Mond "very sharp" at OTAs
https://vikingswire.usatoday.com/2022/05/24/vikings-oc-wes-phillips-says-kellen-mond-very-sharp-otas/
The praise for Minnesota Vikings second-year quarterback Kellen Mond continued to come in on Tuesday with offensive coordinator Wes Phillips being the recent coach talking up his improvements.
“Kellen is very sharp. He has really picked up the offense very well,” Phillips told media members. “I don’t know if you guys have seen him out here every day working with Jerrod Johnson—extra drill work, really working on his fundamentals.
“He’s done a really nice job getting up to speed with our offense, our terminology. He’s calling the plays really well in the huddle, and his eyes are in the right place.”
This news should excite Vikings fans, especially after the arrow appeared to be pointing down on Mond after his rookie season.
Nearly a week ago, coach Kevin O’Connell also talked about how impressed he was with the 22-year-old quarterback in the spring practices. If anything, it shows why it’s never a good idea to jump the gun on a player’s development.
There might still be a long-term future for Mond in the Vikings organization, depending on how his development tracks. It was always going to be an uphill battle for him to avoid being the odd man out for a regime that didn’t draft him.
And yet, the third-round pick out of Texas A&M is turning the right heads and giving renewed hope that the Vikings have a legitimate quarterback prospect on their roster.
“A gentleman is someone who can play the accordion, but doesn't." - Tom Waits
I'm fine with these kinds of stories.....its all well and good and its better than hearing he's struggling....but this is fluff piece season. I've just read SO many similar types of stuff from other NFL cities. I'm rooting for Mond, I want Mond to succeed and at least take the #2 job at some point. But I'll really have to see it first to start believing anything. I do think he's got a very fresh start with the new regime. I do think he'll be more relaxed in Year 2. I like the way he handles himself in interviews. I just don't know if he'll be a player or not.
@"StickyBun" said: I'm fine with these kinds of stories.....its all well and good and its better than hearing he's struggling....but this is fluff piece season. I've just read SO many similar types of stuff from other NFL cities. I'm rooting for Mond, I want Mond to succeed and at least take the #2 job at some point. But I'll really have to see it first to start believing anything. I do think he's got a very fresh start with the new regime. I do think he'll be more relaxed in Year 2. I like the way he handles himself in interviews. I just don't know if he'll be a player or not.I think the odds of him ever becoming our QBOTF are still very low. Infinitesimal really. But like I've said before, I'll just be happy if he can become our QB2. And that seems a little more plausible now, so I'll take it.
Really nice to read and hopefully he looks good at training camp. Even if he never starts a game for us, if he’s able to push Mannion off the roster I say put him in the Ring of Honor.
Good to hear Mond isn't hiding in the HC's "dog house" anymore. Really good to hear there are actual reports of him playing well, and working hard to get better.
How ironic would it be that Spielman finally drafted a decent QB. The biggest thing with Mond is even back to college is he gets better every year, meaning he is teachable. I am not completely perked up, the day we let Mannion go and Mond be the backup is the day I will think this is the real deal and not just coach speak.
It's nice to hear something good about him. Wonder how he will do in training camp.
It’s pretty clear that the new front office’s goal is to be
the opposite of toxic. Everything is
positive. Everyone is doing great. There is no dog house (that we’ll speak about
in public). With Zimmer, he was blunt
about the truth on underperforming players.
With KOC, we’ll just not hear about it, until we get cryptic tweets from
players about not being valued enough.
@"medaille" said: It’s pretty clear that the new front office’s goal is to be the opposite of toxic. Everything is positive. Everyone is doing great. There is no dog house (that we’ll speak about in public). With Zimmer, he was blunt about the truth on underperforming players. With KOC, we’ll just not hear about it, until we get cryptic tweets from players about not being valued enough.
....or....he really is doing better.
I don't think Zimmer's problem was that he was truthful about underperforming players. It was that he was defensive with the media. When he responded "not particularly" when asked if he wanted to see Mond in that last game, I don't think he necessarily meant he wasn't ready. I think it was more "I'm the coach and I make the decisions and I will not be led to those decisions by the media." He answered most questions like that.
Now, he's not alone in that. Belichick is the same way.
@"StickyBun" said: I'm fine with these kinds of stories.....its all well and good and its better than hearing he's struggling....but this is fluff piece season. I've just read SO many similar types of stuff from other NFL cities. I'm rooting for Mond, I want Mond to succeed and at least take the #2 job at some point. But I'll really have to see it first to start believing anything. I do think he's got a very fresh start with the new regime. I do think he'll be more relaxed in Year 2. I like the way he handles himself in interviews. I just don't know if he'll be a player or not.Yep. What are the coaches going to say? He sucks and we can't wait till cut down day?
@"MaroonBells" said:@"medaille" said: It’s pretty clear that the new front office’s goal is to be the opposite of toxic. Everything is positive. Everyone is doing great. There is no dog house (that we’ll speak about in public). With Zimmer, he was blunt about the truth on underperforming players. With KOC, we’ll just not hear about it, until we get cryptic tweets from players about not being valued enough.
....or....he really is doing better.I don't think Zimmer's problem was that he was truthful about underperforming players. It was that he was defensive with the media. When he responded "not particularly" when asked if he wanted to see Mond in that last game, I don't think he necessarily meant he wasn't ready. I think it was more "I'm the coach and I make the decisions and I will not be led to those decisions by the media." He answered most questions like that.
Now, he's not alone in that. Belichick is the same way.
That is obviously one possibility, but how do you feel confident in discerning that it is an accurate assessment rather offseason hype building? I hope that Mond is doing great, but if we’re not getting
things that are critical of players and what they have to improve upon, I’m not
going to believe that I’m getting the whole story.
@"medaille" said:@"MaroonBells" said:@"medaille" said: It’s pretty clear that the new front office’s goal is to be the opposite of toxic. Everything is positive. Everyone is doing great. There is no dog house (that we’ll speak about in public). With Zimmer, he was blunt about the truth on underperforming players. With KOC, we’ll just not hear about it, until we get cryptic tweets from players about not being valued enough.
....or....he really is doing better.I don't think Zimmer's problem was that he was truthful about underperforming players. It was that he was defensive with the media. When he responded "not particularly" when asked if he wanted to see Mond in that last game, I don't think he necessarily meant he wasn't ready. I think it was more "I'm the coach and I make the decisions and I will not be led to those decisions by the media." He answered most questions like that.
Now, he's not alone in that. Belichick is the same way.
That is obviously one possibility, but how do you feel confident in discerning that it is an accurate assessment rather offseason hype building? I hope that Mond is doing great, but if we’re not getting
things that are critical of players and what they have to improve upon, I’m not
going to believe that I’m getting the whole story.
I don't feel confident about any of it, because I know Mond has a long way to go. But it's not hard to discern between bullshit and something genuine by the nature of the comment. Is it specific? Descriptive? Is it shared by more than one observer? Does it provide examples? Or is it the meaningless "he's out there working hard" line we get so often, which is pert'near a declaration of incompetence.
Getting it right in drills is the first step, next we add live hitting, then the bright lights. Its a progression that I look forward to watching for the kid. No dilluson here, just like seeing what the new people can bring instead of them just getting buried because they aren't a veteran.
I actually enjoy watching pre season games where players actually get a chance to show what they can do.
I think the hiring of Jerrod Johnson could be pretty helpful for the kid. Johnson was former Texas A&M QB who had his all time school passing record broken by Mond. He might be even able to spend more time with him than most QB coaches would with a developmental prospect, since the Vikings already have Chris O'Hara as the top QB coach.
It'd be nice if he develops, even if it's just as a capable backup QB.
Practice? Let's see what he does in a pre season game. Even Sloter looked good in pre-season games. So the odds are against him. It would be great to see him overcome those odds and grab that back up spot. I hope he does.
@"MaroonBells" said:@"medaille" said:@"MaroonBells" said:@"medaille" said: It’s pretty clear that the new front office’s goal is to be the opposite of toxic. Everything is positive. Everyone is doing great. There is no dog house (that we’ll speak about in public). With Zimmer, he was blunt about the truth on underperforming players. With KOC, we’ll just not hear about it, until we get cryptic tweets from players about not being valued enough.
....or....he really is doing better.I don't think Zimmer's problem was that he was truthful about underperforming players. It was that he was defensive with the media. When he responded "not particularly" when asked if he wanted to see Mond in that last game, I don't think he necessarily meant he wasn't ready. I think it was more "I'm the coach and I make the decisions and I will not be led to those decisions by the media." He answered most questions like that.
Now, he's not alone in that. Belichick is the same way.
That is obviously one possibility, but how do you feel confident in discerning that it is an accurate assessment rather offseason hype building? I hope that Mond is doing great, but if we’re not getting
things that are critical of players and what they have to improve upon, I’m not
going to believe that I’m getting the whole story.
I don't feel confident about any of it, because I know Mond has a long way to go. But it's not hard to discern between bullshit and something genuine by the nature of the comment. Is it specific? Descriptive? Is it shared by more than one observer? Does it provide examples? Or is it the meaningless "he's out there working hard" line we get so often, which is pert'near a declaration of incompetence.
I feel like what you said has zero bearing on Mond and it is only speaking about the coaches communication style. The coaches are publicly saying something Mond is doing well, whereas the previous coaches publicly said what they needed to improve on. I do think a good coach will find the things a person is doing well and point them out. That's an improvement in coaching in my opinion. Does it mean that the team is going to perform better, because we're only hearing good news? Absolutely not. The people who think Zimmer sucked and was holding the team back because his replacement is saying encouraging things about the team are going to be in for a rude awakening when the team doesn't live up to their inflated expectations. The same thing already happened with Kwesi. Everyone was like Spielman sucks for trading back so much, and Kwesi will be so much better, and then Kwesi had his work on display and now people aren't so sure about him.
What I really liked was that Wes said “his eyes are in the right place”. other than that comment it really doesnt capture my attention
@"medaille" said:@"MaroonBells" said:@"medaille" said:@"MaroonBells" said:@"medaille" said: It’s pretty clear that the new front office’s goal is to be the opposite of toxic. Everything is positive. Everyone is doing great. There is no dog house (that we’ll speak about in public). With Zimmer, he was blunt about the truth on underperforming players. With KOC, we’ll just not hear about it, until we get cryptic tweets from players about not being valued enough.
....or....he really is doing better.I don't think Zimmer's problem was that he was truthful about underperforming players. It was that he was defensive with the media. When he responded "not particularly" when asked if he wanted to see Mond in that last game, I don't think he necessarily meant he wasn't ready. I think it was more "I'm the coach and I make the decisions and I will not be led to those decisions by the media." He answered most questions like that.
Now, he's not alone in that. Belichick is the same way.
That is obviously one possibility, but how do you feel confident in discerning that it is an accurate assessment rather offseason hype building? I hope that Mond is doing great, but if we’re not getting
things that are critical of players and what they have to improve upon, I’m not
going to believe that I’m getting the whole story.
I don't feel confident about any of it, because I know Mond has a long way to go. But it's not hard to discern between bullshit and something genuine by the nature of the comment. Is it specific? Descriptive? Is it shared by more than one observer? Does it provide examples? Or is it the meaningless "he's out there working hard" line we get so often, which is pert'near a declaration of incompetence.
I feel like what you said has zero bearing on Mond and it is only speaking about the coaches communication style.
Yes, and therein typically lies the truth. Put another way, we have no idea how Mond is doing. But you can tell a lot about what the coaches think by how they communicate. Treadwell is a good example. No one ever said he was turning heads. Only thing we ever heard was that he was "working hard out there." Is he beating people? Getting separation? Well...."he's working hard out there." It's like your buddy who has a friend. Is she pretty? Well, she's really nice.
@"medaille" said: It’s pretty clear that the new front office’s goal is to be the opposite of toxic. Everything is positive. Everyone is doing great. There is no dog house (that we’ll speak about in public). With Zimmer, he was blunt about the truth on underperforming players. With KOC, we’ll just not hear about it, until we get cryptic tweets from players about not being valued enough.
THIS.
Everything is pie in the sky....until a couple losses. At which point we will hear..”everythings great, we just need to execute” or “Ill need to watch the film”.
I for one liked Zimmer’s “shit or get off the pot” mentality. If your ego cant take the harsh reality, find someone who WANTS to improve
@"Vanguard83" said:I for one liked Zimmer’s “shit or get off the pot” mentality. If your ego cant take the harsh reality, find someone who WANTS to improveI did as well, maybe if Kendricks paid attention to the criticism instead of whining about it, his play would not have declined like it did. Does anyone think that everything is all positive and cheery at the NE practices? There are a lot of players who have played for Zimmer who have an extreme reverence for him, so he certainly was well respected by most who played for him.
Phil Jackson, who was labeled the "zen master" for his cool, quiet demeanor was well known for calling out his players including his stars like Kobe, when he felt they were not performing at the level they were capable of. A lot of these players now expect everything to be given to them and they have become very soft, spoiled and entitled.
@"Vanguard83" said:@"medaille" said: It’s pretty clear that the new front office’s goal is to be the opposite of toxic. Everything is positive. Everyone is doing great. There is no dog house (that we’ll speak about in public). With Zimmer, he was blunt about the truth on underperforming players. With KOC, we’ll just not hear about it, until we get cryptic tweets from players about not being valued enough.
THIS.Everything is pie in the sky....until a couple losses. At which point we will hear..”everythings great, we just need to execute” or “Ill need to watch the film”.
I for one liked Zimmer’s “shit or get off the pot” mentality. If your ego cant take the harsh reality, find someone who WANTS to improve
I generally agree with this except Zimmer's MO was to blame the players & deflect responsibility.
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