By Chris Schad
A rule that states, “If something can go wrong it will.” An addition to this law reads, “and usually at the worst time.”
Above is the definition of Murphy’s Law. You know, the one that seems to constantly follow all of us around on Mondays or the one that rears its ugly head in the form of a thunderstorm minutes before an outdoor wedding? It’s pretty common for the powers that be to use their sick sense of humor to let us know they’re still there.
Even NFL teams aren’t immune to this phenomenon. In the middle of May, a series of uncanny events are already having teams looking to find the reset button as they still have two months to go before training camp.
Jacksonville experienced Murphy’s Law when Dante Fowler, the third overall pick in a draft class that’s not even two weeks old, planted his leg wrong and tore his ACL. This happened in the first rookie minicamp practice, and he will miss the 2015 season.
Even the Super Bowl champion New England Patriots weren’t immune, as their “Deflategate” scandal finally came to a resolution with Tom Brady being suspended for the first four games of the 2015 season. The Patriots also lost several draft picks and were fined a million dollars (which for a billion-dollar NFL franchise is like demanding some random guy buy me a McChicken).
These are all bad, but it doesn’t compare to what can be found in Minnesota, known simply as the “Viking Law.”
It’s a phenomenon that sees perfect kickers miss field goals with trips to the Super Bowl on the line. It’s where a 12th man goes daydreaming and thinks he should be in on a crucial play. It’s where a team allegedly has their headsets tapped into and coincidentally loses a game 41-0.
This gets so brutal that Murphy himself steps back, takes a look at his own life and goes, “Well, it’s not that bad.”
So while optimism reigns supreme after a solid showing on paper in the NFL draft, most Viking fans know what will likely be coming in a couple months. Here’s a look at what could derail all optimism for the purple.
1. New Receivers, Same Ineffectiveness?
One of the main keys of the early part of the Vikings’ offseason was to find weapons to make Norv Turner’s passing attack come to life. After relying on Greg Jennings to stretch the top of the defense and Cordarrelle Patterson to become a force, the Vikings finished 28th in the NFL for passing offense in 2014.
In 2015, the Vikings are hoping that Charles Johnson can continue to flash the form that he showed late last season and the addition of Mike Wallace can help to strike fear into the opposing secondary.
However, both scenarios come with risk.
Although Johnson is a size-speed freak, he was also on Cleveland’s practice squad this time a year ago. The cliched expression of “He won’t be sneaking up on anyone,” rings true here, and that might limit his impact in his second season in Minnesota.
Mike Wallace is also known to have some character concerns as he clashed with Ryan Tannehill and the rest of the Dolphins’ offense during his two seasons in Miami. Perhaps a return to a role similar to the one he played in Pittsburgh will make him a model citizen with the Vikings, but it could easily go the other way.
2. Matt Kalil’s Career (and Knees) Continue to Deteriorate
The other cause for optimism from 2014 was that Bridgewater thrived despite running for his life for a majority of the year. Fans and Pro Football Focus often pointed to Kalil for the source of Teddy’s pressure, but the Vikings have been quick to defend him despite ranking as the worst left tackle in the NFL.
There was some optimism that this was going to be Kalil’s first offseason since he was drafted where he didn’t have surgery on his knees. Alas, news recently emerged that he had injections on top of surgeries to heal his achy knees this offseason.
At this rate, Kalil’s knees might be held together with duct tape by the end of 2015, which could spell doom for the Viking offense.
3. The Defense Regresses in Zimmer’s Second Year
While the offensive side of the ball gets most of the attention in the age of fantasy football, the defense was assumed to take a huge step forward coming out of the draft. By adding Trae Waynes and Eric Kendricks, the Vikings filled two holes that have seemingly been there forever.
But the thing with young players is that they can be inconsistent (see Patterson, Cordarrelle). If Waynes and Kendricks can’t step in immediately to be a force, the Vikings will be relying on the same names they’ve been relying on for years … making a big step forward unlikely.
4. Adrian Peterson Doesn’t Return to the Vikings
As it stands today, it seems like Peterson will be a Viking. Minnesota is not going to trade him and even if he doesn’t get his restructured deal he’s looking for, he’s still likely going to show up in Mankato …
Unless he pulls a Barry Sanders.
Retirement seems like the only other option that Peterson has if he truly doesn’t want to come back to Minnesota, and if he really wants to pursue that track career, it might actually happen. The only problem with this is that Peterson would be walking away from nearly $13 million, and if this really is about his non-guaranteed contract, it wouldn’t make sense.
Alas, Peterson’s retirement could leave a gaping hole in the Vikings backfield.
5. Teddy Bridgewater Can’t Make A Sophomore Surge
Three years ago, the Vikings thought they solved their franchise quarterback woes after Christian Ponder showed flashes in his rookie season. Today, Viking fans have the same feeling about Bridgewater as he posted a rookie season that was statistically better than Ponder’s.
Unfortunately, we know nothing about what the future holds for the young signal caller as the second year leap will be crucial. Ponder failed to make that leap in Year 2, but with a team that’s inching closer toward the playoffs, Bridgewater’s performance will be under a larger microscope.
Everything seems to be in place for a breakout season in 2015, but it’s all up to the guy under center if he wants to end the four-decade quarterback drought for the Vikings.
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Photo Credit To Brian Curski