Jeremy: Jeff had this to say...

After seeing the debacle against the Steelers last week, I emailed a question to Jeff. After watching the game last night against the Ravens the question seems as important as ever.

December 21, 2005
To: Jeffrick F. Chopin
Re: Help...
Dear Jeffrick,
As referenced in my last post, it has become painfully obvious, at
least to me, that the Vikings running game is severely inadequate to
compete with the better teams in the NFL. We need help.
Assuming a draft pick in the area of 10 to 16, an impact running back
through the draft is unlikely. We do not want Ontario Smith back (do
we?). Free agency is our best hope. Please formulate your opinion on
the likelihood of the Vikings landing one of the top free agent
running backs, or a second tier free agent running back. Should we
even bother hoping for this? Is Zygi the kind of owner who would make
a run at a premier free agent? Is there any hope?
Sizzincerly,
Jeremy

This is why Jeff is amazing: In less than two hours I got an email back breaking down every aspect of the upcoming Vikings off-season:

Jer,
Obviously running back isn't the only problem on offense, but we've got the talent in-house to improve everywhere else for 2006. The Daunte/BJ debate is just starting, but I think whichever guy is under center next year will be fine. The instability on the O-line has been the biggest problem, and getting Matt Birk back will do wonders to solidify it and stop the musical chairs approach we've seen this year (and getting a decent RT might not be a bad idea either). I think we've got plenty of capable guys at wideout, it's just a matter of Koren or Burleson stepping up to be the #1 guy, which I think both are capable of, and Marcus Robinson and Travis Taylor finding some consistency, none of which seems all that outlandish to assume can happen (boy good thing we drafted Williamson, eh? That Moss trade was such a good idea).
We can finally call Michael Bennett a bust, and say with confidence both he and Moe Williams won't be back next year. That leaves us with three 4th round picks in Mewelde, Onterrio and Fason (who I have been thoroughly unimpressed with thus far), and if all we have are those three guys to start training camp with in August, I'm going to be very concerned. Yeah, we're both big Mewelde guys, but he's been injury-prone and attitude-prone, and as talented as he is, I don't think he has the potential to be anything more than a poor man's Brian Westbrook. Which is fine, but he's not the guy you want carrying the load. Potential and talent have never been questioned with Onterrio, but a guy who slipped to the 4th round because of pot, is given every opportunity in the world to succeed in Minnesota and STILL gets busted two more times with it, obviously doesn't get it and never will. It's not a matter of IF he'll get busted a third time, but when. Onterrio, you can a) be a Pro-Bowl player and make millions of dollars playing a game, or b) you can smoke dope and throw everything away. 99.9% of us take option a). Onterrio? When he's done hot-boxing the bathroom and munching on sour cream & onion chips he may get back to you with an answer. And Fason? Yeah nothing more than a 3rd stringer.
So that leaves us with the following:
FREE AGENCY:
Shaun Alexander and Edgerrin James are the two big names, but neither will be available. The Colts will franchise Edge again this year, and I just don't see the Seahawks letting Alexander walk with all he's done this season. And even IF Shaun A is available, I'm not sure I"d want to give him the contract he'll want (I'll save my explanation for if he does become available). Thanks to www.theredzone.org (god forbid ESPN or NFL.com would list such a thing) I was able to peruse the potential free agent RB's for '06 and after the Big 2 it's pretty slim pickin's. Names that jump out are Ahman Green, DeShaun Foster, Jamal Lewis, Najeh Davenport, and Chester Taylor, none of whom get me very excited, unless you could get Lewis on the cheap.
DRAFT:
Assuming the Vikes were to lose their last 2 games, and the Dolphins would win out, the Vikes could pick no higher than 15th. E!SPN draft guru Mel Kiper doesn't rank players until they declare for the draft, so he hasn't factored in Reggie Bush and a strong junior RB class yet. The only senior RB he has ranked in the 1st round is Memphis Sr. DeAngelo Williams, who will probably be a top 10 pick. Bush, his teammate Lendale White, and the U's Laurence Maroney are locks to declare, and if guys like Louisville Jr Michael Bush, and Scony's Brian Calhoun declare, there could be as many as 5 or 6 backs with 1st round grades. If you're the Vikes, and you're picking between 15-22, that means there's probably going to be a good RB available, and if Maroney, Williams, or White is there, I think you gotta take him. Or we could just take a back in the 4th round for the 4th year in a row.
TRADE:
The Daunte-for-Ricky rumor won't quiet down until Daunte has a new home, and this one certainly makes the most sense so far. Linnehan would love to get Daunte down there, and although Ricky would be a risk, he has more potential than anybody you could hope to get for Daunte from another team (also well worth the potential Onterrio/Ricky "Up In Smoke" tour around the league)
Personally, I'd look to the draft first, and if something doesn't work out there, then you look to free agency or trade. The Vikings never seem to make the conventional move, but I would hope running back will be a top priority in the offseason.