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National Media Showing Minnesota Vikings Love

By Paul Bellesen

Jul 27, 2015; Mankato, MN, USA; Minnesota Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer speaks with general manager Rick Spielman at training camp at Minnesota State University. Mandatory Credit: Bruce Kluckhohn-USA TODAY Sports
Jul 27, 2015; Mankato, MN, USA; Minnesota Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer speaks with general manager Rick Spielman at training camp at Minnesota State University. Mandatory Credit: Bruce Kluckhohn-USA TODAY Sports /
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Now that we are passed mock draft season, we are now into offseason grades and the Minnesota Vikings are getting some love from some national media.

After the heavy lifting of the 2016 offseason is over, now the national media outlets release their grades for each team’s work throughout that period. The Minnesota Vikings have very few holes so there were not many position groups that needed to be focused on.

Gil Brandt, former Dallas Cowboys Vice President of Player Personnel and now an analyst for NFL.com, released his list of teams with the top off seasons. In his opinion, the Vikings had the fifth best offseason. Here is what he had to say:

"The Vikings needed offensive help and got it this offseason. Free-agent additions Alex Boone andAndre Smith will bolster an offensive line that should also welcome back fully healthy editions of John Sullivan and Phil Loadholt (who both missed all of 2015 with injuries). That unit will be directed this season by Tony Sparano, who is a good coach. The first-round pick Laquon Treadwell, meanwhile, looks like the chain-moving No. 1 receiver the Vikes have lacked these past few seasons. Put a No. 88 on his back and you’d think he’s Michael Irvin. He’s also a blocker like Irvin was, meaning he’ll make the passing and running game better. He’s exactly what the doctor ordered for coordinator Norv Turner.I liked Minnesota’s draft haul, including cornerback Mackensie Alexander. I also like undrafted free agent Brandon Ross, who has a chance to be a really good running back down the road. Mike Zimmer is a special coach, and there is terrific cohesion in this organization, from the owners to the front office to the coaches. This was a good offseason for a team that I expect will repeat as NFC North champs."

The biggest need the Vikings had was up front on the offensive line. They did their work adding a

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lot of competition through the free agency period. What is interesting is Brandt’s take on Laquon Treadwell. As he was with the Dallas Cowboys and was the head of a team that drafted Michael Irvin. This comparison is huge. Let us hope that Treadwell can be worthy of these comparisons. I think he will.

During the second day of the Vikings voluntary offseason workouts, Teddy Bridgewater was asked about what he has seen from Treadwell so far.

"He’s going to be big for this team. There’s a reason that we drafted him in the first round. He’s been here with us for two days now, and he’s been looking good. I’m not qualified to judge players and things like that, but from what I’ve been seeing, I’ve been pretty impressed."

Earlier this week, ESPN analyst Bill Barnwell released his offseason grades for the NFC North. He gave the Vikings an A-, the best grade of the division. No other team in the North received an A. He took a deeper look into what went right, and what went wrong this offseason.

His first point of what went right was that the Vikings built up their offensive line depth. He mentions that Rick Spielman might not have come away with a superstar in free agency, but has built one of the deepest lines in the league. He also mentions that he signed quality players on reasonable contracts.

Next, he mentions that the Vikings did the same with their secondary, and built nice depth. Adding Mackensie Alexander, and resigning the “ageless wonder” Terrence Newman. The depth within this group will allow the Vikings to bring Alexander along slowly, as they did last season with first round pick Trae Waynes.

Lastly, he mentions that the Vikings took advantage of the Dolphins with their draft day trade of their third round pick. As I have mentioned in an earlier post, this gives the Vikings flexibility to move around in next years draft after acquiring a 2017 third round and a 2017 fourth round pick from the Dolphins.

There was only one thing that Barnwell could say went wrong so far in the Vikings offseason. That was not resigning Harrison Smith to a long-term extension. He mentions that it was hard to find something that went wrong in the Vikings offseason and if anything this would be it. The team will lock Smith up with a long-term contract before the season starts, it just has not happened yet.

Finally, you can see that the Minnesota Vikings are starting to get some love from national media circles. It looks like they have done the heavy lifting in this offseason. Let us just hope everyone can stay healthy and we can prove these analysts right.

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