Keenum

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@pumpf said:
I'm certainly not blaming Case for the loss.  But I don't believe that he could've "won" that game for us.  I do believe that a QB like Brees, Rodgers, etc could.  That's not a knock on Case as much as it is a statement (opinion) of reality.  He is what he is; and I think that he is a very good backup QB.  I don't think he's the guy to lead us to a Super Bowl... but I suppose he could manage the offense to a Super Bowl win, if the Defense and Special teams carried the team.  But the defense that I saw on Sunday wasn't the kind that was good enough to carry the whole team (like Baltimore's did... or, more recently, Denver's).

I don't think anyone truly believed that Case could carry a team on his back and lead a comeback like that. He was good enough to win with this defense though.
I believe our defense was very beat up and just trying to get through the season. That foot injury for Griff really hurt our pass rush game. Rhodes wouldn't have been playing if it weren't for the playoff run IMO and you could see that against the Eagles.
A lot of great things came about this year. A lot to be happy about. Now lets find the right QB to drive the ship and it will be SB for us in 2018.

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I'm not going to pile on Keenum, as he had a good year.  The signs were there that he would falter in the playoffs and he did (2nd worse passer rating in the playoffs, most turnovers...).

I will say to those that don't want to put any blame on the QB, the Jaguars had the 2nd ranked defense (if you're into rankings) and won a shootout on the road against the Steelers with Blake Bortles.  Bortles actually played pretty well in the playoffs.  Crazy.

As to Keenum for next year, I don't think Keenum should be signed to be the unquestionably starter and I'm not sure if he would be alright with that when there may be other offers (I don't think Keenum is going to be the hot commodity that some assume).  I'm pretty sure we've seen Keenum's peak and it was poor in the playoffs and there are other options for the Vikings.

I would go with Bridgewater, he is younger (only 15 months older than Sloter, by the way, the "developmental" QB) and was fundamentally sound enough at 22 years old to allow the Vikings to win the division in 2015 while learning how to play in the NFL.  This, of course, is dependent on the knee which sounds good to go.

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Go big and go after Brees for $30-$32mm, chances are low you'd land him, but RS has to make that call.

After that my choices are:

Smith
Cousins
Bridgewater (only if healthy) 

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@purplefaithful said:
Go big and go after Brees for $30-$32mm, chances are low you'd land him, but RS has to make that call.

After that my choices are:

Smith
Cousins
Bridgewater (only if healthy) 

I would go hard for Brees too. I doubt he goes anywhere though. My first choice is Smith as well.

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I think there's zero chance Minnesota gets Brees. Why would he change teams? He's got a great chance to win it all right now in New Orleans. He's made that place his and his family's home. Seems a goofy premise and fan/media pipe dreams. 

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@StickyBun said:
I think there's zero chance Minnesota gets Brees. Why would he change teams? He's got a great chance to win it all right now in New Orleans. He's made that place his and his family's home. Seems a goofy premise and fan/media pipe dreams. 

I agree its a pipe dream. Its still a dream though lol

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Keenum just gave us a 13 win NFC North Title and an entry into the NFC Championship as favorites.

We got there and had 1 WR with a fractured back, an OL that was beat, and for some reason we had a historically good defense that got broken down.  Maybe it was injuries, maybe it was a coaching problem, maybe it was a little bit of both.

Regardless...  we have a guy that just proved he can win.  The Vikings had far from an easy schedule this year.  It was tough teams all the way through the season and tough draws in the playoffs.

You don't throw that away.  You give that guy a contract.  Bradford looked amazing when healthy.  Teddy has shown promise.  Both of those guys deserve a shot to compete, but neither should be guaranteed anything other than a chance to compete.  Looking outside the team when you have that kind of a roster is a bad move.  See what can be negotiated as far as contracts and if you are a man short in the end, see what else is out there.

The team should be focused on sealing up depth on the roster.  When Thielen was not 100%, it would have been nice if Treadwell could have stepped up.  It didn't happen.  We need a WR with the potential to do it.  The OL didn't protect Bradford and Keenum's escape ability was evident throughout the season.  The team should be looking at upgrading the OL.  Cornerbacks that can handle man coverage are always a need.  This year is no different.  We get the best we can afford.   Pass rushing depth is a luxury that should be looked at.  Run stoppers should be nabbed if they are available.

Let's not create an imaginary problem at QB and spend another decade twirling through a bunch of maybes.  Just because we had two capable QBs on the roster this year doesn't mean that any QB available could have done what Keenum did.  Does Thielen become the WR he is with someone else at QB?  Nobody knows for sure.  What we do know is that he works well with Bradford and Keenum both.  Same with Diggs.  Those guys aren't big names that we recruited as FAs.  We grew them in MN.  All the chemistry the team has works.  Little tweaks and a little depth are what we need.  You don't blow up the core of a team like this.

So Bradford has an injury history.  So did Peterson.  So Casey has a few shortcomings. He knows how to win and let's face it - if it was Tom Brady in his prime instead of Keenum all year long, fans would be complaining about how he's not a franchise quarterback for some reason or another.

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@StickyBun said:
I think there's zero chance Minnesota gets Brees. Why would he change teams? He's got a great chance to win it all right now in New Orleans. He's made that place his and his family's home. Seems a goofy premise and fan/media pipe dreams. 

Are you really going to deny a fan a dream after Sunday? 

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@Steve said:
Keenum just gave us a 13 win NFC North Title and an entry into the NFC Championship as favorites.

We got there and had 1 WR with a fractured back, an OL that was beat, and for some reason we had a historically good defense that got broken down.  Maybe it was injuries, maybe it was a coaching problem, maybe it was a little bit of both.

Regardless...  we have a guy that just proved he can win.  The Vikings had far from an easy schedule this year.  It was tough teams all the way through the season and tough draws in the playoffs.

You don't throw that away.  You give that guy a contract.  Bradford looked amazing when healthy.  Teddy has shown promise.  Both of those guys deserve a shot to compete, but neither should be guaranteed anything other than a chance to compete.  Looking outside the team when you have that kind of a roster is a bad move.  See what can be negotiated as far as contracts and if you are a man short in the end, see what else is out there.

The team should be focused on sealing up depth on the roster.  When Thielen was not 100%, it would have been nice if Treadwell could have stepped up.  It didn't happen.  We need a WR with the potential to do it.  The OL didn't protect Bradford and Keenum's escape ability was evident throughout the season.  The team should be looking at upgrading the OL.  Cornerbacks that can handle man coverage are always a need.  This year is no different.  We get the best we can afford.   Pass rushing depth is a luxury that should be looked at.  Run stoppers should be nabbed if they are available.

Let's not create an imaginary problem at QB and spend another decade twirling through a bunch of maybes.  Just because we had two capable QBs on the roster this year doesn't mean that any QB available could have done what Keenum did.  Does Thielen become the WR he is with someone else at QB?  Nobody knows for sure.  What we do know is that he works well with Bradford and Keenum both.  Same with Diggs.  Those guys aren't big names that we recruited as FAs.  We grew them in MN.  All the chemistry the team has works.  Little tweaks and a little depth are what we need.  You don't blow up the core of a team like this.

So Bradford has an injury history.  So did Peterson.  So Casey has a few shortcomings. He knows how to win and let's face it - if it was Tom Brady in his prime instead of Keenum all year long, fans would be complaining about how he's not a franchise quarterback for some reason or another.

Two words for you Steve:

73 QBR

That was Cases QBR against the Saints and Eagles. Two of the best teams in the NFC when the stakes got the highest. 

He's certainly better than much of the schlock we've had here over the years. But isn't this the perfect time to pause and look at all of our options? Including those outside of the Vikings org? 

And as far as those #3 WR's on the Vikings? It's quite possible that they really aren't that bad. Case imo was good at keeping his eyes downfield, and at being mobile, but not getting to the #3 guy or throwing guys open. 

Being nitpicky? Maybe. But (as other posters have pointed out) I'm glad the Vikings are taking their time on this one and not rushing into a decision like we saw them do in previous regimes.