Coaches
Mike Priefer (Fire) :: I feel like he's been living off of reputation for a while. He made the decision to go into an important season with an inexperienced kicker and punter, which cost us at least the first Green Bay game if not more. He has been unable to solidify kickers and when kickers struggle under him, they collapse. We've had major issues with protection on kicks. Some of that is on the line, but it's still his job to account for that. We've had lapses in coverage and the return game has been toothless for most of the season. He picked the guys that he wanted, chose not to keep Patterson as a returner, and special teams has shifted from something that could win us a game or two a year to cost us a game or two a year.
OL Coach (Evaluate) :: There is no way that the team could have been prepared for Tony Sparano dying right before the start of training camp. In his absence, they named Clancy Barone and Andrew Janocko as the co-offensive line coaches. They do deserve credit for turning O'Neill from a 2-year project to arguably are most solid OL player, but it's hard to overlook the complete lack of a running game and the continued struggles in pass protection. Maybe that's more on personnel and the OC than them, but we would be doing ourselves a disservice if we didn't at least evaluate outside candidates to take over the line.
Kevin Stefanski (Keep) :: His three game tryout was mixed. He did a better job of sticking with the run, but we also had periods of not being able to move the ball at all along with periods of explosive offense. I think he probably deserves another year, so that we at least have some consistency on that side of the ball, but he hasn't fully answered any questions either.
Defense
LB Anthony Barr (Unsure) :: This is a tough decision. He'll likely command a big contract and I do think he has a special skill set in terms of his size and athleticism that is crucial to making Zimmer's scheme work. However his performance has been uneven, he's never fully materialized as a pass rusher, though you can argue Zimmer has asked him to do different things. He does have a close friendship with Kendricks. I go back and forth between keeping him or letting him go. The hard part is that neither Wilson nor Gedeon are good enough to take on that role, so he will be hard to replace.
DT Sheldon Richardson (Unsure) :: At times he looked like a dominant force that we've been missing since Floyd got hurt, but then there are stretches where we keep getting gashed up the middle on runs. I think that Joseph declining could be part of it, but watching Richardson jump gaps on running plays (could be what he was told to do) makes me hesitate a bit on re-signing him. We also have better options in Jaleel Johnson and Jalyn Holmes to replace Richardson, than we do with Barr. So right now, I'd lean slightly towards keeping Barr over Richardson, but I don't think there is any way we can keep both.
DE Everson Griffen (Unsure) :: He's in a tough spot. He had some serious mental health issues that cost him several games and I think it's fair to say that he has not looked like the same player since he came back. Griffen in top form is better than Weatherly, but if Griffen is in the downside of his career, then Weatherly may arguably deserve to be starting. It will be interesting to see if things stay the same, he takes a pay cut, or if the team moves in another direction.
S Andrew Sendejo (Gone) :: Anthony Harris has flat-out outplayed him. Sendejo also has a moderately expensive contract and a reputation as a head hunter. Someone will sign him, but it's time to go with the younger player.
S Anthony Harris (Keep) :: As mentioned above, he took over Sendejo's role and hasn't looked back. He shouldn't break the bank, but might get paid around the same as the $5.5 million that Sendejo is currently owed.
S George Iloka (Likely Gone) :: He seemed like a good signing at the time, but never really got onto the field as Jayron Kearse reall stepped up in the big nickel package. Maybe Iloka sticks around, but I think he looks for a bigger role elsewhere.
CB/PR Marcus Sherels (Unsure) :: The Cockroach keeps finding a way to stick on the roster, so it is hard to bet against him. However, if they bring in a new special teams coach and prioritize bringing in new returners, then his time could be up. That being said, he is sure handed even if he fields some balls you wish he wouldn't and he nearly ran a punt back this year, so he still has some life in him.
DT Tom Johnson (Keep) :: He's fine as a rotational piece and likely has another season in him, especially if we part ways with Richardson.
Offense
RG Mike Remmers (Gone) :: He has a $2 million buyout and while I admire that he took one for the team and switched positions, he has not proven himself to be a good guard and he's too expensive to keep around as a backup tackle.
LT Riley Reiff (Unsure) :: The Vikings could also buy out Reiff's contract, he has had some good stretches, but has been mixed this season. I think it's more likely that he shifts to RT and O'Neill shifts to LT. He could take some sort of restructure and I'd expect they would want to draft a RT to develop behind him.
HB Latavius Murray (Gone) :: I would personally like to keep him, but there seem to be signs that his time with the Vikings are up. Not sure if I have any confidence in Boone, Thomas, or Abdullah, so they could draft another runner, but I suspect they are going to try to go all in on Cook next seaosn.
LG Nick Easton (Unsure) :: I thought that they had extended him already, but apparently not. I wasn't fully sold on him, but he was much better than Compton. The big issue with him is that he missed the year with a neck injury, so it really comes down to how well he has recovered.
QB Trevor Sieman (Probably Gone) :: He never saw the field, but was outperformed by Sloter in the offseason. There's not much reason to keep him unless he's been impressive in practice and/or they like having a backup with some real in game experience.
Special Teams
K Dan Bailey (Probably Keep) :: He was far from perfect, but with a team that should be back in the playoff race next season, he's still a veteran that you can rely on to bounce back from mistakes. Mental toughness is a big part of being a kicker and that's not a question with Bailey. However, there probably are better kickers out there.
