Sharpening the Horns - A Minnesota Vikings Franchise (Madden 25)

[Shmanky13]

Hello everyone, I am starting this Franchise mostly for my own records but I would appreciate anyone that would follow it as well. I have already started on this franchise on Madden 25 and I am in year 2. I have been recording almost everything in a notebook from the draft to game results from around the league. However, I did not record year 1. I have a quick recap of year 1 but that is all. I started writing everything down once the offseason started. But, this has gotten very time consuming so I have decided to use this to record what happens instead. Since I have so much stuff already recorded I will be frequently posting everything I already have written down in my notebook. I'm going to try to get everything on here as soon as possible and once I catch up to where I am I'll start playing games and continuing with the franchise.

The Minnesota Vikings are my favorite NFL team so that's why I chose them. The name Sharpening the Horns comes from the horns on a Viking helmet. I'm in a way "sharpening" the team to try to win a Super Bowl or 5 and then you can also sharpen the horns on the helmet so I thought it fit. This is also my first time doing this on Operation Sports so bear with me if I make any mistakes.

I'm using a tweaked version of a slider set I found. I honestly don't know where I got them. I'm playing on PS3 on All-Madden with 12 minute quarters and 12 second runoff. If you guys like the results I'm getting from games I'd be happy to post the sliders. So, here we go guys I'll start from the Year 1 recap all the way to Season 2 Week 6!

Edit: The first few posts are kind of bad even in my opinion haha but that is just because they were written in a notebook. They get a lot better now that I am caught up and writing as things happen. Hope you guys enjoy!

[Shmanky13]

2013 Season Year 1 Recap

In year 1 we had a 10-6 record just like the 2012 season. And also like the 2012 season we were eliminated from the playoffs by the Green Bay Packers in the Wildcard round. This is the Vikings second straight year of making the playoffs.

Team Leaders

Passing: QB Christian Ponder 3,081 yards, 15 TD, 35 INT, 47% Completion, 215 yards rushing, 3 TD

I know the number of interceptions is crazy, I fixed this in Year 2

Rushing: HB Adrian Peterson 314 att, 2,062 yards, 13 TD, 2 Fumbles, 34 receptions, 377 yards, 1 TD

Peterson doesn't miss a beat this season as he records another 2,000 yard season. This is the first time in NFL history a player has recorded 2 2,000 yard seasons.

Receiving: WR Greg Jennings 57 rec, 835 yards, 7 TD, Longest Reception 58 yards, 293 YAC, 1 att, 42 yards rushing, 0 TD

(R) WR Cordarrelle Patterson 49 rec, 639 yards, 4 TD, Longest Reception 61 yards, 214 YAC, 1 att, 3 yards rushing, 1 TD

TE Kyle Rudolph 30 rec, 315 yards, 3 TD, Longest Reception 37 yards, 86 YAC

Greg Jennings has a pretty good first year as a Viking with 7 TD catches. WR Jerome Simpson was benched in the middle of the season after multiple dropped passes. Rookie WR Cordarrelle Patterson was thrusted into the starting role and he had an average rookie season. TE Kyle Rudolph was injured for most of the year which is why his numbers took a hit compared to last year.

Defensive: MLB Erin Henderson 99 TAK, 24 TFL, 4 SACK, 3 INT, 2 FF
LE Everson Griffen 38 TAK, 18 TFL, 17 SACK
DT Kevin Williams 35 TAK, 14 TFL, 13 SACK, 2 FFUMB
(R) DT Sharrif Floyd 39 TAK, 11 TFL, 7 SACK, 1 FUMB REC
(R) CB Xavier Rhodes 21 TAK, 5 INT, 2 DEFL, 1 FFUMB
CB A.J Jefferson 41 TAK, 5 INT, 8 DEFL, 1 FFUMB
FS Harrison Smith 31 TAK, 1 TFL, 4 INT, 1 DEFL, 1 TD

The defense played pretty well most of the year. Everson Griffen was the starter at LE after we traded Brian Robison to the Bengals and he had a fantastic season. Kevin Williams showed that he isn't ready to retire yet with 13 sacks. Rookies Sharrif Floyd and Xavier Rhodes also made a great impact as rookies. Harrison Smith was injured for a good chunk of the season, but still posted good numbers.

Kicking: K Blair Walsh 35 FGM, 37 FGA, 97%, Longest 60, 33 XPM, 33 XPA, 9/9 from 50+

Blair Walsh continues his success only missing one field goal all season and he is still perfect in his career from 50+.

Punting: (R) P Jeff Locke 56 punts, 2,518 yards, 45 yard avg, 12 downed in 20, Longest 59 yards

The Vikings 5th round pick posts a nice rookie season.

Kick Return: (R) WR Cordarrelle Patterson 26 returns, 965 yards, 2 TD, Longest 104 yards, 37.1 AVG

Punt Return: CB Marcus Sherels 28 returns, 567 yards, 20.3 AVG, 1 TD, Longest 84 yards

The Vikings return game is very solid with rookie Cordarrelle Patterson returning 2 for TDs and Marcus Sherels also running one for a TD.

Season Transactions:
Traded LE Brian Robison to Cincinnati Bengals for 2014 5th Round Pick

I felt like Everson Griffen gave us a younger and better option at LE, also Robison's contract ended at the end of the season so it was nice to get a 5th round pick for him.

SUPERBOWL: Seahawks vs. Ravens - Seahawks Win

The Baltimore Ravens return to the Super Bowl and Russell Wilson leads a very talented Seahawks team as well. In the end the Seahawks came out on top.

[Shmanky13]

2014 Offseason

Free Agency

Cut QB Matt Cassel

Team Needs
Backup/Potential Starter QB
Backup HB
Backup WR
Backup/Starter LG
Backup C
Starter LE
Backup RE
Backup/Starter LOLB
3 Backup CB

Free Agent Offers
Everson Griffen LE - Signed, 5 Years $41M
Desmond Bishop MLB - Rejected, Signed with Oakland
AJ Jefferson CB - Signed, 3 Years $7.41M
George Johnson RE - Signed, 1 Year $850k
Cobi Hamilton WR - Signed, 1 Year $560k
Joe Madsen C - Rejected, Signed with St. Louis
Marcus Trufant CB - Signed, 1 Year $1M
Marcus Sherels CB - Signed, 1 Year $1.2M
Andre Ellington HB - Signed, 1 Year $520k

Team Needs after Free Agency
Backup/Starter QB
Backup HB
Backup WR
Backup/Starter LG
Backup C
Backup/Starter LOLB
Backup/Starter ROLB
Backup CB
Backup/Starter SS

[Shmanky13]

2014 Offseason

Minnesota Vikings Draft Picks
9 Picks Total
1 first round pick, 1 second round pick, 2 third round picks, 1 fourth round pick, 2 fifth round picks, 1 sixth round pick, 1 seventh round pick

NFL Draft - Round 1 Recap
Pick	Team	Player	Pos	Ht	Wt
1.1	Oakland Raiders	Braxton Miller, Ohio State	QB	6'2"	215
1.2	Arizona Cardinals	Jake Matthews, Texas A&M	LT	6'5"	305
1.3	Cleveland Browns	Johnny Manziel, Texas A&M	QB	6'1"	200
1.4	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	Jadaveon Clowney, South Carolina	RE	6'6"	274
1.5	Detroit Lions	David Yankey, Stanford	LG	6'5"	311
1.6	Tennessee Titans	Billy Turner, North Dakota State	LT	6'6"	311
1.7	St. Louis Rams	Teddy Bridgewater, Louisville	QB	6'3"	218
1.8	Miami Dolphins	Marqise Lee, USC	WR	6'0"	195
1.9	Kansas City Chiefs	C.J Mosley, Alabama	MLB	6'2"	232
1.10	Dallas Cowboys	Steven Kurfehs, UTSA	ROLB	6'2"	230
1.11	New York Jets	Taylor Martinez, Nebraska	QB	6'1"	210
1.12	Cincinnati Bengals	Jackson Jeffcoat, Texas	RE	6'5"	245
1.13	Atlanta Falcons	Trevor Reilly, Utah	RE	6'5"	245
1.14	Jacksonville Jaguars	Derek Carr, Fresno State	QB	6'3"	210
1.15	Houston Texans	De'Anthony Thomas, Oregon	HB	5'9"	176
1.16	New York Giants	Trey Hopkins, Texas	LG	6'4"	302
1.17	Chicago Bears	Gabe Ikard, Oklahoma	C	6'3"	298
1.18	San Diego Chargers	David Fales, San Jose St	QB	6'3"	220
1.19	Carolina Panthers	Josh Huff, Oregon	WR	5'11"	205
1.20	Philadelphia Eagles TRADED Detroit Lions	Austin S Jenkins, Washington	TE	6'6"	266
1.21	Buffalo Bills	Ryan Shazier, Ohio State	LOLB	6'2"	222
1.22	Minnesota Vikings	Christian Jones, Florida State	ROLB	6'4"	232
1.23	Indianapolis Colts	La' El Collins, LSU	LT	6'5"	321
1.24	New Orleans Saints	Ed Reynolds, Stanford	FS	6'2"	205
1.25	Denver Broncos	A.J McCarron, Alabama	QB	6'4"	214
1.26	Pittsburgh Steelers TRADED Tennessee Titans	Ed Stinson, Alabama	LE	6'4"	292
1.27	St.Louis Rams TRADED New York Jets	Brandon Webb, Oklahoma St	LG	6'3"	326
1.28	San Francisco 49ers	John Hubert, Kansas St	HB	5'7"	191
1.29	Green Bay Packers TRADED Tampa Bay Buccaneers	Jack Mewhort, Ohio State	LT	6'7"	308
1.30	New England Patriots TRADED Baltimore Ravens	Morgan Moses, Virginia	LT	6'6"	325
1.31	New England Patriots TRADED Philadelphia Eagles	Sammy Watkins, Clemson	WR	6'1"	205
1.32	Seattle Seahawks	Kevin Graf, USC	RT	6'6"	300

Minnesota Vikings Drafted Players
1. ROLB #7 Christian Jones, Florida State
2. SS #6 Craig Loston, LSU
3. CB #14 Ifo Ekpre-Olomu, Oregon
3. QB #10 Tajh Boyd, Clemson
4. LG #56 Xavier Su'a Filo, UCLA
5. LOLB #57 Lamin Barrow, LSU
5. WR #16 Tevin Reese, Baylor
6. C #76 David Wang, Virginia Tech
7. HB #3 Jeff Scott, Ole Miss

[DaFranchise14]

Man 35 ints for Ponder

[Shmanky13]

Quote: Originally Posted by DaFranchise14

Man 35 ints for Ponder

I know haha it was bad. I threw most because his accuracy is pretty bad and my sliders really show accuracy. Its better in year 2


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk - now Free

[Shmanky13]

2014 Pre-Season

2014 NFL Draft Picks Contracts
1. ROLB Christian Jones, Florida State - 4 Years, $8M
2. SS Craig Loston, LSU - 4 Years, $3.56M
3. CB Ifo Ekpre-Olomu, Oregon - 4 Years, $2.6M
3. QB Tajh Boyd, Clemson - 4 Years, $2.6M
4. LG Xavier Su'a Filo, UCLA - 4 Years, $2.48M
5. LOLB Lamin Barrow, LSU - 4 Years, $2.24M
5. WR Tevin Reese, Baylor - 4 Years, $2.24M
6. C David Wang, Virginia Tech - 1 Years, $480k
7. HB Jeff Scott, Ole Miss - 4 Years, $2M

Undrafted Free Agents
HB #36 Evans Okotcha, UTSA - 1 Year, $520k
FB #33 Tre Millard, Oklahoma - 1 Year, $680k
WR #19 DeVante Parker, Louisville - 1 Year, $500k
RE #49 Ben Gardner, Stanford - 1 Year, $500k
DT #99 RaShede Hageman, Minnesota - 1 Year, $450k
LOLB #57 Aaron Hill, Minnesota - 1 Year, $520k
MLB #34 Grant Olson, North Dakota State - 1 Year, $600k

Free Agents
QB Jordan Rodgers, Vanderbilt - 1 Year, $700k
HB Andre Ellington, Clemson - 1 Year, $520k
WR Cobi Hamilton, Arkansas - 1 Year, $560k
TE Julius Thomas, Portland St - 1 Year, $900k
CB Marcus Trufant, Washington St - 1 Year, $1M
FS John Boyett, Oregon - 1 Year, $480k

Week 3 Preseason Cuts Player Comparison

HB Jeff Scott
9 att, 25 yards, 2.8 avg, 0 TD; 3 rec, 14 yards
HB Evans Okotcha
5 att, 15 yards, 3.0 avg, 0 TD; 2 rec, 21 yards INJURED
HB Andre Ellington
17 att, 78 yards, 4.6 avg, 1 TD; 1 rec, 3 yards
WR Cobi Hamilton
1 rec, 26 yards, 0 TD, 14 YAC
WR DeVante Parker
6 rec, 97 yards, 1 TD, 32 YAC
WR Tevin Reese
7 rec, 94 yards, 1 TD, 43 YAC
TE Julius Thomas
3 rec, 45 yards, 0 TD, 13 YAC
RE Ben Gardner
0 TAK, 0 TFL, 0 SACK, 0 FFUMB, 0 FUMBREC
DT RaShede Hageman
0 TAK, 0 TFL, 0 SACK, 0 FFUMB, 0FUMBREC
DT Everett Dawkins
3 TAK, 1 TFL, 1 SACK, 0 FFUMB, O FUMBREC
MLB Grant Olson
2 TAK, 0 TFL, 0 SACK, 0 FFUMB, 0 FUMBREC, 0 INT
ROLB Larry Dean
7 TAK, 0 TFL, 0 SACK, 0 FFUMB, 0 FUMBREC, 0 INT
CB Ifo Ekpre-Olomu
4 TAK, 0 TFL, 0 SACK, 95 downs played
CB Marcus Trufant
5 TAK, 0 TFL, 0 SACK, 1 INT, 89 downs played
SS Craig Loston
9 TAK, 0 TFL, 0 SACK, 0 INT, 1 FFUMB, 90 downs played
SS Mistral Raymond
5 TAK, 0 TFL, 0 SACK, 0 INT, 75 downs played

Week 4 53 man Roster Cutdown Player Comparison

HB Jeff Scott
14 att, 44 yards, 3.1 avg, 0 TD, Longest 11; 4 rec, 23 yards
HB Andre Ellington
23 att, 107 yards, 4.7 avg, 1 TD, Longest 28; 1 rec, 3 yards
WR Tevin Reese
10 rec, 148 yards, 1 TD, 52 YAC, Longest 29
WR DeVante Parker
9 rec, 128 yards, 1 TD, 45 YAC, Longest 61
TE Julius Thomas
8 rec, 110 yards, 1 TD, 40 YAC, Longest 24
DT Everett Dawkins
3 TAK, 1 TFL, 1 SACK, 118 downs played
CB Ifo Ekpre-Olomu
8 TAK, 148 downs played
CB Marcus Trufant
5 TAK, 1 INT, 1 FUMBREC, 140 downs played
CB Marcus Sherels
6 TAK, 1 TFL, 110 downs played

Final Cuts

MLB Grant Olson placed on IR
Cut HB Jeff Scott
Cut WR DeVante Parker
Cut DT Everett Dawkins
Cut CB Marcus Trufant
Cut CB Marcus Sherels

[Shmanky13]

Vikings Trade Jerome Felton to Miami Dolphins

BREAKING: Minnesota Vikings General Manager Rick Spielman has announced the team has traded Pro Bowl fullback Jerome Felton to the Miami Dolphins for a 5th round pick in the 2015 NFL Draft. When asked to comment on the decision he said, "Jerome has had trouble following the league rules regarding performance enhancing drugs, that is not the kind of players we have here in Minnesota. We feel we have guys on this team who can step into his role and we won't miss a beat." Jerome was suspended for the first 3 games of last season because of illegal use of performance enhancing drugs.

The Vikings also announced the re-signing of CB Marcus Sherels who was with the team last year and was cut in Week 4 of the Preseason. The team also released rookie center David Wang and signed fullback Dorin Dickerson to a 1 year, $680k contract.