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Monday Morning Mailbag

Posted Jul 26, 2010

Do you have a comment or question? Send it to the vikings.com Mailbag! Every Monday during the offseason we’ll post several comments and/or questions as part of the vikings.com Monday Morning Mailbag feature. Although we can’t post every comment or question, we will reply to every question submitted.

To submit a comment or question to the mailbag, send an email to Mike Wobschall at wobschallm@vikings.nfl.net. Remember to include your name and town on the email.

 

With the depth of the Vikings defensive line, do you notice more DEs and DTs rotating in and out on obvious passing downs to give the Williams Wall and Jared Allen breathers? As we have all seen the last few years, Kevin Williams and Jared have played nearly every down and Pat is in on most 1st downs and other situational distances. Also, with DTs Fred Evans and Jim Kennedy on the roster and the rest of the DL unit now comfortable under Leslie Frazier’s defensive scheme, are the Vikings prepared if the Williams Wall is slapped with a suspension at any time, or is that a dead issue till the next offseason?
-- Vernon
Lindstrom MN

Yes, I do anticipate the Vikings will have an aggressive rotation going along the defensive line this season, especially at DT. The Vikings used this tactic last year as well, but with Pat Williams getting another season older and with much of the depth returning from last year, the Vikings are in a position where they can rotate players in and out to keep the unit fresh.

As for the suspension question, it’s a pending legal matter so I don’t have much of a comment there. The coaching and personnel staff will continue to prepare for the season and they’ll go through the season as if the Williams Wall will be intact, and if something happens where one or both of them are unavailable, then other players are going to have to step up. Vernon mentioned Evans and Kennedy, but also don’t forget about guys such as Letroy Guion, Brian Robison and 4th round draft choice Everson Griffen.

 

Who do you see making a surprise impact for the team as Percy Harvin did last year as he became a go to guy for Brett Favre?
-- Michael T.

I’d go to the other side of the ball for this year’s new impact player and pick CB Lito Sheppard. He’s a 9-year veteran who’s been to a pair of Pro Bowls and I think he’ll regain some of his top form and be a starter for the Vikings while Cedric Griffin recovers from injury. Sheppard has played under assistant head coach/defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier in the past and I think he’ll adapt quickly to the Vikings defensive scheme. I also think Sheppard will benefit from the pressure the Vikings front 4 defensive linemen can put on the QB.

 

Who has the best chance of making the team as the 3rd RB?
-- Rogerthevikefan
vikings.com Blog commenter

That is one of the training camp battles I’ll have my eye on the most. If I had to select a favorite to win the job right now, it’d be Albert Young. He has 3 years of experience in this offense as a RB and he’s shown at various times during his career the ability to be a reliable RB, whether it be carrying the ball, in pass protection or as a receiver out of the backfield. Young faces some good competition, especially with Darius Reynaud switching from WR to RB, so we’ll see how everything shakes out coming away from training camp and the preseason.

 

What’s your opinion on rookie QB Joe Webb? Could he be the long-term development QB that fans have been looking for? Don’t get me wrong, I happen to be a big fan of Tarvaris Jackson and I know he will get his chance down the line. However, young Mr. Webb appears to have a very similar skill set to what TJack brought to the Vikings a few years back. Can you speak to Webb’s arm accuracy?
-- Michael R. (a.k.a. MGR4FUN)
Wayzata, MN

 My opinion on Webb is incomplete at this point because I’ve really only had a limited look at him so far. But I’m encouraged by what I’ve seen and I think at some point in his Vikings career (not this year) he’ll be a candidate to be the starting QB. He’s obviously a gifted and natural athlete, evidenced by the fact that he excelled in college as both a QB and WR. But now he has to transition that to the pro level and prove that he belongs in the NFL. We’ll know a lot more about him – including his arm accuracy – once training camp gets underway and once we see him on the field during the preseason. There is a chance that Webb is the long-term developmental QB for which fans have been longing, and there’s a chance Webb is more of a versatile player who will switch between the positions.

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