I'll admit that I didn't see this coming:
The Vikings quarterback situation just became a lot more interesting. And crowded.Then again, I guess I should have seen it coming. Despite the many public pronouncements one heard about how confident the Vikings were with Christian Ponder, the pronouncements have seemed hollow, especially since it has always seemed that Ponder is at best a career backup. Freeman had a messy divorce with Tampa Bay and it's possible that a change of scenery is all he needs to get better, but the circumstances of his departure are a little sketchy. I suspect that this analysis of the deal from ESPN's Ben Goessling:
The team signed free agent Josh Freeman to a one-year deal reportedly worth $3 million late Sunday night, which presumably means Christian Ponder’s tenure is almost over.
Freeman must learn the Vikings offense, but the team’s aggressiveness in pursuing the former Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback indicates that they want him to replace Ponder as the starter as soon as possible.
A former first-round pick out of Kansas State, Freeman is only 25 but already is in his fifth NFL season. He has passed for 13,534 yards and 80 touchdowns with 66 interceptions.
As much rope as the Vikings have tried to give Ponder, as strongly as they have supported him through his struggles, they've got too much on the line to go on like that without giving themselves options. Coach Leslie Frazier needs to produce enough wins to get a contract extension and keep his job. Running back Adrian Peterson is 28 years old, and might not have more than a couple years left at his peak. And if general manager Rick Spielman missed on Ponder with the 12th pick in the 2011 draft, he needs to act swiftly and limit the damage before deciding how the Vikings will move forward at the position, whether that's with Ponder, Freeman, Cassel or someone else.In the 20+ years I've lived in Minnesota, quarterback has been the eternal problem for the Vikings. Going just from memory, they've run out Wade Wilson, Jim McMahon, Warren Moon, Brad Johnson, Randall Cunningham, Jeff George, Daunte Culpepper, Gus Frerotte, Brett Favre and Ponder as their primary quarterbacks, with an amusing selection of backups as well -- who could forget the glory of Spergeon Wynn? We've seen similar carousels in Detroit and Chicago over the years as well, although Matthew Stafford and Jay Cutler have held their respective positions for a while now. It's just another reminder of how fortunate my beloved Green Bay Packers have been to have just two regular quarterbacks over that time period.
Meanwhile, I'm beginning to wonder whether Jerry Kill is going to make it in Minnesota. While Benster and I have given him some good natured ribbing over the years, he's an admirable guy in many ways. Still, missing a game against Michigan is a pretty big deal and the situation might be untenable now. While he's tried all manner of things to get his seizures under control, it's appearing less likely that a long-term solution is coming. You simply can't miss games unexpectedly when you're the head coach, no matter how good your staff seems to be. Norwood Teague, the Gopher AD, has publicly supported Kill, but he didn't hire Kill, so he doesn't necessarily have to be loyal to him. I'd not be surprised if we see yet another new regime come to the Twin Cities at the end of this season.
8 comments:
On the Vikes: don't forget Rich Gannon and Sean Salisbury - the gruesome twosome of the early 1990s. Nor can we forget MN native Todd Bouman, whose 380+ yards starting a game for Culpepper briefly led to fans wanting him as the full-time starter. Ah, the memories...
As for Jerry: the Goofers are likely to go winless the rest of the season - a huge step back from winning 6 games and making a bowl last year. That, more than Kill's health, will be (should be) the reason they toss him aside. The only question is whether they burn another season in attempting to make this untenable situation work.
I was somewhat surprised listening to KFAN this weekend where both the callers and the hosts suggested that Kill wasn't doing everything he could to monitor his seizures (as in, taking his medication; getting enough rest). That's an argument even I wouldn't make - and it's coming from a station that's run cover for Kill's health for years.
Who could forget Donovan McNabb, Tavaris Jackson and Brooks Bollinger (our beloved Badger)?
FR and Gerry,
Yep -- those are other fine examples. Thanks for filling in the gaps in my memory.
The poor Vikes: They finally try to stop treating their quarterback position as a role of Hessian/Mercenery, and the guy they draft doesn't seem to pan out. Now they resort to Freeman, who for reasons that are probably mutual in terms of fault washed out in Tampa to the point where no one else wanted him. Apparently he's getting paid 3 Million as well. I guess it's the same as it ever was, and the prediction here is that there will be the same as it ever was results!
Jerry Kill's health is an issue for so many reasons, but the perhaps the largest one is that it has to be a major negative in terms of recruiting. For that alone, the Gophs will have to reach a mutually agreeable settlement after this season and move on to the next Gutekunst, or Brewster or whomever.
I wouldn't say Freeman was unwanted; merely that teams recognized they could likely get him without giving up players or draft choices. (A situation the Vikes may soon find themselves in with Ponder). Perhaps Oakland, Buffalo or Cleveland wishes they had offered something in order not to have to go to the open market, but Freeman's agent could have also discouraged any enquiries in that situation.
I'd also say that Freeman isn't quite scrap-heap material; more like Consignment Shop. He's not too old, he has skills and could still develop. If not, he hasn't really cost the Vikings that much. I'm almost stunned to say that the team actually made a good move.
Acquiring Freeman may be a cheap investment ($3 million for 1 season to give him a test-run), but it creates a logjam at QB.
Will any of the QBs get enough time under center to see if they're the long-term answer? From the comments Frazier made today, Ponder is still the starter, at least until they think Freeman can fully understand the playbook. How many weeks will that be? What will Matt Cassell's role be? What about that the locker room seemed to rally around Cassell already? Your star running back basically endorsed him.
This reminds me of the early 90s Detroit Lions teams with Erik Kramer, Andre Ware and Rodney Peete. None were good enough to keep the starting job or bad enough to be cut.
I think Freeman will get a chance; that's why he's here. The Vikings look at Cassell (IMO) as a qualified back-up and no more. He's capable of winning, that's why they got him, but he's a back-up. I think Ponder is done here as a starter, barring injury.
I give Spielman credit; for all the trolls saying his ego wouldn't let him pull the plug on Ponder, he moved quickly after last season to add Cassell and he made the move for Freeman quickly (and you know part of the conversation had to be about the opportunity to start). Ponder was a reach when drafted, but realistically, the Vikings needed a QB and the way the draft fell with Newton, Gabbert (and how does that pick look for genius?) and Locker (hasn't played much better than Ponder) gone it was either Ponder or Dalton (I liked Dalton best) in the first or early second (presuming the Vikings traded down). Sure, Kaepernick was in the draft as well, but it would have taken a crystal ball (and brass ones) to draft him that early.
I think Spielman sees this situation with pretty clear eyes; while you have to say good things about your starter as long as he's your starter (and potentially a trade assett), I think they'll look at Freeman to see what they've got and what he brings to the other weapsons on the team. I'm sure Spielman would love for Freeman to work out so he can use a first round pick next year on a DE or LB rather than another QB (especially mid to late first-round). Give Freeman a shot and if he stinks it up, you end up with an earlier first round pick that might get you one of the top QB picks. The trick is in when to start giving him starter reps in practice. It's hard to bring a new QB into a system once the season as begun and practice time is more limited and specific preparations have to be made for this week's opponent.
i hear Matt Flynn is available. get a few more ex-packers in the recieving corps for him, and you'll have something.
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