MINNESOTA SPORTS FAN DAILY: Tuesday, October 17, 2017

MSF Daily: 10/17/17

Teddy Bridgewater Cleared for Practice; His Contract Cleared Up too:

The news of Teddy being cleared to practice with the team today came as no surprise, since it was reported that way last week. It was made official today when the Vikings announced Teddy would hit the practice field on Wednesday.

What we didn’t know is what is happening with Teddy’s contract, after this season. He is due for free agency but there are rules in place that could prevent that if he can’t come back from injury. Ian Rapoport helped us out and it allowed me to write about the possible scenarios. Here is the first part. Click the link to continue to that story.

We Finally Know What Happens With Teddy Bridgewater After 2017

Today was a great day.

Yesterday was a great day too. The Vikings beat the Packers. But, I was again irritated with a question that I’ve been trying to get answers to since the Vikings declined Teddy Bridgewater’s rookie option a year ago.

WHAT HAPPENS WITH TEDDY’S CONTRACT AFTER THE SEASON? Teddy Bridgewater was supposed to be a Free Agent at the end of the season, after the team declined his option, but there was a this “toll rule” that was getting in the way of everything? I was confused and that would be a reoccurring theme on the subject for a long time.

Why was it so confusing? The language in the CBA for the toll rule seems pretty clear. If Teddy isn’t medically cleared and available by the 6th game of the 2017-2018 season, he would return as a Vikings’ employee for 2018-2019. Only the most optimistic had Teddy returning that early so what gives so we should expect a toll right?

Well, It seems that neither the Vikings nor Teddy’s camp would confirm the expectation that his contract would toll to 2018-2019.

My frustration got worse when I started looking for answers…… –READ MORE–


Wolves Roster Set for Wednesday’s Opener in San Antonio:

The Timberwolves open the season on Wednesday and they have now set their roster for it. I am counting down the hours at this point. We will have plenty of coverage before the game comes including some written pieces.

The Spurs will be without Kawhi Leonard which should help the Timberwolves win this game.

Renovated Target Center is Ready to Roll and Star Tribune’s Leila Navidi (Photos) and Michael Rand Took a Tour:


Wisconsin is Still Bitching About the LEGAL Hit on Aaron Rodgers:

Can you believe this nonsense. I guess I can. We really shouldn’t even be surprised. Wisconsin has had an elite quarterback for their professional football team going on 3 decades, between Brett Favre and Aaron Rodgers. Yet, Rodgers gets hurt for the second time in his career and everyone in Green Bay is losing their mind. It’s pretty fun to watch.


Zach Parise has Setback and Leaves Practice After 25 Minutes of Practice:

We have all been waiting for Zach Parise and others to get healthy. The Wild have been playing shorthanded and it looks like it now might be longer than expected. Parise left practice today with apparent back problems 25 minutes into practice. Here is the quote from Bruce Boudreau.

“I don’t know how much of a setback or anything,” Boudreau said. “I know I talked to him before practice, and he felt great. That’s why he was in a red color [jersey] and was ready to go. The next thing I know, somebody told me he went off. I don’t know why he went off. Obviously, something didn’t feel right.”

However, there is some good news on Mikael Granlund. It looks like he might not miss as much time as first expected, Joe Christenson writes. Also, the Wild were so short practice bodies that Assistant Coach, Darby Hendrickson, had to suit up.


Fleck Won’t Name Starting QB for Saturday; Gophers May Seek Medical Redshirt for Antoine Winfield Jr.:

It was a busy Monday in Minnesota Sports and the Gopher Football was no different. Everyone wants to know who PJ Fleck is going to play at QB on Saturday. Well, I think everyone wants Demry Croft to be the QB but Fleck isn’t budging on giving out the secret.

“I’m still thinking [it] through today,” Fleck said Monday. “I won’t announce that. I’m going to keep that in-house.”

“He’s shown in the last two weeks that he can mature and can grow up,” Fleck said. “I’m proud of the effort and progress he’s made.”

I hope he’s doing it for competitive reasons because it seemed pretty clear who the better player was last weekend. Either that, or he still doesn’t trust Croft on, or more likely off, the field.

Minnesota is all rowing this boat in the same direction as you can see in this Star Tribune poll. This picture was taken at about 8:25 PM on Monday night. You can vote yourself here.

In other news, it looks like Antoine Winfield Jr’s injury might be worse than originally expected. The Gophers might be looking for a medical redshirt, according to this report from the Pioneer Press. Winfield Jr is REALLY good. This surprises me a little bit. With his talent and NFL pedigree, I had hopes of  the NFL for Winfield by the time his Redshirt Senior season rolled around.


Nate Mason Mentioned as Preseason Candidate for Nation’s Top Point Guard:

The Bob Cousy Award is given out every season to the nation’s top point guard. On the preseason watch list: Gophers’ Nate Mason. Marcus Fuller has the setup for Nate’s mention. You can also read the rest of the story.

In 2016-17, Mason helped Minnesota to a school-record 16-game turnaround leading the team in scoring (15.2), assists (5.0), steals (1.4), free-throw percentage (80.8) and minutes played (34.5). He was the first player in team history to surpass 500 points and 100 assists in the same season. The Georgia native was also the program’s first All-Big Ten first-team selection since Vincent Grier in 2005.

This is going to be a fun season for winter sports in Minnesota.

MSF Daily by Eric Strack @RealMNSportsFan

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