potential upgrade to safety depth, and a potential replacement for Sendejo down the line.We’ll see how it pans out. « let's get this out of the way now:Top Ten Individual Defensive Performances of 2017: » Weitere Artikel der Kategorie Allgemein |
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