08-08-2022, 11:57 AM
From the Athletic.
https://zonecoverage.com/2022/minnesota-...__trashed/
...Another year of Bradbury gives Vikings fans nightmares of Akiem Hicks or Kenny Clark moving him like Michael Oher did in The Blind Side, but it might give O’Connell a different kind of flashback. Before Bradbury was struggling in Minnesota, Austin Blythe was having issues with the Los Angeles Rams. After a solid rookie season, Blythe’s overall PFF grade ranked 36th out of 36 qualifying centers in 2019.
The Rams made some tweaks the following offseason with O’Connell’s arrival, and Blythe was one of the main beneficiaries. In 2020, he ranked 13th out of 39 qualifiers and parlayed that performance into a free-agent deal with the Kansas City Chiefs.
After Blythe’s departure, the Rams turned to Brian Allen, who graded 34th out of 36 qualifying centers in 2019. Allen suffered a major knee injury in November 2019 before missing the 2020 season. However, he returned with a vengeance, grading fifth out of 41 qualifiers last year.
While Blythe and Allen have had previous injuries play key roles in their development, that track record should be a good omen for Bradbury.
Much like O’Connell aims to do for Kirk Cousins, his main goal should be to give Bradbury the answers to the test. If O’Connell puts him in a position to succeed, it should prevent pressure up the middle, giving Cousins a better chance to attack downfield. It’s also not out of the question that Bradbury could improve as his linemates get more comfortable in the offense.
“I can probably think of two plays where we’ve had a mental error on either side of [Bradbury], and he’s ended up being on his own when he was not supposed to be and at the last moment basically trying to save the play,” O’Connell said. “There’s a lot of centers around the league, when they get isolated on a [Za’Darius Smith] or [Danielle Hunter] inside in different matchups, it’s going to look like that.”
Bradbury will never be the All-Pro center that some had projected him to be out of college, but the Vikings don’t need him to be that. If he is adequate, Minnesota should be able to use Ezra Cleveland and a combination of Jesse Davis and Ed Ingram to help him out.
It could still mean the Vikings might be looking for a new center next offseason. But, for now, O’Connell may have an idea to make it work.
https://zonecoverage.com/2022/minnesota-...__trashed/
...Another year of Bradbury gives Vikings fans nightmares of Akiem Hicks or Kenny Clark moving him like Michael Oher did in The Blind Side, but it might give O’Connell a different kind of flashback. Before Bradbury was struggling in Minnesota, Austin Blythe was having issues with the Los Angeles Rams. After a solid rookie season, Blythe’s overall PFF grade ranked 36th out of 36 qualifying centers in 2019.
The Rams made some tweaks the following offseason with O’Connell’s arrival, and Blythe was one of the main beneficiaries. In 2020, he ranked 13th out of 39 qualifiers and parlayed that performance into a free-agent deal with the Kansas City Chiefs.
After Blythe’s departure, the Rams turned to Brian Allen, who graded 34th out of 36 qualifying centers in 2019. Allen suffered a major knee injury in November 2019 before missing the 2020 season. However, he returned with a vengeance, grading fifth out of 41 qualifiers last year.
While Blythe and Allen have had previous injuries play key roles in their development, that track record should be a good omen for Bradbury.
Much like O’Connell aims to do for Kirk Cousins, his main goal should be to give Bradbury the answers to the test. If O’Connell puts him in a position to succeed, it should prevent pressure up the middle, giving Cousins a better chance to attack downfield. It’s also not out of the question that Bradbury could improve as his linemates get more comfortable in the offense.
“I can probably think of two plays where we’ve had a mental error on either side of [Bradbury], and he’s ended up being on his own when he was not supposed to be and at the last moment basically trying to save the play,” O’Connell said. “There’s a lot of centers around the league, when they get isolated on a [Za’Darius Smith] or [Danielle Hunter] inside in different matchups, it’s going to look like that.”
Bradbury will never be the All-Pro center that some had projected him to be out of college, but the Vikings don’t need him to be that. If he is adequate, Minnesota should be able to use Ezra Cleveland and a combination of Jesse Davis and Ed Ingram to help him out.
It could still mean the Vikings might be looking for a new center next offseason. But, for now, O’Connell may have an idea to make it work.
