Raritäten/Infos » MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The Minnesota Vikings screamed

at Stefon Diggs to step out of bounds once he secured the leaping catch at the sideline Mike Hughes Jersey , seeking to stop the clock for a long field goal try just after the New Orleans Saints had taken a late lead in their NFC divisional-round playoff game last season .Diggs spun around instead, pressed his hand on the turf to keep his balance and sprinted the remaining 34 yards for the game-ending 61-yard touchdown pass that became known as the Minneapolis Miracle.That throw-catch-run will forever be one of the most memorable plays in NFL history.With the Saints set to visit the Vikings on Sunday night in a prime-time reprise of their instant classic, the coaches and players on both sides were trying their best to forget it — as inevitable as the replays have been throughout the week.“We’ll just have to deal with watching that last play again another 15 times, another 20 times, but that’s part of it,” said Saints coach Sean Payton, who sounded more disturbed by a failure by his offense to convert a third-and-1 on the previous drive that would have further limited the time the Vikings had to rally.If Saints safety Marcus Williams had tackled Diggs instead of trying an ill-fated undercut, the story of that game would have been about yet another comeback engineered by Drew Brees.“We did everything we could at the end of that game to go win it, and unfortunately they made a great play that allowed them to win it,” Brees said. “So I let it go pretty quick. I guess it wasn’t meant to be.”Though he remains a promising second-year player, Williams has had a hard time handling his infamy .“It’s another game,” he repeated each time the subject was broached by reporters this week.Even Diggs ducked the media this week. As for the revenge factor? The Saints dismissed that as fast as Diggs raced to the end zone that day. The Vikings did, too.“I think the Saints will come in with a chip on their shoulder because that’s who they are,” Vikings coach Mike Zimmer said.Here are some other key angles to follow for the game:BRILLIANT BREESAt age 39, Brees has completed better than 77 percent of his passes this season for 1,870 yards, 13 touchdowns and no interceptions. In beating the Baltimore Ravens last week, Brees became the fourth player in NFL history with 500 or more career touchdown passes.The Vikings might be without top cornerback Xavier Rhodes, which could mean a big test for rookie Holton Hill.“I’m really not worried about this guy as far as the game being too big for him or anything like that if he has to play,” Zimmer said of Hill. “I feel like he’s a competitor. But he’s going to get in some matchups that may not be great.”THE BASICSWith the whiff by Williams at the worst possible time as a prime example, there’s no defensive skill more vital than tackling. The Vikings have been burned more than usual this season in pass coverage, but they’ve been sound on the ground with an average of 89.7 rushing yards allowed per game. With cornerback Trae Waynes, safety Harrison Smith and linebacker Eric Kendricks among the standouts, the Vikings have some of the surest tacklers in the league.“In today’s NFL, the way everybody’s playing in space now, if you’re not a good tackler in space it makes it really hard to be a good defensive team,” Zimmer said.GOING FOR ITThe Saints have run a fourth-down offensive play eight times in six games, converting seven.“That gives us confidence when you’ve got a coach that believes in his players,” running back Alvin Kamara said. “It’s cool to have that type of coach where he gives us opportunities to prove ourselves.”The Vikings have stopped four of the seven fourth-down plays against them. During their current three-game winning streak, they’ve thwarted 28 of 32 third downs and reclaimed the top spot in the league with a 23.4 percent conversion rate allowed.HILL’S ASCENTLast season, the Saints began to experiment with third-string quarterback Taysom Hill’s versatility by letting him cover kicks. This year, he has on several short-yardage occasions replaced Brees under center as a change-of-pace, read-option quarterback. Hill also has executed fake punts as a runner and a thrower, caught a pass and even took his first pitch as a running back last week.“He’s powerful. He’s got speed,” Kamara said. “I love having him. I wouldn’t want him to be nowhere else.”TEDDY TALKBetween Brees and Hill on the depth chart is Teddy Bridgewater, who was acquired in a trade with the New York Jets two months ago. Though he’s not likely to see the field, this will be Bridgewater’s first visit to Minnesota as an opponent after playing his first four seasons for the Vikings.“He’s got a lot of really good traits. You can tell he’s a guy that guys really like and will follow, and that’s what you need at the quarterback position,” Brees said.If Bridgewater had not suffered that devastating knee injury in 2016, he’d probably still be the face of the franchise in Minnesota instead of Kirk Cousins.“Like I’ve said a million times, I thought he’d be the quarterback for the rest of my career,” Zimmer said. “I love the kid. I love his nature, competitiveness, everything about him.” Or, you know, probably not."WhiteFanposts Fanshots Sections Vikings 2018 SeasonVikings 2019 OffseasonU.S. Bank StadiumMinnesota Vikings PodcastsMinnesota Vikings 2019 NFL DraftChris’ Minnesota Vikings Mock Draft v5.0: The Man with the Golden MockNew,98commentsOr Anthony Barr Jersey , you know, probably not.CDTShareTweetShareShareChris’ Minnesota Vikings Mock Draft v5.0: The Man with the Golden MockWith the National Football League now done with the biggest parts of free agency and shifting into full-on NFL Draft mode, it’s time for another run at a seven-round Minnesota Vikings mock draft, featuring the FanSpeak On the Clock draft simulator. We should start seeing big boards everywhere falling into more of a post-Combine mode at this point, so hopefully we can get more of an idea what things could look like when the 2019 NFL Draft gets underway in about a month.Here are the parameters that I’m using for this seven-round mock:Big board - Matt Miller from Bleacher Report, updated 20 MarchComputer using random big boardsClassic difficultyFanSpeak team needs (G, OT, EDGE, WR, TE, C, CB, RB, S)And awaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay we go!A reminder that these are the picks that we’re starting out with:As we get started, nobody proposes a to me before the selections start flying, nor does anyone propose one when #18 comes onto the board. Here is what the big board looks like for our first selection:Now, to this point, there has been one offensive linemen taken, as Jonah Williams went to the New York Jets at #3 overall. Other than that, every offensive lineman in the draft is available. Honestly, it’s taking a hell of a lot of willpower not to pull the trigger on Hockenson with this pick, but unlike what’s happened in previous drafts, I’m going to make an effort to address the offensive line situation early here. Since the Vikings seem determined. . .for whatever reason. . .to move Riley Reiff to guard, I’m going to grab the offensive linemen that I think would be the best fit for the new Kevin Stefanski/Gary Kubiak offense.Round 1, Pick 18 - Andre Dillard, OT, Washington StateDillard is the best pass-blocking offensive tackle in this class, and if the Vikings are going to move Reiff, then they better replace him with someone that can step right into the starting role at left tackle. The pairing of Dillard and Brian O’Neill would give the Vikings one of the most athletic pairs of offensive tackles in the National Football League, and that’s something that seems to be emphasized in an outside zone blocking scheme like the one the Vikings want to implement. You could make an argument for Cody Ford or Jawaan Taylor here, but if we want someone that can step right in and make an impact, I think Dillard is the guy.So, now we move on to Round 2. No trade offers come in before the start of the round, and we don’t get any offers as pick #50 overall hits the board. Here’s what our new big board looks like:I don’t see a need to double up on offensive linemen at this point, and not even virtual Mike Zimmer can get me to pull the trigger on a defensive back at this point. So, let’s get another guy that can potentially help the offense out.Round 2, Pick 50 - Hakeem Butler, WR, Iowa StateWith the Vikings having two receivers that can do great things out of the slot, they could use a big outside threat to help free those two up and also be a threat in the red zone. At 6’5” and about 230 pounds, Hakeem Butler is a physical freak who should be able to help stretch opposing defenses and immediately become a guy that Kirk Cousins can target inside the 20. He probably should have been off the board by now, but if he’s just going to get handed to me, I’ll take him.On to the third round, and once again there are no trades offered to me before the round gets underway. However, as my selection comes up at #81, a couple of trade offers do flow in.The offer from the Lions isn’t great or anything, but you know. . .that offer from the Bills sounds like exactly the sort of thing Rick Spielman would do given the opportunity. I get two fourth-round selections (in addition to the one I already have) Everson Griffen Jersey , I recoup the fifth-rounder we lost in the Trevor Siemian trade, and there’s also an all-important seventh-rounder. So, let’s take the Bills’ offer and drop out of the third round.As the fourth round gets ready to begin, a couple of NFC East teams send trade offers my way.I accept the offer from Dallas, because hey. . .why not? While the fifth-round pick we get in compensation is lower, it also requires less of a drop from where we currently sit.Let’s do something a little crazy, shall we?Round 4, Pick 112 (from Buffalo) - Tyree Jackson, QB, BuffaloIn my perfect world. . .or in this scenario, anyway. . .the Vikings stop fooling around with “veteran” quarterbacks and decide that they’re going to give Kyle Sloter the #2 spot behind Kirk Cousins. Jackson is another physical monster, coming in at 6’7” and weighing about 250 pounds. He has an embarrassment of physical skills, and if the Vikings can give him the time he needs to develop, they could have an answer for when Cousins’ contract expires in a couple of seasons. A backup quarterback is a luxury at this point, sure, but I think someone with Jackson’s physical ability is worth the pick here.As we move on to the next pick, things have changed a little bit:I get that, at some point in this process, I need to start looking at the defensive side of the ball. But the board hasn’t fallen that way, so at this point I’ll just keep taking offensive value players, because I think the Vikings’ coaching staff has shown enough of an ability to coach up lower-round picks on defense. So, back to the offense we go.Round 4, Pick 120 - Kaden Smith, TE, StanfordThe tight end position might not register as an immediate need for the Vikings to most folks, but there’s a potential problem on the horizon for the team at that spot. Not only is Kyle Rudolph in the final year of his deal (at least for now, unless the Vikings extend him), but David Morgan is in the final year of his rookie contract in 2019. That means that there’s likely going to be at least one hole, and Smith is the sort of player that could fill it. He doesn’t offer a whole lot as a blocker at this point, but he does have good receiving skills already and can be developed going forward.We’re now back on the board with our pick from Dallas, and here’s what things look like:I’m actually going to go a bit off the board for this one and fulfill that annual Vikings’ tradition of taking an athletic edge guy in the middle rounds because, well, nobody at this point is really all that appealing to me.Round 4, Pick 136 (from Dallas) - Maxx Crosby, Edge, Eastern MichiganHe’s not rated that highly on Matt Miller’s big board, but I think this is just about the right spot for Crosby. He’s got outstanding speed and quickness, and though he’s a little on the light side at this point, he can probably add some more bulk without sacrificing too much of his athleticism. I think he’s the sort of player that Andre Patterson would love to get an opportunity to coach up, so we’ll take him here.Now we’re into the fifth round, where we now have two picks, which is more than the zero we had when we started. In fact, we’re going to have seven picks in the final three rounds, so I’m just going to ignore trade offers going forward.As we get to our first pick in Round 5, here’s what the board looks like:According to the Team Needs list, our current needs are (in order) guard, center Kyle Rudolph Jersey , cornerback, running back, and safety. With those needs in mind, let’s go back to the offensive line well.Round 5, Pick 158 (from Buffalo) - Dru Samia, G, OklahomaSamia would appear to be the sort of guard that would be more comfortable in the new Stefanski/Kubiak scheme as well. He doesn’t provide much in the way of power, but he is pretty athletic, which is something the Vikings will value.Things haven’t shifted much on the board when we come up next, so let’s fill the running back spot with a guy the Vikings have already expressed interest in during the pre-draft process.Round 5, Pick 165 (from Dallas) - Devine Ozigbo, RB, NebraskaAt 6’ and 230 pounds, Ozigbo has the build to take over the Latavius Murray role in the Vikings’ backfield. He could be a goal-line hammer to start out, but was also a solid performer in Nebraska’s zone-running scheme, so he could play a bigger role than that given the opportunity.We’re now into the final two rounds of the draft, and at this point I want to get this up before midnight, so I’m simply going to put the Big Boards for each pick up, as well as the player I wound up taking at that spot.Here’s the board for our first selection in the sixth round:Round 6, Pick 190 - Jimmy Moreland, CB, James MadisonAnd for our second pick in Round 6:Round 6, Pick 209 (Compensatory) - Ben Burr-Kirven, LB, WashingtonOn to the final round, where we have three selections, including the final one we received from the Bills in our earlier trade. Here’s the board as that selection comes up:Round 7, Pick 225 (from Buffalo) - Byron Cowart, DL, MarylandAnd, finally, the board for our final two picks, both Compensatory selections:Round 7, Pick 247 (Compensatory) - Blake Cashman, LB, MinnesotaRound 7, Pick 250 (Compensatory) - Ugo Amadi, S, OregonSo, when the dust settles and the smoke clears, we wound up drafting 12 players in a draft that we entered with only eight selections. Here is our simulated 2019 draft class for this mock.If you want to see how all 254 picks in this simulation went, you can check it out right here.So, what does everyone think? Did I wait too long to start addressing defense? Were the trades a bit too much? Is it bad that I almost completely failed to address the interior of the defensive line? Let me know in the comments and in the poll here.