Vikings Training Camp 2022

[J. Kapp 11]

The word among the media is that Mond can't process decisions fast enough. Physically, he's got tools, but he just doesn't see the plays developing. The Vikings staff has given him every opportunity this training camp, and he's simply not progressing. Some of that could be due to his being lost in the Bermuda Triangle last year as a rookie, but right now in 2022, if you put him out there against a No. ! defense throwing exotic looks his way, he'd be lost.

Mannion sees the plays but has very limited physical skills for an NFL quarterback. Somebody said that Mannion is so smart that he's like a second quarterbacks coach. But he can't play.

It all makes me nervous. Kirk has been an ironman, but I worry that at some point that his luck with injuries will run out. Like Kirk or hate him, if we lose him for any length of time, we're sunk. Our backups aren't close to good enough to hold the fort.

I can't think of a team out there that wouldn't be sunk if they lost their QB for a long time. Ravens lost Lamar and it was over. Look at the Packers backup QB. He can't play. In today's world QBs get knocked based on track events. Mannion is limited because he can't run a 4.5 or throw the ball 80 yards and it goes on. But he's a smart player which could come in handy and help him through that lack of speed or arm strength. The guy for Dallas came off the bench and beat us last year. Is his physical skills that far ahead of Mannion? If we traded for him would that be good enough? I doubt it. Maybe Mannion will play like Case if Kirk goes down for the season. Once the backup needs to play for more than a game or two guess what? The team is done in most cases.

Dude, both these guys are HEINOUS. Yes, the physical skills of Cooper Rush are far superior to those of Sean Mannion, who actually has a rocket arm but the slowest release I’ve ever seen. He’s also completely immobile. Meanwhile Mond appears to have the football IQ of a bag of hammers.

So even if what you say is true, the Vikings are still easily in one of the worst backup QB situations in the league.

Kirk supposedly is sick today and not likely to play in the preseason game against the Raiders. That’ll leave things to Mannion and Mond. You’ll see.

And for the record, Case Keenum is 22-18 as a backup. Wasn’t he a Viking once?

[CharVike]

I can't think of a team out there that wouldn't be sunk if they lost their QB for a long time. Ravens lost Lamar and it was over. Look at the Packers backup QB. He can't play. In today's world QBs get knocked based on track events. Mannion is limited because he can't run a 4.5 or throw the ball 80 yards and it goes on. But he's a smart player which could come in handy and help him through that lack of speed or arm strength. The guy for Dallas came off the bench and beat us last year. Is his physical skills that far ahead of Mannion? If we traded for him would that be good enough? I doubt it. Maybe Mannion will play like Case if Kirk goes down for the season. Once the backup needs to play for more than a game or two guess what? The team is done in most cases.

Dude, both these guys are HEINOUS. Yes, the physical skills of Cooper Rush are far superior to those of Sean Mannion, who actually has a rocket arm but the slowest release I’ve ever seen. He’s also completely immobile. Meanwhile Mond appears to have the football IQ of a bag of hammers.

So even if what you say is true, the Vikings are still easily in one of the worst backup QB situations in the league.

Kirk supposedly is sick today and not likely to play in the preseason game against the Raiders. That’ll leave things to Mannion and Mond. You’ll see.

And for the record, Case Keenum is 22-18 as a backup. Wasn’t he a Viking once?

You claim Cooper has a rocket arm and then Lance Zierlein from NFL .com said this "Lollipop arm strength allows ball to hang in air too long". Everyone has an opinion. Nick Foles is probably the best backup in the NFL and has some tools. Some will say he sucks. Case got hot (11-3 record) and even won a playoff game. The wheels came off in the Champ game and he can't get them back on. He's with the Bills. They can have him. I know Mannion sucks and Mond should be cut. There's not much out there for the backup spot. The 2 Ms will hold down the preseason fort. I guess both those players will be carried on the roster again. That's stupidity. Keep one and look for a final cut that we could sign to provide depth somewhere that is needed like the OL.

[J. Kapp 11]

Dude, both these guys are HEINOUS. Yes, the physical skills of Cooper Rush are far superior to those of Sean Mannion, who actually has a rocket arm but the slowest release I’ve ever seen. He’s also completely immobile. Meanwhile Mond appears to have the football IQ of a bag of hammers.

So even if what you say is true, the Vikings are still easily in one of the worst backup QB situations in the league.

Kirk supposedly is sick today and not likely to play in the preseason game against the Raiders. That’ll leave things to Mannion and Mond. You’ll see.

And for the record, Case Keenum is 22-18 as a backup. Wasn’t he a Viking once?

You claim Cooper has a rocket arm and then Lance Zierlein from NFL .com said this "Lollipop arm strength allows ball to hang in air too long". Everyone has an opinion. Nick Foles is probably the best backup in the NFL and has some tools. Some will say he sucks. Case got hot (11-3 record) and even won a playoff game. The wheels came off in the Champ game and he can't get them back on. He's with the Bills. They can have him. I know Mannion sucks and Mond should be cut. There's not much out there for the backup spot. The 2 Ms will hold down the preseason fort. I guess both those players will be carried on the roster again. That's stupidity. Keep one and look for a final cut that we could sign to provide depth somewhere that is needed like the OL.

Did I say Cooper Rush has a rocket arm?

Go back and read it again.

[CharVike]

You claim Cooper has a rocket arm and then Lance Zierlein from NFL .com said this "Lollipop arm strength allows ball to hang in air too long". Everyone has an opinion. Nick Foles is probably the best backup in the NFL and has some tools. Some will say he sucks. Case got hot (11-3 record) and even won a playoff game. The wheels came off in the Champ game and he can't get them back on. He's with the Bills. They can have him. I know Mannion sucks and Mond should be cut. There's not much out there for the backup spot. The 2 Ms will hold down the preseason fort. I guess both those players will be carried on the roster again. That's stupidity. Keep one and look for a final cut that we could sign to provide depth somewhere that is needed like the OL.

Did I say Cooper Rush has a rocket arm?

Go back and read it again.

You posted "Yes, the physical skills of Cooper Rush are far superior to those of Sean Mannion, who actually has a rocket arm but the slowest release I’ve ever seen." Yes I was wrong it's superior than rocket.
IMO any team that gets down to the backup are basically done. Nick Foles got on a role but if another teams gets him that probably won't happen again. It was a one in a million luck shot. I'm not selling out Mannion. Sure he was horrible against the Packers last year. Our entire team crapped the bed. None of our stars took over. If he needed to play a game against a lesser team he wouldn't fold and I think he could do good enough. The Cowboys won with Cooper because they are more talented than our team overall. If they played the 49ers I doubt they would have won with him. Dak would have a hard time beating them. There are worse backups than Mannion including Cooper.

[J. Kapp 11]

Did I say Cooper Rush has a rocket arm?

Go back and read it again.

You posted "Yes, the physical skills of Cooper Rush are far superior to those of Sean Mannion, who actually has a rocket arm but the slowest release I’ve ever seen." Yes I was wrong it's superior than rocket.
IMO any team that gets down to the backup are basically done. Nick Foles got on a role but if another teams gets him that probably won't happen again. It was a one in a million luck shot. I'm not selling out Mannion. Sure he was horrible against the Packers last year. Our entire team crapped the bead. None of our stars took over. If he needed to play a game against a lesser team he wouldn't fold and I think he could do good enough. The Cowboys won with Cooper because they are more talented than our team overall. If they played the 49ers I doubt they would have won with him. Dak would have a hard time beating them. There are worse backups than Mannion including Cooper.

First off, STOP putting words in my mouth. I DID NOT say Cooper Rush has a rocket arm. I said Mannion does, and it’s accompanied by the slowest release I’ve ever seen. I DID say Cooper Rush has better skills than Mannion does, and it’s fairly indisputable. Mannion is going into his 8th year in the league. He has never won a single game, he’s thrown one TD pass, and he has a 66 career passer rating. Cooper Rush exceeded all of Sean Mannion’s career totals in ONE GAME against the Vikings and has a career passer rating of more than 100. So at this juncture, I’d say Cooper Rush would be a huge upgrade over the guys we’re trotting out there now as the backup QB.

Backup quarterback DOES matter, if for no other reason than holding the team together for a couple of games until your starter can play again. If it doesn’t matter, then why is Kevin Siefert reporting that the Vikings are shopping for one? If you’re sunk playing the backup, then how did the Vikings manage to make it to the NFC Championship game in 2017 with the backup quarterback starting all but three games? If it doesn’t matter, how did we lose to the guy who was backup QB to the front runner for MVP? How did that backup manage to win Super Bowl MVP?

This conversation has taken a ridiculous turn. I made a simple point, that our backup QB situation is dismal. You have somehow turned it into the argument of the century. Please just stop.

[VikingsVictorious]

You posted "Yes, the physical skills of Cooper Rush are far superior to those of Sean Mannion, who actually has a rocket arm but the slowest release I’ve ever seen." Yes I was wrong it's superior than rocket.
IMO any team that gets down to the backup are basically done. Nick Foles got on a role but if another teams gets him that probably won't happen again. It was a one in a million luck shot. I'm not selling out Mannion. Sure he was horrible against the Packers last year. Our entire team crapped the bead. None of our stars took over. If he needed to play a game against a lesser team he wouldn't fold and I think he could do good enough. The Cowboys won with Cooper because they are more talented than our team overall. If they played the 49ers I doubt they would have won with him. Dak would have a hard time beating them. There are worse backups than Mannion including Cooper.

First off, STOP putting words in my mouth. I DID NOT say Cooper Rush has a rocket arm. I said Mannion does, and it’s accompanied by the slowest release I’ve ever seen. I DID say Cooper Rush has better skills than Mannion does, and it’s fairly indisputable. Mannion is going into his 8th year in the league. He has never won a single game, he’s thrown one TD pass, and he has a 66 career passer rating. Cooper Rush exceeded all of Sean Mannion’s career totals in ONE GAME against the Vikings and has a career passer rating of more than 100. So at this juncture, I’d say Cooper Rush would be a huge upgrade over the guys we’re trotting out there now as the backup QB.

Backup quarterback DOES matter, if for no other reason than holding the team together for a couple of games until your starter can play again. If it doesn’t matter, then why is Kevin Siefert reporting that the Vikings are shopping for one? If you’re sunk playing the backup, then how did the Vikings manage to make it to the NFC Championship game in 2017 with the backup quarterback starting all but three games? If it doesn’t matter, how did we lose to the guy who was backup QB to the front runner for MVP? How did that backup manage to win Super Bowl MVP?

This conversation has taken a ridiculous turn. I made a simple point, that our backup QB situation is dismal. You have somehow turned it into the argument of the century. Please just stop.

For what it's worth I took Kapp's post as saying Manion has a rocket arm, but I can see how one could construe his post as saying Cooper has a rocket arm.

[VikingLord]

I made a simple point, that our backup QB situation is dismal.

For what it's worth Kapp, I understood it as you intended it.

But, more directly to the quoted point, am I the only one who finds it hard to believe that not only did KAM not make a change at starting QB for the Vikings, but he didn't attempt to make a change or add some competition at backup QB either this offseason.

I really thought heading into this offseason with the changes the Wilfs made at GM and head coach that it was highly likely KAM would at least consider offers to move Cousins for draft picks and start over at QB. He extended him instead and I'm not sure he even investigated trade options. So that was a little puzzling, but understandable at least if the Wilfs wanted to stick with Cousins.

But there really is no excuse for KAM not doing anything at backup QB heading into this season. That was surprising unless KOC and he believed Mond would be ready to win that spot outright. Everyone knows what the Vikings have with Mannion at this point, and it's nothing special even if he does have a good arm. And while I can understand a desire to believe Mond would be improved, given what is being written and said about him, I do wonder where, if KAM and KOC had that belief heading into training camp, they got that belief because it sure isn't showing up on the field so far.

I agree with you that backup QB is critical. Cousins has been remarkably reliable as a starting QB during his pro career, but it would be good to have a guy behind him that inspires at least a little confidence given how important the position is. It is almost negligent for KAM not to have at least made some move to inspire some competition for that backup spot given what was known about the players the Vikings had at the spot heading into training camp. If not a draft pick, maybe a free agent or even an aging vet with a track record would have made sense. Going into it with just Mond and Mannion strikes me as placing a relatively huge bet on the health of Cousins. Maybe that's not a terribly risky bet overall, but still, it would be a real tragedy for the Vikings if this team actually ends up being good and something happens to Cousins late in the season and they have to go to the well with Mond or Mannion.

[JJBreaksRecords]

I made a simple point, that our backup QB situation is dismal.

For what it's worth Kapp, I understood it as you intended it.

But, more directly to the quoted point, am I the only one who finds it hard to believe that not only did KAM not make a change at starting QB for the Vikings, but he didn't attempt to make a change or add some competition at backup QB either this offseason.

I really thought heading into this offseason with the changes the Wilfs made at GM and head coach that it was highly likely KAM would at least consider offers to move Cousins for draft picks and start over at QB. He extended him instead and I'm not sure he even investigated trade options. So that was a little puzzling, but understandable at least if the Wilfs wanted to stick with Cousins.

But there really is no excuse for KAM not doing anything at backup QB heading into this season. That was surprising unless KOC and he believed Mond would be ready to win that spot outright. Everyone knows what the Vikings have with Mannion at this point, and it's nothing special even if he does have a good arm. And while I can understand a desire to believe Mond would be improved, given what is being written and said about him, I do wonder where, if KAM and KOC had that belief heading into training camp, they got that belief because it sure isn't showing up on the field so far.

I agree with you that backup QB is critical. Cousins has been remarkably reliable as a starting QB during his pro career, but it would be good to have a guy behind him that inspires at least a little confidence given how important the position is. It is almost negligent for KAM not to have at least made some move to inspire some competition for that backup spot given what was known about the players the Vikings had at the spot heading into training camp. If not a draft pick, maybe a free agent or even an aging vet with a track record would have made sense. Going into it with just Mond and Mannion strikes me as placing a relatively huge bet on the health of Cousins. Maybe that's not a terribly risky bet overall, but still, it would be a real tragedy for the Vikings if this team actually ends up being good and something happens to Cousins late in the season and they have to go to the well with Mond or Mannion.

I agree with you. I would go so far as to say neither KAM nor KOC had a plan for center, and here we are talking about that too. The center situation is not good.

[CharVike]

I made a simple point, that our backup QB situation is dismal.

For what it's worth Kapp, I understood it as you intended it.

But, more directly to the quoted point, am I the only one who finds it hard to believe that not only did KAM not make a change at starting QB for the Vikings, but he didn't attempt to make a change or add some competition at backup QB either this offseason.

I really thought heading into this offseason with the changes the Wilfs made at GM and head coach that it was highly likely KAM would at least consider offers to move Cousins for draft picks and start over at QB. He extended him instead and I'm not sure he even investigated trade options. So that was a little puzzling, but understandable at least if the Wilfs wanted to stick with Cousins.

But there really is no excuse for KAM not doing anything at backup QB heading into this season. That was surprising unless KOC and he believed Mond would be ready to win that spot outright. Everyone knows what the Vikings have with Mannion at this point, and it's nothing special even if he does have a good arm. And while I can understand a desire to believe Mond would be improved, given what is being written and said about him, I do wonder where, if KAM and KOC had that belief heading into training camp, they got that belief because it sure isn't showing up on the field so far.

I agree with you that backup QB is critical. Cousins has been remarkably reliable as a starting QB during his pro career, but it would be good to have a guy behind him that inspires at least a little confidence given how important the position is. It is almost negligent for KAM not to have at least made some move to inspire some competition for that backup spot given what was known about the players the Vikings had at the spot heading into training camp. If not a draft pick, maybe a free agent or even an aging vet with a track record would have made sense. Going into it with just Mond and Mannion strikes me as placing a relatively huge bet on the health of Cousins. Maybe that's not a terribly risky bet overall, but still, it would be a real tragedy for the Vikings if this team actually ends up being good and something happens to Cousins late in the season and they have to go to the well with Mond or Mannion.

Everybody knows that the backup QB position is critical. People will never agree across the board who the best guy is. KOC is picking the roster and last year the Rams had Bryce Perkins and John Wolford as the backups. I never heard of those 2. I can't even judge them. Those two guys are still there and Stafford has pain in the elbow. That's not very smart but who knows maybe one of them is the next Kurt Warner who was a bum at one point. IMO KOC has evaluated our QB position and him and Kewsi have made there decision. They cut Stanley, resigned Mannion and extended Cousins. Mond is being taught how to play the position based on the system we have. He was working on his drop back and now has problems with the snap. He's like a FA rookie. But we will know if KOC wants him based on his forward roster actions and not by what he says. I think it's good to get him plenty of game action. That won't tell the whole story but it's a piece. Maybe they keep him and continue his development. Since Mannion is a coach that will certainly help and gives Mond the best chance. Maybe that's why they kept it like it is. They have a legit starter, a coach who might play, and a developmental guy. Almost sounds perfect beyond having a future HOFer for your starter. Others might say well our starter sucks, Mannion can't play or coach and Mond is another Joe Webb. That's possible also. I also have no idea who this possible backup is who can play good enough.

[StanM]

I can’t for the life of me figure out why they don’t offer Manion an assistant QB coach job and find another backup. If he is great in the film room and his presence makes Kirk comfortable that’s essentially what he’s doing is coaching. Question two is why the hell does Cousins need what amounts to a personal assistant? If every Vikings player had that luxury we’d need a 106 player roster instead of 53.

On the flip side QB’s don’t grow on trees, they’re hard to find. They did a good job bringing in some help at certain positions but retooling this entire roster with a late start until hires were complete was no easy task. No team has a perfect roster top to bottom and some positions are difficult to fill. It’s still really a work in progress.

[StumpHunter]

Everybody knows that the backup QB position is critical.

Do they? Most NFL execs and GMs certainly don't appear to believe that a position that they hope will never play is important. You mentioned the nobodies the SB winning Rams at backup and that level of backup is a lot more common than a team having a quality backup and not just because quality backups don't exist. Guys like Blake Bortles who would make for bad starters but are better than most backups sit at home each season because teams would prefer a developmental guy over a safer guy with a limited ceiling at the backup spot.

The backup QB only matters if the starter is either bad or injury prone. Cousins is neither of those, so who cares who the backup QB is? It hasn't mattered any season Cousins has been here, including last year where not even the starter could have won in that GB game with how poorly the team played overall.

[CharVike]

I can’t for the life of me figure out why they don’t offer Manion an assistant QB coach job and find another backup. If he is great in the film room and his presence makes Kirk comfortable that’s essentially what he’s doing is coaching. Question two is why the hell does Cousins need what amounts to a personal assistant? If every Vikings player had that luxury we’d need a 106 player roster instead of 53.

On the flip side QB’s don’t grow on trees, they’re hard to find. They did a good job bringing in some help at certain positions but retooling this entire roster with a late start until hires were complete was no easy task. No team has a perfect roster top to bottom and some positions are difficult to fill. It’s still really a work in progress.

Now Kirk wanted them to sign Mannion because he can't play without him? Without him in 2019 Kirk was 10-5 and went to the pro bowl. He won a road playoff game. Josh Allen has never won a road playoff game. He hasn't come close to that since Mannion has been here. They shouldn't listen to Kirk about signing players. Please don't say they did a good job. We have no center and some FA stiff guy starting at RG. Our starting LT is a terrible pass blocker and they did nothing. The Rams LT retired. You would think they are screwed. The new guy Noteboom had a 81.6 pass blocking grade. He's miles ahead of our guy. Who did the good job at the most important OL position. I say the Rams did. Kewsi is hoping and wishing. He needs to act. Teddy signed as backup for a 6.5 million cap hit. I wouldn't spend that.

[VikingsVictorious]

I can’t for the life of me figure out why they don’t offer Manion an assistant QB coach job and find another backup. If he is great in the film room and his presence makes Kirk comfortable that’s essentially what he’s doing is coaching. Question two is why the hell does Cousins need what amounts to a personal assistant? If every Vikings player had that luxury we’d need a 106 player roster instead of 53.

On the flip side QB’s don’t grow on trees, they’re hard to find. They did a good job bringing in some help at certain positions but retooling this entire roster with a late start until hires were complete was no easy task. No team has a perfect roster top to bottom and some positions are difficult to fill. It’s still really a work in progress.

Now Kirk wanted them to sign Mannion because he can't play without him? Without him in 2019 Kirk was 10-5 and went to the pro bowl. He won a road playoff game. Josh Allen has never won a road playoff game. He hasn't come close to that since Mannion has been here. They shouldn't listen to Kirk about signing players. Please don't say they did a good job. We have no center and some FA stiff guy starting at RG. Our starting LT is a terrible pass blocker and they did nothing. The Rams LT retired. You would think they are screwed. The new guy Noteboom had a 81.6 pass blocking grade. He's miles ahead of our guy. Who did the good job at the most important OL position. I say the Rams did. Kewsi is hoping and wishing. He needs to act. Teddy signed as backup for a 6.5 million cap hit. I wouldn't spend that.

Char you really need to get off the negativity. Our Starting LT was a rookie last year who got a late start. People are RAVING about him now and not just Vikings homers. National media. Kirk has no say or interest in Manion being here or not. That's on the coaches.

[VikingsVictorious]

Does the first PreSeason game need it's own thread? I'm thinking it does. I'll start one.

[Foreman44]

Can't make judgments off a single play. We will learn how good both Booth and Nailor are during camp and into the season.

You can pick one rep out on any player and make the guy look bad. Then you can pick a play like this.
Kyle Hamilton made an impressive play during Monday's practice that he hopes to replicate many times this fall.
The rookie safety covered plenty of ground for his first interception of training camp, reacting quickly to a Tyler Huntley pass and cutting in front of Shemar Bridges. Hamilton showed off more athleticism after the interception, zig-zagging about 30 yards downfield on the return before he was touched down by Jaylon Moore.
Of course Huntley sucks so of course it means nothing.

I agree. I say the same about high light films fans get excited about...

You take the best of the best of any player and they look good