Quote: @"Geoff Nichols" said:
Before they contemplate moves/approach players & agents they probably need to answer, are we trying to continue along the path we are or does that short-change the up & coming core of JJ, Hock, Darrisaw, and O'Neill? If the answer is "yes" I think taking a more aggressive cap cutting approach makes some sense. I don't necessarily view that as getting worse. It just might cap the 2023 season below the upside you need to win a SB. But it would open up after that.
whats conspicuously missing is a QBOTF...and they will need one with JJ about to re-set the WR mkt.
Quote: @"purplefaithful" said:
@"Geoff Nichols" said:
Before they contemplate moves/approach players & agents they probably need to answer, are we trying to continue along the path we are or does that short-change the up & coming core of JJ, Hock, Darrisaw, and O'Neill? If the answer is "yes" I think taking a more aggressive cap cutting approach makes some sense. I don't necessarily view that as getting worse. It just might cap the 2023 season below the upside you need to win a SB. But it would open up after that.
whats conspicuously missing is a QBOTF...and they will need one with JJ about to re-set the WR mkt.
Its a little bit of a catch-22. Does having a QB on a rookie deal help? Yes, without a doubt. But if they can get Kirk to sign a contract longer than 1-2 years they can work with his cap hits quite a bit. Keeping everyone is always possible with cash and the ability to push money into the future. So they'll have to do something with Kirk's contract again in early March. I just don't foresee a way they'll allow him to walk into FA after the 2023 season. While Kirk appears happy in MN the Viking wouldn't have any ability to tag him or retain his rights. So the market would really dictate his price. Time will tell, but what if Kirk ultimately chooses that path? Doubtful for a few reasons, but that would throw a wrench in this off-season.
Quote: @"Geoff Nichols" said:
@"purplefaithful" said:
@"Geoff Nichols" said:
Before they contemplate moves/approach players & agents they probably need to answer, are we trying to continue along the path we are or does that short-change the up & coming core of JJ, Hock, Darrisaw, and O'Neill? If the answer is "yes" I think taking a more aggressive cap cutting approach makes some sense. I don't necessarily view that as getting worse. It just might cap the 2023 season below the upside you need to win a SB. But it would open up after that.
whats conspicuously missing is a QBOTF...and they will need one with JJ about to re-set the WR mkt.
Its a little bit of a catch-22. Does having a QB on a rookie deal help? Yes, without a doubt. But if they can get Kirk to sign a contract longer than 1-2 years they can work with his cap hits quite a bit. Keeping everyone is always possible with cash and the ability to push money into the future. So they'll have to do something with Kirk's contract again in early March. I just don't foresee a way they'll allow him to walk into FA after the 2023 season. While Kirk appears happy in MN the Viking wouldn't have any ability to tag him or retain his rights. So the market would really dictate his price. Time will tell, but what if Kirk ultimately chooses that path? Doubtful for a few reasons, but that would throw a wrench in this off-season.
Do we want Kirk longer then 1-2 years though? He will be 35 years old prior to the start of next season and is not a top 10 QB. I'm just tired of this always being the situation with him wondering about his contract. The Vikings have nobody to blame though but themselves in never really having a succession plan in in place. It's basically been Kirk, and some practice squad worthy guys as his backups, the Sean Mannion's of the world which has put Cousins and his agent in a position of power. I'm just over it. I would have moved him last offseason, went with someone like Baker Mayfield for this season, which would have put us in draft position (likely) to select a QB in the top 10 this year. Instead, we are in the same damn position wondering about his contract and drafting in the 20's with no real succession plan. But hey, at least the Wilf's got their first round playoff exit this year...
Also, we have a roster full of needs, a lot of aging players, 24 million in salary cuts to make, a long list of free agents, and 4 draft picks after trading for Raegor, Blacklock and Hockenson. Is this not screaming rebuild to anyone but the Wilfs?
I generally agree with Luke on most things and I think he’s
one of the clearest thinkers in the group of people who commentate on the Vikings. I think the article kind of comes down to the
semantics that Geoff points out. Is the
cap malleable and you can always push problems further into the future and
field a reasonable team? Absolutely. Can the team put together a roster that can legitimately
be expected to compete for a championship?
I’m skeptical that we’re going to have enough cap space to do that for
more than a year or two. Ask yourself,
what part of the team are we championship caliber at? We have people that say we need better OLine,
better WR2 and 3, better IDL, better LBs, and better secondary. To be SB caliber, we probably need the
offense to be top 3-5 and defense top 20, or we need both to be top 10. And if we actually do cut guys like Smith and
Kendricks, then we have a hard need to replace them with competent players.
I think some of the talent concern is overblown, however, as
I think that we will have to rely on a lot of our improvement to come from improvement
in the coaching staff. Like if we can
get to a middle tier defense just by getting a better DC,a small amount of
talent infusion and kicking the can down the road, than a lot of options open
up for us.
Quote: @"medaille" said:
I generally agree with Luke on most things and I think he’s
one of the clearest thinkers in the group of people who commentate on the Vikings. I think the article kind of comes down to the
semantics that Geoff points out. Is the
cap malleable and you can always push problems further into the future and
field a reasonable team? Absolutely. Can the team put together a roster that can legitimately
be expected to compete for a championship?
I’m skeptical that we’re going to have enough cap space to do that for
more than a year or two. Ask yourself,
what part of the team are we championship caliber at? We have people that say we need better OLine,
better WR2 and 3, better IDL, better LBs, and better secondary. To be SB caliber, we probably need the
offense to be top 3-5 and defense top 20, or we need both to be top 10. And if we actually do cut guys like Smith and
Kendricks, then we have a hard need to replace them with competent players.
I think some of the talent concern is overblown, however, as
I think that we will have to rely on a lot of our improvement to come from improvement
in the coaching staff. Like if we can
get to a middle tier defense just by getting a better DC,a small amount of
talent infusion and kicking the can down the road, than a lot of options open
up for us.
Agree, especially with the bolded portion. If they can end up with a middle of the pack defense, they will be times better.
The hard part is objectively saying we were 32nd this year, how could we be worse? But then decide to remove Harry/Kendricks/Za'Darius/etc. Does that allow middle of the pack? Only so much is coaching. On the offensive side of the ball I feel much better about them succeeding without someone like Thielen considering their output was still around the top-10 mark with him impacting the outcomes little to non comparatively.
Like all roster building, its a big puzzle.
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