When Brad Childress became the coach of the Minnesota Vikings in 2006, he remembers that a lot of attention was paid to the linebacking corps, though not in a good way.
With Napoleon Harris, Keith Newman, Sam Cowart and Raonall Smith all gone from 2006, Childress said there was a “magnifying glass” on the position. At this training camp, he feels a lot better about his linebackers.
“That’s a good bunch,”
Childress said Sunday. “There’s going to be some hard decisions as to who makes the club at that position.”
E.J. Henderson, who has been the team’s leading tackler the last two seasons, moved to the middle, where he’s established himself as the team’s defensive MVP. Ben Leber was added through free agency and has made 21 starters at strongside linebacker in the last two seasons, and weakside linebacker Chad Greenway was the team’s top draft choice in 2006, starting every game last season after missing his rookie season with a knee injury.
“We focus on what we can do,”
Greenway said. “I think we’re pretty good when we play our best football.”
With a lot of attention paid to the defensive line, with Pro Bowlers Kevin Williams and Pat Williams and newcomer Jared Allen, and the addition of safety Madieu Williams to the secondary, it seems as though the spotlight doesn’t shine much on the linebackers.
“Sometimes we do (get overlooked),”
Leber said. “There’s a lot of pride in our group. But it doesn’t matter what people say, that’s not what we’re about.”
Henderson has made more than 100 tackles in each of the last four seasons, capped by last season’s career-high 155, and he scored his first career touchdown with a 45-yard interception return against Detroit. Leber made a career-high 88 tackles last season and tied for the team lead with five sacks. Greenway made 130 tackles with four fumble recoveries and two interceptions, one of which he returned 35 yards for a touchdown against the New York Giants.
“There’s no way to rank (linebackers), but I feel like our corps is one of the best in the league,”
Leber said. “It’s out third year together, and we understand each other.”
The battle for backup positions includes special-teams standouts Heath Farwell and Vinny Ciurciu, along with veterans Derrick Pope, David Herron and Rufus Alexander and rookies Erin Henderson and J. Leman.
