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Mastermind September
9,2021
It's kind of
brilliant but I've been asking this question for some time now & finally the
Vikings have it. They now have the answer. Maybe it was that playoff
loss to the Eagles sending them to Minnesota but what was clear is that Nick
Foles was blanketed with protection where if no one could touch him, he could
set up & place the ball anywhere on that field. Regardless of how you
might feel about Kirk Cousins ... he's as accurate as all get-out ... and if no
one gets to lays a hand on him ... well you know what could follow.
As hard as it was to watch, throughout Foles playoff run ... no one laid a hand
on him ... at least, not enough to move him off his spot. What also became
abundantly clear is that "off his spot" ... he was just a shadow of
himself.
It all came down to a simple unanswered question. With Rashod Hill at Left
Tackle who was our "Swing Tackle", which is the place that Rashod
anchored for many years? Now it is several years later where we are about
to find out that maybe he just wasn't gifted with all tools to be a starting
tackle in the NFL ... or maybe he does ... but that doesn't matter, except to
him. There is no disgrace facing that reality because the role that he
filled ... for these many years now ... has given this franchise something very
valuable ... Time! Now, he's performing that very difficult task once
again for this franchise where in time his key-role might get overlooked however
it may end up being pivotal to this franchise's overall success. Maybe
knowing that he ultimately became this franchises key cog ... "to it
all" ... will be the pinnacle mark of his life's work. There is no
truer friend than being there when it counted ... to put the fight! No
matter the outcome, Rashod can hold his head high knowing that his contribution
to this franchise just might be the most valuable "Chip-In" in our
history. Now he is lambasted in having to handle very rude questioning ...
as they simply do not know. The moment that I first saw him anchoring our
line for the first time ... somehow I knew that he'd be a ten year anchor for us
... of which he's well on his way, even if he'd never actually achieve that
"No-Look-Back-NFL-Starter-Role" due to the tools that he was born with
but he's certainly made the best of everything within his basket. His
longevity is it's testament ... being there when it counted.
So what was the answer? Well instead of recycling cast offs throughout the
league, we've instead invested into "linemen-pedigree" which on its
face is absolutely meaningless, that is until you combine it with franchise
resources (playing time). To be direct, the learning curve known as Brian O'Neill
has opened up a new world to this franchise & his latest payday attests to
that fact. Way too often, we've invested our resources into the wrong
basket.
After patiently waiting for that swing tackle answer, apparently the answer just
recently slipped out. As you know, in my minds eye, Oli Udoh has always
been considered a absolute specimen. The problem was, from his very
introduction, we didn't know how raw he was (maybe like John Randle in his
rookie year) but on the other hand could he have helped us out all along?
Imagine Dolman, Millard, Thomas & Randle facing those 49ers in his rookie
year ... we'll never know. Why do we have three offensive tackles (O'
Neill, Udoh & Hill) as three of our offensive starters? Then the facts
hit me. Udoh has only one start under his belt ... in other words this
franchise hadn't applied its investment where today every available opportunity
is now being dumped into Udoh. Udoh represents out future ... Guard -
Tackle ... it doesn't matter. In short, if Rashod Hill is incapable of
holding down that left side as a legitimate starting left tackle , Udoh is that
swing tackle even though he's now our starting right guard.
Apparently there's also some sort of plan in place at guard if that tackle thing
just doesn't work out. Maybe you've figured out that one too. Again
... Time!
In the NFL, there is a very old axiom ... the very best play. Unless your
asleep that plan for left tackle today is one of three: Udoh, Hill or
Darrisaw. Let me ask you, how anxious do you think they are to invest this
franchises resources (playing time) into Darrisaw? Time will tell, but it
doesn't matter because one of these three will soon get the answers to that
question. As for Christian, unless you're living on another planet, to
this franchise being drafted in the first round doesn't mean jack!
Either you quickly acquire the necessary armor (technique) that you'll need to
succeed in this league or you'll just be another statistic. Displacing
Udoh is going to be a monumental task however, you're in luck, because
apparently they love Udoh on the right to assist Mr. Cousins play action to the
left. Time Boys!
Time!
This thing in place is absolutely brilliant & I wish that I could give Rick
Spielman credit for it all but it is obvious that there is something much more
to it. The way that I see it, Rick acquired the draft capital & was
lucid enough to buy into this mastermind. After all, it's been eight years
of being pounded about the head & ears where you have no choice but to learn
the things that you need to succeed in this league. Hats off to Mark Wilf
for seeing it through (giving in to Zimmer's dimensional creativity) & to
Ziggy ... for the love of his brother. Could it be Klint or was this thing
masterminded by his father Gary? Even though Gary's no longer officially
apart of this organization sometimes large ships can leave a horrendous
wake. What is quite clear was that Gary Kubiak was maybe the greatest
influence over Mike Zimmer (he said as much, but in clear reverence) because
after Gary left, and while he was with us, both Zimmer & Spielman clearly
changed their approach in regard to the offensive line. You could almost
see Kubiak point out what was clearly the obvious, which they clearly could not
see (mistake after mistake). Was it as simple as, "Here's your most
valuable asset (see contracts) ... maybe you'd like to invest this franchises
assets (time & capital) into pedigree to protect it. Just guessing
here but for Gary this could in no way be that easy. Out of sight but
never out of mind,
As for Rashod Hill all you can do is play the game with what brought you
here. You are one of three chosen to lock down this position. Discount all those devious questions that are designed to take you
off your game & take your shot to its fullest. You have the
training. You have the physical skills. The only way to get beat,
other than handling an actual bear, lies between your ears (the shortest &
hardest distance in golf). If your mentally on top of your game the rest
will take care of itself. Mental lapses can happen however its all about
when it happens. You dicker at or near the red zone ... and its
over.
The Viking Ghost Writer
http://MyVikingBlood.org
Date: September 9, 2021
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