Former Gopher QB Mitch Leidner signs with the Vikings
The Minnesota Vikings made a head-scratching signing of Mitch Leidner on Sunday.
I thought I had finally ridden of him. I thought I had finally got all that Mitch Leidner out of my system. Then the Minnesota Vikings decided, for some reason, to sign the former Minnesota Golden Gophers quarterback. I use the term ‘quarterback’ loosely here.
This is not a joke. If it is, it’s an elaborate one from the Vikings. They sent out a press release on the signing.
If you’ve watched any Gopher football over the past couple seasons, well, first of all, I’m sorry that you had to sit through that. Two, I’m sorry that you had to watch Leidner at the helm of the offense.
Leidner went undrafted and was in mini-camp with the Baltimore Ravens but didn’t stick there. Now Leidner returns to his home state as a Viking.
Good for Leidner for chasing the dream. Being on a NFL roster, for however long this lasts, is a dream that a lot of people have but never accomplish. Nonetheless, that roster you are on is your hometown team.
On the other side of the coin, what in the world are the Vikings thinking? The Vikings are going to receive much more gruff about this from Minnesota sports fans than any good they’ll ever get from Leidner as a quarterback. I can guarantee that. If the Vikings see Leidner at another position, well, then it might, a huge might, be worth it.
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The move won’t matter in the long run, but it just doesn’t make sense to go through this in the state of Minnesota. Casual football fans could tell that Leidner was not good at the U of M, so why bring that unwarranted attention to your professional team? That’s the part of this that I struggle with. NFL teams try like the dickens to limit distractions and the Vikings signed the one rookie free agent that would make the whole fan base question everything.
Leidner only needs 34 touchdown throws to surpass his college total after three years as the Gophers starting quarterback. Go get ‘em.
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