DAILY CLIPS

SUNDAY, JANUARY 6, 2019 LOCAL NEWS: Sunday, January 6, 2019

Star Tribune

Vikings' window to win is open ... for now By Ben Goessling http://www.startribune.com/vikings-window-to-win-is-open-for-now/503955142/

Vikings apologists ignore the smell coming from their team By Patrick Reusse http://www.startribune.com/vikings-apologists-ignore-the-smell-coming-from-their-team/503954652/

Mike Zimmer seeking more from Vikings' 2018 newcomers in Year 2 By Sid Hartman http://www.startribune.com/mike-zimmer-seeking-more-from-vikings-2018-newcomers-in-year-2/503954322/

Are the Vikings headed up or down? By Andrew Krammer and Michael Rand http://www.startribune.com/are-the-vkings-headed-up-or-down/503954162/

Pioneer Press

Charley Walters: Vikings might have competition for Mike Mularkey as offensive coordinator By Charley Walters https://www.twincities.com/2019/01/05/charley-walters-vikings-might-have-competition-for-mike-mularkey-as-offensive- coordinator/

1500 ESPN

Putting odds on which Vikings free agents are likely to return By Matthew Coller http://www.1500espn.com/vikings-2/2019/01/putting-odds-vikings-free-agents-likely-return/

PUBLICATION: Star Tribune DATE: 1/6/19

Vikings' window to win is open ... for now

By Ben Goessling

Nearby, teammates cleaned out their lockers at the end of a season that will perhaps be remembered most for an opportunity missed. Xavier Rhodes was asked to stop and ponder, at least for a brief second, the idea that time will not wait on these Vikings.

“No, man,” the veteran cornerback said when asked if he was worried about the age of the Vikings defense. “We’re fine like wine.”

Aging might bring benefits in viticulture, but it’s tended not to do so in the NFL. And as the Vikings try again to fortify their offensive line and chart a direction forward with their third permanent offensive coordinator in three years, they will also have to be mindful of the fact their window to win — at least with the core players they have acquired, developed and paid handsomely — isn’t going to be any wider than it is right now.

Though only turns 31 this year — still relatively young for a quarterback — Riley Reiff will be 31 in December, and Mike Remmers turns 30 in April. Kyle Rudolph will be 30 in November, and Adam Thielen — who was 26 when he became a starter — turns 29 in August.

On defense, turns 32 in December. Linval Joseph will be 31 in October and Harrison Smith turns 30 in February. Sheldon Richardson, who is scheduled to hit free agency in March, also turns 29 in November. Rhodes — who played 90 percent of the Vikings’ defensive snaps in 2017 but dropped to 74 percent because of injuries in 2018 — turns 29 in June.

Pro Football Reference’s Approximate Value metric, which attempts to put a number valuation on every player’s season since 1950, can provide a general idea of how a certain group of players performed in relation to another.

From 2000 to ’17, 834 defensive players posted an AV of 12 or better in a season; in other words, those players were generally among the top 50 defensive players in the league each year. Only 221 of those players were in their 30s, and just 95 were 32 or older.

Thanks to such quarterbacks as Tom Brady, Drew Brees, Peyton Manning, Ben Roethlisberger and Brett Favre, it’s slightly more common to have top-end offensive players in their 30s; 235 of the 751 players with AVs of 12 or better were in their 30s, with 119 of them at least 32. The numbers make painfully clear, though, the point that aging players tend to feel most pointedly when contract negotiations come around: The NFL is a young man’s league.

In each of the past three years, the Vikings have suffered from late-season defensive lapses that came either at the cost of their postseason prospects or a potential trip to the . In 2016, even after falling from 5-0 to 7-6, their playoff chances were still good enough that Adrian Peterson returned from injured reserve for a Week 15 home game. The Vikings gave up 759 yards and 72 points in back-to-back losses to the Colts and Packers, who won the division at 10-6 as the Vikings slipped to 8-8.

The 2017 season saw the Vikings defense allow 55 points in its last six playoff quarters, and last Sunday, after they had pulled within three points of the Bears late in the third quarter, the Vikings defense allowed Chicago to convert five third downs on a 16-play, 75-yard drive that consumed 9:05 and effectively ended their season.

Though it’s difficult to know precisely what role fatigue played in the late-season lapses, it doesn’t figure to play a smaller role as the defense ages.

“We didn’t play great,” coach said of the Vikings’ 2018 defense. “We got back to playing pretty darn good there for the most part, but there’s still some areas we have to get better there, too.”

Though the Vikings could face a springtime decision on Griffen (scheduled to count $11.9 million against the 2019 salary cap), they are still likely at least a year or two from wholesale changes on defense. And while only five teams have more cap space committed to their 2019 roster than the $179.5 million the Vikings have tied up in contracts for next year, according to sources with access to NFLPA salary data, the team’s pay-as-you-go structure means relatively few cap dollars are tied up in signing bonuses paid years ago to veterans. That allows the Vikings the flexibility to release or restructure the contracts of aging players.

That said, they have seen up close how difficult it is to maintain a dominant defense over time. The Seahawks team that won two consecutive NFC titles in 2013 and 2014 had already started to replace defensive starters by the time it beat the Vikings in the 2015 NFC wild-card playoffs, and of the mainstays on the “Legion of Boom,” only linebacker Bobby Wagner started more than four games for the team that beat out the Vikings for one of the NFC’s two wild-card spots this year.

With Zimmer and General Manager Rick Spielman headed into the final years of their contracts and standout players who have steadily moved into the primes of their careers, the Vikings can’t count on things being the same forever. Their efforts to reassert themselves in 2019 will be aimed, in part, at making the most of a crop of talent that doesn’t figure to ripen much more than it already has.

“[The reason for the drop-off in 2018] could be the expectation level [after 2017] and everybody believed it,” Zimmer said. “It could be a lot of different things, but we’re going to get it back.” PUBLICATION: Star Tribune DATE: 1/6/19

Vikings apologists ignore the smell coming from their team

By Patrick Reusse

You knew this was coming. First, the Vikings would be grilled in proper fashion for last Sunday’s putrid home- field effort vs. the by the local sports media and the legion of fans known as the Purple Faithful. That would last for a couple of days, and then here would come the excuses.

This decade has been so bad for the Twins, and history has been so bad for the Timberwolves, that they are not deemed worthy of excuses for their failures by either the media or the fans.

The Wild doesn’t even need excuses. Win, lose or get a free point, the locals still will arrive in two groups for the next game: Hunky and Dory.

The excuse-making for the Vikings, though: It’s ridiculous.

The team did have a sad and shocking event when offensive line coach Tony Sparano, 56, died from a heart issue right before the start of training camp. Terrible, yes, but I have to think that a football lifer such as Sparano himself would have scoffed at the idea the Vikings’ vomitous effort against Chicago could be linked to the death of an admired assistant coach 23 weeks earlier.

And Sparano’s death is the only excuse that comes with even a hint of credence.

Injuries? The Vikings’ toll was nothing out of the NFL norm. The Bears came to Minnesota with key injuries and, by halftime, no real incentive to win, and yet they intimidated Kirk Cousins and shoved the rest of Zim’s paper tigers all over Zygi Wilf’s gold mine.

You might have noticed Rochelle Olson’s Star Tribune report that the dome’s artificial turf is going to be replaced after only 2½ years. The advertised reason is wear; I’m saying the real reason was that the Vikings left such a stench in that turf last Sunday that it could never be removed.

South St. Paul in the ’70s when the wind was blowing in the wrong direction through the stockyards …. that was what the Vikings created while falling from 13-3 to 8-7-1.

There were those critical injuries, of course. As we were reminded just the other day, Chad Beebe was out for five games.

PLUS THREE

Scattergunning from the catbird’s seat (whatever that means):

• If Mike Zimmer wants a fired-up, demanding veteran to fill the Sparano void as offensive line coach, it couldn’t be easier: Hire Mike Tice (if he’d leave retirement in Seattle).

• Richard Pitino will reach the NCAA tournament for the second time in six seasons at Minnesota and then take a job in the ACC or SEC in April.

• The Wolves will finish a half-dozen games out of playoffs, Tom Thibo•deau will be fired, and he will be an NBA head coach (not interim) again within two years. PUBLICATION: Star Tribune DATE: 1/6/19

Mike Zimmer seeking more from Vikings' 2018 newcomers in Year 2

By Sid Hartman

After the Vikings missed the playoffs at 8-7-1, coach Mike Zimmer said that it’s a big adjustment for free agents in their first year with a new team.

“I’ve always said, ‘Any free agent that comes in usually plays a lot better his second year than he does his first year,’ ” Zimmer said this past week. “And I don’t know why that’s the case. I think if you look throughout the times, you can even talk about some of the guys we have now. I think Linval Joseph played a lot better his second year. Captain Munnerlyn, when he was here, played a lot better his second year. So, a lot of these guys that come in here as free agents, it takes them a year to get acclimated, whatever the situation is.”

As such, Zimmer expects quarterback Kirk Cousins to be better in his second season with the Vikings.

“He was in the same system for six years. He had to come in here and learn a new system, new team. New coaches,” Zimmer said.

“I have a lot of confidence in Kirk. I’ve talked to him. I’ve talked to some other people about how I can help him better and things that I can do moving forward and so he’s going to come out and play really good next year. He came in here and was a great teammate. He studied real hard, he worked extremely hard at everything he was trying to get done. I do think there’s some areas he could get better at and I’m sure he’d tell you the same thing.”

Zimmer also thinks that this year’s rookies and other free agents will be improved in 2019.

“I think all the guys that came in here last year will do better next year. Some of the draft picks, I do think that a lot of these guys ended up playing for us,” Zimmer said. “Holton Hill, he’ll play better for next year. Jalyn Holmes will play better next year. I think [Chad] Beebe will play better next year. I think a lot of these guys will come in here and play better. And, we’ve got to help them. We have to coach them. We have to coach better. We’ve got to help them be better.”

Certainly, the Vikings’ season was a disappointment, but Zimmer pointed out that there were positives from it.

“Defensively again, we were top five in the league. We were No. 1 in third-down defense, No. 1 in red zone, No. 1 in sacks per play,” Zimmer said. “There were a lot of good things that went on that way. I still think we have a talented football team, and we just need to play a little bit better.”

The Vikings faced a lot of adversity in 2018. Offensive line coach Tony Sparano died right before training camp. Defensive end Everson Griffen missed five games to address his mental health. Offensive coordinator John DeFilippo was fired late in the season.

“It might have affected some ways,” Zimmer said. “Most always, teams have some kind of issues that happen. We need to overcome them better. A coach called me the other day and said: ‘You kind of had a perfect storm going on there. You know you lost Pat Shurmur to be the head coach of the Giants, you had a new quarterback and then you have to hire a new offensive coordinator. And then you lose Sparano.’ Kind of like a perfect storm that happened.”

“You know, you don’t think about it at the time, about all the things, the different changes. You just think about how you’re going to get better. Maybe that had a little bit to do with it.”

The Vikings also had many more injuries to deal with this season.

“We lost quite a few more games for starters this year than we did a year ago. And that is a factor,” Zimmer said. “Defensively, we didn’t have anybody hurt last year and we had quite a few guys hurt this year. But, you know, it doesn’t matter, it’s about wins and losses, really, at the end of the day.”

While players don’t return until April when workouts begin, Zimmer has already started working on 2019.

“[I’ve started with the] evaluation of our team,” he said. “Start working on figuring out what I have to do with the coaches. Where we go from there. It’s funny, I’ve got notes that I wrote down the last few days about things I’m thinking we need to do different, we need to change, we need to look at, evaluate, kind of a comprehensive view of what we’re trying to do.”

With several key players — defensive tackle Sheldon Richardson, linebacker Anthony Barr and running back Latavius Murray among them — entering free agency, there could be some key roster moves in the offseason.

“I let Rick [Spielman] and Rob [Brzezinski] handle all that salary cap stuff,” Zimmer said. “We like those players. I’m especially fond of all three guys you mentioned. If we can afford them, we’d love to have them. You never know what the market is going to be.”

When asked if he is considering changes to his coaching staff, Zimmer said: “There’s a possibility. I’m still looking at it. It’s not just about changing coaches, it’s about getting better. It’s nice to say, ‘We’ll fire this guy,’ or ‘We’ll do this,’ and there is no one better out there. I don’t think you fire a guy just to fire a guy. You have to make sure you have somebody better.”

JOTTINGS

• Vikings General Manager Rick Spielman on navigating the salary cap for the 2019 season: “We don’t have a lot of room right now, but our cap planning has always been planned out over the next couple of years. I’m very fortunate to have guys like George Paton and Rob Brzezinski that work here, and we have a great team here working together.”

• Pro Football Focus rated the starting quarterbacks for the 2018 regular season and had the Vikings’ Kirk Cousins ranked No. 14. New Orleans’ Drew Brees was No. 1, with Kansas City’s Patrick Mahomes No. 2. Green Bay’s Aaron Rodgers was No. 6. On Cousins, PFF wrote, “Only [Houston Texans QB DeShaun] Watson finished the year with more pressured dropbacks than Cousins. In weeks 1-9, Cousins ranked third in passer rating from a pressured pocket (91.5). In weeks 10-17, he dropped to 20th (69.5).” … The Vikings didn’t land a single player on the PFF rankings for the top 25 offensive linemen this season.

• Jacob Clark, a Rockwall, Texas, native and the Gophers’ top quarterback recruit, will be on campus this month. He told Gophers Illustrated, “I’m all set on Minnesota and I’ll see what I can do with getting some top targets to commit as well.” … Damarion Williams, the 5-11 cornerback out of Highland Community College in Kansas, is one of five junior college players who coach P.J. Fleckexpects to play for the Gophers in 2019.

• The Gophers men’s basketball team looks to be set up to go on a little run. Following Thursday’s victory at Wisconsin, the next four games are against unranked teams, and three are at home: vs. Maryland, vs. Rutgers, at Illinois and vs. Penn State.

• All of the baseball publications have shortstop Royce Lewis as the consensus No. 1 prospect for the Twins. The top overall pick in the 2017 draft, Lewis hit .292 with 74 RBI and 83 runs in 2018 as a 19-year-old between low-Class A Cedar Rapids and high-A Fort Myers.

PUBLICATION: Star Tribune DATE: 1/6/19

Are the Vikings headed up or down?

By Andrew Krammer and Michael Rand

A 2018 Vikings season that began with what seemed like legitimate Super Bowl aspirations ended with Minnesota not even making the playoffs. After an 8-7-1 season, there are plenty of questions heading into 2019.

The biggest question, then, is this: Is it more likely the Vikings rebound next season to get back on a championship-contending course, or is this the beginning of a longer slide?

First take: Michael Rand

Well, the Vikings are about eight months away from playing a meaningful game so I’ll start things positive. There are reasons to believe the Vikings at least get back to the playoffs next season.

The two biggest: If they can fix their offensive line, a lot of their problems on that side of the ball will dissipate. And without the burden of sky-high expectations next year, the Vikings might actually achieve more.

On the latter: The Vikings’ best seasons lately (2012, 2015, 2017) have been surprises. Their flops in 2016 and 2018 came with expectations.

Vikings writer Andrew Krammer: It is easier to achieve as an underdog. The Vikings went 1-4 in prime- time games this season, when both the opponent and expectations were greater. But this team should not be considered an underdog in 2019, even while rebounding from this 2018 mess.

It’s still a roster full of blue-chip talent and high-priced contracts. To get back to a championship- contending level, I think you hit it on the head with the offensive line. Left tackle Riley Reiff regressed this season, as did second-year center Pat Elflein. They need better from both and an infusion of talent through free agency and the NFL draft’s first round.

Rand: An offensive lineman in the first round? I thought that was outlawed after the 2012 draft. I kid, I kid.

But that was the only time between 2003 and 2018 that the Vikings chose an offensive lineman in the first round of the draft — picking Matt Kalil No. 4 overall. That didn’t work out so great in the long run, in part because Kalil was beset by injuries, but it is shocking to see the Vikings have used exactly one of their 18 first-round picks in the last 16 drafts on an O-lineman.

Another shocking thing I discovered is that outside of QB sneaks, Kirk Cousins scrambled for only three first downs in 2018. He would help a subpar offensive line and struggling offense by tucking and running when necessary next year.

Krammer: The ability to turn a bad situation into a positive play was the big decline from Case Keenum to Cousins. Mike Zimmer talked to Cousins throughout this season about being more reactive to the situation and adjusting when things broke down.

Even though you can do more with Cousins at QB than Keenum, he wasn’t as improvisational. That’s key behind porous protection, which goes back to the offensive line.

Only four other QBs were sacked as much as Cousins (11) in 2 ½ seconds or less: Josh Rosen (17), (14), Deshaun Watson (12) and Ryan Tannehill (11), according to Pro Football Focus. Cousins was sacked that quickly 12 times during his three seasons as Washington’s starter.

Only Watson, as mobile as quarterbacks get, is in the playoffs this month.

Rand: It’s pretty clear that fixing the offensive line is the only way 2019 is going to be better than 2018. That hasn’t been GM Rick Spielman’s strength, but maybe he will learn.

Final word: Krammer

It might come down to keeping Zimmer out of the draft room to prevent another first-round pick at corner.

Jokes aside, Khalil Mack isn’t going anywhere. The Vikings need answers. PUBLICATION: PIONEER PRESS DATE: 1/6/19

Charley Walters: Vikings might have competition for Mike Mularkey as offensive coordinator

By Charley Walters

6:00 pm SIGN UP FOR NEWSLETTERS AND ALERTS MOST POPULAR Wisconsin baby sitter accused of killing boy and giving body to mother Charley Walters: Vikings might have competition for Mike Mularkey as offensive coordinator Young women in pedestrian/vehicle crash went for a walk because they were bored. Now, a community mourns. Letters: Stop smoking on the Green Line Helicopter, K-9 unit track down suspects in I-35 high-speed chase Vikings enter the bounce-back offseason with little salary-cap room Under serious consideration for the Vikings’ offensive coordinator job is Mike Mularkey. But the Vikings might have to compete with the and Jacksonville Jaguars to get the three-time NFL head coach.

Then-Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Mike Mularkey watches from the sidelines against the Houston Texans during the second quarter in Houston on November 18, 2012. (AP Photo/Patric Schneider) Mularkey, 57, played six seasons as a tight end for the Vikings, then was head coach of the Buffalo Bills (2004-05), Jacksonville Jaguars (2012) and Tennessee Titans (2016). A proponent of a running offense and quarterback development, during eight years as a NFL offensive coordinator, his teams compiled a 78-49 record.

Mularkey, who owns a home in Atlanta and interviewed with the Falcons last week, held offensive coordinator positions with the Pittsburgh Steelers, Miami Dolphins and Falcons, and in 2010 was named offensive coordinator of the year by the Sporting News. He also interviewed last week with Jacksonville.

In Atlanta, Mularkey was credited with the early development of QB Matt Ryan. He has coached in assorted capacities in the NFL for 23 years.

It seems clear that interim Vikings offensive coordinator Kevin Stefanski, whose contract ends Tuesday, isn’t returning. That, by the way, looks like Stefanski’s choice, not the team’s.

It’s noteworthy that Vikings coach Mike Zimmer, 62, who has just one year left on his contract, meaning he enters next season as a lame duck, hasn’t received an extension, and that insecurity won’t help in retaining assistants.

Every year about this time, hall of fame Super Bowl-winning coach Tony Dungy, 63, receives inquiries from NFL teams about whether he would be interested in returning to coaching. And the ex-Gophers QB, who is a NFL analyst for NBC Sports, says no thanks.

Ex-Vikings coaches turning 92 this year: Jerry Burns on Jan. 24, Bud Grant on May 20.

The way it looks now, the Vikings, who finished 8-7-1 this season, will be projected at 8-8 next season and a non-playoff team for a second straight season.

The Bears bounced the Vikings out of the playoffs in Minneapolis despite star linebacker Khalil Mack not getting a single tackle.

It’s still unlikely the Vikings will have running back Latavius Murray back. Wideout and draft bust Laquon Treadwell likely will be gone, and tight end Kyle Rudolph and defensive end Everson Griffen probably will have to take pay cuts to return.

It still looks like linebacker Anthony Barr will get more money elsewhere as a free agent than the Vikings can afford, or are willing to pay. In a game when he should have been showcasing himself for the open market, Barr’s performance against the Bears last Sunday was “simply disastrous,” profootballfocus.com points out. He finished without a tackle and missed the only tackle he attempted.

Eric Wilson could be Barr’s replacement.

The Vikings will have the No. 18 pick in April’s NFL draft. Best chance for an offensive lineman at that juncture is 6-foot-4, 337-pound tackle Cody Ford from Oklahoma. The Vikings probably will have to use their two top picks on offensive linemen.

As for free agency, salary cap whiz Rob Brzezinski has the challenge of his 26-year NFL career finding money to spend.

The Gophers’ Friday evening men’s hockey game at Notre Dame will be televised on NBC.

Ten of the 12 NFL teams in the playoffs have head coaches who emphasize offense. The other two are New England’s Bill Belichick and Seattle’s Pete Carroll. The NFL has become an offensive-minded league.

Twins third baseman Miguel Sano, 25, is down nearly 30 pounds — he finished last season at 297 — and this week will move to the Twins’ spring training base in Fort Myers, Fla., from his home in the Dominican Republic to continue workouts. Last year, Sano batted .199 in 71 games with 115 strikeouts.

The Twins have monitored Sano since the end of last season via video, and club trainers have made visits to the Dominican. The Twins also receive regular reports from international scout Fred Guerrero, who is overseeing Sano.

Meanwhile, Twins center fielder Byron Buxton, also 25, whose affection for sliders in the dirt last season resulted in a .156 batting average in 28 games, is fully healthy and eager to begin spring training.

Thursday’s 59-52 Gophers men’s basketball victory at Wisconsin should be worth a top-25 ranking this week, maybe up to No. 23. Minnesota (12-2) probably needs eight more Big Ten wins for an NCAA tournament berth.

The Big Ten should get at least six teams into the tournament, although last season just four were selected. Omitted was Nebraska despite 13 conference victories.

The Gophers clearly were a better team than Wisconsin, which entered the game No. 22 nationally ranked by the Associated Press. Minnesota will be favored in its next three games against Maryland, Rutgers and Illinois.

Rick Rickert, the 2001 Mr. Minnesota Basketball from Duluth East and former Gophers standout, will be home to have his No. 44 high school jersey retired on Feb. 9 at his alma mater.

Rickert, 35, who has a degree in nutrition communication and has played professionally all over the world, including seven seasons in Japan, lives in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, but is considering a full-time return to Minnesota pursuant on career opportunities.

Minnesota Mr. Football 2017 Antonio Montero from Eden Prairie as a freshman linebacker for Rice University this season started seven of the last nine games, finishing with 34 tackles.

Besides getting a commitment from Bryson DeChambeau to play in the inaugural 3M Open PGA Tour tournament July 4-7 at the TPC in Blaine, Hollis Cavner, who oversees a $20 million budget for the event, has U.S. Ryder Cup player Patrick Reed among early entrants.

Winner’s check is expected to be in the $1.3 million range.

Cavner said sales for the tournament “are going great. We’re killing it. With the Zac Brown (Band) playing (a concert on July 5 at the National Sports Center), it’s off the charts.”

Jashon Cornell, the 6-3, 273-pound junior defensive end from Cretin-Derham Hall, had a sack and two tackles for Ohio State in its 28-23 Rose Bowl victory over Washington.

Mike Scanlan, who coached Cornell at CDH, watched him on TV against Washington.

“I was very happy for him — to even get on the field at that level, especially at Ohio State, on national TV in the Rose Bowl, that says a lot,” Scanlan said. “People don’t have an appreciation for how good you’ve got to be average in a program like that. I heard he’s already picked up enough credits to graduate and is going to graduate school now.”

Scanlan, 67, retired three years ago after 26 years of coaching at his alma mater.

“It’s surprising how busy you can stay doing nothing,” he said.

New Twins manager Rocco Baldelli speaks at a Dunkers breakfast on Jan. 25 at the Minneapolis Club.

Former Stillwater Country Club golf professional Mike Tracy, who underwent brain surgery after an accident two years ago, continues to make slow but steady progress in recovery.

Steve Winfield presents local baseball writer-photographer Gordy Jones with an Old Timers award at the Original Hot Stove banquet on Jan. 17 at Jimmy’s Event Center in Vadnais Heights. Head table includes Jack Morris, Cory Provus, Tom Kelly, Trevor Hildenberger, Stephen Gonsalves, Dave St. Peter, Derek Falvey, Jerry Bell, Jim Rantz, Tim Tschida, John Anderson, Winfield and Carl Renalls. For tickets: 651-379-2325.

J.P. Macura, the 6-5 shooting guard and former Lakeville North basketball star, last week was called up to the NBA’s Charlotte Hornets from G-League Greensboro, where he was averaging 15.1 points.

University of St. Thomas grad Todd Bell will be the new WCHA marketing and communications manager, replacing Matt Hodson, who left to work for the Minnesota Twins.

Ex-Wolves coach Eric Musselman, whose Nevada team remains undefeated, and ex-Wolves executive Fred Hoiberg, fired by the Chicago Bulls, are among names getting mentioned for the UCLA job that became available the other day with the firing of Steve Alford.

The Twin Cities finished third among 30 NFL metered markets for NBC “Sunday Night Football” viewing, averaging 19.3 viewers for its telecasts this season, according to Nielsen ratings.

The Vikings’ epic loss to the Eagles in the NFC championship game one year ago was the third- most viewed TV show in 2018 behind only the Super Bowl and the Super Bowl postgame, attracting nearly 43 million viewers.

It’s a 10-under-par 59 shot by Jeff Sorenson last week at Casselberry (Fla.) Golf Club, the Minikahda Country Club professional’s 10th course record.

Karl-Anthony Towns, Andrew Wiggins, Wally Szczerbiak, Kevin Garnett, Kevin Love, Christian Laettner and Ricky Rubio represent Timberwolves franchise history in a new collection of Panini America-Beckett Media trading cards.

DON’T PRINT THAT

Pssst: A little birdie says Mike McCarthy, fired by the Packers, already has turned down an Arizona Cardinals offer to be GM-coach.

Vikings interim offensive coordinator Kevin Stefanski interviewed for the Browns’ head coaching job last week. Unfortunately, a lot of teams just use these interviews to pick brains of candidates to benefit themselves without being serious about hiring them.

Except for Pat Elflein, who did not have a good year, and Brian O’Neill, the Vikings’ leaky offensive line is subject to change next season.

Elflein? In the 24-10 season-ending loss to the Bears, the 6-3, 295-pound center allowed six pressures, according to profootballfocus.com, and the line gave up an NFL-worst 23 pressures. Quarterback Kirk Cousins “faced pressure on an overwhelming 55.3 percent of his dropbacks,” it said.

Average ticket price for Sunday’s Timberwolves-Lakers game in Minneapolis is $222. That’s 43 percent more than the season average, according to TickPick, but dropped from $274 because of the groin injury to L.A.’s LeBron James that will keep him out of the lineup.

New University of Minnesota President Joan Gabel will get a first-year salary of $640,000. Football coach P.J. Fleck just received a contract extension for $3.55 million annually.

There’s no doubt that John DeFilippo, 40, the offensive coordinator Mike Zimmer fired three weeks ago, will be back in the NFL next season, if not as an offensive coordinator as a QB coach rebuilding his resume.

Looks like either the Nationals or Brewers for free-agent ex-Twins second baseman Brian Dozier, who turns 32 in May, but with just a one-year deal in the $5 million range.

Wishing the best for former Gophers men’s basketball assistant Jimmy Williams, who is struggling with early stage Parkinson’s disease while living in Tampa, Fla.

Chris Weinke, the 2000 Heisman Trophy winner at Florida State from St. Paul, returns to coach running backs at Tennessee.

Victory No. 13 for the Gophers women’s basketball team should come Sunday afternoon against Illinois at Williams Arena. The Illini have lost 29 straight Big Ten games.

Tickets for the Big Ten women’s basketball tournament in Indianapolis March 6-10 are $55. They increase to $75 on Feb. 1.

The Wild now have 33-to-1 odds to win the Stanley Cup, according to BetOnLine.

Some 100 Gophers men’s hockey alumni gathered at Mariucci Arena recently to show support for new coach Bob Motzko. Meanwhile, the Gophers’ greatest hockey alumnus, Johnny Mayasich, 85, from Eveleth was among former players at St. Mary’s Point Ice Arena in Lakeland for the 50th anniversary of the opening of a Hubbard-financed arena.

With the signing of Nelson Cruz, mlb.com projects at least a wild-card finish for the Twins this year should Cruz, Eddie Rosario, Max Kepler and Miguel Sano each hit 30 home runs. Last season, Cruz hit 37 homers, Rosario 24, Kepler 20 and Sano 13.

For the NCAA Final Four men’s basketball tournament, which culminates April 6-8 in Minneapolis, upper-deck tickets at U.S. Bank Stadium have been available for $169 on vividseats.com; lower- level front-row seats started at $2,438. The stadium will seat 70,000.

St. Paul’s Julian Loscalzo’s Ballpark Tours is working on another baseball tour of Cuba.

Some drivers on Interstate 94 passing by new Allianz Field in St. Paul while it was testing bright lights in wee hours joked that their initial impression was that aliens had landed in a giant flying saucer.

The Wild paid an $80 million NHL expansion fee in 2000. Seattle’s expansion fee is expected to be $650 million.

Plans are for WCCO-AM’s Dave Lee and Eric Nelson to return to call University of St. Thomas football games next season.

For $5 billion, you could buy 11 NHL teams if they were for sale, according to new franchise assessments by Forbes, which values the Wild at $490 million.

OVERHEARD

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Putting odds on which Vikings free agents are likely to return

By Matthew Coller

The have plenty of time before the beginning of free agency to make important decisions on players who are not under contract for next season. A number of factors will play into whether top free agents come back, including whether the team can restructure contracts and create more cap space.

With that said, let’s have a look at the chances that each one of the Vikings’ free agents ends up in purple next season…

Defensive tackle, Sheldon Richardson

Odds: 50-50

The Vikings signed Richardson to a one-year, $8 million contract last offseason, giving the veteran defensive tackle an opportunity to earn a long-term deal. He largely performed up to snuff, ranking 14th among defensive tackles in QB pressures. As far as a tandem player with Linval Joseph goes, Richardson turned out to be a quality partner for the star nose tackle. Both played a significant role in Mike Zimmer’s defense ranking in the top five in yards allowed. Whether the Vikings can bring him back rests on his price tag. Top three-technique DTs can make in the range of $13-$15 million per season, which might be too rich for the Vikings, but it would be a surprise if they weren’t in the mix for his services going forward.

Linebacker, Anthony Barr

Odds: 50-50

While the Vikings rarely use the franchise tag, Barr might be the case in which they go that route. He was the lone player set to become a 2019 free agent that did not sign a contract extension last offseason. Eric Kendricks, Stefon Diggs and Danielle Hunter all agreed to long-term deals. Barr is a different situation from the others because he has indicated he would like to be more of a pure pass rusher. That has only occasionally been his role under Zimmer. If he is set on looking for greener pastures, the Vikings will have to either tag him for somewhere in the range of $12 million or let him walk. Zimmer has made it clear that he wants Barr around and the team found a way to work around his fifth-year option in that price range in 2018, so they could do it again with the tag. The least likely scenario appears to be that he signs a long- term deal for more than $12 million per year. That would be a high price for a player at his position and possibly put the team in a cap bind down the road.

Running back, Latavius Murray

Odds: Medium low

Over the last two seasons, Murray has admirably filled the starting running back role when Dalvin Cook suffered injuries. He played all 16 games each year and finished with an average of 710 yards and seven per year. The 2015 Pro Bowler also was one of the NFL’s best pass protecting running backs. Murray expressed interest in returning to the Vikings on locker cleanout day, but also added that he wants to be a starter. While the team needs a backup plan for Cook, they might not have $3-$5 million to pay Murray like another club might. The Vikings’ two promising young running backs Mike Boone and Roc Thomas could be in line to spell Cook next year.

Guard, Nick Easton

Odds: High

If the Vikings want to get back to using zone runs and screens, they will want Easton back, assuming he is healthy enough to get back to starting. Easton’s quickness was used as an asset by Pat Shurmur in 2017, getting him to the second level in runs and pulling on screens. With needs at both guard positions, Easton could take up one of the starting spots or compete with a draft pick for a spot.

Kicker, Dan Bailey

Odds: Medium low

The Vikings repeatedly talked about their belief in Bailey because of his impressive history, but he has only made 75 percent of his kicks for two straight seasons. They would have to be certain the former Cowboy was ready to bounce back — and there are no certainties when it comes to kicking. It would be a surprise if they drafted a kicker again after cutting Daniel Carlson in Week 2.

Punt returner, Marcus Sherels

Odds: High

Each year, we project the Vikings to part ways with Sherels and each year he proves exactly why they have kept him around so long. He averaged 12.0 yards per punt return this year and played in a pinch as a cornerback against the Patriots. Sherels’ remarkable reliability is tough to find.

Defensive tackle, Tom Johnson

Odds: Low

Johnson did exactly what he’s done for so long: Pressure the QB when called upon. After re-joining the team, he produced 23 pressures on 222 pass rush snaps, a very similar rate as in the past. As a situational pass rusher, Johnson would still make sense for the 2019 roster, but the Vikings may be hoping that fourth-round pick Jalyn Holmes will step into that role next season.

Safety, George Iloka

Odds: Extremely low

When the Vikings signed Iloka, it appeared they would be able to create some unique personnel packages on defense using the former Bengal. Instead Anthony Harris ended up starting when went down and Iloka played just 117 snaps. He will likely be looking this offseason for a starting job elsewhere.

Wide receiver, Aldrick Robinson

Odds: 50-50

While Robinson also joined the team late, he found instant chemistry with Cousins. The two had played together in Washington and it appeared Cousins trusted his veteran receiver. Robinson caught 17 passes for 231 yards and five touchdowns. It wouldn’t be a surprise if Cousins campaigned for Robinson to return as a deep threat.

Quarterback, Trevor Siemian

Odds: 50-50

As far as backup quarterbacks go, Siemian is on the top end. Having made the NFC title game with a backup in 2017, the Vikings should make an effort to keep a QB whose career record is 13-11.

Center, Brett Jones

Odds: Medium low

Jones joined the Vikings in a trade from the Giants and acted as a stopgap early in the season. He is known as a very bright player who could still add to the depth of the O-line. It is probable, however, that they will look for upgrades across the board on the line.

Running back, Ameer Abdullah

Odds: Medium low

The Vikings signed Abdullah after he was let go by the Lions. As a running back with special teams and receiving ability, the Vikings may attempt to make him Cook’s backup if they aren’t fully sold on Boone and Thomas.