Vikings Happy Hour

The owners meeting down in Florida has concluded and the power trust the Minnesota Vikings are back home. Being down in Florida did not stop them from some free agent signings, however, and we’ll go over those over the last week or so. Kwesi Adofo-Mensah talked about “competitive rebuild“ and does that mean getting high-priced veterans or building from the draft? Or more likely a combination of those and maybe more approaches, especially with directions coming from the Wilfs? The goal is to win the Super Bowl and take home the Lombardi trophy, something the Minnesota Vikings have never done.

In that second wave of free agency, the Vikings have signed guard Jesse Davis formerly on the Miami Dolphins, resigned cornerback Patrick Peterson, and signed guard Chris Reed of the Indianapolis Colts. What does this mean for Peterson and the defense? Who’s battling for the right guard position on the offense. Everybody asks with any signing or rumor, “but can he play guard?“ Who do you think will start?

Then we’ll wrap up the in-depth look at position groups diving in with some deep thoughts into the special teams. The kickers have been locked in, and the long snapper is the same, but what about kick returns and put returns? Will there be a difference this year?

Here are the themes for the show:

Theme #1 - Kwesi and the 'Competitive Rebuild'

Theme #2 - Second wave of free agency

Theme #3 - Vikings special teams

Join us for your Minnesota Vikings talk amongst Two Old Bloggers and join the conversation! Fan with us!!! Come join the @Climb_ThePocket’s & @DailyNorseman’s blogger show with Darren @KickassblogVike and Dave @Luft_Krigare, and enjoy an OUTSTANDING brew from @LakeMonsterBrew.

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Climbing The Pocket’s Vikings Happy Hour will be doing another on-site broadcast from Lake Monster Brewery. What a habit to get into! Great people, awesome Minnesota Vikings talk, and even better beer! 

Big news of the the starts with the re-signing of Patrick Peterson on another one year deal to play cornerback and hopefully continue to mentor the likes of Cameron Dantzler and the other corners. By no means does this signing mean that the Vikings should not draft more corners and even one at the #12 position in the first round.

On today's live show from Lake Monster Brewery in St. Paul, we will have Thor Nystrom from NBC Sports Edge here to discuss draft prospects the Vikings could be interested in (or should be). We will be covering WRs, TEs, OL positions, and RBs. Grab your favorite Lake Monster beer or any other drink and join Matt, Ryan, and Dave in this Vikings Happy Hour!

Discussion topics tonight:

— Intro

— Live at Lake Monster Brewing

— What are you drinking?

— News of the day: the re-signing of Patrick Peterson

— Wide receiver prospects

— Tight end prospects

— Offensive line prospects

— Running back prospects

— Plug draft show and NBC Sports Edge

Fan with us!!! Guest is Thor Nystrom @thorku from NBC Sports Edge @NBCSportsEdge. The regulars: @Matt Anderson @MattAnderson_8, Ryan Ortega @sportsguyry, and Producer Dave @Luft_Krigare enjoying another @LakeMonsterBrew. This is a @Climb_ThePocket & @DailyNorseman production.

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Your Minnesota Vikings signed a couple of players yesterday. They signed Jesse Davis, who played right tackle for the Miami Dolphins but will look to start at the right guard position. It is assumed that both Wyatt Davis, last year’s 3rd round draft choice, and Oli Udoh will compete with him for the position. Was it the improvement you all hoped for? If the Vikings had available cap space before recently, would they have targeted someone who grades better and that the fans are angry about losing? Or would they have targeted Davis, where Dolphin fans rejoice that he is off their team? What does this mean for the offensive line? Does it conform with Kwesi Adofo-Mensah’s slogan for this year, “Improve on the margins.”?

The Vikes also signed cornerback Nate Hairston from the Denver Broncos and re-signed their practice squad corner, Tye Smith. Both of these players are supposed to fight for a spot on the team with no guarantees that they can even accomplish that. Cornerback numbers are looking better, but there is still a lack of quality starters. There is hope that Cameron Dantzler and Chandon Sullivan [who signed last week] can take the next step and be two of the three corners needed to start. However, that other outside position is still empty. Does that make cornerback a round 1 target in the NFL Draft? Could be.

To round things up, the guys will take a look at the 2021 draft picks and discuss who will contribute. The team got production from first-rounder, OT Christian Darrisaw, and some from two of the three fifth-rounders, RB Kene Nwangwu and FS Camryn Bynum. However, there were 4 players selected in the third round that were virtually invisible and barely played, if at all. Will that change this season? How will the newly hired staff use them?

Agenda:

— New signings

— The offensive line

— The plan at cornerback

— Offseason strategy heading into the draft

— The state of the 2021 draft picks

Fan with us!!! Come join the @Climb_ThePocket’s and @DailyNorman's "In The Huddle" show with host Jason Brown @brownjayson, Myles Gorham @MylesGorham85, and Flip Mazzi @Flipmazzi. Producer Dave @Luft_Krigare joins us from the truck and enjoys an OUTSTANDING brew from @LakeMonsterBrew.

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Tonight, we introduce The Real Forno Show. This is the evolution of CTP Mondays and Mock Draft Mondays all rolled into one show featuring Tyler Forness. Tyler is a contributor to NBC Sports Edge, USA Today’s Vikings Wire, and a regular guest on SKOR North, along with being a Climbing The Pocket rising star. He will always turn your Mondays purple and bring you everything you need to know about the Minnesota Vikings and making them better!

On the show, Tyler will be exploring cornerback prospects in the draft that would fit well in the Ed Donatell defense. There are a few that are no-brainers, but what about the rest? Then look at potential wide receivers that could complement what Kevin O’Connell and Wes Phillips want to do. After that, we conducted a SKOL search and mock draft. 

Talking points for tonight’s show: 

— Vikings’ news of the day: the signing of OL Jesse Davis, CB Nate Hairston, and the re-signing of CB Tye Smith.

— Cornerbacks: addressing the need compared to the system Ed Donatell runs and the value in the draft.

— Wide receivers: how likely are they to take one high? Where does the value drop off?

— Mock draft Roundup update.

— SKOL Searching - Mock draft version 8.

Fan with us!!! Tyler Forness @TheRealForno and Dave Stefano @Luft_Krigare producing this @Climb_ThePocket Network’s & @DailyNorseman’s production, and enjoying an OUTSTANDING brew from @LakeMonsterBrew.

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Your Minnesota Vikings have made it through the opening weeks of NFL Free Agency doing what Kwesi called a “competitive rebuild.” What is that? What does it mean? This includes navigating the legal tampering period, getting under the cap, to signing a few free agents. General Manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah and Kevin O’Connell and their staffs have been busy. It took an extension of Kirk Cousins, some restructured contracts, the releasing of Michael Pierce, and a few other moves to get to the point where they sit today. The latest move, or non-move, was the decision to keep Danielle Hunter and pay him his $18 million bonus. That led to the biggest signing of the offseason, Za’Darius Smith to pair with Hunter to immediately improve the pass rush. Let’s review what all happened and where the Vikings now sit. Did they get better, stay the same, or get worse?

Darren and Dave will also look back at the Stefan Diggs trade and what has come from it. It doesn’t only include Justin Jefferson, but also all the ramifications that have spun out from the move. Should the team possibly repeat the process? Will it turn out the way we hope?

Two Old Bloggers are comprised of Dave and Darren, who both started blogging on the Purple decades ago. They will talk over issues and events in the offseason, so get ready for the Climbing The Pocket and Daily Norseman 2OB commentary and interaction show!

Here are the themes for the show:

Theme #1 - Cousins gets extended (DOH!)

Theme #2 - Vikings free agency so far [in detail]

Theme #3 - Revisiting the Stefon Diggs trade

Join us for your Minnesota Vikings talk amongst Two Old Bloggers and join the conversation! Fan with us!!! Come join the @Climb_ThePocket’s & @DailyNorseman’s blogger show with Darren @KickassblogVike and Dave @Luft_Krigare, and enjoy an OUTSTANDING brew from @LakeMonsterBrew.

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Flip and Eric are back for Viking Hot Takes. Optimistic fans are viewing moves by the Minnesota Vikings to be in a positive light. The team is getting better, right? Signing another defensive tackle and linebacker like last year is different because it is Kwesi Adofo-Mensah and Kevin O’Connell doing it. Extensions and pushing out cap money on players via accounting tricks is different this year because they are “more deliberate and thought out”. Is it? There are players lost every year, a turnover on rosters is natural. How to deal with those turnovers will determine your long term potential, and it has yet to be determined if the new general manager and head coach can make this approach work. The Vikings have been around over 60 years and yet to achieve the goal of being a Super Bowl winner so fans have the right to be skeptical, especially seeing some of these moves before. But, hey! All things will come up unicorns and rainbows, right? It is the offseason, and the offseason is all about building hope and getting fans excited.

Tonight, Flip will battle Eric for the 31st episode of Viking Hot Takes on the Climbing The Pocket channel on Thursday night. Following the usual format of the show, we put the usual 20 minutes on the clock and asked each other three questions:

Flip asks:

1. Thoughts on the Smith contract?

2. What’s the biggest remaining need?

3. Is 7 draft picks enough?

Eric asks:

1. It looks like there will be no full reset or rebuild. Is retooling the better strategy?

2. If you could take one player off the Bears or Lions to help the Vikings this year, who would it be?

3. Which Minnesota team is the most exciting right now?

Fan with us!!! Talk with Flip Mazzi @Flipmazzi, with Eric Thompson @eric_j_thompson, and producer Dave @Luft_Krigare as part of a @Climb_ThePocket Network’s & @DailyNorseman’s production. Also, with our newest partner at CTP, Lake Monster Brewing @LakeMonsterBrew as we venture beneath the surface in search of something unknown and extraordinary, both in their wonderful selections and our coverage of your favorite team.

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Climbing The Pocket’s Vikings Happy Hour will be doing their first live on-site broadcast from Lake Monster Brewery. This is preparation for the live draft show on Day 2 of the draft, and because it will be fun to do and interact with everyone there. We’ll be discussing Za'Darius Smith's signing along with his pairing with Danielle Hunter. Kwesi Adofo-Mensah’s press conference and the bits of reading between the lines from all that corporate speak. Plus any other Vikings talk.

Then we’ll get to everyone’s second favorite topic… BEER! Co-founder of Lake Monster Brewing, Matt Lange will join Matt Anderson and Ryan Ortega to talk Vikings and BEER! Join the conversation!

Discussion topics tonight:

- Intro

- Live test at Lake Monster Brewing

- What are you drinking?

- The signing of Za’Darius Smith

- Wide receiver market becoming a thing

- Kwesi Adofo-Mensah’s press conference

- Beer talk with Matt Lange of Lake Monster Brewing

- Plug draft show

Fan with us!!! Guest is Matt Lange, co-founder of Lake Monster Brewing. The regulars: @Matt Anderson @MattAnderson_8, Ryan Ortega @sportsguyry, @MylesGorham85, and Producer Dave @Luft_Krigare enjoying another @LakeMonsterBrew. This is a @Climb_ThePocket & @DailyNorseman production.

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BJ Reidell and Drew Mahowald discuss the signing of pass-rushing beast Za'Darius Smith and how the move impacts the Minnesota Vikings. Spoiler: Optimism is building.

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Your Minnesota Vikings had a splash NFL Free Agency signing and now we are entering the age of Za’Darius. Edge rusher from the Green Bay Packers, Za’Darius Smith has signed a 3-year deal to play opposite Danielle Hunter on the Purple’s defensive line. The hint came yesterday when he put out the cryptic tweet stating, “Meet at the quarterback." With both edge rushers now healthy, Smith and Hunter promise to terrify opposing quarterbacks at an extremely high rate. That is a great thing! Plus, they are both under 30 and in their prime. This is a huge step in improving a defense that desperately needs it. So what’s next? Do they sign a mid-tier cornerback? They need at least one. Eric Eager from Pro Football Focus will join Jayson and Myles to discuss these moves and more, so join the conversation!

Agenda:

— Vikings sign Za’Darius Smith

— Conversion of Danielle Hunter’s roster bonus into signing bonus

— Trades!!!

— The state of the NFC 

— Where do the Vikings stand?

— Why does this offseason feel like 2020?

— What kind of moves do they need to make that'll have an impact

Fan with us!!! Come join the @Climb_ThePocket’s and @DailyNorman's "In The Huddle" show with host Jason Brown @brownjayson, Myles Gorham @MylesGorham85, and Eric Eager @PFF_Eric of Pro Football Focus @PFF and Climbing The Pocket. Producer Dave @Luft_Krigare joins us from the truck and enjoys an OUTSTANDING brew from @LakeMonsterBrew.

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At Facebook:

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For your beer and food needs:

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From time to time, you ask why? Why won’t the Vikings draft a wide receiver in round one? Since your Minnesota Vikings seem to be in run-it-back mode, and hiring a promising offensive-minded coach in Kevin O’Connell, could building the offense up to be a powerhouse be the strategy? Kirk Cousins was extended, maybe a tad bit too early, and more tools for him to succeed make sense. If so, do you choose Chris Olave after trading down in round one? Tyler will make that argument. He is the only one talking about that approach, especially when it is difficult to find immediate starters on defense. Rolling into week 2 of NFL Free Agency, your team is still active, but who are they looking at? 

Then, it will be onto Mock Draft Mondays’ mock version 7, where you the commenters can help decide who the Purple should draft.

Talking points for tonight’s show: 

- Tyler Forness’ quick video asking if the Vikings made a smart move extending Kirk Cousins when they did?

- Tyler Forness wrote a piece over at USA Today’s Vikings Wire

Vikings 7-round mock draft 2.0: Kirk Cousins' extension changes things:

Round 1, Pick No. 21: Ohio State WR Chris Olave

Round 2, Pick No. 46: Texas A&M G Kenyon Green

Round 2, Pick No. 54: UTSA CB Tariq Woolen

Round 3, Pick No. 77: USC EDGE Drake Jackson

Round 5, Pick No. 156: Wisconsin IDL Matt Henningsen

Round 6, Pick No. 184: Miami (FL) WR Charleston Rambo

Round 6, Pick No. 191: Georgia Tech S/LB Tariq Carpenter

Round 6, Pick No. 192: BYU RB Tyler Allgeier

Round 7, Pick No. 250: Virginia Tech EDGE Amare Barno

- Free Agency Update

Vikings are working on a visit with Jadeveon Clowney?

Vikings are working on a visit with JC Tretter?

Confirmed Za’Darius Smith will be visiting. 

- Mock draft version 7… 

Fan with us!!! Tyler Forness @TheRealForno, and Deshawn Vaughan @vikingsfans16. In the truck, is Dave Stefano @Luft_Krigare producing this @Climb_ThePocket Network’s & @DailyNorseman’s production, and enjoying an OUTSTANDING brew from @LakeMonsterBrew.

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At Facebook:

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For your beer and food needs:

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