After starting his career at North Carolina State as a tight end Опции

[zhangzk]

EAGAN D.K. Metcalf Jersey , Minn. (AP) — Garrett Bradbury soon favored a move inside to the offensive line so he could be on the field as much as possible.He started every game over his last three years for the Wolfpack, one of many factors in his selection by the Minnesota Vikings with the 18th overall pick in the NFL draft on Thursday night.“That’s something we pride ourselves in. Every offensive lineman, I think that’s the best trait you can have, durability,” Bradbury said.The Vikings used their first-rounder on an offensive lineman for the first time in seven years. With the front five again their position of greatest need , the Vikings could hardly have had the board fall to them any better. Alabama tackle Jonah Williams, who could wind up as a guard in the NFL, was the first blocker off the board at No. 11 to Cincinnati. Boston College guard Chris Lindstrom went to Atlanta at No. 14.Then the Vikings had their pick of the rest. With the 6-foot-3, 306-pound Bradbury , the Vikings got a natural fit with the inside zone-blocking scheme they’ll be using to try to generate more of a running game and keep the pressure off quarterback Kirk Cousins.Bradbury ran the 40-yard dash in 4.92 seconds at the scouting combine, the third-fastest time among all offensive linemen. He finished the three-cone drill in 7.41 seconds, the fastest of his position group. The endorsement of new offensive adviser Gary Kubiak carried plenty of weight in the room. So did the impression of defensive line coach Andre Patterson from his evaluation of prospects on the other side http://www.seahawksfootballauthentics.com/...ersey-authentic , when he walked in coach Mike Zimmer’s office one day.“He said, ‘Who’s this center from NC State? This guy is a really good football player,'” Zimmer said. “And so that even intrigued me more.”Pat Elflein, who has been the starting center since being Minnesota’s third-round draft pick in 2017, becomes a strong candidate to move to guard, his primary college position. Both general manager Rick Spielman and coach Mike Zimmer stopped short of assigning a position to Bradbury, who was the starting left guard for the Wolfpack as a sophomore before moving to the middle.“We’re just trying to get the best football players in here,” Spielman said.The Vikings did not go with another cornerback. Spielman even joked this week at his pre-draft news conference that his wife told him not to come home if the Vikings were to use that precious first-rounder on another player at the head coach’s favorite position, where Zimmer has helped develop several draft picks into standouts over the last five seasons. This preference became a punch line for fans last year, as the Vikings frequently struggled up front.Now they have an Associated Press All-American and the winner of the Rimington Trophy, awarded to the nation’s best center.“The one thing I know is that he doesn’t play corner, so I can go home tonight,” Spielman said.Quipped Zimmer Gary Jennings Jr. Jersey , smiling: “I was trying to get one.”Last year, the Vikings passed on a deep class of interior offensive linemen to take cornerback Mike Hughes out of Central Florida with the 30th overall pick. Hughes showed plenty of promise , returning an interception for a touchdown in his NFL debut, but he tore the ACL in his left knee six games into his rookie season.With Hughes coming off his injury, Holton Hill suspended for the first four games this year and Trae Waynes entering the final season of his contract, cornerback wouldn’t have been an indulgent selection. But the need up front, after a so-so first season under Cousins, was too glaring to ignore.The only other time in the 13 drafts the Vikings have had with Spielman that they made an offensive lineman their first pick was 2012, when tackle Matt Kalil went to them at No. 4 overall. He made the Pro Bowl as a rookie, but his five-year tenure with the team was mixed at best. That was the first draft with Spielman as the final decision-maker. When he was vice president of player personnel before his promotion, Spielman shared authority with the head coach.The Vikings have only used a first-round selection on an offensive lineman three times in the past 30 years: Kalil, Bryant McKinnie (2002) and Todd Steussie (1994). They were each picked for at least one Pro Bowl. Two of the three others taken in the first round in Vikings history, Randall McDaniel (1988) and Ron Yary (1968) http://www.seahawksfootballauthentics.com/...ersey-authentic , are Pro Football Hall of Fame members.With 50th overall pick in the second round on Friday night, the Vikings could get another starting-caliber offensive lineman. Florida tackle Jawaan Taylor and Oklahoma tackle Cody Ford, both widely expected to be first-rounders, remained available. So did Kansas State tackle Dalton Risner, who could wind up as a guard. EAGAN, Minn. (AP) — As a ninth-year veteran on an expiring contract with a team in a tight salary cap situation, tight end Kyle Rudolph has no guarantee he’ll get to continue his career with the Minnesota Vikings.That so-far-unfulfilled desire for clarity on his football future has not stopped him from making spring workouts a priority.“I could have easily skipped optional practice, but that’s not what a leader of this team does. These guys expect to see me out here each and every day, and I’m going to do that,” Rudolph said, later adding: “I don’t know what kind of example it would set if I said I wanted to be here, and I wasn’t here.”Carrying a $7.625 million charge against the cap, Rudolph has declined to take an outright pay cut. He confirmed Wednesday that the Vikings have offered him a five-year extension that would reduce his 2019 salary in exchange for a longer-term deal Ugo Amadi Jersey , but his agent, Brian Murphy, and Vikings chief negotiator Rob Brzezinski have not reached an agreement to date.If there’s a stalemate, Rudolph would be in danger of being traded or released. Such a move would not cost the team any dead money against the cap, but Rudolph said he didn’t anticipate the situation lingering until training camp.“They’re working extremely hard to get something done, and with that being said there’s plenty of other teams that are interested as well,” Rudolph said.To sign rookie center Garrett Bradbury, their first-round draft pick from North Carolina State, the Vikings had to restructure the contract of linebacker Eric Kendricks earlier this month.“We’re in a tough situation. Everybody knows that,” said Rudolph, a two-time Pro Bowl pick who was drafted by the Vikings in the second round in 2011.Rudolph was in New York over the weekend to receive an award for community service. He took a 6 a.m. flight on Tuesday for Minneapolis so he could arrive at the facility in time to be on the field for the first organized team practice of the spring.“I get to play a game for a living,” Rudolph said, later adding: “The business side will take care of itself. I don’t have to worry about that.”Coincidentally or not http://www.clevelandbrownsteamonline.com/s...takitaki-jersey , the Vikings drafted tight end Irv Smith Jr. in the second round out of Alabama last month. But as long as they can find cap space for Rudolph they’ll certainly find room in the offense for both players in an attempt to give quarterback Kirk Cousins more viable options in the passing game.“It’s exciting. It’s an element that we’ve never had here in my nine years,” Rudolph said. “It forces defenses to play with three linebackers, and that allows us to control the game.”Said Cousins: “Kyle has done so many good things for so long, so to have him out there is a great sense of comfort. Then you add Irv’s youth and athleticism, that’s a great plus. No matter how you cut it, you’ve got five players who are eligible, and you want to get the best five.”