swede700 Posted July 7, 2020 Share Posted July 7, 2020 (edited) On 7/5/2020 at 5:21 PM, Snake Plissken said: Wright is right. And as far as I'm concerned, Orlando Thomas (May he RIP) was never more than a mediocre corner at best. His rookie year was his best year and then got worse as he went along. Nate Wright...and it's not even close as far as I'm concerned. And Foreman and Sharockman are pretty much no-brainers for 44 and 45. Edited July 7, 2020 by swede700 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted July 7, 2020 Share Posted July 7, 2020 Vikings that have worn the number 46: Earsell Mackbee (1965 - 1969) Alfred Anderson (1984 - 1991) Derek Tennell (1992 - 1993) John Gerak (1994 - 1995) Cullen Loeffler (2004 - 2014) Doing some catching up. The earliest Viking to wear the number 46 was cornerback Earsell Mackbee. Mackbee, who was an Air Force enlisted man before going to college, was an undrafted free agent and signed with the Vikings before the 1965 season. He played sparingly as a rookie, but then started all 56 of the Vikings’ games over the next four seasons. He was quite the ballhawk, as he collected 15 interceptions in those four seasons for the Vikings. He was injured in the Vikings’ loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl IV, and retired from the NFL after that season, having played just five years in the NFL. The number then stayed on the shelf until 1984, when it was taken by running back Alfred Anderson. A third-round pick of the Vikings in the 1984 NFL Draft, Anderson had a very strong rookie season for the very, very bad 1984 Vikings, rushing for 773 yards and being named to the NFL’s All-Rookie Team. However, he never really replicated that success, as he wouldn’t rush for more than 347 yards in any of his other seasons with the team. In his eight-year Vikings career, he ran for 2,374 yards and 22 touchdowns while adding another 1,042 yards and five touchdowns as a receiver. Have to give a mention for this one to long-time long snapper Cullen Loeffler, who took over the role in 2004 and held onto it for eleven seasons, firing the ball back on kicks and punts in 171 of the Vikings’ 176 games during that time. I don’t remember a whole lot of bad snaps during Loeffler’s time with the team, and isn’t that pretty much the best thing you can say about a long snapper? While the number 46 is an underutilized number in Viking lore, it's still got some history. I'm giving the nod to Mackbee! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swede700 Posted July 7, 2020 Share Posted July 7, 2020 Anderson was a solid backup to Nelson, at the very least, but I'll give the nod to Loeffler. Long snappers do need some love. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted July 7, 2020 Share Posted July 7, 2020 1 hour ago, swede700 said: Anderson was a solid backup to Nelson, at the very least, but I'll give the nod to Loeffler. Long snappers do need some love. Do they? Really? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swede700 Posted July 7, 2020 Share Posted July 7, 2020 30 minutes ago, Virginia Viking said: Do they? Really? Yep...Long Snappers and Fullbacks...the most underappreciated positions in all of football. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted July 9, 2020 Share Posted July 9, 2020 Vikings that have worn the number 47: Justin Rowland (1961) **** James (1965) Ron Groce (1976) Tim Baylor (1979) Joey Browner (1983 - 1991) Kevin McDermott (2015 - 2018) No discussion. Joey Browner was a feared safety in the Ronnie Lott mold. Six time pro bowl member, 4 times Al-Pro, NFL All-Decade Team 1980's, 50 greatest Vikings, Vikings Ring of Honor. He also gathered in 37 interceptions in his career. Browner gets the nod...maybe the whole head!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wcblack34 Posted July 10, 2020 Share Posted July 10, 2020 Browner was better than at least 20% of the players in the Hall of Fame. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted July 10, 2020 Share Posted July 10, 2020 Vikings that have worn the number 48: Larry Marshall (1974) Sammy Johnson (1976 - 1978) Najee Mustafaa (1987 - 1991) Matt Cercone (2000) Matt Katula (2011) Matt Asiata (2012) Zach Line (2013 - 2016) This is a tough number to judge. There are NO standout players wearing 48 for the Vikings. Asiata probably had the greatest impact as a player, but not wearing 48. So, for no particularly good reason other than he last 3 seasons and he had unmet potential, the nod goes to Zach Line. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted July 10, 2020 Share Posted July 10, 2020 11 hours ago, wcblack34 said: Browner was better than at least 20% of the players in the Hall of Fame. Ronnie Lott, I think, sucked up all the HOF votes for a safety in that era. For some reason, HOF voters don't like to induct safety's very often. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swede700 Posted July 10, 2020 Share Posted July 10, 2020 12 hours ago, wcblack34 said: Browner was better than at least 20% of the players in the Hall of Fame. But his playing style would totally be banned in today's NFL...although he might have had the strongest hands I've ever seen, especially compared to Adrian's handshake. He could pull down players easily with just one hand. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swede700 Posted July 10, 2020 Share Posted July 10, 2020 (edited) 1 hour ago, Virginia Viking said: Vikings that have worn the number 48: Larry Marshall (1974) Sammy Johnson (1976 - 1978) Najee Mustafaa (1987 - 1991) Matt Cercone (2000) Matt Katula (2011) Matt Asiata (2012) Zach Line (2013 - 2016) This is a tough number to judge. There are NO standout players wearing 48 for the Vikings. Asiata probably had the greatest impact as a player, but not wearing 48. So, for no particularly good reason other than he last 3 seasons and he had unmet potential, the nod goes to Zach Line. I'll just say Najee Mustafaa just because I liked saying his name. Most may remember him as Reggie Rutland, however. He had 2 97yd int returns for TDs in his career, one of which was with the Vikings and held that team record until Xavier broke it a few years ago. Edited July 10, 2020 by swede700 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cearbhall Posted July 10, 2020 Share Posted July 10, 2020 1 hour ago, swede700 said: I'll just say Najee Mustafaa just because I liked saying his name. Most may remember him as Reggie Rutland, however. He had 2 97yd int returns for TDs in his career, one of which was with the Vikings and held that team record until Xavier broke it a few years ago. Thank you for the that nugget (that I bolded). I didn't remember Mustafaa, but I do remember Rutland. And with that info I would say Mustafaa takes this one for reasons more than his current name. I mean, it is still mostly because the weak competition at the number but given the level of competition Mustafaa easily deserves the honor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Krauser Posted July 10, 2020 Share Posted July 10, 2020 (edited) Yeah, Rutland/Mustafaa was a good CB2, part of the superb Vikings pass defense in 1989 (and the ‘88 playoffs). Zach Line has been a solid FB for the Saints but didn’t do much in Minnesota. Give it to Najee. Edited July 10, 2020 by Krauser Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted July 10, 2020 Share Posted July 10, 2020 I guess I want to hurry up and get out of the 40's, so let's make it two numbers on Friday!! Vikings that have worn the number 49: Dale Hackbart (1966 - 1970) Ed Marinaro (1972 - 1975) Keith Nord (1979 - 1985) Adam Walker (1987) Travis Curtis (1989) Obafemi Ayanbadejo (1998 - 1999) Richard Owens (2005) Tony Richardson (2006 - 2007) It amazes me that the Vikings can go 13 years without a number being used. But, Tony Richardson was the last player to don that number. Richardson was a world class blocker, and he helped Chester Taylor (2006) and Adrian Peterson (2007) have 1,000 plus yard seasons. Dale Hackbart was on the 1969 NFL Championship team. Yet, his most famous football situation happened when he was a member of the Denver Broncos. He brought a lawsuit against the Cincinnati Bengals and running back Boobie Clark for play, he felt, was designed to intentionally cause him injury. That leaves Ed Marinaro. He was drafted in the 2nd round by the Vikings in 1972 out of Cornell University. Yes, you read that right...Cornell. In 1971, Marinaro was runner up in Heisman Trophy voting to Pat Sullivan. He never became a starter with the Vikings, but did contribute, and played in two of the Vikings Super Bowl appearances. He is best known as an actor and was a part of the award winning ensemble cast of the TV show, Hill Street Blues. I am going to give the nod to Tony Richardson, as he knew his role as a non glamorous lead blocker, and performed his role very, very well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swede700 Posted July 10, 2020 Share Posted July 10, 2020 (edited) Can I give bonus points to Marinaro as my aunt went out with him a couple of times while he was a Viking? She didn't know who he was. And Obafemi was one of the numerous Vikings that went to Baltimore after Billick became their HC and now is the head of some mobile health tech company out of Baltimore. Edited July 10, 2020 by swede700 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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