T-Jack Benched

[Cheesehead Craig]

There's a Viking fan site that I visit from time to time and the majority of Vikes fans there see this for what it is: A desperation move by a coach who is trying to save his job.

The fans are not really thrilled about Gus and feel that his lack of mobility and shoddy performances over the past 4 years are not going to produce any real results over what TJack has done.

There's even some calls to bring in Craig Nall. Seriously.

The fanbase realizes that Chilly is a terrible coach and playcaller. Most of them also state that TJack is a waste of a QB, but some defend him that since Chilly is so bad, therefore the QB will also be bad.

[BF4MVP]

Stick a fork in 'em (well close, anyways)..

[Pacopete4]

Stick a fork in 'em (well close, anyways)..

eh, I wouldn't do that quite yet...

[Lurker64]

Didn't they actually give up two 3rd round picks and swapped later round picks (getting the worse of those two picks)?

It was a first, two thirds, and a swap of 6th round picks with the Chiefs giving up 187 to get 182. You are correct.

[Joemailman]

This now puts the Packers in a great position to be the dominant team in this division in the coming years. They have the youngest team, big play guys on offense, defense and special teams, and the best quarterback. I'm not saying they're a cinch to win every year, but they are in the best position of any team in the division.

[Scott Campbell]

They traded a 1st and a 3rd. He is already better than any 3rd or 1st they would have drafted this year. So you lose 2 picks and gain 1 player. Not going to miss those at all.

Didn't they actually give up two 3rd round picks and swapped later round picks (getting the worse of those two picks)?

They could have drafted Joe Flacco and got two other good players in round 3 that could help long-term. Not to mention the minor swapping of picks. Not to mention the risk of signing Allen to a long-term contract knowing he's one strike for a year-long suspension.

Of course, they could have drafted Aaron Rodgers instead of Troy Williamson and Erasmus James. They could have traded up to get Jay Cutler. I'd take Cutler over Chad Greenway and the later round pick (Tarvaris Jackson?).

My question is whether they got more value out of upgrading the DE position than they would have by addressing the QB position. A 1st and a 3rd should net you a pretty good QB whether you draft him yourself, or trade the picks for a vet.

[Scott Campbell]

This now puts the Packers in a great position to be the dominant team in this division in the coming years. They have the youngest team, big play guys on offense, defense and special teams, and the best quarterback. I'm not saying they're a cinch to win every year, but they are in the best position of any team in the division.

I dunno. Things in the NFL are so fluid I wouldn't bank on anything past the end of the season. We appear pretty well set up right now. But shit happens.

[Fritz]

My nipples are getting hard over this thread.

[SkinBasket]

My nipples are getting hard over this thread.

Getting?

[SnakeLH2006]

Direct reply to topic:

FUCK NO!! Now my fantasy football team is fucked!!

[mngolf19]

They traded a 1st and a 3rd. He is already better than any 3rd or 1st they would have drafted this year. So you lose 2 picks and gain 1 player. Not going to miss those at all.

Didn't they actually give up two 3rd round picks and swapped later round picks (getting the worse of those two picks)?

They could have drafted Joe Flacco and got two other good players in round 3 that could help long-term. Not to mention the minor swapping of picks. Not to mention the risk of signing Allen to a long-term contract knowing he's one strike for a year-long suspension.

Of course, they could have drafted Aaron Rodgers instead of Troy Williamson and Erasmus James. They could have traded up to get Jay Cutler. I'd take Cutler over Chad Greenway and the later round pick (Tarvaris Jackson?).

Obviously looking back at a draft you could see where you could have done better. Flacco was not accepted as ready to go by many teams before the draft although considered closer than others. Same for Rodgers, but we're seeing how that went now. Vikes got a proven player at the beginning of his prime. The risk of his drinking, if they did their due diligence, is less than the risk of drafting a guy and expecting him to be ready to go. If you want to win this year that is. And if he does as expected and doesn't get suspended, then he was worth it. You mention taking Cutler over Greenway and Jackson, but would you have at the time and based on what the Vikes needed then? Greenway is good.

[HarveyWallbangers]

Obviously looking back at a draft you could see where you could have done better. Flacco was not accepted as ready to go by many teams before the draft although considered closer than others. Same for Rodgers, but we're seeing how that went now. Vikes got a proven player at the beginning of his prime. The risk of his drinking, if they did their due diligence, is less than the risk of drafting a guy and expecting him to be ready to go. If you want to win this year that is. And if he does as expected and doesn't get suspended, then he was worth it. You mention taking Cutler over Greenway and Jackson, but would you have at the time and based on what the Vikes needed then? Greenway is good.

Allen for 3 good picks and a swap of lesser picks, a boatload of money, and the risk of suspension. That's selling the farm to do well this year to me, and it appears it won't pay off--although it's too early to tell.

As far as Cutler, I think I would have done at the time. The Vikings needed a QB even back then. I'd be even more inclined to do it now. There were two things I didn't want the Vikings to do: 1) trade up for Cutler, and 2) draft Peterson. Unfortunately, they drafted Peterson.

[Lurker64]

I think Minnesota's problem was less "they wasted their draft picks" or "trading for Allen was stupid", but more that "they woefully mismanaged their QB position in the offseason.

It's clear that Tarvaris isn't ready to play at a high level in this league, and it's not clear that he ever will be. In light of the high risk that comes with banking on T.Jack to carry the load at QB, you set him up with Sug, and Booty? That's a recipe for disaster. Frerotte isn't really notable for doing anything in his entire career other than "headbutting a wall" and that's not going to help you win football games. There were certainly guys out there this offseason that would help you win more games than replacing Tarvaris with Sug. I mean, Pennington was on the market this year, and do you think he'd really rather play in Miami than in Minnesota? Sure, Pennington has a noodle arm, but he has gaudy numbers indoors and he's a winner.

Chilly really dropped the ball, and he responded to criticism of Jackson by clinging tighter to him and it's blown up in his face. Childress should be fired for so totally mismanaging the most important position in a year where he had essentially all the other pieces in place to succeed. That is, unless Gus is more amazing than anybody anticipated.

[Tony Oday]

What the Vikings are guilty of is trusting in Chilly's judgement on a QB. This kid will never be a good QB. He can rocket the ball but just because you can throw doesnt mean that you can read a defence.

Jump Pass is bad. Fartrot isnt much better. They should have moved on a QB before they got Allen then people would have traded to them.

[Harlan Huckleby]

The more I think about it, I think MN is making a big mistake benching Jackson. The guy has a lot of talent, he just hasn't put it together yet.

IF Childress thought Jackson could be a starter this summer, what has changed? He didn't have terrible games. Where is Childress's confidence in his own judgement? If he chose to go with Jackson, he should give him a chance to come around.

Switching to a 37-year-old journeyman is just throwing in the towel.