The Vikings could attempt to patch weaknesses with some free agents still on the market but is that a good idea
On Sunday, I saw a snarky tweet that was commenting on the reporting surrounding NFL training camps. Paraphrased, WKYC’s Ben Axelrod wrote that anything good in training camp is presented as rock solid evidence that it will be good in the regular season and anything bad is presented as “just practice” and no big deal.
First, let people have their fun, Ben. For more than 20 NFL fan bases, camp hype is the peak of the mountain. That aside, the truth is probably much closer to the opposite. If a player shines during summer practices, it isn’t always predictive. We have seen some Mr. Mankatos over the years become Stefon Diggs or Adam Thielen but many others became Audie Cole.
The pitfalls, on the other hand, usually tell the right story. If a team can’t block anybody in practice or a quarterback is flinging the ball into the parking lot or receivers can’t catch a screen pass, it probably means that those things are going to crop up during the regular season. If it looks bad in a controlled environment, it isn’t going to look better amidst the chaos of real games.
If we apply this theory to Minnesota Vikings training camp 2023, we can’t say yet for sure whether Jordan Addison is going to be the next Cris Carter. He sure does look good though. We also can’t pin down if Josh Oliver is going to be a game-changing signing, though you should see that dude move people on run blocking reps. And it’s definitely not a lock that Brian Flores’s all-out-blitz defense will even out the value lost to offseason cuts and free agency this year, though his aggression sure does seem to be annoying the offense.
