Feed: HOME OF MINNESOTA VIKINGS FOOTBALL - AggScore: 75.3

Vikings Stadium Plan Unworkable

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A Vikings spokesman said Friday that the team owners don't like a new proposal to fund a $1 billion stadium in the Twins Cities suburbs using ticket fees and other game-related charges.

Pull Your 84 Jerseys Out

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If any team out there is looking for a 35 year old wide receiver who was once the best in the game, this is their time.

New(er) Vikings Stadium Plan

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I don't know about you, but I have certainly lost count on how many Vikings Stadium plans are floating around... and yet, here is another:

Minnesota Vikings Stadium by Target Field? Yes, please!

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There had been talk of relocating the Vikings' new stadium to areas near Target Field. Those plans tentatively had my vote. Now, however, it appears as though those plans have been scratched... to my disappointment.

Brad Childress Hired as Offensive Coordinator

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The Cleveland Browns are taking a chance and have hired Brad Childress as their offensive coordinator. By hiring Childress, the Browns hope Pat Shurmur will have the support he needs to start a turnaround in Cleveland.

Childress is a former head coach of the Minnesota Vikings. Childress is a logical choice because he has roots in the West Coast offense, as well as connections to the Browns and an agent whose influence on the franchise is well documented. Bob LaMonte represents Childress, Shurmur, President Mike Holmgren and General Manager Tom Heckert, among others.

Shurmur has been juggling the duties of a rookie coach and an offensive coordinator, resulting in the Browns ranking 29th in offense, 20th in scoring and finishing the 2011 season with a record of 4-12.

Vikings Stadium Update

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The Minnesota Vikings are really, really looking for a new football stadium. However, contray to the phrase 'beggars can't be choosers,' the Vikings are being pretty picky. Through all of these stadium talks, the Vikings have been adamant that the site at Arden Hills is their No. 1 choice, though Governor Mark Dayton has other plans.

Dayton would prefer to build on the current site of the Metrodome, which means the team would need to play at TCF Bank Stadium for three years or so while the new place is being built.

Not only are the Vikings opposed to the three-year timeline, but also to the lost revenues of not hosting games themselves and to the lack of potential development around the Metrodome location. The Arden Hills location offers a lot of surrounding area for potential development.

Judging by the ad campaigns the Vikings pushed towards the end of the season, the team really wants to have fan support behind them. Keeping that in mind, the Vikings have yet to directly oppose the Metrodome site because they don't want to come off as complainers by the level-headed fans of Minnesota. Basically the Vikings don't want to be blamed for their own stadium not being built.

Who will get the final word? It appears the NFL may use their power of veto to nix the Metrodome site because TCF Bank simply isn't an NFL stadium. This would mean that the Arden Hills site, among the other options, would be reconsidered.

Fran Tarkenton on an Outdoor Stadium

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The former Vikings quarterback, Fran Tarkenton, remembers the days of playing in old Metropolitan Stadium. He wants those same kind of memories for future Vikings players. Fran Tarkenton wants Minnesota to have an outdoor Vikings Stadium.

He calls playing outside part of "the culture of Minnesota," according to TwinCities.com.

There still isn't a definite plan for a Vikings stadium. Stay tuned!

Round 3 and Round 4 Vikings Predictions

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Round 3 and 4: These rounds often make or break a team because players picked up in the third or fourth rounds tend to exceed or fail to meet expectations.

Steve Huchinson, who is turning 34, is turning out to be one of those players who exceeded their draft number, being a better player that was passed up on by worse teams (higher draft teams).

The Vikings mostly seem set are ok at the guard position. The Vikings could look at cornerback in round 3 or 4 if they don't address it in round two. Kevin Zeitler, Brandon Jenkins and Xavier Rhodes could be postential players that the Vikings could pick up.

Vikings Adrian Peterson to Return in 2012

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The Minnesota Vikings expect Adrian Peterson, their star running back, to be recovered from left knee surgery from two torn ligaments in time to start the 2012 season.

AP tore his ACL and MCL when he was hit in the side of the knee by DeJon Gomes in the third quarter Saturday in a 33-26 win at Washington. An MRI revealed the ligament tears and meniscus damage. Peterson will undergo surgery within the next seven to ten days.

Peterson signed a seven-year, $100-million contract extension before the first week of the season.

More Vikings Off Season Predictions

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I love Toby Gerhart, but his talent is being wasted with the Vikings. With Adrian Peterson having torn his ACL, perhaps it is best to keep Gerhart not knowing Peterson's future. However, if Peterson were a guaranteed starter, Gerhart would be wasted as a Vikings player.

If the Vikings were able to trade Gerhart to a team for a second or third round pick, that would be ideal because those players would possess the talent needed to fulfill Gerhart's current role - a few smaller plays here and there.

Again, I love Gerhart, but he could give the Vikings more by leaving. Zebrie Sanders (OT, FSU), Reuben Randle (WR, LSU) and Stephon Gilmore (CB, South Carolina).

Vikings Off Season Predictions

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Continuing from my last post, I am still discussing my off season predictions and draft hopes.

Round 1:
It appears that Andrew Luck is going to the Colts. The Rams are likely to have the second pick, with the Vikings getting (possibly) the third. The Rams and the Vikings both have the same needs: offensive line and wide receiver. Each team will need to decide the high priority and person available. Basically you don't draft a need player; you draft the player you covet.

The Vikings could take Matt Kalil of USC if the Rams do not. It appears that the Vikings would let the Dolphins or Redskins pick up Robert Griffin III, who seems to be a star on the rise.

My second pick would be Justin Blackmon, a wide receiver out of Oklahoma State. Blackmon appears to be an upgrade over Malcolm Jenkins and Devin Aromashodu.

Vikings Off Season Predictions

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Below are a few of my off season predictions for the Minnesota Vikings. This could probably be labeled version 1.0 because my predictions are likely to change as the off season unfolds.

The Vikings, first and foremost, need to get the GPS out and right the ship back on course.

I look for Leslie Frazier to have a successful offseason by firing certain coaches and hiring sold NFL-caliber coachers. Coaches like Bill Musgrave will most likely stay, which he should.

The Vikings need to look at free agency and the draft to fit the roster better to the 'Vikings standard'. The Vikings need to figure out whether or not they want to be an offensive or a defensive team. In the past, I would categorize the Vikings as a defensive team. Right now and in the upcoming offseason, I don't think the team can afford to be both.

Whether or not Joe Webb or Christian Ponder is at the helm, the Vikings need to bring some new tools to help the quarterback win. Both quarterbacks appear to be intelligent and possessing the desire to win. Though Joe Webb has performed well in the absence and injury of Ponder, I think Ponder will take on the fulltime quarterback position.

More predictions to come...

Vikings Playoffs... Bummer

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I certainly wish the Vikings were in the playoffs. It has been two years now, which is considered a severe drought when it comes to Vikings football - we used to be a dominating team in the NFC North.

I remember being in Hawaii watching the Vikings Saints game two years ago at a local bar. There are tons of Vikings fans in Hawaii - which seems slightly counterintuitive because of the extreme weather differences.

It was such a bummer, seeing Favre and the Packers lose. Remembering Hawaii and the great memories I made almost off-sets that though...

I still wish the Vikings were in the playoffs.

Jared Allen Hits New Orleans on the Nose

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"There's two cities like I don't go out to eat or don't do anything. It's Detroit and New Orleans. New Orleans looks like I'm driving through a third-world country every time I get off the plane, I'm like, 'Oh, flak jacket.' I'm trying to get down. I'm like, 'Ah, crap, I can't carry my gun here. This sucks," said Allen of New Orleans.

I found a forum thread discussing Allen's comments from the point of view of New Orleans fans.

"Have you ever visited North Minneapolis, midtown or the Phillips neighborhoods?"
- This guy has a good point. North Minneapolis is like Bucharest at 4am.

"Hey Jared Allen ! How does it feel to play for a Third World Team?"
- Sad.

"Why doesn't he just say, ""I try to avoid black towns"?"
- Ok. Too far.

Jared Allen Not Giving Up

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Jared Allen was given a late rest against the Saints on Sunday... and he wasn't happy about it.

"What are we resting me for? The playoffs? Come on. That's not my decision. I guess they want the young guys to play. I don't know," said Allen according to Sports Illustrated.

Allen is currently in pursuit of the single-season sack record for the NFL. Though the Vikings are clearly going to end with a losing record, they are trying to avoid setting a record for the franchise-worst record, set at 3-13. The Vikings are 2-12.

The Vikings play at Washington on Saturday and host the Bears on January 1.