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The starters at DE are obviously going to be Danielle Hunter and Ifeadi Odenigbo. Hunter is one the top pass rushers in the league and I feel like Odenigbo has earned a chance to start. After them though, the Vikings have options, but no one who feels like a lock to contribute this season:
- Anthony Zettel - He had one decent season in Detroit and has been pretty quiet since. Is he reliable depth or does he even make the roster?
- DJ Wonnum - He fits some of the physical traits that the Vikings look for in a pass rusher & he should be a lock to make the roster, but I wonder if he'll be able to contribute right away or be more of a project?
- Kenny Willekes - Late round pick, who was once projected much higher. Maybe not a physical freak, but a player who works hard & tends to get the job done. It will be interesting to see how he handles better competition.
- Eddie Yarbough - He was signed off of Buffalo's practice squad late in the season as emergency depth.
- Jalyn Holmes - He's still on the roster for now, but has not been able to find a consistent role. Not sure if he ends up at DT, DE, or off the roster.
- Anthony Barr - He's obviously starting at LB and they tend to keep saying they will use him as a pass rusher, but that never seems to happen. He's certainly capable of getting after the passer, but they seem to value his range at LB more than his pass rush,
Who do you think will be the players step up into bigger roles? Will they actually use Barr as a pass rusher? I am especially worried about how they will handle NASCAR sets, since we are lacking pass rushers at DT, & it's hard to say which ends can step up and pass rush from inside? The cupboard isn't bare, but there are a lot of unknowns at DE right now. Do you think they end up adding a veteran DE or DT to try to stabilize things or do you feel good about who we have?
Good questions. If that's all we have for options, I think we're a little thin there. But I don't know if Zettel will be able to contribute at all. I do think that Wonnum and Willekes have a future... but I don't think they'll be ready to contribute this year. I think Jaylyn is in trouble... and, unless Zim decides to change things up (which he probably should), I don't think we'll get to see Barr's pass rush abilities.
In other words, I hope we consider re-signing Griffen (albeit with a salary commensurate with a rotational player).
That's the concern that I have. I think there is some potential for Wonnum and Willekes to be contributors down the line, but I'm not certain if either of them will be players we can rely on right away. Someone like Zettel may stick around more due to experience than talent, but I'd feel better if we had stronger veteran depth. I do wonder if bringing Griffen back for a year to give younger players some time to get up to speed is viable or if that bridge is already burned. I also wonder how much James Lynch can help as an interior pass rusher?
Can we look to the FA market to pick up a vet who can spell/rotate with Fedi such as Cameron Wake or Oliver Vernon? Low cost options with potential big impacts?
Andre’s Pet Cat Wonnum
In a recent video interview with voice of the Vikings Paul Allen, Mike Zimmer had this to say about pick 117. “Andre’s (Patterson) pet cat was (D.J.) Wonnum and he’s been thinking about him for quite a while. He said if we can get him in a specific round, he would jump on the table for him.”
Hunter only had 4.5 career sacks in college, yet as a rookie for the Vikings he exploded with 6 sacks in a rotational role. The Vikings don’t need to sign a free-agent veteran DE, we just need to develop our young guys. Wonnum and Odenigho can make just as big of a splash as Hunter did as a rookie. Wonnum and Odenigho have a ton of college experience plus solid production under their belt. Wonnum's strides cover a lot of ground, his arms are freakish, and he is a smart run defender. He is every bit as ready as Hunter was.
Barr was a great edge rusher in college. So, now that the Vikings have Troy Dye (great coverage linebacker), Barr can be freed up to be more involved as a pass rusher. Dye and James Lynch gives the Vikings the personnel two show a 3-4 look from time to time and bring the heat with Barr.
Patterson will most likely use a rotational scheme specific system.
Patterson compares Wonnum to Hunter. Big shoes to fill and the pressure is on. Lets hope Patterson can turn his “pet cat” into a Tiger in short order.
Like a lot of positions on the roster, the Vikings are going to have to rely on a lot of young (unproven) players to fill significant roles. I trust in Zimmer and his staff...but damn I'd feel a lot better bringing Everson back on a short term deal
I think that sums up where we are right now. Good post Pumpf.
Quote: @pumpf said:
Good questions. If that's all we have for options, I think we're a little thin there. But I don't know if Zettel will be able to contribute at all. I do think that Wonnum and Willekes have a future... but I don't think they'll be ready to contribute this year. I think Jaylyn is in trouble... and, unless Zim decides to change things up (which he probably should), I don't think we'll get to see Barr's pass rush abilities.
In other words, I hope we consider re-signing Griffen (albeit with a salary commensurate with a rotational player).
Quote: @supafreak84 said:
Like a lot of positions on the roster, the Vikings are going to have to rely on a lot of young (unproven) players to fill significant roles. I trust in Zimmer and his staff...but damn I'd feel a lot better bringing Everson back on a short term deal
Relying on so much youth scares me. Lots of potential for guys to develop into bigger roles, but there's also a lot more risk than usual if a starter goes down. Hopefully, they can stay healthy or keep enough cap room around to add depth later on if needed.
Quote: @Carl Knowles said:
Andre’s Pet Cat Wonnum
In a recent video interview with voice of the Vikings Paul Allen, Mike Zimmer had this to say about pick 117. “Andre’s (Patterson) pet cat was (D.J.) Wonnum and he’s been thinking about him for quite a while. He said if we can get him in a specific round, he would jump on the table for him.”
Hunter only had 4.5 career sacks in college, yet as a rookie for the Vikings he exploded with 6 sacks in a rotational role. The Vikings don’t need to sign a free-agent veteran DE, we just need to develop our young guys. Wonnum and Odenigho can make just as big of a splash as Hunter did as a rookie. Wonnum and Odenigho have a ton of college experience plus solid production under their belt. Wonnum's strides cover a lot of ground, his arms are freakish, and he is a smart run defender. He is every bit as ready as Hunter was.
Barr was a great edge rusher in college. So, now that the Vikings have Troy Dye (great coverage linebacker), Barr can be freed up to be more involved as a pass rusher. Dye and James Lynch gives the Vikings the personnel two show a 3-4 look from time to time and bring the heat with Barr.
Patterson will most likely use a rotational scheme specific system.
Patterson compares Wonnum to Hunter. Big shoes to fill and the pressure is on. Lets hope Patterson can turn his “pet cat” into a Tiger in short order.
I feel good about Odenigbo, since he excelled as a rotational player last year. I think he can be a starter and not just a situational rusher like Lance Johnstone was. I like Wonnum's potential, he's not quite the same level of athlete that Hunter is, but he certainly fits the physical profile of what Patterson looks. I just hope that he's ready to take over Odenigbo's role as a rotational end & interior pass rusher early in his career.
The 3-4 looks are a wild card. I didn't think Capers did a great job running GB's defense, but he's a respected coach & I do understand that teams have adapted to Zimmer's double A gap & overload blitz packages, so they need to bring in new looks to generate pressure. One thing that I do like about Capers is that he dealt with the whole league copying his zone blitz scheme and was forced to come up with something different. Zimmer is dealing with the same thing, since every team has a double A gap package now, so what was once a special look that most teams rarely saw has become commonplace and everyone has had time to develop counters to it.
I do think that Barr would fair well in 3-4 looks and Dye is an interesting player. We lost versatility when Kearse decided to leave and while Dye is more of a LB than a safety, he still brings versatility and I am curious how they'll leverage his skillset.
I like Odenigbo as well. I don't think he will be a double digit sack guy this year but I think he will do his job nicely. That being said, I do see that side rotating DE's a lot more this year and hopefully it means more blitzes from Barr. Patterson and Zimmer will do a good job with what they have, and who knows, maybe Griffen does come back
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