2017 Vikings Free Agency Thread (Discussion Thread)

A forum for the hard core Minnesota Vikings fan. Discuss upcoming games, opponents, trades, draft or what ever is on the minds of Viking fans!

Moderator: Moderators

Pondering Her Percy
Hall of Famer
Posts: 9241
Joined: Thu Dec 13, 2012 3:38 am
Location: Watertown, NY
x 1117

Re: 2017 Vikings Free Agency Thread (Discussion Thread)

Post by Pondering Her Percy »

Cliff wrote:Why do you think a WR should know his craft better than a CB coming out of college? Seems to me they're two sides of the same coin.
Exactly. It's widely known that those are usually the two hardest positions to grasp coming out of college. And if you look, since Zim has been here, who are the top picks that struggled to play their rookie years? Waynes, Treadwell and Alexander. All CBs and WRs. Like I said above, I really don't count Diggs because there was literally nothing in front of him to compete with. Yet he still wasnt even active for the first 4-5 weeks. Treadwell had much more to compete with than you think. I mean was there really a point to force him into action with the way Diggs, Thielen and CP were playing?? No. Diggs didnt have that competition.
The saddest thing in life is wasted talent and the choices you make will shape your life forever.
-Chazz Palminteri
User avatar
Mothman
Defensive Tackle
Posts: 38292
Joined: Wed Mar 26, 2003 11:48 am
Location: Chicago, IL
x 409

Re: 2017 Vikings Free Agency Thread (Discussion Thread)

Post by Mothman »

Pondering Her Percy wrote: Exactly. It's widely known that those are usually the two hardest positions to grasp coming out of college. And if you look, since Zim has been here, who are the top picks that struggled to play their rookie years? Waynes, Treadwell and Alexander. All CBs and WRs. Like I said above, I really don't count Diggs because there was literally nothing in front of him to compete with. Yet he still wasnt even active for the first 4-5 weeks. Treadwell had much more to compete with than you think. I mean was there really a point to force him into action with the way Diggs, Thielen and CP were playing?? No. Diggs didnt have that competition.
He literally had the exact same players as competition.
Pondering Her Percy
Hall of Famer
Posts: 9241
Joined: Thu Dec 13, 2012 3:38 am
Location: Watertown, NY
x 1117

Re: 2017 Vikings Free Agency Thread (Discussion Thread)

Post by Pondering Her Percy »

Mothman wrote: He literally had the exact same players as competition.
Yeah I get that and none of them did anything in the first 4 weeks. And no they werent the exact same players because Wallace was there, who also did nothing. Thielen was nothing more than a ST player. He had 12 catches that year. Twelve. No less he had 6 of those 12 in one game. And Patterson wasnt nearly as involved with the offense in 2015. And Charles Johnson is Charles Johnson. Need I say more?

This year, Thielen continued to show up big during camp, preseason and into the season. Patterson even admitted to the media that he actually grew up this year and took his job more seriously. And in turn, we started involving him more offensively. Who was performing well in the first 4 weeks of the 2015 season??? Pretty much nobody. Thats the difference
The saddest thing in life is wasted talent and the choices you make will shape your life forever.
-Chazz Palminteri
User avatar
Mothman
Defensive Tackle
Posts: 38292
Joined: Wed Mar 26, 2003 11:48 am
Location: Chicago, IL
x 409

Re: 2017 Vikings Free Agency Thread (Discussion Thread)

Post by Mothman »

Pondering Her Percy wrote:Yeah I get that and none of them did anything in the first 4 weeks. And no they werent the exact same players because Wallace was there, who also did nothing. Thielen was nothing more than a ST player. He had 12 catches that year. Twelve. No less he had 6 of those 12 in one game. And Patterson wasnt nearly as involved with the offense in 2015. And Charles Johnson is Charles Johnson. Need I say more?

This year, Thielen continued to show up big during camp, preseason and into the season. Patterson even admitted to the media that he actually grew up this year and took his job more seriously. And in turn, we started involving him more offensively. Who was performing well in the first 4 weeks of the 2015 season??? Pretty much nobody. Thats the difference
You're trying very hard to rationalize away an obviously disappointing first season from Treadwell but nobody in front of him was playing so well that a good, young first round receiver couldn't have earned more playing time than Treadwell earned last year (or done more with the time they had). He could still turn out to be a good receiver but he's off to a bad start.
Pondering Her Percy
Hall of Famer
Posts: 9241
Joined: Thu Dec 13, 2012 3:38 am
Location: Watertown, NY
x 1117

Re: 2017 Vikings Free Agency Thread (Discussion Thread)

Post by Pondering Her Percy »

Mothman wrote: You're trying very hard to rationalize away an obviously disappointing first season from Treadwell but nobody in front of him was playing so well that a good, young first round receiver couldn't have earned more playing time than Treadwell earned last year (or done more with the time they had). He could still turn out to be a good receiver but he's off to a bad start.
Again I disagree. "Nobody in front of him was playing so well"?? So the guy that was 33 yards away from 1,000 doesnt count. No less Diggs on top of that. Was anyone playing "so good" in front of Trae Waynes in 2015 that a young first round CB couldnt have earned more playing time?? And if you want to say Terence Newman, then how is he any different than Diggs/Thielen?? He's not. Bottom line is, they are the two hardest positions to learn. I wouldnt classify it as a bad start. I still look at it as an unknown. Same as I did with Waynes. Yet guys want to throw the word bust around for both of them like it's going out of style. We dont know what we have in him. He's not good, he's not bad, he's an unknown until given the opportunity. In turn, that doesnt classify anyone as a bust. Nor a "bad start" in your case. It's not like he had a bunch of bums in front of him that he couldnt beat out. And on top of that, I'm sure from a learning standpoint, it didnt help we had an OC leave midway through the season.

So no I'm not "trying hard". It's just very obvious. I'm not going to sit here and call the guy a bust or a stud or that he's off to a bad start because all in all, I actually take into consideration what he had in front of him. Many dont do that and just label him without looking at the big picture. Overall, he's an unknown until given a legitimate opportunity and that's the way I'm going to continue to view it
The saddest thing in life is wasted talent and the choices you make will shape your life forever.
-Chazz Palminteri
User avatar
Mothman
Defensive Tackle
Posts: 38292
Joined: Wed Mar 26, 2003 11:48 am
Location: Chicago, IL
x 409

Re: 2017 Vikings Free Agency Thread (Discussion Thread)

Post by Mothman »

Pondering Her Percy wrote:Again I disagree. "Nobody in front of him was playing so well"??


"... so well that a good, young first round receiver couldn't have earned more playing time than Treadwell earned last year".

He had one catch for 15 yards. That's not disappointing? Do you think that's the kind of rookie production the Vikes expected from him when they drafted him in the first round?
So the guy that was 33 yards away from 1,000 doesnt count. No less Diggs on top of that. Was anyone playing "so good" in front of Trae Waynes in 2015 that a young first round CB couldnt have earned more playing time??
Waynes was more productive and useful to the team in his rookie season than Treadwell was last year and he was playing behind well-established veterans who were considerably more accomplished players than Thielen or Diggs (or Patterson for that matter). It's an apples and oranges comparison at best.
Bottom line is, they are the two hardest positions to learn. I wouldnt classify it as a bad start.
That's like disagreeing when someone points to a blue sky and says it's blue. 1 catch for 15 yards is clearly a bad start for a WR selected with the 23rd pick in the draft. It's self-evident.
Pondering Her Percy
Hall of Famer
Posts: 9241
Joined: Thu Dec 13, 2012 3:38 am
Location: Watertown, NY
x 1117

Re: 2017 Vikings Free Agency Thread (Discussion Thread)

Post by Pondering Her Percy »

Mothman wrote:

"... so well that a good, young first round receiver couldn't have earned more playing time than Treadwell earned last year".

He had one catch for 15 yards. That's not disappointing? Do you think that's the kind of rookie production the Vikes expected from him when they drafted him in the first round?
Waynes was more productive and useful to the team in his rookie season than Treadwell was last year and he was playing behind well-established veterans who were considerably more accomplished players than Thielen or Diggs (or Patterson for that matter). It's an apples and oranges comparison at best.
That's like disagreeing when someone points to a blue sky and says it's blue. 1 catch for 15 yards is clearly a bad start for a WR selected with the 23rd pick in the draft. It's self-evident.
Clearly you're missing my point behind all this. Diggs was already a set #1/2 WR going into this year. Thielen wasnt "well established" but did established himself quickly this past year. He had a jump on Treadwell right from the start of training camp. What are we suppose to do, bench Thielen just so we can get our first round pick in there? I'm not sure how Treadwell can catch passes when he's hardly on the field and when he is on the field, it was often on running downs. He played 80 snaps on the year. 80! What kind of production are you really expecting off of 80 snaps?? No less looking at it now, where did you really expect Treadwell to fit in this past year Jim?? Starting over Diggs? Thielen? Patterson? Just curious.

And like I said before WHY force him into action?? I said the same thing regarding Waynes in 2015. So many people see "first round pick" and think they are automatically some stud thats going to contribute day 1 and has to immediately start. It doesnt always work that way, especially when you have guys in front of that player that exceed expectations by a country mile.

And another thing you're missing is that I'm saying I dont consider it a bad start because it's too unknown for me. If he was out there and played 300+ snaps and had 1 catch for 15 yards, yeah that's a bad start. But I'm not going to sit here and criticize a guy that only got 80 snaps on the year. That's way, way too low of a sample size to really judge any player let alone Treadwell.

And by the way, Waynes played 820 snap less than Rhodes and 769 less than Newman in 2015. No less when he was in there, he struggled in coverage. So if you really want to say he was more "productive" than Treadwell in their rookie seasons be my guest, but the margin was very, very minimal. Neither contributed much at all. Oh and Waynes was 13 picks higher than Treadwell. So in the long run, their rookie seasons are pretty much a wash, which is what I've been saying for quite some time now.
The saddest thing in life is wasted talent and the choices you make will shape your life forever.
-Chazz Palminteri
User avatar
CbusVikesFan
All Pro Elite Player
Posts: 1395
Joined: Fri Dec 28, 2012 8:07 pm
Location: Columbus, Ohio

Re: 2017 Vikings Free Agency Thread (Discussion Thread)

Post by CbusVikesFan »

Mothman wrote:

"... so well that a good, young first round receiver couldn't have earned more playing time than Treadwell earned last year".

He had one catch for 15 yards. That's not disappointing? Do you think that's the kind of rookie production the Vikes expected from him when they drafted him in the first round?
Waynes was more productive and useful to the team in his rookie season than Treadwell was last year and he was playing behind well-established veterans who were considerably more accomplished players than Thielen or Diggs (or Patterson for that matter). It's an apples and oranges comparison at best.
That's like disagreeing when someone points to a blue sky and says it's blue. 1 catch for 15 yards is clearly a bad start for a WR selected with the 23rd pick in the draft. It's self-evident.
Thank you Jim for making those points. I was not fast enough on the draw today. Also, if Diggs "earned" his way "on" the field, shouldn't the same hold true for Treadwell? Isn't that the way it works for everyone? The way that I see it, yes. I will gladly admit I was wrong if he shows up big time and makes himself a household name. I'm sorry for being spoiled when it comes to WR's, the Vikings have had some sorta good ones.
Image
Don't hate on my Buckeyes. Some of the best Vikings went to Ohio State.
Including now, HOF WR #80 Cris Carter
Pondering Her Percy
Hall of Famer
Posts: 9241
Joined: Thu Dec 13, 2012 3:38 am
Location: Watertown, NY
x 1117

Re: 2017 Vikings Free Agency Thread (Discussion Thread)

Post by Pondering Her Percy »

CbusVikesFan wrote: Thank you Jim for making those points. I was not fast enough on the draw today. Also, if Diggs "earned" his way "on" the field, shouldn't the same hold true for Treadwell? Isn't that the way it works for everyone? The way that I see it, yes. I will gladly admit I was wrong if he shows up big time and makes himself a household name. I'm sorry for being spoiled when it comes to WR's, the Vikings have had some sorta good ones.
Who did Diggs have to beat out?? Thielen was nothing but a ST player at that point and had 12 catches on the year, 6 being in 1 game. CP was immature and not involved in the offense whatsoever. Wallace wasnt even good. Johnson was Johnson. Coming into this year, Thielen made a huge leap and so did CP. Thats the difference. I dont know why that's so hard to understand. Who did you expect him to play over when both of them became SIGNIFICANTLY more involved in the offense compared to the prior year and on top of that, making impacts as well. Diggs/Treadwell are two completely different situations because Diggs had nobody step up in front of him. Treadwell had 2 guys step up in front of him. That's why comparing these situations is a moot point. We nearly had 2 WRs hit 1,000 yards this year. The only teams to pull that off were Oakland, Washington, Denver and New Orleans. With GB very close. And guys are wondering why Treadwell didnt get significant time this past year, no less he was a rookie.......
The saddest thing in life is wasted talent and the choices you make will shape your life forever.
-Chazz Palminteri
User avatar
Mothman
Defensive Tackle
Posts: 38292
Joined: Wed Mar 26, 2003 11:48 am
Location: Chicago, IL
x 409

Re: 2017 Vikings Free Agency Thread (Discussion Thread)

Post by Mothman »

Pondering Her Percy wrote:Clearly you're missing my point behind all this. Diggs was already a set #1/2 WR going into this year. Thielen wasnt "well established" but did established himself quickly this past year. He had a jump on Treadwell right from the start of training camp. What are we suppose to do, bench Thielen just so we can get our first round pick in there? I'm not sure how Treadwell can catch passes when he's hardly on the field and when he is on the field, it was often on running downs. He played 80 snaps on the year. 80! What kind of production are you really expecting off of 80 snaps?? No less looking at it now, where did you really expect Treadwell to fit in this past year Jim?? Starting over Diggs? Thielen? Patterson? Just curious.

And like I said before WHY force him into action?? I said the same thing regarding Waynes in 2015. So many people see "first round pick" and think they are automatically some stud thats going to contribute day 1 and has to immediately start. It doesnt always work that way, especially when you have guys in front of that player that exceed expectations by a country mile.
I'm not missing your point. It's simply not convincing to use Treadwell's disappointing rookie season to justify his disappointing rookie season, which is essentially what you're doing. Arguing that it was too hard for him to find playing time in a group of relatively average NFL receivers just reinforces that he was unable to earn his way onto the field under those circumstances and in an offense that definitely needed help scoring. He was drafted to be a red zone threat and a big, possession-receiver counterpart to Diggs and instead he basically contributed nothing. He wouldn't have had to start over Thielen or Diggs to make more of a contribution than he did. They could have worked him into red zone packages, some third down packages, etc. It's not as if NFL teams struggle to find ways to get more than 2 good receivers on the field.
User avatar
Mothman
Defensive Tackle
Posts: 38292
Joined: Wed Mar 26, 2003 11:48 am
Location: Chicago, IL
x 409

Re: 2017 Vikings Free Agency Thread (Discussion Thread)

Post by Mothman »

CbusVikesFan wrote:Thank you Jim for making those points. I was not fast enough on the draw today. Also, if Diggs "earned" his way "on" the field, shouldn't the same hold true for Treadwell? Isn't that the way it works for everyone? The way that I see it, yes. I will gladly admit I was wrong if he shows up big time and makes himself a household name. I'm sorry for being spoiled when it comes to WR's, the Vikings have had some sorta good ones.
Indeed, they've had some great ones.
User avatar
CbusVikesFan
All Pro Elite Player
Posts: 1395
Joined: Fri Dec 28, 2012 8:07 pm
Location: Columbus, Ohio

Re: 2017 Vikings Free Agency Thread (Discussion Thread)

Post by CbusVikesFan »

Mothman wrote: I'm not missing your point. It's simply not convincing to use Treadwell's disappointing rookie season to justify his disappointing rookie season, which is essentially what you're doing. Arguing that it was too hard for him to find playing time in a group of relatively average NFL receivers just reinforces that he was unable to earn his way onto the field under those circumstances and in an offense that definitely needed help scoring. He was drafted to be a red zone threat and a big, possession-receiver counterpart to Diggs and instead he basically contributed nothing. He wouldn't have had to start over Thielen or Diggs to make more of a contribution than he did. They could have worked him into red zone packages, some third down packages, etc. It's not as if NFL teams struggle to find ways to get more than 2 good receivers on the field.
This horse has been drawn and quartered. Let's move on, agreeing to disagree. I'm definitely not changing my mind and not trying to change anyone else's. My opinion is just that. I'm happy with it.
Image
Don't hate on my Buckeyes. Some of the best Vikings went to Ohio State.
Including now, HOF WR #80 Cris Carter
User avatar
Mothman
Defensive Tackle
Posts: 38292
Joined: Wed Mar 26, 2003 11:48 am
Location: Chicago, IL
x 409

Re: 2017 Vikings Free Agency Thread (Discussion Thread)

Post by Mothman »

Here's a little light shed on Treadwell, from an article published last November after he made his first (and only) catch of the season:

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/vikings-wr ... 15987.html
As Spielman said the morning after the selection, “He’s definitely someone that not only fit the best player available on our board, but also fit the bill as a top need for us as well.”

Six-plus months later – and eight games into his NFL career – Treadwell finally has a catch. His first NFL reception went for 15 yards against a poor Detroit Lions secondary. It came during a season-high 17 plays and is notable in that it accentuates a puzzling and disappointing start. But also one where some creeping concerns about his draft film are apparently playing out in practice. Midway through the NFL season, Treadwell has easily become one of the most puzzling and frustrating first-round picks in the league.

Here’s the problem, from two sources familiar with the Vikings and close to departed offensive coordinator Norv Turner: Treadwell is a high-end athlete who is struggling to get open. He hasn’t figured out how to consistently separate from defensive backs in practice and that’s a big reason why he’s not getting onto the field. Like many rookie receivers, his conditioning was not where it needed to be initially, and his effort in practice and dedication to minute details at his position were lacking early on. While some of that has improved, Treadwell is still encountering problems playing to his size (6-foot-2, 220 pounds) and considerable athleticism.

What’s interesting about that evaluation is that it’s not very far removed from some of the criticisms of Treadwell during the run-up to the NFL draft. As personnel men became more familiar with him, they saw a player with size who struggled to employ his speed in a way that consistently created openings. He used his size in college, but was criticized as being a player who didn’t always attack balls thrown in his direction. By the end of the scouting combine, a handful of scouts told Yahoo Sports that Treadwell was, at best, a possession receiver who was unlikely to mature into a dominant No. 1 wideout.

The Vikings have attempted to resolve some of the effort and focus issues – and avoid having Treadwell completely inactive – by mixing in some special teams work over the course of the season. He has also had to watch Adam Thielen eat up playing time that was earmarked for Treadwell when he was drafted. While Thielen’s rise this season has been worthy of respect, he’s been more of a serviceable utility wideout than an impact second receiver who can open up the offense and take pressure off Stefon Diggs.
Cliff
Site Admin
Posts: 9489
Joined: Mon Apr 26, 2004 5:51 pm
Location: Kentucky
x 432

Re: 2017 Vikings Free Agency Thread (Discussion Thread)

Post by Cliff »

Mothman wrote:He had one catch for 15 yards. That's not disappointing? Do you think that's the kind of rookie production the Vikes expected from him when they drafted him in the first round?
For a rookie, I'm personally not disappointed with that. It's not abnormal for a rookie, even a 1st rounder, to sit on the bench.

I think when they drafted him they didn't expect to have a decent WR corps. If they could do it over with hindsight I'm not sure they would have taken a WR at all (regardless of player). It's just not as big of a need as they probably thought going into last year's draft.

I think it's fair to think that he wasn't "up to snuff" enough to break into the starting lineup but I'm in the camp of sitting rookies (that aren't obviously superstars starting in the first preseason - like Peterson) rather than have them go out and lose confidence or take a step back. That is, if you can afford to and in the Vikings case last year I think they could.

Being able to keep 1st round rookies on the bench can either be a good thing because it means there's enough talent in front of them to do so, or bad because it means that the player is just doing awful. I see no reason to draw either conclusion. I think both are equally likely and neither is confirmed.
autobon7
All Pro Elite Player
Posts: 1044
Joined: Wed Sep 30, 2015 12:20 pm

Re: 2017 Vikings Free Agency Thread (Discussion Thread)

Post by autobon7 »

Mothman wrote: While Thielen’s rise this season has been worthy of respect, he’s been more of a serviceable utility wideout than an impact second receiver who can open up the offense and take pressure off Stefon Diggs.
[/quote]

Not really sure I agree that he did not make an impact the way the writer of the article tries to play it. He does need to have another strong season to kinda prove he belongs in the impact category but I felt he had a great season.
Post Reply