IPJ
Vikings linebacker Ivan Pace Jr. started to turn heads as soon as he stepped foot onto the practice field at TCO Performance Center in the spring. Never mind that he was an undrafted rookie out of the University of Cincinnati at the time. The 22-year-old was hellbent on proving he belonged with the Vikings.After impressing enough people to make the team out of training camp, Pace continued to stack days on top of each other, eventually carving out a role for himself on defense. Meanwhile, head coach Kevin O’Connell remembers waiting for Pace to hit that rookie wall
“You’re just kind of waiting for, ‘When’s that drop-off going to be? When are those times where he’s going to look like a rookie?’ ” O’Connell said. “It just never really happened.”
That’s good news for the Vikings considering Pace has stepped into an important role on defense in the absence of injured veteran linebacker Jordan Hicks.
Now every time Pace trots onto the field, he does so as the only player with a direct line of communication to defensive coordinator Brian Flores.
“It’s not really hard,” Pace said. “It’s just about staying confident.”
That’s a big thing for Pace as he has to take control of a huddle that features some very respected players, including veteran safety Harrison Smith and star pass rusher Danielle Hunter, among a handful of others. He slowly has started to grow into his voice over the past few months.
“I started out as a shy person on the team who really didn’t talk that much,” Pace said. “Just knowing I was going to take on the green-dot role, I had to open up a little bit, get used to my teammates and be loud.”
It’s been a pretty seamless transition for Pace, who has played 100 percent of the snaps on defense since Hicks went on injured reserve.
“This will go a long way for him and his future in this league,” Flores said. “I think his confidence is growing each time he goes out there with the green dot. He understands that responsibility and what goes with that. He’s starting to elevate his play in large part because of that.”
Though it seems as if Hicks might be able to return sooner rather than later — and more than likely would reclaim the green dot in the process — the experience has been invaluable for Pace as he continues to prove himself as player who could be a key piece of the Vikings’ defense in the future.
” I’m excited about him,” O’Connell said. “He just keeps getting better and better and more comfortable. Now he’s the green dot and communicating throughout the whole defense. You can’t put an amount on that as far as the importance in his development and where he’s going to get to.”
https://www.twincities.com/2023/12/08/vikings-linebacker-ivan-pace-jr-sure-doesnt-play-like-an-undrafted-rookie/
Hurry-up Vikings, we ain't getting any younger!
Pace played a ridiculous game. What a massive pick this was.
@"MaroonBells" said: Pace played a ridiculous game. What a massive pick this was.So is this a good KAM pick/signing? B)
@"mblack" said:Nope. We only focus on the bad signings. Otherwise, it goes unmentioned on the board.@"MaroonBells" said: Pace played a ridiculous game. What a massive pick this was. So is this a good KAM pick/signing? B)Pace is playing well and getting better. A sack, 13 tackles and a game-saving INT?
Makes you wonder what GMs are doing. 240+ drafted players and nobody would spend even a measly 7th round pick on this guy because he's too short? But as soon as he steps onto an NFL field people start talking about how good he is.
@"StickyBun" said:@"mblack" said:Nope. We only focus on the bad signings. Otherwise, it goes unmentioned on the board.@"MaroonBells" said: Pace played a ridiculous game. What a massive pick this was. So is this a good KAM pick/signing? B)Pace is playing well and getting better. A sack, 13 tackles and a game-saving INT?
It wasnt a good signing nor a bad signing....it was a lucky signing. Happy to have him, but we along with the rest of the league did not consider him worthy to spend a draft pick on.
@"dadevike" said: Makes you wonder what GMs are doing. 240+ drafted players and nobody would spend even a measly 7th round pick on this guy because he's too short? But as soon as he steps onto an NFL field people start talking about how good he is.It's crazy. I'm convinced the only reason he went undrafted is because he was removed from draft boards due to not meeting certain size benchmarks. Then after the draft everyone rushed to sign him and the Vikings just outbid everyone, which has been their MO since the Wilfs bought the team.
1.) Jalen Carter: 9th overall
2.) Devon Witherspoon: 5th overall
3.) Will Anderson Jr.: 3rd overall
4.) Mekhi Blackmon: 102nd overall
5.) Ivan Pace Jr.: Undrafted
If only that Asamoah guy would step up...show us that superstar ability
@"supafreak84" said: If only that Asamoah guy would step up...show us that superstar abilityI know right. Every pick needs to be awesome. Not just several of them.
@"AGRforever" said:I'd settle for a few..@"supafreak84" said: If only that Asamoah guy would step up...show us that superstar ability I know right. Every pick needs to be awesome. Not just several of them.
Lol call it lucky if you want but it is still a good signing. Flores saw something in him. He said he saw something in him at the Senior Bowl and talked about him being 2 time defensive player of the year in college in 2 different conferences. Harrison Smith and Matt Daniels both said very positive things about him early on but ok then. I guess Flores doesn't know what he is talking about
@"Vikergirl" said: Lol call it lucky if you want but it is still a good signing. Flores saw something in him. He said he saw something in him at the Senior Bowl and talked about him being 2 time defensive player of the year in college in 2 different conferences. Harrison Smith and Matt Daniels both said very positive things about him early on but ok then. I guess Flores doesn't know what he is talking aboutIt was a lucky thing for us the same way Thielen was a lucky thing that panned out for us. Sometimes you just get lucky hitting on undrafted guys like that and its the reason Spielman liked acquiring late round picks in trying to get guys like IPJ. If they had so much foresight the kid was going to be a special player they would have drafted him instead of, oh say....Dwayne McBride. We did not find him worthy of spending a draft pick on, same as the rest of the league. He could have signed anywhere but we outbid others and had opportunity after we lost Kendricks in the offseason. I'm happy to have him and certainly not complaining, but find it comical watching the usual pack tripping over themselves to fluff Kwesi on unearthing a gem.
@"supafreak84" said:If a few is the bar then Kwesi is good. They’re playing several people he’s brought in.@"AGRforever" said:I'd settle for a few..@"supafreak84" said: If only that Asamoah guy would step up...show us that superstar ability I know right. Every pick needs to be awesome. Not just several of them.
@"supafreak84" said:@"StickyBun" said:@"mblack" said:Nope. We only focus on the bad signings. Otherwise, it goes unmentioned on the board.@"MaroonBells" said: Pace played a ridiculous game. What a massive pick this was. So is this a good KAM pick/signing? B)Pace is playing well and getting better. A sack, 13 tackles and a game-saving INT?
It wasnt a good signing nor a bad signing....it was a lucky signing. Happy to have him, but we along with the rest of the league did not consider him worthy to spend a draft pick on.
If that's a 'lucky' signing, then the whole Draft is luck with that logic.
@"StickyBun" said:@"supafreak84" said:@"StickyBun" said:@"mblack" said:Nope. We only focus on the bad signings. Otherwise, it goes unmentioned on the board.@"MaroonBells" said: Pace played a ridiculous game. What a massive pick this was. So is this a good KAM pick/signing? B)Pace is playing well and getting better. A sack, 13 tackles and a game-saving INT?
It wasnt a good signing nor a bad signing....it was a lucky signing. Happy to have him, but we along with the rest of the league did not consider him worthy to spend a draft pick on.
If that's a 'lucky' signing, then the whole Draft is luck with that logic.
Oh come on! Anytime you have a guy passed over 260+ times by every NFL team and he becomes a starter, there's an element of luck involved. Let's not be dense.
@"supafreak84" said:@"StickyBun" said:@"supafreak84" said:@"StickyBun" said:@"mblack" said:Nope. We only focus on the bad signings. Otherwise, it goes unmentioned on the board.@"MaroonBells" said: Pace played a ridiculous game. What a massive pick this was. So is this a good KAM pick/signing? B)Pace is playing well and getting better. A sack, 13 tackles and a game-saving INT?
It wasnt a good signing nor a bad signing....it was a lucky signing. Happy to have him, but we along with the rest of the league did not consider him worthy to spend a draft pick on.
If that's a 'lucky' signing, then the whole Draft is luck with that logic.
Oh come on! Anytime you have a guy passed over 260+ times by every NFL team and he becomes a starter, there's an element of luck involved. Let's not be dense.
lol, dude. Every player in the Draft, except one, gets 'passed over'. I'm using your logic. Not sure how a fan gets to cherry pick what success means for a GM when the player they drafted/signed becomes a good player for the team. They certainly get plenty of blame conversely.
@"StickyBun" said:He was passed over IN TOTALITY for an entire draft, including by Kwesi 6 times. Nobody found him worthy enough of using one of the 260+ draft picks on him. He signed with the Vikings because we had opportunity and paid more (likely because we had a smaller overall draft class than usual). When you hit on an UDFA and he becomes an out of the gate starter...it's lucky. I don't know else how to explain it.@"supafreak84" said:@"StickyBun" said:@"supafreak84" said:@"StickyBun" said:@"mblack" said:Nope. We only focus on the bad signings. Otherwise, it goes unmentioned on the board.@"MaroonBells" said: Pace played a ridiculous game. What a massive pick this was. So is this a good KAM pick/signing? B)Pace is playing well and getting better. A sack, 13 tackles and a game-saving INT?
It wasnt a good signing nor a bad signing....it was a lucky signing. Happy to have him, but we along with the rest of the league did not consider him worthy to spend a draft pick on.
If that's a 'lucky' signing, then the whole Draft is luck with that logic.
Oh come on! Anytime you have a guy passed over 260+ times by every NFL team and he becomes a starter, there's an element of luck involved. Let's not be dense.
lol, dude. Every player in the Draft, except one, gets 'passed over'. I'm using your logic. Not sure how a fan gets to cherry pick what success means for a GM when the player they drafted/signed becomes a good player for the team. They certainly get plenty of blame conversely.
@"supafreak84" said:@"StickyBun" said:@"mblack" said:Nope. We only focus on the bad signings. Otherwise, it goes unmentioned on the board.@"MaroonBells" said: Pace played a ridiculous game. What a massive pick this was. So is this a good KAM pick/signing? B)Pace is playing well and getting better. A sack, 13 tackles and a game-saving INT?
It wasnt a good signing nor a bad signing....it was a lucky signing. Happy to have him, but we along with the rest of the league did not consider him worthy to spend a draft pick on.Must be wonderful to live in a world where you are absolutely never wrong and can work the mental gymnastics to explain away everything that doesn't fit your narrative. If you aren't already you've got all the markings of a modern day politician. Hell you used a play out of the political 101 handbook dropping some "what aboutsims" on us trying to distract from the Pace signing by bringing up Asamoah. Lol, if Kwesi didn't sign Pace but Detroit did I am sure you would by no means be crowing about Kwesi shitting the bed and the wonderful work of the Detroit GM.
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