Vikings Positional Grading: Wide Receivers, Tight Ends

Vikings Positional Grading: Wide Receivers, Tight Ends


As we remember, A TON of attention was focused on the wide receiver position during the previous offseason. The Vikings had quite a bit of interest in Kevin Curtis, but ultimately, they ended up settling for Bobby Wade in last year’s free agency period.

They added Sidney Rice and Aundrae Allison in the draft, and signed Robert Ferguson in late August. Troy Williamson, meanwhile, entered the season with many, including myself, looking for him to rebound from a disappointing sophomore effort. I wasn’t expecting a breakout season by any means, but I did think he’d play pretty well. Here’s what I had to say about Troy in mid-July:

I’m feeling pretty good about Troy’s chances for a productive season. His work ethic has been solid this offseason, and the folks at Nike discovered that one of his eyes is weaker than the other.

Look, getting his vision issues fixed doesn’t necessarily mean that Troy will have a good season. But I’m more confident about Troy’s ability to have a breakout season than I was before. I mean, ask me about Troy in January, and I’d tell you that he’s a total mess and a bust. Now, though, I think it’s at least possible that he’ll have a good year.

Hey, you’ve gotta admit that I covered my ass pretty well there…I said it was POSSIBLE that he’d have a good season.

Looking back at all the disappointments of 2007, Troy Williamson should be at the top of the list. The pass he dropped against Denver was simply unforgettable…thinking back on all the football I’ve watched, I can safely say that I’ve never seen a worse drop than that one.

No, the Nike Vision thing failed miserably, and his extensive offseason drilling didn’t fix anything…at the end of the day, he’s simply a wide receiver who can’t catch the ball.

And we took him with the seventh overall pick. I remember hearing a great point from KFAN’s Jeff Dubay about Williamson: Too often, teams focus on stuff that doesn’t really matter when scouting potential draft picks. They’ll pay close attention to all those ridiculous measurements of speed, strength, agility, and intelligence from the combine, but they won’t pay attention to the most important aspect of a player: Can he be a quality player in the NFL?

Forget the strength, speed, and intelligence measurements for a second, and consider this question: Does this guy have the fundamental skills necessary to succeed in the NFL?

Now, don’t get me wrong–the combine can provide some important information for scouts. But I think its importance is extremely overrated…in the case of Williamson, people were thrilled that he ran 4.4 in the 40–but people ignored the fact that he has trouble adjusting to the deep ball, had never been terribly productive on the college level, and most importantly, CAN’T CATCH. His impressive combine numbers obscured those facts.

He was never given much of a chance this season, and I can see why. During the season, I questioned why he was hardly ever given any playing time–by the end of the season, we all understood why Chilly was so reluctant to put him on the field throughout the year.

Troy doesn’t have a future with this team, and I think 99.9% of Vikings fans have realized that. I also don’t see him having a future in the NFL. I’ve heard talk about converting Troy to a cornerback, which I think is a pretty ridiculous suggestion, and I seriously doubt that he’ll be able to make an active roster as a wide receiver.

Bobby Wade did exactly what I expected him to do. Caught 54 passes for about 650 yards…I honestly couldn’t have expected much more from him than that, as both of those stats were career bests for Wade by a long shot.

I like Bobby as a third receiver. A guy who can line up in the slot and make an impact in the short-intermediate passing game. But it was embarrassing that he was the top receiver on the depth chart…people give Tarvaris a lot of flack for making poor decisions and struggling in several games, but let’s remember who he was throwing to. Indeed, I have major sympathy for any quarterback who has Bobby Wade for a number one receiver.

That fact alone shows how badly this position needs to be upgraded in the offseason.

Sidney Rice was quite impressive at times last season, and showed flashes in several games. He definitely provides a big play threat, and can step into the 2008 season as the number two receiver.

After day one of last year’s draft was in the books, I questioned if the Vikings should have taken Dwayne Jarrett over Rice…whoops! For the entire season, Dwayne Jarrett caught seven passes for 73 yards–Rice, meanwhile, caught 31 passes for just under 400 yards.

I’m not sure if Rice can become a number one receiver for the Vikings sometime down the road, but he was still a great choice in the draft. Definitely a candidate for a breakout season in 2008–he just needs to stay healthy, and improved play from the quarterback position wouldn’t hurt his cause, either.

Aundrae Allison is someone who intrigues me. Selected 146th overall by the Vikings, Allison was considered to be a draft steal…here’s what I said after the draft:

These dreaded words come up with Allison, though…”character issues.” But if he truly is a guy with first day talent, the Vikings made the absolute correct decision by selecting him in the fifth round. When a player with first day talent is available in the fifth round, character issues become irrelevant. You take him without hesitation.

We did see that “first day talent” on occasion this season…his 4.4 speed was on full display when he returned a kickoff for 103 yards against Detroit (one of the key plays in that victory), and he posted 52 receiving yards in that game, as well. For now, his value is primarily as a kick returner, although his speed and good hands make me think he could eventually develop into a big play threat at receiver.

Robert Ferguson, like Wade, was way too high on the depth chart for last season, but the Vikings had little choice in the matter–they needed to give him significant playing time because they were so thin at receiver. He’s a free agent, and I’d like to see the Vikings bring him back–he provides depth at the position, and even though he’s too slow for my liking, he’s a pretty good possession receiver.

Of course, I have major issues with the fact that Fergie started several games for this team (when Robert’s in your starting lineup, you know the receiving corps need to be the primary focus of attention in the offseason). But I do think he’s a serviceable fourth or fifth receiver.

As for the tight end position, the focus obviously lies on Visanthe Shiancoe. After watching him play last season, it’s clear that he has no business being a starting tight end in this league. Simply a horrible free agent signing, since he has very poor hands and his blocking also leaves much to be desired–all in all, he’s absurdly overpaid.

To his credit, I do think Shiancoe has pretty good athleticism for his position…but as is the case with Williamson, athleticism is irrelevant if you can’t catch the ball. With that in mind, the tight end position must be upgraded this offseason.

Garrett Mills attracted quite a bit of attention following the final game of the season, in which he caught two passes for 24 yards. I’m not quite sure why it took until the last week of the season for Chilly to put Mills in the lineup, but when given a chance to play, Mills looked pretty good.

The soft hands he displayed on his two catches were a refreshing change from Shiancoe. Now, I certainly don’t expect Mills to be our savior at tight end, but he could quickly develop into a contributor for this team. He’ll be an interesting guy to keep tabs on.

To kinda sum things up: Both of these positions need upgrading. Badly. The Vikings have some decent pieces at wide receiver (Wade and Rice in particular), but we learned in 2007 that it was completely ridiculous to expect Wade to succeed as a number one receiver. Rice showed flashes, and I’d love to see him as the second receiver on the depth chart for the upcoming season. As we all know, though, this team lacks a legit number one receiving threat.

Shiancoe was a huge bust, and I have no desire to see him return as the starting tight end in 2008. Really, with all of the issues at both of these positions, there is sure to be no shortage of controversy in the coming months, as the front office is feeling considerable pressure to significantly upgrade these trouble spots.

Bobby Wade: C+

Sidney Rice: B+

Troy Williamson: F

Robert Ferguson: C–

Aundrae Allison: INC

Visanthe Shiancoe: F

Garrett Mills: INC

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