| Will Flanagan. 16th May, 2008 - 11:58 pm
 This is a very slow time of the year in the NFL. The frenzy and excitement of free agency has been over for two months. The anticipation of the NFL Draft is no longer here. Every NFL analyst has given their respective awards and grades to the winners and losers of free agency and the draft. With nothing more to discuss until training camp begins, it appears to be the time when analysts combine the results of free agency and the draft to form their respective power rankings for the upcoming NFL season. Throughout these rankings, there is always one grossly overhyped team.
There are three benchmarks that must be met for a team to be considered overhyped. First, they must be a non-playoff team from the previous year. Second, the team must make a splash in free agency. Finally, the team must have a very good draft as determined by scouts and analysts.
In 2006, it was the Arizona Cardinals. They began the offseason by making a gigantic free-agent signing in perennial Pro Bowl running back Edgerrin James. As if that wasn’t enough, the Cardinals had the good fortune of grabbing former Heisman Trophy winning quarterback Matt Leinart with the ninth overall pick. With James and Leinart on offense, in addition to the already very talented receiver duo of Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin, many believed that the Cardinals had all the makings to go from a team with a 5-11 record to a potential playoff team.
To quote Lee Corso, “Not so fast, my friend.”
Despite adding talent to the quarterback and running back positions, the Cardinals did not improve on the most important part of the offense needed for Leinart and James to flourish: the offensive line. James rushed for a modest 1,159 yards while scoring only six touchdowns, as compared to his previous season’s totals of 1,506 yards rushing and thirteen scores. Meanwhile, Leinart threw for eleven touchdowns, twelve interceptions, and was sacked twenty-one times with a 74.0 quarterback rating. The Cardinals ultimately posted another 5-11 record, a far cry from a potential playoff team.
In 2007, it was the San Francisco 49ers. They came off a late surge towards the playoffs thanks to a breakout season by Frank Gore and the rapid development of Alex Smith under offensive coordinator and quarterback guru Norv Turner. These factors, combined with the additions of Nate Clements, Michael Lewis, Darrell Jackson, Ashley Lelie, Patrick Willis, and Joe Staley through free agency and the draft, allowed for the hype machines to proclaim the 49ers as a potential playoff team.
Not exactly.
The 49ers finished the season at 5-11, a record that resulted largely in part to the poor play at the quarterback position. Smith played in seven games while tallying two touchdowns and four interceptions. The loss of Coach Turner stymied Smith’s development, and in turn, the entire 49ers’ offense.
Now it’s 2008, and a new overhyped team must be named. The votes are in ,and the clear-cut winner is the Minnesota Vikings.
The Vikings perfectly meet the criteria for the overhyped team. First, they were a non-playoff team, just barely missing out on a playoff berth in 2007. Second, they brought in the likes of Bernard Berrian and Madieu Williams through free agency. Third, they had a very good draft after several picks yielded them a superstar in Jared Allen.
It’s hard to argue with the potential success of the Vikings this upcoming season. Allen easily makes this the best defensive line in football. Berrian is a much better option at wide receiver than Troy Williamson ever was. Williams is a vast improvement at safety over the troubled Dwight Smith. The team still has Adrian Peterson and an offensive line that remains intact from last season. Above all else, Brett Favre is out of the NFC North.
Unfortunately, the Vikings still have one player who will ultimately doom the success of the team: quarterback Tarvaris Jackson.
Jackson is a mediocre and inconsistent quarterback as noted by the eleven touchdowns and sixteen interceptions he has tallied in his career. His lack of consistency will allow the star of this team Peterson to face numerous eight man defensive fronts. As proven last year, the Vikings will only go as far as Peterson takes them. If Jackson doesn’t get his head on straight, this Vikings' team won’t be going as far as everyone predicts. |
